Severe scaly leg? Something else?

[FuzzyDuck]

Hi everyone, I just rescued a rooster and he is pretty lethargic and has what I believe is a bad case of scaly leg mites — his legs and feet look raw and swollen. I have soaked his legs and coated in Vaseline, and used a bit of antibiotic ointment. He’s eating a bit, especially in the mornings, but otherwise puffed up and droopy. I assume he’s in a fair bit of pain so I gave him some metacam too.


Wondering if this is in fact from scaly leg or if it looks like something else… really hoping I can help him feel better and recover.

 

[dawg53]

It's not scaly leg mites. It looks like severe frostbite.

 

[Eggcessive]

How low have the temperatures been there at night lately? What state are you in? If he has frostbite on both legs, he could lose them. Do you know his breed? Here is an article about frostbite:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...to-know-about-injury-care-and-recovery.78168/

 

[FuzzyDuck]

Ugh, that’s what I was becoming afraid of after looking at him more. I am in Ontario, so it certainly has been cold. It’s been fluctuating a lot, but definitely cold… I don’t think any of the other birds in that flock were affected, so I didn’t jump to frostbite. I dont know his breed. Is there no chance of recovery in a situation like this?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Hi everyone, I just rescued a rooster and he is pretty lethargic and has what I believe is a bad case of scaly leg mites — his legs and feet look raw and swollen. I have soaked his legs and coated in Vaseline, and used a bit of antibiotic ointment. He’s eating a bit, especially in the mornings, but otherwise puffed up and droopy. I assume he’s in a fair bit of pain so I gave him some metacam too.


Wondering if this is in fact from scaly leg or if it looks like something else… really hoping I can help him feel better and recover.

View attachment 4272055

Can you get photos of all of him?

 

[FuzzyDuck]

Can you get photos of all of him?

Here’s one from this morning.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Poor guy!

Do you know any history on him since he's a rescue?

I'd tend to treat the legs like Frostbite as suggested, but I'd also get him hydrated and see if he will eat some wet mushy feed.

Since this is a rooster/cockerel, I'd give him chick starter or an all flock feed if you have one of those. A little extra protein a few times a week (egg, fish, meat).

Do look him over for lice/mites, check to make sure his crop is emptying and consider deworming. Treating for Coccidiosis may be in order too, but if you can, take a sample of his poop to a vet and have fecal float done.

He also has a bit of a sunken eye with perhaps a little conjunctivitis, I'd keep watch on that to see if he becomes symptomatic with respiratory symptoms (watery eyes, pus, mucous, coughing/sneezing). While the eye could be due to a number of things like poor ventilation/ammonia, poor nutrition, parasites, debris or irritant, etc. You may want to think about flushing his eyes with saline, then putting a bit of eye ointment (like Terramycin) or Original Neosporin in the eyes to see if that makes a difference.

 

[FuzzyDuck]

Poor guy!

Do you know any history on him since he's a rescue?

I'd tend to treat the legs like Frostbite as suggested, but I'd also get him hydrated and see if he will eat some wet mushy feed.

Since this is a rooster/cockerel, I'd give him chick starter or an all flock feed if you have one of those. A little extra protein a few times a week (egg, fish, meat).

Do look him over for lice/mites, check to make sure his crop is emptying and consider deworming. Treating for Coccidiosis may be in order too, but if you can, take a sample of his poop to a vet and have fecal float done.

He also has a bit of a sunken eye with perhaps a little conjunctivitis, I'd keep watch on that to see if he becomes symptomatic with respiratory symptoms (watery eyes, pus, mucous, coughing/sneezing). While the eye could be due to a number of things like poor ventilation/ammonia, poor nutrition, parasites, debris or irritant, etc. You may want to think about flushing his eyes with saline, then putting a bit of eye ointment (like Terramycin) or Original Neosporin in the eyes to see if that makes a difference.

Thanks for all the advice! I don’t know many details, just that he’s from a large mixed flock and was getting bullied. He was feeling poorly and they were considering culling him. I said I’d take him and give him a chance.

He does have some lice, so I sprayed him the first day. He is eating okay but I don’t think he’s drinking enough. He is definitely underweight. This morning he had some egg and oats and a bit of duck feed I have. I do have chick starter, but it’s medicated — would that be an issue?

I noticed his eye is a bit sunken, I thought maybe just from feeling sick and not hydrated enough — but I will take a closer look and clean it out and see what I can do.


Now thinking that his feet/legs are frost-bitten, I’ll try not to touch them much. I do have a Vetericyn spray that I can use, rather than putting more ointment on, if the rubbing will do more damage.. And I guess I’ll just see how it progresses. He is standing and refuses to lay down. He can take a few steps and his toes seem to move when he does. Is that a good sign, or will the tissue likely still die, given the colour?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Thanks for all the advice! I don’t know many details, just that he’s from a large mixed flock and was getting bullied. He was feeling poorly and they were considering culling him. I said I’d take him and give him a chance.

He does have some lice, so I sprayed him the first day. He is eating okay but I don’t think he’s drinking enough. He is definitely underweight. This morning he had some egg and oats and a bit of duck feed I have. I do have chick starter, but it’s medicated — would that be an issue?

I noticed his eye is a bit sunken, I thought maybe just from feeling sick and not hydrated enough — but I will take a closer look and clean it out and see what I can do.


Now thinking that his feet/legs are frost-bitten, I’ll try not to touch them much. I do have a Vetericyn spray that I can use, rather than putting more ointment on, if the rubbing will do more damage.. And I guess I’ll just see how it progresses. He is standing and refuses to lay down. He can take a few steps and his toes seem to move when he does. Is that a good sign, or will the tissue likely still die, given the colour?

The medicated chick starter should be fine.

Vetericyn would be good to use on the legs. Taking a few steps sounds good. It's hard to know how much damage the legs/toes have at this point. I know it can be frustrating, but time will tell the tale. Could be it's just soft tissue damage and the loss may be minimal. IF this is severe Frostbite, then loss of toes or even feet may be possible. Hope for the best here.

Also, I *think* his natural leg color is darker, so some of what we are seeing may be the dark skin tones too. There is damage of course, but let's see how this plays out.

He won't sit or settle?

You could try giving him a cardboard box with some straw or bedding to see if he'd be more apt to snuggle in that (cardboard box is easy to replace when it gets soiled).

He may also feel "exposed" in the cage? Hard to tell. If you have an old sheet or cloth that you can partially cover the cage (back, top and sides), but leave air flow, he may feel more secure to sit and rest.

Possible, he's wanting to roost somehow. A very low roost or board that he can get on to and perch/roost may prompt him to sit. He may be trying to avoid getting his bottom feathers soiled.

You never know what's going on with chickens, you can try a number of things, but they may not work.

Keep us posted on how he's getting along.

 

[tripletfeb]

Covering his cage is a great idea. I have a cockatiel and he has to have his cage covered, all the time. I leave most of the sides and all the front open, of course. But when I wash his sheet and the back of his cage is exposed, he's antsy until I can put the sheet back on. He's been that way for 22 years.
I agree, give him a low roost, that could encourage him to sit down and relax. I truly hope he heals and does great for you!