Duck foot injury

[570446]

Hi there!

My nephew and I went to heard in the ducks for the night and I noticed my male Pekin had blood in his feathers. We scooped him up and went inside to find that he had a hole in his foot! There's no known metal or nails in the area that I know of, so I don't know how his injury came about. We cleaned the wound with water and neosporin but I'd like to know if I can do anything further? There is no poultry vet in our area.

 

[Bird_Lover_17]

Oh no! Hopefully it will heal up

I can't provide any advice, although here are so individuals that may be able to help
@Isaac 0 @azygous

 

[Isaac 0]

The hole is quite minor, and In my experience web injuries tend to clot, and heal pretty well. It probably would be fine without any bandaging, but it may be good to apply an antibacterial ointment to the area, wrap gauze around the foot, and bandage, just since the area is in contact with the ground. In a day or two, the area should be clotted/scabbed enough, that it can be taken off.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/wrapping-feet.1255043/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/duck-feet-bandages.1424682/

 

[azygous]

Since you do not know exactly what did the injury, wound treatment should assume a high amount of bacteria deep in the wound. This can occur when tissue is torn and mangled by ferrous material. That means if the metal has iron content, it has an affinity to bacteria. Deep soaks in Epsom salt and Betadine would be a good idea for the first few days. Twice a day soaks would be best if you can spend the time.

After soaking, use the Neosporin and Vetericyn. During the day, when you can, give it a spray of the Vetericyn. It's great stuff that encourages new tissue growth. It helps speed up healing.

 

[570446]

Thank you both! I will try the Epsom salt bath tomorrow. I bandaged him up for the night