Help!! Both legs and feet swollen!!

[krissyweso]

Both of my 6 month old dark brahma's feet and legs are swollen and red, and I don't know why. She is acting normal. She recently had a belly problem that I treated with antibiotics, and she's since been fine. I looked for mites, and I don't see any. She's not itching or picking at them. It didn't look like bumblefoot. I'm just confused.

Help!! What's going on?

 

[krissyweso]

Any ideas or help would be greatly appreciated. I can't find ANYTHING.

 

[coach723]

Try applying some coconut oil daily and working it into the scales with a soft toothbrush. Then cover that with vaseline (don't worry if dirt sticks to it). Sometimes birds with feathered legs and feet can have irritated skin around the feather follicles. It can also be harder to tell in the earlier stages of scaly leg mites, so that will also treat that if it's an issue. The leg mites are microscopic and burrow into the skin, so you won't see them. I don't really think that's what's going on, but either way the oiling will help. If it's just irritation the coconut oil will help soothe and if it's mites the oil and vaseline will suffocate them. Is she limping or favoring them at all?

 

[Aunt Angus]

Try applying some coconut oil daily and working it into the scales with a soft toothbrush. Then cover that with vaseline (don't worry if dirt sticks to it). Sometimes birds with feathered legs and feet can have irritated skin around the feather follicles. It can also be harder to tell in the earlier stages of scaly leg mites, so that will also treat that if it's an issue. The leg mites are microscopic and burrow into the skin, so you won't see them. I don't really think that's what's going on, but either way the oiling will help. If it's just irritation the coconut oil will help soothe and if it's mites the oil and vaseline will suffocate them. Is she limping or favoring them at all?

My Cochin's feet get just horribly red and swollen sometimes, especially during a molt. I do something similar to what @coach723 suggests, but I use A+D ointment because that's what I have. Same idea, though. I've also tried antibiotic ointment and epsom soaks. I've not found anything that is a miraculous fix.

You might look in those feathers and see if there are new ones pushing in.

 

[krissyweso]

Try applying some coconut oil daily and working it into the scales with a soft toothbrush. Then cover that with vaseline (don't worry if dirt sticks to it). Sometimes birds with feathered legs and feet can have irritated skin around the feather follicles. It can also be harder to tell in the earlier stages of scaly leg mites, so that will also treat that if it's an issue. The leg mites are microscopic and burrow into the skin, so you won't see them. I don't really think that's what's going on, but either way the oiling will help. If it's just irritation the coconut oil will help soothe and if it's mites the oil and vaseline will suffocate them. Is she limping or favoring them at all?

She's not running and jumping as much as the rest of her cohort, but, no... Not really. I only noticed the issue because I picked her up this morning and was hugging her and noticed her legs looked funny.

Thank you so much for the insight!!!!

 

[krissyweso]

My Cochin's feet get just horribly red and swollen sometimes, especially during a molt. I do something similar to what @coach723 suggests, but I use A+D ointment because that's what I have. Same idea, though. I've also tried antibiotic ointment and epsom soaks. I've not found anything that is a miraculous fix.

You might look in those feathers and see if there are new ones pushing in.

Good to know. I just thought it was odd because it's both of her legs, you know?

 

[Aunt Angus]

She's not running and jumping as much as the rest of her cohort, but, no... Not really. I only noticed the issue because I picked her up this morning and was hugging her and noticed her legs looked funny.

Thank you so much for the insight!!!!

Poor biddy... I feel bad for them, honestly. Foot feathers seem more trouble than they're worth.

 

[Itisleah]

Any chance it could be a bite? This happened to one of my silkies a while back come to find out she had been bitten by a spider.

 

[coach723]

I've had 4 or 5 feather footed birds, have 3 right now. I had one that had constant issues with the feathers on the legs, they would get very irritated, would break and bleed, the legs were always irritated looking, it was multiplied during molt. I started using coconut oil to soothe and when new feathers were coming in I would wrap the legs with co wrap, just tight enough to stay on and protect the feathers, it did seem to help. Just wrap the feathers so they lay as they grow, and only just tight enough to stay on. My others occasionally have issues at molt but are not nearly as bad as the one was. It may have a genetic factor, some birds seem to have no problems, some do.

 

[krissyweso]

Any chance it could be a bite? This happened to one of my silkies a while back come to find out she had been bitten by a spider.

Did both of her legs swell from one bite?