Swollen feet in my RIR

[mbailey78]

I noticed a couple weeks ago this hens feet were swollen. I thought maybe bumblefoot but no scab. I tried the bumblefoot surgery on the foot she was holding up a lot anyway to see if I could still find a kernel but didn’t. Only thing that I found was some white puss. Cleaned the foot good and bandaged it up and waited to see if it got better. This week both feet are swollen 2-3 times the normal size. I don’t think it’s parasites. I would think infection with the white puss. Her scales look ok but the flesh looks bulbous/swollen. Another chicken keeper said maybe fungal infection. I think I will soak her feet in warm water with epsom salt tomorrow night.
Anyone have any suggestions on what I can do to help this hen?

 

[Ms Clucky]

co-flex they use for horses? One of my roosters had a swollen ankle and that brought the swelling down. Hope it isn't serious and she gets better.

 

[chkva]

I use colloidal silver. Just put it on the area that is infected or troublesome, it's safe to ingest and all natural. I try not to use chemicals on my pets unless needed like tick prevention on the dogs.

Wishing you the best of luck on whatever you choose to treat your chicken! Hoping she is on the mend as I'm typing this!

 

[Eggcessive]

I think that your hen is suffering from gout—articular gout. When you see inside the feet of a chicken with gout, there may be white urates seen there and on organs in the body. There can be many different causes of gout, such as feeding too much protein, too much sodium, and others. Here are a couple of articles to read:
https://thepoultrysite.com/articles/gout-management-in-poultry

https://www.hyline.com/aspx/redbook/redbook.aspx?s=5&p=36

http://www.poultrydvm.com/condition/gout

 

[Eggcessive]

This is a look inside the foot of a chicken with articular gout, and inside the joints, there can be a partially liquid white material (urates.)

Articular gout

 

[mbailey78]

co-flex they use for horses? One of my roosters had a swollen ankle and that brought the swelling down. Hope it isn't serious and she gets better.

Thank you, I will look into coflex.

 

[mbailey78]

I use colloidal silver. Just put it on the area that is infected or troublesome, it's safe to ingest and all natural. I try not to use chemicals on my pets unless needed like tick prevention on the dogs.

Wishing you the best of luck on whatever you choose to treat your chicken! Hoping she is on the mend as I'm typing this!

Thank you. I will also be looking into colloidal silver.

 

[mbailey78]

I think that your hen is suffering from gout—articular gout. When you see inside the feet of a chicken with gout, there may be white urates seen there and on organs in the body. There can be many different causes of gout, such as feeding too much protein, too much sodium, and others. Here are a couple of articles to read:
https://thepoultrysite.com/articles/gout-management-in-poultry

https://www.hyline.com/aspx/redbook/redbook.aspx?s=5&p=36

http://www.poultrydvm.com/condition/gout

Thank you for all the info. Boy I hope it isn’t that. I read some on the links for treatment. Not sure how I would change feed for her unless I put her in seclusion. I have 45 chickens (ages ranging from 1-4 years old, this hen is 4)and feed them a high quality feed and they free range most of the day. I will do some more reading on this topic. Thanks again!

 

[Eggcessive]

I would not recommend wrapping the feet for gout. What type of feed do you use? Many people feed a flock raiser type feed to their chickens and put out a container of crushed oystershell for free taking by the hens who are laying. That way, non-layers, roosters, chicks, or hens who are molting, don’t get too much calcium. Layer has 4% calcium while flock raiser has 1%.

Another reason for swollen feet can be mycoplasma synovitis or MS. Usually you will see swelling in the ankles and hocks. The joints of those chickens may have a yellow thick material in them.

 

[cottagecheese]

There was a recent (short) thread with a hen in an identical situation.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...-my-elderly-hen’s-feet.1304880/#post-21263495
I apologize for making demands on your time, but if you read that, you'll see why I'm posting this ode to cherries:
https://nutritionfacts.org/video/gout-treatment-with-a-cherry-on-top/