Please help! Duck with severely injured toe!

[FunnyfarmMidwest]

Please help! I don’t know how this happened and I feel awful! My pekin duck Bob had a cut on the bottom of his foot. I noticed it and started treating it with blukote just 3 days ago. It was looking much better and he began putting more weight on it. Before trying blukote I had tried Vetricin and Banixx nothing seemed to be working. The blukote appeared to be working. It looked ok and I just checked it and his whole toe is falling off! I’m just frantic I don’t know how this happened. Please help! Should I cut off the toe? I don’t know what to do. The foot is not purple that is just where I sprayed it.

 

[Trisseh]

I tend to avoid blukote, haven’t seen any evidence that it helps and it makes it really difficult to see what you’re working with, and a huge pain to try to clean off. and it’s been recalled and discontinued here (in Canada) due to it containing carcinogenic ingredients, apparently...
I’m not saying that antibiotic ointment would be inappropriate for a wound like this, but not multiple different treatments with different products. That’s not to say that a cleaned, dry foot that has ointment applied and a nice bandage, changed daily, isn’t an option, if that’s something the OP can do. I wouldn’t apply ointment without bandaging, though; it just picks up dirt and nastiness that you wouldn’t want on/in the wound. And then that bandage needs to be kept clean and dry. A soggy, dirty bandage is a guarantee for infection, antibiotic ointment or not.
I guess it also depends on where he’s being housed while recovering from this type of injury.

 

[hayley3]

I too would worry about it spreading.
@Miss Lydia

 

[FunnyfarmMidwest]

He just loves to give me the side eye.

 

[Trisseh]

Looks to me that he’s damaged/severed the blood supply and nerves to that toe from whatever he cut it on, which is why it’s kind of dry and funny looking. It will probably slough (fall off) and yeah, the biggest thing will be to keep it clean and dry, and monitor for infection. Similar to frostbite, really. The tissue becomes devitalized, dies and falls off. Since he’s getting around well and doesn’t seem too bothered by it, I would think he’ll do fine. I wouldn’t go too crazy with putting various ointments or treatments on it though, sometimes you actually trap bacteria in there and cause more harm than good. It’s also easier to see if it’s beginning to have any discharge or color changes if there isn’t a ton of other things on it. (Is it dried ointment, or pus?) I would also try to keep him out of bath water, etc until it decides where it’s going to let go from. That’s my 2 cents, lol, based on cases we’ve seen at the clinic. of course, nothing any of us say on here will be as good as having a vet actually see him. There’s a reason nobody will diagnose based on pictures alone. good luck with him! He sure is a cutie.

 

[FunnyfarmMidwest]

Can someone please please help? His foot is still swelled and hasn’t changed much. I noticed that his bone was exposed after we amputated the toe. Despite that he’s recently been doing well and getting around pretty good until today. He is really lethargic and not wanting to eat treats and putting his head down not quacking much. What could have changed? What can I do to help him? I’m very very concerned.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Who amputated his toe? Sounds like infection can you get him to a vet? Also a picture would help. Has he been on antibiotics?

 

[FunnyfarmMidwest]

Honestly your going to need to get him on some strong antibiotics the way he’s acting you may lose him. Why did you amputate?

Have you read through the thread? I’m just wondering. I had to amputate his toe because he cut it and managed to cut off his blood supply to that toe. I waited to see if it would come off on its own but it didn’t so I had to amputate it. It was an extreme measure that I had to take because it was starting to affect him. I will see if I can get him to a vet but I am not sure. Thank you for helping me.

 

[Miss Lydia]

I just did and I remember reading it now. I really think an antibiotic is needed now.

 

[Isaac 0]

I'm so sorry for your loss @FunnyfarmMidwest !