How do i treat my hen's (pekin duck) bumblefoot at home??

[anonymous99]

I noticed a bump on the top of my hen's foot and i think it's bumblefoot. I can't afford to take her to a vet and I'm not sure what to do other than soak her foot in warm water with epsom salt. Please, what do I do if i can't afford a vet? I don't want her to die or lose her foot. I don't have a picture at the moment. What can I do to help her? I'm scared and confused. I've never dealt with bumblefoot before. Even if i could afford a vet, i don't know if there's any that see ducks. I'd rather not perform surgery on her myself bc i don't have the experience for that and I don't feel comfortable doing that. I don't have any special bumblefoot shoes that she could wear bc the shipping would take too long and it would be costly. Does her foot need be wrapped, if so, then what do I wrap it with??

 

[Aunt Angus]

Pekin get this a lot because they are heavy and clumsy. Bumblefoot is usually on the bottom of the foot, but I've seen it elsewhere.

Look for injuries or splinters - anything that would allow infection to get into her foot. Feel for infection: is the foot hot to the touch? Also, is she limping?

Here's what you can try:

1) Soaking in epsom is good!
2) Apply antibiotic ointment to the area
3) Wrap the foot to cushion it
4) Repeat this daily/every other day
5) Be patient. It can take several weeks to heal
6) Look around your duck's environment for causes - my duck was injuring her foot on sharp rocks that I didn't see in the grass. If you don't, she may get it again.
7) Consider feeding foods high in vitamin A. Some research suggests that birds with vitamin A deficiencies are more prone to bumblefoot.

Some folks surgically remove the infection, but I find that is VERY hard to do on a duck and can open them up for more infection. If the infection is near the skin's surface you might be able to get it out successfully, but I avoid cutting on ducks because they are SO MESSY and because

An alternative is to use tricide neo, an antibiotic for pond fish. It's very expensive, but it works.

I would offer more info, but my internet is terrible. You should search BYC for bumblefoot treatments for ducks. And it will help IMMENSELY if you can post pics. It may be that you're dealing with an injury and not an infection.

 

[azygous]

You need to post a photo, well focused, so we can see the wound. Then we can tell you how to treat it.

 

[anonymous99]

Pekin get this a lot because they are heavy and clumsy. Bumblefoot is usually on the bottom of the foot, but I've seen it elsewhere.

Look for injuries or splinters - anything that would allow infection to get into her foot. Feel for infection: is the foot hot to the touch? Also, is she limping?

Here's what you can try:

1) Soaking in epsom is good!
2) Apply antibiotic ointment to the area
3) Wrap the foot to cushion it
4) Repeat this daily/every other day
5) Be patient. It can take several weeks to heal
6) Look around your duck's environment for causes - my duck was injuring her foot on sharp rocks that I didn't see in the grass. If you don't, she may get it again.
7) Consider feeding foods high in vitamin A. Some research suggests that birds with vitamin A deficiencies are more prone to bumblefoot.

Some folks surgically remove the infection, but I find that is VERY hard to do on a duck and can open them up for more infection. If the infection is near the skin's surface you might be able to get it out successfully, but I avoid cutting on ducks because they are SO MESSY and because

An alternative is to use tricide neo, an antibiotic for pond fish. It's very expensive, but it works.

I would offer more info, but my internet is terrible. You should search BYC for bumblefoot treatments for ducks. And it will help IMMENSELY if you can post pics. It may be that you're dealing with an injury and not an infection.

You need to post a photo, well focused, so we can see the wound. Then we can tell you how to treat it.

You should definitely get photos and post them so people can give you better help!

I don’t know if you can see it, but

 

[azygous]

Remember, bumblefoot is an infection, most often staph. It shows signs of redness, scabbing, and starts with a wound which almost always are on the bottom of the foot.

We can't put our finger on the lump, so you will need to tell us if it's soft and fluid-filled, or medium soft/hard and feels like hard cheese, or if it's hard like a rock. In that order, the lump could be a blister, a cyst, or a tumor.

 

[anonymous99]

Pekin get this a lot because they are heavy and clumsy. Bumblefoot is usually on the bottom of the foot, but I've seen it elsewhere.

Look for injuries or splinters - anything that would allow infection to get into her foot. Feel for infection: is the foot hot to the touch? Also, is she limping?

Here's what you can try:

1) Soaking in epsom is good!
2) Apply antibiotic ointment to the area
3) Wrap the foot to cushion it
4) Repeat this daily/every other day
5) Be patient. It can take several weeks to heal
6) Look around your duck's environment for causes - my duck was injuring her foot on sharp rocks that I didn't see in the grass. If you don't, she may get it again.
7) Consider feeding foods high in vitamin A. Some research suggests that birds with vitamin A deficiencies are more prone to bumblefoot.

Some folks surgically remove the infection, but I find that is VERY hard to do on a duck and can open them up for more infection. If the infection is near the skin's surface you might be able to get it out successfully, but I avoid cutting on ducks because they are SO MESSY and because

An alternative is to use tricide neo, an antibiotic for pond fish. It's very expensive, but it works.

I would offer more info, but my internet is terrible. You should search BYC for bumblefoot treatments for ducks. And it will help IMMENSELY if you can post pics. It may be that you're dealing with an injury and not an infection.

You need to post a photo, well focused, so we can see the wound. Then we can tell you how to treat it.

I was gonna post a pic, but I forgot. I soaked both her feet and I wrapped the one with the bump before it got dark outside. As far as I can tell, there’s not really a black scab or anything and my mom said that it didn’t feel hot to the touch. She limps a little bit. Luckily, she didn’t splash around so much in the water. Wrapping her foot is a bit of a challenge.

 

[azygous]

If there's no open wound, why wrap the foot? If there is no scab, this may not be bumblefoot, just a harmeless cyst.

 

[CoriM]

You should definitely get photos and post them so people can give you better help!

 

[Aunt Angus]

That's a good pic. Can you see it from the bottom of her foot? It might be bumblefoot, but I've not seen it look like that before.

 

[anonymous99]

If there's no open wound, why wrap the foot? If there is no scab, this may not be bumblefoot, just a harmeless cyst.

I wasn’t sure what to do. I panicked in the moment. If it’s a cyst, how can i treat it?