Hi all! Long time lurker here; finally gave in.
I’ve got an injured hen, as the title suggests, and it began about a month ago when I noticed swelling in her foot. She had the classic plug scab for bumblefoot, so I took her to an avian vet. The vet said it looked like there had been an injury and an infection there previously but that the swelling was likely scar tissue and that it would take a long time for it to go down. I got some very expensive antibiotics and decided to wait and see if she needed them out of the desire to keep her eggs edible.
Cut to recently. I didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary again until the other day, when I noticed her limping a bit. I got her inside and managed to check her foot out, and oof. It’s not bleeding or infected (no puss, no smell), but it’s definitely not better. She’s actually got an open wound now, probably from scratching and pulling at the skin. But I can’t decide what kind of medical attention she needs, because as I said, I don’t think it’s infected. I’ve rinsed it and just as an in-case I’ve actually begun her on the antibiotics, but a second opinion would really help us out.
Here are a couple pics to show you all what she’s up against:
That black is like a big callus. There’s no bleeding, and if I’m correct the white inside is dead skin. It’s not oozing, it’s just... there, like a big split. She’s eating and drinking and running and jumping, but obviously with a limp there’s pain. And the poor thing’s molting too, so she’s not had a good couple of months.
So that’s that. Any advice on what we can do would be very appreciated! Thanks to everyone!
I’ve got an injured hen, as the title suggests, and it began about a month ago when I noticed swelling in her foot. She had the classic plug scab for bumblefoot, so I took her to an avian vet. The vet said it looked like there had been an injury and an infection there previously but that the swelling was likely scar tissue and that it would take a long time for it to go down. I got some very expensive antibiotics and decided to wait and see if she needed them out of the desire to keep her eggs edible.
Cut to recently. I didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary again until the other day, when I noticed her limping a bit. I got her inside and managed to check her foot out, and oof. It’s not bleeding or infected (no puss, no smell), but it’s definitely not better. She’s actually got an open wound now, probably from scratching and pulling at the skin. But I can’t decide what kind of medical attention she needs, because as I said, I don’t think it’s infected. I’ve rinsed it and just as an in-case I’ve actually begun her on the antibiotics, but a second opinion would really help us out.
Here are a couple pics to show you all what she’s up against:
That black is like a big callus. There’s no bleeding, and if I’m correct the white inside is dead skin. It’s not oozing, it’s just... there, like a big split. She’s eating and drinking and running and jumping, but obviously with a limp there’s pain. And the poor thing’s molting too, so she’s not had a good couple of months.
So that’s that. Any advice on what we can do would be very appreciated! Thanks to everyone!