Hen limping, has severely crooked toes

[TheRookie]

One of my super sweet RIR pullets, Cadbury, had crooked toes as a baby and I was not able to fix them while she was young enough for them to be pliable. She did just fine until today, when I started noticing her limping on her bad foot. I looked at her foot and where the toes are rubbing the ground where they shouldn't be, her foot is red and a little swollen. Can I do anything to help her? Please don't tell me to cull her cause I won't. She is the sweetest girl I have and I will do everything I can to make her comfortable as long as she lives with me.
Thanks, Lenore

 

[CMV]

Get a grip, Lenore. We don't recommend culling for crooked toes.

She probably has bumblefoot started, which happens when birds walk on parts of their feet that they shouldn't be. You are going to need to look for any open wounds or black spots. If you find any, you will need to remove them. Whether that involves soaking them in an antibiotic bath for several days or cutting them out with a scalpel is entirely up to you.

If there are no tell-tale signs of bumblefoot then you are still going to need to institute a foot care regimen on this bird because crooked toes almost always lead to bumblefoot. You will need to take extra special care of this bird's feet. Regular soaks, inspections and dealing with any small worn areas ASAP will need to happen. You may consider applying padding to any areas that are routinely being rubbed raw.

So, after inspecting the foot thoroughly, what did you find?

 

[TheRookie]

Get a grip, Lenore. We don't recommend culling for crooked toes.

She probably has bumblefoot started, which happens when birds walk on parts of their feet that they shouldn't be. You are going to need to look for any open wounds or black spots. If you find any, you will need to remove them. Whether that involves soaking them in an antibiotic bath for several days or cutting them out with a scalpel is entirely up to you.

If there are no tell-tale signs of bumblefoot then you are still going to need to institute a foot care regimen on this bird because crooked toes almost always lead to bumblefoot. You will need to take extra special care of this bird's feet. Regular soaks, inspections and dealing with any small worn areas ASAP will need to happen. You may consider applying padding to any areas that are routinely being rubbed raw.

So, after inspecting the foot thoroughly, what did you find?

Sorry, I have gotten the "cull" response for a lot of stuff that shouldn't have to be culled.

She has a scab on her bad foot, in between her toes on the bottom. Other than that, I see no signs of bumble foot. I also checked all my other birds and they seem okay.

What should I get to soak her feet in? Where can I get antibiotics in case she ever gets bumble foot? How could I apply padding? I have vet wrap left over from my horses injury, would that work?

Thanks, Lenore

 

[seminolewind]

If you need to soak her feet, get some epsom salts and warm water. Vetwrap is good.

 

[CMV]

Bumblefoot doesn't respond very well to antibiotics. If the infection becomes systemic then antibiotics work, but an abscess is a closed pocket of infection that needs to be opened up and removed, or soaked out. Here is a great post about bumblefoot options. It's long, but worth the read:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...for-non-invasive-bumblefoot-cure#post_3725441

I have had a rash of bumblefeet in my yard this year. I opted to surgically remove the bumbles. One foot I had to open up both top and bottom...twice...to get the infection out completely. I also dressed all the feet in a sugar poultice after the surgeries to draw out any infected bits that may have gotten left behind.

Using Vet Wrap for padding is a good idea if you can get it to stick on the foot, which is unlikely. I think you are going to need to get creative. I like slim strips of duct tape in my foot dressings. Try that for padding and see if it will work.

Good luck, Lenore.

 

[TheRookie]

Vet wrap and duct tape, I made a wrap for her foot, we shall see if it will stay on

Thanks for the link, I have been reading through it to see if any solutions will help me