How do you know when bumblefoot treatment can be stopped?

[DucksOhio]

I can share my recent and current experience with bumblefoot. We’ve had several case in the past, and some are easier to cure than others.

Since I personally cannot do home surgery, I go to a vet who's about an hour away.

my girl, Sugar, recently got a doozy of an infection, and we took her to the vet, where she had immediate surgery. She also had a culture and X-ray taken.

She is back home, quarantined in the duck house with an impressive bandaging thing around BOTH feet, as vet was concerned about her favoring her other foot too much.

I was given 10 dosages of injectable antibioti, Fortex. Given twice a day for 5 days. She cannot get her feet wet, so I’ve had to replace the deep water buckets in the house with the chicken dribblers.

she will go today back to the vet, where likely her bandages will be replaced. I’m also hoping the stitches can be removed as well, but that might be another week.

one the stitches are finally removed, she will need to stay in the duck house for another 2 days, so the stitches area can dry out.

the culture revealed a specific type of staph, along with ecoli.

Bumblefoot really stinks, but I know that my vet is doing the best for her.

 

[cymbaline]

I can share my recent and current experience with bumblefoot. We’ve had several case in the past, and some are easier to cure than others.

Since I personally cannot do home surgery, I go to a vet who's about an hour away.

my girl, Sugar, recently got a doozy of an infection, and we took her to the vet, where she had immediate surgery. She also had a culture and X-ray taken.

She is back home, quarantined in the duck house with an impressive bandaging thing around BOTH feet, as vet was concerned about her favoring her other foot too much.

I was given 10 dosages of injectable antibioti, Fortex. Given twice a day for 5 days. She cannot get her feet wet, so I’ve had to replace the deep water buckets in the house with the chicken dribblers.

she will go today back to the vet, where likely her bandages will be replaced. I’m also hoping the stitches can be removed as well, but that might be another week.

one the stitches are finally removed, she will need to stay in the duck house for another 2 days, so the stitches area can dry out.

the culture revealed a specific type of staph, along with ecoli.

Bumblefoot really stinks, but I know that my vet is doing the best for her.

Wow, that sounds like very thorough treatment. One thing that might help you keep their feet clean and dry are neoprene duck booties, if you can find them. The fellow who gave me the Golden Girls gave them to me (along with a pile of vet wrap, vetericyn, etc...apparently he'd had plenty of bumblefoot troubles). Here's my lovely Blanche modeling one of them after I rescued her from a snapping turtle that had her by the foot - the vet thought they were great.

 

[cymbaline]

So I've decided to try Ziggy on amoxicillin again, this time at the correct dosage, and see if it helps her ankle. I had read on Metzer Farms that it was 250mg - and maybe it is on average - but it's weight-dependent and twice daily, so instead of 250mg a day, it's closer to 500mg twice a day for a duck of her size. So no wonder it didn't make any difference before.

 

[DucksOhio]

Wow, that sounds like very thorough treatment. One thing that might help you keep their feet clean and dry are neoprene duck booties, if you can find them. The fellow who gave me the Golden Girls gave them to me (along with a pile of vet wrap, vetericyn, etc...apparently he'd had plenty of bumblefoot troubles). Here's my lovely Blanche modeling one of them after I rescued her from a snapping turtle that had her by the foot - the vet thought they were great.
View attachment 2133872

she looks just like my Sugar!

 

[cymbaline]

Well, Rose had been back outside for a few weeks, but I saw her limping a little yesterday evening, so I brought her back in. Long soak and a much braver "surgeon" this time around - success! Got the lump out of her foot. Very little bleeding, and not a large wound either...once I got the scab off I just pressed on it from the top of her foot...couple tries and it popped through. She wants to go outside with the other ducks and play so badly; I feel terrible but it's for her own good.
Ziggy's ankle is still huge. I've religiously given her 500mg amoxicillin twice a day for two solid weeks now. After about 4 days I swear it seemed like she could walk a little better, but that's the only improvement I've seen. Otherwise she's fine - eating, drinking, pooping (So. Much. Poop.), preening. I just don't get it. Maybe she's losing more than I think into the water when when she eats? The actual dose should be around 480mg, so already erred on the high side, but maybe I need to go a bit higher or find a way to get her to eat it all without filtering through the water. Or maybe let the vet try to drain the fluid from her ane with a syringe? I'm afraid when I take her back the vet is going to be upset that I didn't give her what she prescribed but she just wouldn't eat it, and when it started turning her off of food altogether I just gave up. I'm always scared to force anything in them unless it's absolutely necessary bc of the risk of aspiration.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Congrats on getting that core out of her that should feel a lot better. As for meds have you seen this https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...dications-to-all-poultry-and-waterfowl.73335/. https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/how-to-give-pills-to-ducks.1246505/

 

[cymbaline]

Congrats on getting that core out of her that should feel a lot better. As for meds have you seen this https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...dications-to-all-poultry-and-waterfowl.73335/. https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/how-to-give-pills-to-ducks.1246505/

I think I saw them at some point and said "nope", lol. I'm so afraid of hurting their bill or face trying to pry and hold their mouth open. Just not that brave yet. *shrugs* Might have to suck it up and get over it though if she doesn't start improving more soon. I've managed to syringe-feed them liquid meds quite a few times over the last year or so...if they'll open up enough to get the syringe in I squeeze a bit at a time very softly, so it doesn't squirt back too far. But Ziggy's dose was in pill form. It's not easy to cut a very hard pill into fifths. *sigh*

 

[Miss Lydia]

Your going to have to learn to be brave I had to an once you’ve done it a few times you realize how easy it is.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Staff infection isn’t something you want to hope will get better if it moves to the joint bone or blood it’s almost too late.

 

[cymbaline]

Staff infection isn’t something you want to hope will get better if it moves to the joint bone or blood it’s almost too late.

Seems like it's had to have gotten into something else for her ankle to be so big and puffy, right? I keep thinking tenosynovitis maybe?