Roadside chicken and possible feather follicle cyst???

Zenzenhen22

In the Brooder
Nov 10, 2021
5
13
19
Hello, I recently found what I believe is a Langshan hen abandoned on the roadside.
It's the middle of the wet season here and she was in a shallow ditch of water when I retrieved her. She's been quarantined for two weeks and was going to be 8ntroduced yo the flock tomorrow but I finally got a good look at her feet and now I'm concerned.
She had a tonne of blocked feather follicles so I removed the blockages and build up, but by the time I was done one foot I started to wonder what exactly I was dealing with as this doesn't look like feather cysts I've seen before, nor does it appears she has scaly leg mites, but maybe I've missed something?
 

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Thank you for rescuing this hen. Can we see full body pics for fun? In terms of your problem I can't help but I can tag some people. @Overo Mare @azygous @Iluveggers @BigBlueHen53 @aart
She's a pretty big girl size wise, but was quite underweight when I picked her up. She's still gaining so I'm not sure what her end weight will be, I think she's on the older side age-wise given the weathering on her comb and the absolutely gigantic spurs she had which were sharp as needles. I've had her for little over two weeks, she's been sprayed for lice, wormed, given vitamins and supplied appropriate feed and water. I've read langshan are susceptible to feet issues in wet climates so I've been keeping her really dry, but I've become concerned now about scaley leg mites and absolutely DO NOT want to add her to the coop if this is even a possibility.
 

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Hello. She is lucky you found her! Unfortunately I don’t know much about mites, but I did find some treatment info if someone can confirm that’s what she has. Good luck!
:welcome :frow I never has any luck with a lot of different things I tried. I had a wicked infestation and after doing some research came up with permethrin. If I hadn't started treatments when I did I may have lost some birds. I thought they were molting but weren't getting their feather back in and then I discovered some has mites and some others had lice. I used DE among other thing and nothing seemed to work. I got some permethrin concentrate. I cleaned out all of the coops and treated inside them all thoroughly inside, everywhere, every crack and crevice, everywhere. At the time I used a gallon sprayer. Now I use a backpack sprayer but I also have a lot of coops so when I treat one I treat all. You will need to do weekly treatments for 3 or 4 weeks because it does not kill the pests eggs but will as they hatch out. The bonus is it is safe and there is no egg withdrawal period and the eggs are safe to eat. You can also get it premixed. I use poultry dust in the nest boxes. Good luck...

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Permethrin is my go to treatment for pests. You need to treat weekly for 3 or 4 weeks to kill any mites as they hatch out. I also use poultry dust in my nest boxes. Good luck...
 
Keeping those feathered feet dry will really help her heal. However, be aware there is a version of Mareks that affects the skin of chickens. Be sure to follow quarantine protocol. She's lovely gal!
 
I would put a little vaseline or castor oil on the feet. Looks like the feathers were just broken off and you cleaned the shaft from the foot.

The oil or vaseline will help smooth and heal the skin and if she's got any SLM, will smother them.

Lovely hen, I'm glad you were able to help her.
How much longer should I isolate her? I think she's starting to suffer socially being all alone, and don't want to prolong it if this isn't likely SLM.
 
How much longer should I isolate her? I think she's starting to suffer socially being all alone, and don't want to prolong it if this isn't likely SLM.
That's up to you.
Some folks quarantine up to 30 days.
If you feel she's in good condition and not worried about possible spread of illness, then start introducing her now.
A lone hen may have trouble integrating with an established flock I'm sure @azygous may be able to give you some tips on that.
 

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