I had to amputate my young chicken's toe this morning... so sad

[MkePainter]

We live in Wisconsin and are experiencing a very cold weather front right now... I have 7 week old chicks who brooded in the (chilly) garage and seemed ready for the cold, so we moved them out to the outdoor (insulated) coop last week around Christmastime. Sadly, one of the girls ended up with frostbite on her feet despite my efforts to keep a safe environment. Luckily I caught it early enough, and have been following forums here and elsewhere and getting great advice on how to keep the skin healthy and infection-free while the frostbitten areas heal.

I thought things were going well... until last night, I noticed the middle toe on her right foot was curled inward and seemed lifeless. Warm, and a good color, but lifeless. I examined it a bit and realized the BONE was sticking straight out, and the soft tissue of the toe was curled lifelessly beside it. UGH, I will spare you the gory pics. So awful.

I called emergency vet in my neighborhood and they said they would not see chickens on a holiday; only cats and dogs are welcome on NYE. So I asked, "Can you at least offer me some advice? Should I try to replace the tissue on the bone, splint it and wrap it? Or what?" and the vet said, "No, the only thing to do here is amputate."

Happily I found a thread here from 2008 in which someone had to amputate a chicken toe, and I learned how to cut off and cauterize the wound. Long story short: I DID IT, Y'ALL.

Thank goodness for BYC!!! OMG.

Still nerve-wracking though. Look at this cute little face.


If anyone has any advice on how to deal with the ongoing healing or adjustment of a 7-week-old, two-toed chick, I'd appreciate it.

 

[micstrachan]

Aaawww!!! That face! So sorry... no experience here, but I think your little one will be fine. I’m sure yiu will need to keep it clean and possibly use antibiotics at least topically?

 

[MkePainter]

Aaawww!!! That face! So sorry... no experience here, but I think your little one will be fine. I’m sure yiu will need to keep it clean and possibly use antibiotics at least topically?

YES, thank you. Am applying Neosporin frequently. One blogger says to "make a little paper sock" or something and I'm completely at a loss as to how to make a paper chicken sock...Ha! I mean I'm crafty but PLEASE.

 

[chickencheeper]

Maybe grab an old children’s wool glove and cut the finger off of it(Lol more amputation) and stick it on her and wrap gauz tightly around that to keep it on

 

[Trish1974]

Good job, @MkePainter! When I was a kid we had a hen whose toes froze off one winter. She walked with a very awkward hop/limp but lived a few more years in a free range environment just fine. My mom named her "No-Toes"!

 

[MkePainter]

Good job, @MkePainter! When I was a kid we had a hen whose toes froze off one winter. She walked with a very awkward hop/limp but lived a few more years in a free range environment just fine. My mom named her "No-Toes"!

Awwwww!!! I hope Chicki does as well. She's so young, I guess she'll adapt well. I hope.

 

[Wickedchicken6]

We live in Wisconsin and are experiencing a very cold weather front right now... I have 7 week old chicks who brooded in the (chilly) garage and seemed ready for the cold, so we moved them out to the outdoor (insulated) coop last week around Christmastime. Sadly, one of the girls ended up with frostbite on her feet despite my efforts to keep a safe environment. Luckily I caught it early enough, and have been following forums here and elsewhere and getting great advice on how to keep the skin healthy and infection-free while the frostbitten areas heal.

I thought things were going well... until last night, I noticed the middle toe on her right foot was curled inward and seemed lifeless. Warm, and a good color, but lifeless. I examined it a bit and realized the BONE was sticking straight out, and the soft tissue of the toe was curled lifelessly beside it. UGH, I will spare you the gory pics. So awful.

I called emergency vet in my neighborhood and they said they would not see chickens on a holiday; only cats and dogs are welcome on NYE. So I asked, "Can you at least offer me some advice? Should I try to replace the tissue on the bone, splint it and wrap it? Or what?" and the vet said, "No, the only thing to do here is amputate."

Happily I found a thread here from 2008 in which someone had to amputate a chicken toe, and I learned how to cut off and cauterize the wound. Long story short: I DID IT, Y'ALL.

Thank goodness for BYC!!! OMG.

Still nerve-wracking though. Look at this cute little face.
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If anyone has any advice on how to deal with the ongoing healing or adjustment of a 7-week-old, two-toed chick, I'd appreciate it.

That's unfortunate but you handled that nicely! Good job! That's not for the faint of heart. The fact that you've cauterized the wound should ensure there's no chance of infection and it should heal cleanly. Topical antibiotics should be a good choice for the wound.

The suggestion for the children's glove finger may be a good idea. You could also try the vet wrap bandaging that sticks to itself for making a protective covering for the toe if it is going to be hard to pull something over the wound. That vet wrap is handy for other uses with chickens as well.

 

[micstrachan]

Yes, I like the vet wrap idea.

 

[Erin Meta]

Can I ask what vet you called? I live in Milwaukee, and it would like to know a vet that would treat a chicken or be able to give advice if needed.

 

[birdofhermes]

not sure why so many people on forums talk about keeping their chickens outside without heat. must be very warm or very cruel because they seem way less adapted to cold than a dog and you can't even keep dogs out in the cold here in canada