Possible lymphoid leucosis neoplastic tumor + Update: Not injury. Confirmed to be a tumor

[NanaK]

After it was all done, the thing still smelled. So I guess it's the tumor that stinks.

Could be the tumor but infection can also stink badly.
I'm old school so I might would go back to peroxide and neosporin for a few days. See if the odor improves.

He's not ready to be euthanized yet, still eating and socializing with the hens

Eating and socializing is good!

not mating them

Well.....he is an older guy??? LOL
Does he crow?

 

[azygous]

Update. Not good news.

Tootsie's cancer has gone into the bone, as evidenced by thickening of his shank. But now, a tendon appears also to be affected, causing his claw to clench up. He staggers around walking on the top of his foot.

This isn't good on hard surfaces such as rocks, which dominate here. (This place is called the Rocky Mountains for a reason.)

Therefore, while he is still ambulatory, his range is now very limited. I also need to consider that he's more vulnerable to any predator passing by. Also, the tumor's crater is prone to infection. I've been stuffing antibiotic ointment into it each day.

But the worst of this development is that he has trouble roosting. I set up a feed sack pallet for him to sleep on last night, but he still wanted to try to roost. He can still do it if I help him. But he also has a problem dismounting. My rooster is now a special needs animal.

As long as he's still crowing, still crassly defending his food against marauding hens, and his appetite is okay, I'll lend him assistance. But the day looms when I will need to euthanize him.

 

[AntiqueB]

For you both.

Thank you for documenting this. It has already been helpful.

 

[NanaK]

I am very sorry Toots' problem has progressed.
He is so fortunate to have you taking care of him.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

For you and Tootsie.

I'm sorry to read that he's declining, but still is able to manage for a while longer.
I've learned a lot from this thread, so Thank You, for continuing to update.

 

[azygous]

Poor Tootsie wasn't able to keep from falling off his perch after he went to sleep. I would find him on the floor even though the fall was off a perch less than a foot high.

Conveniently, I had designed a sleep guard back when my fourteen-year old hen Lady Di had this problem. Her perch was the same height as Tootsie's, so it fit.

Tootsie wasn't sure about it at first and climbed out of it right after I put him in it. I tried again a bit later when the night was just about sucking up all the light, and he stayed. He had no trouble getting out of it this morning, and if it wasn't my imagination, he was a lot perkier and seemed to be pretty pleased with himself.

Here are a couple pics of the sleep guard I made out of scrap lumber and a piece of PVC that goes on the side that rests against his breast. It rises just a few inches above the perch so that when he sleeps, the PVC bar keeps him from falling forward from his one foot not grabbing the perch. But it isn't so high that he can't easily step over it to get off the perch.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

What a wonderful creative idea

 

[azygous]

Tootsie has made it clear that he hates his sleep guard. As soon as I leave him, he gets out of it. And he also hates the cushion I put in there so he wouldn't have to sleep in the sand on the floor which, it turns out, is his preference.

He won't listen to reason, mainly that it will be too cold to sleep on the floor come winter. So, I'm letting him have his way for now. In October, I will pave his coop floor with feed sack cushions. It's a small coop, so four will do it. Let's see him argue his way out of that.

That is, if he's still alive by then.

 

[AinaWGSD]

Thank you so much for sharing Tootsie's tumor progression with us. I feel like this thread will be helpfully educational for years to come.

 

[azygous]

Thank you so much for sharing Tootsie's tumor progression with us. I feel like this thread will be helpfully educational for years to come.

That's the purpose of this thread. These tumors are pretty common, but a lot of people will be experiencing it for the first time. Hopefully they will get an idea of how it will progress. I also want to reduce the amount of fear this discovery can unleash. This should show that it's not an immediate death sentence. In fact, I've had two chickens with tumors, and this and the other chicken lived a good number of normal years after the discovery of their tumors.