Silkie foot hurt??? scaly leg?

[hershy5252]

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Can anyone help tell me what wrong with his feet? Bloody sometimes and he limps a little. You can tell he's bothered by them. What should I do?

 

[chicknmania]

Hi , yes it looks to me like he has Scaly Leg Mites. We had a Silkie rooster who was always getting them, seems to come with feathery feet. Soaking in warm Epsom salts and water solution will help his pain and healing. You can then apply any kind of oil, Castor oil, Petroleum Jelly, or Camphophenique (sp) all over, from the top of his foot up his drumstick to where the feathers start. (Don't put oil on the bottom of his foot). Since he has feathery feet, Camphophenique might work best for you.

Recently our Alpha rooster had Scaly Leg.Mites. We soaked his legs in a 10 % Permethrin and water solution, and then did it again two weeks later. WE also sprayed his roost with the solution. Although this did not totally rid him of the mites, I think it did shorten up the period of time he had them.

He was still lame after that, so we then confined him in a small pen to reduce his activity and allow his sore leg/foot to heal. I have been soaking him every day in warm Epsom salts and water, and follow by painting his legs with Castor oil. The mites are gone but he is still lame though healing quickly. He has still been in hospital pen for over a week, just so you have an idea.

If your rooster has open sore places on his feet or legs, I might hesitate to suggest the Permethrin until they heal up. It is nasty stuff but like I said, I think it did help to kill off the mites and speed the healing process. You can always start with the Camphophenique, and then maybe try the Permethrin soak later. If you don't use the Permethrin, it can take awhile for the mites to be totally gone.

You must treat Scaly Leg Mites however, because if you don't, the bird most likely will be seriously lame and damage can be permanent. They can also lose toes as a result of Scaly Leg Mites...which is called Toe Necrosis. You have to treat and monitor him until the scales are flat and his legs are smooth, and he quits limping.

If you use the Permethrin, it's 1.28 ounces of Permethrin to 1 gallon of water. Soak up to the feathers at the top of his leg, for 45 seconds.

 

[Eggcessive]

I would check for leg mites or treat for leg mites with castor oil or vaseline rubbed into the scales once a week. Here are some other threads to read that might sound familiar:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/987269/cochin-losing-feet-feathers-red-and-inflamed-feet-legs
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/940358/rir-with-swollen-feet-and-legs-advice-and-help-needed

 

[hershy5252]

Thank you for the quick response. I will take all the steps necessary to get him back to good health. I do have 10 other chickens, none of them are showing theses signs. Do I have to treat all birds or just him?? Is it likely that only he has it?

 

[Tasha71]

I treated my chook who had SLM with a warm tea tree foot/leg bath to gently scrub any muck away with a tooth brush, and coated with petrolium jelly once dried.. did this for 2 weeks, 3 foots baths in total. She has shiny legs Though I am not an expert

 

[chicknmania]

Quote:
Some chickens seem to be more susceptible to scaly leg mites than others. If you can, scrub your perches with hot soapy water and spray with permethrin solution. For some reason, roosters seem to be more susceptible to scaly leg mites than hens. I treated my rooster daily with the soaks and oil, for one thing because he was in pain, and also because he's the alpha rooster and I was trying to speed up the healing process. He really seems to enjoy his leg soaks, and will stand quietly in his bucket for fifteen minutes or more at a time. However, some chickens won't. As was said earlier, I agree that it's probably not necessary to do soaks daily or apply oil daily, unless you have time and want to To help with your rooster's pain, you can give him baby aspirin two to three times a day, in a treat. I wouldn't worry about the treating the others if I were you, unless they really are showing signs. To help control all ice and mites, I also add wood ashes or permethrin powder to the dust bath, but ours don't dust much in winter.

 

[chicknmania]

Also I like painting the legs with a basting brush (used only for that, of course)

because the brush is soft and it helps to get the oil up under the raised scales, where it needs to be.