Chicken with missing toe and infected foot - should I remove dead tissue? *graphic photo*

[Chickeneering]

Hi you all, I was just up with my chickens today and noticed that my former alpha hen was limping (I've noticed the past few weeks that a different hen had become #1, so this explains why). I picked her up and saw that one of her toes is totally gone, and where it would have attached to the foot was encrusted with poop (reminded me of bumblefoot, but way more extensive and not localized in a plug). I soaked her foot in epsom salts, removed as much poop and easily-detached dead tissue as I could, until it started bleeding and was relatively clean. It smells slightly, but not like a bad infection. I applied bacitracin, a bandage, and vet wrap + duct tape to hold it on, but I'm wondering how to proceed with treatment. I don't know of a vet here that really sees chickens, so I'm probably going to have to handle it myself. Does it seem survivable?

She's a 3-year-old bantam cochin, very spunky (my most obnoxious chicken, actually) and was laying and singing the egg-song loudly this morning. I assume she was eating and drinking, but wasn't watching closely. I've noticed she seemed a little pale lately, but didn't see her limping before today. I also noticed after picking her up that the front 6th of her breastbone seems to be in two pieces or detached from the rest of it--I can move it from side to side and she reacts as she would have if I had pressed on her crop, but does not seem overly distressed. I considered that the best option might be to put her down, if I can't control the infection, but she seems very lively and I think she might fight through it.

I do have a rat issue in my coop at night, so perhaps one of them took the toe and then it became subsequently infected? Less likely might have been a mongoose, since we have those in the area, they are fond of chickens, and I let my birds free-range during the day, even while I'm at work, so something might have happened while I was gone. Or, I have sometimes seen that my bantams will get poop on a toenail which can advance up the foot if not caught early, but that is more with those who refuse to use perches. Some of my birds choose to sleep on top of the nesting boxes and can pick up poop that way, so that's one possibility.

Any ideas or advice would be much-appreciated! I've dealt with bumblefoot and such, but never anything like this. (Please disregard the bloody toenail--I noticed it was long and accidentally cut it too short). There is a layer of dead tissue inside the foot--should I remove this or hope it goes away on its own as I attempt to treat the infected tissue?

 

[Eggcessive]

I would suspect a rat possibly. I would clean the wound twice a day with Chlorhexidene 2% or Betadine 10%, and apply plain Neosporin ointment twice a day. Leave it open. Cage her with food and water if necessary.

 

[Chickeneering]

Thanks for the suggestion! Would I find those things at the drug store or the feed store?

 

[Weeg]

Thanks for the suggestion! Would I find those things at the drug store or the feed store?

I'd check your feed store. Drug store might have Betadine, but I believe Chlorhexidene is better?

 

[Eggcessive]

Both can be found at drug stores and sometimes feed stores. You can also soak the foot in warm Epsom salts water daily to help it heal, but only do that if she is brought inside where it is warm, and kept there until she is dry.

 

[Chickeneering]

I'll look there, thanks.

 

[Chickeneering]

Great, thanks. It's fairly warm outside too, so I might be able to put her in a sunspot to dry.