Silkie Chick 2 months old losing claws on both feet

[only1bgirl]

My chick has a toe on each foot that have shed a small splinter like claw with bleeding. The toe and claws almost seem a bit deformed on each foot. The bleeding stopped after the claws shed. Is this normal and is there anything I should be doing for this?

 

[seminolewind]

I think I would inspect them daily and put ointment on them after cleaning them.

 

[only1bgirl]

Her toes seem to be healing over without growing a new claw. I'm wondering if this could be a deformity of going through X-ray in the egg shipping process?

 

[tridentk9]

Did the whole claw splinter off or a piece of the claw?
Are the toes painful? Will he let you do a thorough exam of toes and claw?

Whole claw- Possibly immune mediated problem or a bacterial infection of the claw bed.

Pieces of claws- possibly deficiencies of folic acid, protein, Vitamin C or Essential Fatty Acids. He may be getting enough just not metabolizing them correctly.


If the claw bed is exposed and not infected, well if it was my bird, I'd soak the foot in a weak antibacterial solution, dry thoroughly and apply liquid bandage to the exposed claw beds. Warning- liquid bandage can sting! This should help keep the claw bed clean. Reapply as needed. Finding an antibacterial solution for a white bird can be fun

If the claw bed is not exposed, coconut oil should work well rubbed into toes and feet. Keep a close eye on those toes. If the skin closes over the claw and then the claw decides to grow it could easily get infected as well as being painful.

Go over his diet carefully as well as check the feet of your other chickens especially siblings.

 

[only1bgirl]

@tridentk9 The entire claw came off, same toe each foot, they were very small and splinter like, not a full sized claw like the other toes. They seem to be healing over now, I keep washing her feet daily and inspecting them, she does not like it like the White chick does, which makes me think they're sensitive. I've only got the one silver partridge silkie and a white silkie, from the same place but they're not related. Silver's feet are different from the white almost like they're deformed a bit in comparison, these toes seem to be under the others and were sideways.
Thank you very much for your advice, I greatly appreciate it!

 

[tridentk9]

Hmmm, I wonder if those toes got knocked or dragged. That could be enough to start a bacterial or fungal infection. Sigh, please add fungal infection to the list of possibilities.

LOL- I'm not a vet or physical therapist but you might consider soaking and cleaning her feet in warm water, dry the feet, wrap feet in a dry washcloth wrapped in a warm damp washcloth (warm moist heat) for a few minutes then gently massage the feet and toes into the correct positions, give treats. For the massage oil, coconut oil should do, it is said to have antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral properties. It also is nontoxic so her sampling it is OK. I wonder if there's an acupressure chart for chickens?

In some cases, the animals end up enjoying the warmth and light massage.

If she loses any more claws, a vet exam with possible culture and needle biopsy might be warranted.

Good luck. Hopefully Silver will decide she enjoys the extra attention.

 

[only1bgirl]

She's growing new claws on each foot, all I did was wash them daily. These two toes seem to slightly under the others, she did lose them about the same time I started letting them free range the yard where there fave place to be was on the patio. Maybe the walking on concrete had something to do with this.