Is this bumblefoot?

[RayrayB]

Hi Guys! I noticed our pet rooster has been standing on one leg and limping a little bit here and there for the past few days. I checked out his feet and noticed a scab on his toe- not where I would expect to see bumblefoot (however I have no experience with it). As a chick he had horrible splayed legs (came to us from a hatchery) that we had to treat, and while he made an excellent recovery, his feet still look a little jacked up to me compared to our silkie hens. He's always walked on his tippy toes, and I'm wondering this is causing too much pressure on his toe area, thus the scabbing. Any ideas? Does this look like bumblefoot or anything to be concerned about?
(last pic is just for giggles, I tried soaking his feet in some Epsom salt water last night)

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Yeah, I'd say it is bumble foot. A warm Epsom salt bath a couple times a day is a good place to start and perhaps wrap that part of the foot with gauze and vet wrap to keep it clean.
It is a staph infection that is hard to cure since so many staphylococcus strains have resistance to most families of antibiotics. Sometimes just the Epsom salt soaks and keeping it clean may allow the bird's antibodies to help.
Before wrapping it, an ointment or salve of hypericum, echinacea and calendula works wonders.

 

[RayrayB]

Yeah, I'd say it is bumble foot. A warm Epsom salt bath a couple times a day is a good place to start and perhaps wrap that part of the foot with gauze and vet wrap to keep it clean.
It is a staph infection that is hard to cure since so many staphylococcus strains have resistance to most families of antibiotics. Sometimes just the Epsom salt soaks and keeping it clean may allow the bird's antibodies to help.
Before wrapping it, an ointment or salve of hypericum, echinacea and calendula works wonders.

Thank you!

 

[RayrayB]

Any suggestions on how to avoid this in the future?
I've had chickens for a few years and never had one with bumblefoot before. They have a big, clean coop and as silkies do, they like to roost on the ground (so I dont think the roosts are an issue). However, now I'm afraid I'm doing something wrong!
I've read that pine shavings can be an issue, but none of the rest of my birds have ever had any trouble. I suspect the issue is the deformities to his feet, but I want to make sure that there isn't something that I can do differently to prevent it.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

It usually starts as a scratch on the footpad that allows the bacteria access.
Several years ago, I had a spate of bumblefoot after many years of none. It turned out one of the roosts had two boards bolted together but with some scrap chicken wire sandwiched between them and a couple places where some short wires were sticking up. When I eliminated that, no more cases.
Sometimes it is inevitable as chickens scratch and can encounter something sharp that cuts the foot.

 

[RayrayB]

Okay phew! Thanks so much!