Frostbite on both legs! Help!

[silky smooth]

Is there anything else I should be doing? My boyfriend has lost hope and thinks I should cull her but I don't think that's necassary yet. I wouldn't feel very comfortable amputating but I suppose I would try if it was her last hope.

I will be more aggressive with antibiotic ointment. Is that what antibiotic you're talking about?

The damage was very extensive. I dont know what you are using, for ointment, but you need to get two things for the future. a tube of polymyxin-B sulfate bacitracin zinc. mix 50/50 with nitrofurazone. and betadine solution. if infection is present the betadine will make it smell putrid ( that's a good thing. to help you pinpoint the location. i forgot this and that's why i freaked you saw my post. something someone said sparked the knowledge, though nothing they said had anything to do with it.) thaw feet SLOWLY. simply being in a room that is 70* f, should be enough. you will know in about 1 hour. if it's not enough, switch to warming with body heat from your lap. throw a towel over like you are a nursing mom. this will help trap heat against the bird. remember when they start warming up it will be super painful, just like your hands or face coming in from the cold. once they are thoroughly warm they will regain motor function, some if not all. DO NOT turn out your bird with other birds until they are in optimum health that includes proper weight, and feather luster. there is more to this, but i have to go tend my animals. its feedup time.

 

[silky smooth]

if this ever happens again:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/961512/frostbite-with-or-without-infection-step-by-step

 

[lauranickerson]

So these pictures are from last night (sorry my boyfriend isn't a great photographer but didn't want to hold her). I've been putting castor oil on every few days. This swelling on the hocks has been getting bigger. I have no idea why because it still seems to be alive below that point on the leg. It does appear that her whole left foot is going to fall off, though.

She seems to be standing up a little more lately, too.

Also, I see Tractor Supply has refrigerated penicillin. Would that help her at all? I haven't asked about the other antibiotics that I believe were mentioned earlier in this thread.

 

[silky smooth]

Day three of treatment, I felt like I was failing him. two weeks five days ago, I lost confidence in myself. I lost confidence in my ability. I lost confidence , and panic set in. The situation was getting much worse by the hour. all the time I was working on him, he never lost faith in me. but that didn't matter, I had lost faith in myself. I turned to BYC for help. The help I was looking for, didn't come in the form I thought it would. at the time, I was hoping someone would take the reins, and tell me what to do. hoping someone would tell me something new. something I hadn't tried. Then someone suggested something that, in my heart, I knew was the wrong course. knowing , if I had to take that step, it was a last ditch effort, that would ultimately end in failure. All my confidence came rushing back. I knew what I was doing was the only course to take, and that it would work. When my hands were tired and shaking, or my heart hurt from the looking of his foot, he would coo to me. little churrups and peeps. he would poke his head out of the towel and look at me. as if to say. you got this, don't quit. I trust you. The entire time I worked on him he never gave up on me. he rewarded me on day six by belting out a crow that came up from his heart. He knew I was going to save him. He knew I was going to save his foot. which is pretty incredible since I had to skin his leg from the spur down, stopping at the nails, during the three surgeries. chasing the infection.

This morning:


When I called him in to be checked he brought all his girls up to the house with him. here they are waiting patiently. ( please pardon the dog nose art. I wash the slider two times a week, and five minute later it looks like this.)

I opened the door for him, he churruped to his girls to say what I could only image was "stay put. I have to get my foot checked, and I will be right back out." He ran through the house, said hi to the dog, and hopped up onto the counter. before I had a towel in place.


I grabbed a towel, and my camera. I was delighted to find that he is healing so much better than I would have ever thought.
here is an updated photo of his injury.


as you can see the infection is gone. his foot is healing rapidly. the other exterior layer of flesh is peeling back on it's own to reveal a brand new foot. (there is a healing open wound under that skin that I treated with avian cut'n'heal after the photo). Before you ask, yes he is able to move his toes. Just minor small adjustments, at this point. Over several days, he has managed to tuck his pinky toe almost into line with the others. I have no doubt that he will regain most if not all mobility and function of his foot. especially since I was able to maintain the integrity of his tendons.
his thumb toe has remained and it too is returning to a normal healthy pink.

tonight:

these are his feet tonight. i woke him just for these photos.
please ignore the mud, and grime. he was foraging with his girls today.
he will get a bath and ointment in the morning.

he lost that toenail striking my metal laundry line post, in a fight with my silky roo.
see the bulging? it's healing.




his left foot is healing at a faster rate than his right though.
i am having trouble keeping a healthy leading edge
with his pointer finger on his left foot. a good sign that he and i are winning this war,
he has blood to the nails.
before:

this is his left foot. this is what it looked like almost in the beginning.
after a few washes, and antibiotic treatments.
this was just before the last surgery.
when i skinned his legs up to the bottom of his spurs.



the shine you see on his right foot is infection throughout all the flesh.

 

[justplainbatty]

@silky smooth That is a stellar article! If my birds ever get frostbitten feet, I know where to look for help! My roosters do have frostbitten combs. This year, all the ventilation, vasaline and triple A in the world, did no good. They walked on ice and snow all winter, feet are fine. One rooster was smart enough to tuck like a hen so his comb is not so bad. I'm watching them but it looks as though the frostbite is self limiting and some of the black parts look like they will fall off on there own. No one is smelly, sick, blistered or deterred from daily activities.
@lauranickerson you should be giving your bird some kind of internal antibiotic like penicillin. The swelling in the hocks is probably inflammation, the bird's own anti bodies and fighting forces are trying like hell to counteract infection! If this happened to you, you would be in hospital on aggressive antibiotic treatment! Do the same for your feathered friend, please! We are here for you and will support you any way we can!

 

[lauranickerson]

@silky smooth That is a stellar article! If my birds ever get frostbitten feet, I know where to look for help! My roosters do have frostbitten combs. This year, all the ventilation, vasaline and triple A in the world, did no good. They walked on ice and snow all winter, feet are fine. One rooster was smart enough to tuck like a hen so his comb is not so bad. I'm watching them but it looks as though the frostbite is self limiting and some of the black parts look like they will fall off on there own. No one is smelly, sick, blistered or deterred from daily activities.
@lauranickerson you should be giving your bird some kind of internal antibiotic like penicillin. The swelling in the hocks is probably inflammation, the bird's own anti bodies and fighting forces are trying like hell to counteract infection! If this happened to you, you would be in hospital on aggressive antibiotic treatment! Do the same for your feathered friend, please! We are here for you and will support you any way we can!

If I buy the vile of penicillin that Tractor Supply has, then use a syringe and needle, would that be considered an internal antibiotic? Or are you referring to her ingesting it? Also, There were two types of penicillin there. I don't remember the difference now because it's been a couple weeks, but I could sure use some more info on penicillin. I have no idea how much or whatever (it could be on the bottle, but I don't have it in front of me).

 

[silky smooth]

If I buy the vile of penicillin that Tractor Supply has, then use a syringe and needle, would that be considered an internal antibiotic? Or are you referring to her ingesting it? Also, There were two types of penicillin there. I don't remember the difference now because it's been a couple weeks, but I could sure use some more info on penicillin. I have no idea how much or whatever (it could be on the bottle, but I don't have it in front of me).

hang in there i will get you some photos

 

[justplainbatty]

If I buy the vile of penicillin that Tractor Supply has, then use a syringe and needle, would that be considered an internal antibiotic? Or are you referring to her ingesting it? Also, There were two types of penicillin there. I don't remember the difference now because it's been a couple weeks, but I could sure use some more info on penicillin. I have no idea how much or whatever (it could be on the bottle, but I don't have it in front of me).

Yes, injectable penicillin is an internal antibiotic. you give it in the muscle tissue of the breast. Switch sides every day. You will need at least 7 needles, one for each injection/day. Silky Smooth is gonna show you what to look for. You need a whole bunch of things. Her article in post# 47 lists the supplies you need and what to do. you're basically getting a crash course in veterinary schooling. We all do, few vets will bother with chickens so we learn to do things ourselves. There is so much support on this site, take advantage of it in any way you need.

 

[silky smooth]

get the penicillin inj. solution at TSC. prices differ by state.




i purchase the luer lok syringes at walmart. I use these syringes because the measures are much smaller.
and easier to use one handed.
with the luer or sure lock system the needle won't separate from the syringe if the needle clogs.

I purchase these for the needles.

I purchase 12 of the 1 mil and 12 of the 3 mil with needle.

 

[lauranickerson]

I just gave her the first shot of penicillin. Definitely not an enjoyable feeling. I felt like I was doing to wrong because her muscle kept twitching when was pushing the injection in. And there was a tiny bit that got in-between the muscle and the thin skin (I could see it). There was no blood.

Hopefully I did alright, and that she will get better soon.