Several older hens with swollen feet; one is lame;a.m. UPDATE post #19

[verlaj]

Had not thought of a scorpion. Used to see them at our old place; they probably are here too. Poor hen! When I get fire ant bites, they blister first, then form pustules. That's what made me think of them, plus they live where hens feet would be. They are bad news - my youngest daughter (19 years old now) has scars on her legs from fire ant bites she got as a toddler.

 

[Judy]

Quote:
That's how mine look, too, but when I squeeze them, it comes out clear.

I have learned to gently scratch household ammonia into the skin when I feel the sting -- I have a bottle of ammonia in every building and vehicle on the property, as it works best if you do it right away. You don't have to break the skin with the scratching, but it does take a minute or two. Never get the pustule stage any more. Works for wasps, too. Learned this in the Keys, for Portugese Man-of-War. Wish I had known that when I found my 4 year old (now 33) standing in a fire ant hill.

 

[Judy]

Oh, in that thread about the scorpion bite, the chicken was pretty sick, and they gave her Benadryl, and she got better. No one knew if you could give a chicken Benadryl, they just gave it anyway. Might try the cream or ointment; comes in generic (diphenhydramine.)

 

[verlaj]

Is it too late do you think for ammonia treatment? I had forgotten about ammonia for stings.
This may sound crazy, but when I was a kid growing up in Louisiana, the treatment for wasp stings was to soak the tobacco from a cigarette in ammonia and dab that on the sting!

 

[sammi]

I would still consider that she has an infection..either bacterial (staph) or fungal from the dampness..
or both..
sometimes Bumblefoot isn't just on the pad..but do keep really close eye on the pad..Bumblefoot does cause staph infection..and can be between the toes.

I'd soak in saline solution..or Epsom salts..
treat with diluted betadine or neosporin..
if no improvement..try and an anti-fungal ointment..something used for athlete's foot..
or use both...
if not much improvement, I'd consider a systemic antibiotic such as Pen-G, (penicillin) or a cipro type antibiotic.


there is an ointment you can get from a vet that has both antibiotic and anti-fungal meds..brand name is Panalog..generic..Animax..

hopefully, the soak and ointments will help.

if you have open and damp/wet conditions, straw isn't good to use since it gets moldy and throws off spores, which can cause aspergilliosis.

 

[threehorses]

Oh yeah, I think that silvadene does that too? Not sure though. (That reminds me to try to get some silvadene somehow again - I'm out.)

 

[Judy]

Yes, I'm sure it is too late for ammonia to do any good, unless someone has a fresh sting.

Some of those old time remedies made a lot of sense. The tobacco would irritate the skin and cause penetration of the ammonia into the toxin put out by the ant or scorpion or whatever, I would imagine.

The medical slant on this is that ammonia, or papain (meat tenderizer, dissolves protein) neutralizes the protein in the toxin or venom. They used to use Adolph's meat tenderizer (does it still exist?) in the Keys, too, but I found ammonia much more effective.

 

[Judy]

Quote:
I don't know whether it would neutralize the protein in a venom/toxin or not. No experience there.

Silvadene is a strange drug. When I was a student, it was the treatment of choice for burns. It was said to reduce scarring, but it was painful to the patient when applied, so I hated having to use it. It is silver sulfadiazene, so I assume a combination of silver and a sulfa drug. Of course, silver is an oldy goldy remedy, an antibacterial.

 

[verlaj]

Update this morning: The hen that was lame and had a blistered, weeping foot last night is not obviously lame today, but the foot is still blistered and weeping clear fluid. I didn't get a good look at any other feet this a.m. - they were all milling about, anxious to start the day out roaming! Will dip, soak the weepy foot again 1 or 2X again today and go from there.

All organic bedding is coming out today anyway - filling the base of the coop with a truckload of sand! It is supposed to be a high of 99 degrees F today; heat index of 110 or so! Happy Father's Day to My Beloved! (Fortunately, we are doing this with a tractor and front end loader, not a shovel and wheelbarrow.)