Swollen foot. snake bite?

ronikins

Songster
11 Years
Apr 18, 2010
146
8
171
SW Missouri (Ozarks)
I discovered a BO hen with a very swollen left foot. She won't walk on it obviously and she tries to limp and hop for the most part. And I just noticed that it's oozing a yellowish liquid.

1) What type of bird , age and weight. BO hen, 1.5 years, about 6 lbs.

2) What is the behavior, exactly. limping, holding foot up. mostly is ok with laying to the right, off of the injured foot.

3) How long has the bird been exhibiting symptoms?just this morning. they've been free-ranging since about 6:30-7am

4) Are other birds exhibiting the same symptoms?no

5) Is there any bleeding, injury, broken bones or other sign of trauma.no very obvious trauma. i see a few small puncture wounds. i mean, very small, that *could* be snake bites.

6) What happened, if anything that you know of, that may have caused the situation.snake bite?

7) What has the bird been eating and drinking, if at all.as far as i know, bugs and chick starter. but i just discovered her so i'm not sure if she's eaten today at all.

8) How does the poop look? Normal? Bloody? Runny? etc.dunno yet

9) What has been the treatment you have administered so far?nothing other than bringing her in to keep her off the foot and inspect closer.

10 ) What is your intent as far as treatment? For example, do you want to treat completely yourself, or do you need help in stabilizing the bird til you can get to a vet?treat myself.

11) If you have a picture of the wound or condition, please post it. It may help. i could try but there's not much to see.

12) Describe the housing/bedding in use. hay in nests and on floor.

i'm wondering if it's a snake bite, should i soak it in epsom salt? it's so swollen and feels like it might have a fever in the foot. she's laying next to me while i type one-handed. her comb and face is pale but her waddle looks ok. i can't remember if that's normal for her. she has six babies right now that are about 6-7 weeks old. all i can think is she probably was trying to protect them and was struck. she's a very good mama.

any ideas?
 
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Here's a pic for help. She's still hanging with me. I will try to soak it in just warm water for now. If the salt would help, I'd have to go get some from the store. I'll see if she'll eat something too.
 
It does look like a snake bite to me. Poor thing. I for sure would soak it. I am kind of new to raising chickens and haven't experienced this so other than soaking it I'm not sure what to do. I'm sure someone here will be more of help. Good luck and keep us posted.
 
Thanks, flowergirl.
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I gave her some bread (fave treat) to test her if she has an appetite. Oh she gobbled that up! So I cut up a cucumber for a better treat and she's gobbling that up too. Her color is MUCH better now. I think she'll be ok. I just gotta figure out how I'm gonna soak this foot with no help. .... She'll probably put up a fight.

there's definitely a bruise forming on the foot now.
 
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An antihistamine such as benedryl might help if you suspect a snake bite. Put betadine on the bite wounds as an antibacterial cleanse, then neosporin ointment. Dose her orally with 1/2ml childrens liquid benedryl...wait 24 hours before redosing if necessary. The benedryl may or may not help depending how much venom was injected. Good luck.
 
Thanks, dawg. I have regular liqui-gel benedryl pills for adults. Poke one open and give it to her? I had her foot in some warm water a minute ago and the bruise was oozing blood. A teeny tiny amount. I'm about 85% sure it's a snake bite. I have Triodine-7. Could i use that to disinfect?

Thanks so much for the advice.
 
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I would not use adult benedryl, it can kill your hen. Go with 1/2cc/ml liquid childrens benedryl and no more than 1/2cc. Yes, you can use triodine 7.
 
Just to put some closure to this thread.....

I cleaned the foot up and applied some Triodine-7 and Neosporin. I then wrapped the foot and gave her 1/2 cc of children's liquid Benadryl. I kept her in the house the remainder of the day, cleaning and re-wrapping the foot a few times. She ate heartily and pooped like normal. But towards the evening, she was anxious to get back to her babies. So about an hour before their bedtime, I took her out and put her up in a nest box with her babies. The next morning, the swelling had gone down considerably. She ended up with a pretty gnarly bruise on one puncture wound and a slight bruise on the other. She was out yesterday on her own after I cleaned the wound again with the Triodine and Neosprin. By the afternoon, she was puting pressure on it again. Limping only slightly. Today she's much better with almost NO limping.

Thanks again for the good advice!! She's nearly back to normal
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