Help little rooster banty has loose toenail.

[Kandees Clucks]

I have banty rooster with loose toenail toe looks somewhat red & swollen. He does move around during day but spends lot of time stading on one foot.just noticed last night toenail is basically hanging there. Should I let it fall off on its own or remove it. What has caused this & what do & how to treat. Any suggestions?? Sorry I don't have photo. But can get one tonight when goes to roost.

 

[azygous]

As chickens grow older, they are apt to lose a toe nail or two along the way. It can bleed when it comes off, but this is not a serious injury.

What you do want to do, though, is to spare the chicken suffering the acute pain of a dangling nail. If you've ever had a hang nail, you know how much a torn nail can hurt.

Take your little guy and wrap him securely in a towel to confine wings and feet, leaving the one foot slightly exposed. Have sharp scissors ready to snip the hanging nail off. If you have any wound spray like Vetericyn, give it a good spray. Or just wash it with soap and warm water and apply direct pressure for a few minutes with a clean rag until the bleeding stops. The toe will stop hurting and then heal quickly.

 

[Kandees Clucks]

Thank you for your reply. My rooster is a year old. He has SLM on both legs & feet which I have been treating & both legs & feet are almost clear he was walking much better then he was holding foot up again. Last night noticed very loose toenail. Put Vermont original bag balm on it and noticed toenail was gone. Will soak it tonight & spray with vetermycin spray. Hopefully has no infection. Do they grow back

 

[azygous]

No, nails will not grow back once the entire nail detaches from the nail bed. But they can get along okay without a few. I had a Light Brahma hen who lived to age fourteen. By the time she died, she had lost all of her toenails. It never seemed to hamper her existence.

 

[Kandees Clucks]

I brought him in tonight and soaked foot in warm Epsom water for 2 minutes. Rinsed it dried good then sprayed with Banix fungal spray let it dry. Then stayed with vetericyn poultry care wound spray twice let dry then put small amount of Vermont bag balm on it. Put him back on roost for night. Hopefully will be better ,less painful in morning. Also noticed he had list toenail on other foot but it has healed

 

[azygous]

I mentioned the old hen that had lost all her toe nails over her lifetime. The main reason she lost the nails was due to landing heavily on the floor after coming off a roost that was a bit too high for her. I finally figured out the problem and made a low perch for her.

You might make it a point to observe your little roo to see how he might be breaking his nails. If his perch is too high and the floor has inadequate bedding to cushion his dismount, he could be looking at worse injuries than just an occasional broken nail. Bumblefoot and leg sprains are a couple. He can also injure himself if his perch is too high to get on in an easy jump. High perches can cause a chicken to miss and hit the perch with the front of their legs and feet.

I am calling your attention to these risks because I've experienced every single one of the above injuries due to perches that were not at appropriate heights and inadequate bedding. Your learning curve doesn't need to be as long and steep as mine.

 

[Kandees Clucks]

OK thank you so much for your suggestion. I appreciate your advise