neglected chicken spurs

[welasharon]

I am going to be taking care of some chickens that have not been taken care of very well. Their feet are eat up with scaly leg mites. I have permission to start treating them Thurs night. Today I went to see them and noticed some of the roos have spurs that are three or more inches long and curling upward. How should I go about getting them under control. I saw a video of removing them with pliers and wondered would that work on these that are so long...he is a tiny little fellow but those spurs are huge.
sharon

 

[mmaddie's mom]

The plier thing worked for me when i was given a neglected roo also. Spurs a good 3 inches long , and he was a banty. They made cool earrings!

 

[wood&feathers]

Funny you should ask. I just twisted my rooster's spurs off last night. Even though I clip and file regularly and they didn't seem sharp, he somehow gouged open his favorite hen. Soo...spur-ectomy time!

The directions I read said to use vegetable oil around the base. The skin there is kind of like our cuticle. I had some unscented baby lotion with oil and glycerin in it so I figured it would work. Held him sort of upright across my lap with his body under my L arm, so that my R was free to manipulate the feet. I squirted the lotion onto my knee so I could apply it one handed, then rubbed it around the base of the spurs for a while. Rubbed it all over his feet while I was at it, so he seemed to relax. As I was rubbing I was trying to rotate the spurs. When I finally detected some give in them I reached for the pliers, gently rotating a little back and forth.

When the spur casing released it welled with blood that I could see through the casing. I left them on until I could reach for the powder, to contain the bleeding. It all seemed to come under control well enough, and didn't slow him a bit today. Talk about stink eye though!!

 

[SuziQ991]

Ok dumb question here. Do I need to file my roosters spurs regularly? How do I take care of them and how often?? Thanks

 

[S*T*A*R]

mmaddie's mom :

The plier thing worked for me when i was given a neglected roo also. Spurs a good 3 inches long , and he was a banty. They made cool earrings!

You made earrings out of your chicken's spurs?!

 

[welasharon]

Cool...although I think I'll skip the earring part! I am going to start oiling down their legs thursday night but I am supposed to be able to get some of the worst to bring home to chicken hospital so I can treat them more often. Some have already lost parts of toes. I need to be able to work with them more often I think
Thanks
sharon

 

[mmaddie's mom]

S*T*A*R :

mmaddie's mom :

The plier thing worked for me when i was given a neglected roo also. Spurs a good 3 inches long , and he was a banty. They made cool earrings!

You made earrings out of your chicken's spurs?!

Yep... but keep in mind I also have earrings out of snapping turtle toenails and rattlesnake rattles.

Sharon... thanks for doing this for these neglected birds!

 

[wood&feathers]

Earrings, I like it! I too have jewelry made from turtle claws, deer toe bones and dew claws, pawpaw seeds etc. The last set of rooster spurs went on a flute styled after a mythical horned serpent called U'ktena. Scary critter. This pair I was thinking of making a couple tiny powder horn pendants, with a tiny lathe turned plug and stopper.

 

[wood&feathers]

As to the question of "How often?" I used to think I needed to clip and file any time they looked sharp, regardless of length. After Boldy getting ripped open by the supposedly dull spurs or claws, I am leaning toward more often desheathing.

 

[mypicklebird]

Look up the 'hot potato' method. It has worked for me- and does not involve pliers, blood or firm twisting. They have not grown back for 3 years. Microwaved potatoe, mitten hand puts the potato on the spur. 5 minutes to bake the spur. Gently twist of with fingers. It comes right off like 'butter'. Rooster did not struggle. Can't feel 'good', but probably better than twisting it off. It also appears to be permanent, as it damages/kills the spur bone underneath.