OK, I have a Barred Plymouth Rock hen that RANDOMLY started having her feet balloon up. I looked all over her foot for the "tell-tale" scab for bumblefoot but found nothing. I gave her some antibiotic injections to help.
I came back this weekend and her feet are even larger. I decided I couldn't wait any longer. I opened one up, like I normally do for bumblefoot and found something I have NEVER seen before. Please forgive my description, it is awful.
It looked like Ricotta cheese instead of healthy tissue. When I pushed, the Ricotta-cheese mixture mixed with blood and made a type of parmesean x spaghetti sauce mixture looking thing. It was gross. I can handle alot, but this was just...BLECK. I got out as much as I could. There was no kernel or "core". Her entire foot looks infected. I gave a 1cc injection of antibiotic into the foot.
On the other foot I took a different approach and gently stabbed the foot in several different places and pushed. The Ricotta mixture came out of the holes. Again, I could not get all of it out. I drained and drained and drained for 2 hours. After I got out as much as I could, I again injected 1 cc of antibiotic into the foot. I bandaged both feet to protect them from dirt and bacteria. She is now in isolation in the "chick pen" where she won't have to move much at all.
There was no smell to the feet. The feet were tight and red. The oddest thing I found was that the infection was not localized to one area. It ranged from the pad to the "ankle" and into toes. There was no clear liquid. The stuff that came out was completely white. No yellow tinge at all. There WAS a small piece of black stuff that came out at the end of the draining and that part of her foot stopped draining the ricotta cheese.
The rest of the foot did not give me any black portions. When the swelling goes down a bit in the next week, I will see if I can't open it up and try to fix whatever I can.
In the meantime, ANY ideas are appreciated. No scab or injuries were found on her legs or feet. There was bruising near the shank. None of the other birds show anything like this.
I came back this weekend and her feet are even larger. I decided I couldn't wait any longer. I opened one up, like I normally do for bumblefoot and found something I have NEVER seen before. Please forgive my description, it is awful.
It looked like Ricotta cheese instead of healthy tissue. When I pushed, the Ricotta-cheese mixture mixed with blood and made a type of parmesean x spaghetti sauce mixture looking thing. It was gross. I can handle alot, but this was just...BLECK. I got out as much as I could. There was no kernel or "core". Her entire foot looks infected. I gave a 1cc injection of antibiotic into the foot.
On the other foot I took a different approach and gently stabbed the foot in several different places and pushed. The Ricotta mixture came out of the holes. Again, I could not get all of it out. I drained and drained and drained for 2 hours. After I got out as much as I could, I again injected 1 cc of antibiotic into the foot. I bandaged both feet to protect them from dirt and bacteria. She is now in isolation in the "chick pen" where she won't have to move much at all.
There was no smell to the feet. The feet were tight and red. The oddest thing I found was that the infection was not localized to one area. It ranged from the pad to the "ankle" and into toes. There was no clear liquid. The stuff that came out was completely white. No yellow tinge at all. There WAS a small piece of black stuff that came out at the end of the draining and that part of her foot stopped draining the ricotta cheese.
The rest of the foot did not give me any black portions. When the swelling goes down a bit in the next week, I will see if I can't open it up and try to fix whatever I can.
In the meantime, ANY ideas are appreciated. No scab or injuries were found on her legs or feet. There was bruising near the shank. None of the other birds show anything like this.
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