This one is new to me… Turkey skin problem

[HeritageFan]

My friend asked me to come check out her tom Turkey, who was reportedly itchy and had “something” on his belly.

The “something” was a pressure sore on his keel, so we talked about perch improvements and treated it.

While doing so, I looked him over carefully and did find one mite- so they are obviously there, and she plans to treat her flock.

However. She has observed him plucking feathers from his chest over the past 3 or so days, increasingly so as the days have progressed, and he now has a nearly bald chest, and also has a patch of hard, brown skin covering the right side of his breast and extending under his wing.

Hard as in, when I tapped on it, it felt and sounded like a perfectly roasted bird coming out of the oven….

He didn’t seem to be bothered by it, but I know how stoic these guys can be.

She had put some poultry salve on it (sorry, I don’t remember what it was but it was labeled for all poultry, for general skin issues) - which is why the feather shaft stubs look blue.

He lives with 2 Turkey hens, a bunch of duck hens, and their large pen shares a fence with some chickens, but he’s really not interested in them. The flock all seems happy and friendly to each other.

They get quality feed, regular cleaning, fresh water several times a day, have no windows/ glass/ anything that would have caused a burn, and everything on her farm is organic, so chemical burns are also not in the picture.

No avain vets in the area.
Any thoughts or tips I can pass along? She adores this guy, he’s treated properly like a Turkey, but he’s the fan favorite of her farm and I’d love to be able to help her, help him-

@azygous
@Wyorp Rock
@aart
@Molpet
@R2elk

 

[Eggcessive]

Sorry about your friend’s tom turkey. I know more about chickens, so hopefully some turkey people will come along to help you. Does he tend to lie around more than usual? Birds who have leg problems may tend to lie around, and if the area is damp, muddy, or bedding is soiled that can burn the skin on the keel. A rough roost is also not helpful. Some do pad roosts to prevent that. The cream looks like possibly Hen Healer or similar. Some vets recommend painting the keel area in Betadine to disinfect and promote healing. Chlorhexidene or Hibiclens are also good. Keel blisters can become abscessed with pus, which may need to be lanced, so have them watch for that. Does he have any swollen joints, especially his feet or hocks? Bacterial arthritis can cause that and leg pain. If there is any, post some pictures.

Mites or lice should be treated with Permethrin garden dust from the feed store, or in warm weather Permethrin 0.5% spray is okay. Mites should be treated at 7 day intervals and lice at 10 day intervals to stop the life cycles after eggs hatch. The coop, nests, and roosts will need treating and new bedding applied. The other poultry should be treated as well. Elector PSP is another good product to use for treatment.

 

[HeritageFan]

Sorry about your friend’s tom turkey. I know more about chickens, so hopefully some turkey people will come along to help you. Does he tend to lie around more than usual? Birds who have leg problems may tend to lie around, and if the area is damp, muddy, or bedding is soiled that can burn the skin on the keel. A rough roost is also not helpful. Some do pad roosts to prevent that. The cream looks like possibly Hen Healer or similar. Some vets recommend painting the keel area in Betadine to disinfect and promote healing. Chlorhexidene or Hibiclens are also good. Keel blisters can become abscessed with pus, which may need to be lanced, so have them watch for that. Does he have any swollen joints, especially his feet or hocks? Bacterial arthritis can cause that and leg pain. If there is any, post some pictures.

Mites or lice should be treated with Permethrin garden dust from the feed store, or in warm weather Permethrin 0.5% spray is okay. Mites should be treated at 7 day intervals and lice at 10 day intervals to stop the life cycles after eggs hatch. The coop, nests, and roosts will need treating and new bedding applied. The other poultry should be treated as well. Elector PSP is another good product to use for treatment.

Thank you so much! And yes, it was Hen Healer.

We did treat the pressure sore w chlorhexadine and it looked pretty “good” once the gunk was out of it.

I have only ever seen him roosting or on a perch at night, but I’ll ask my friend as I’m not there too often. When I am there, he’s either off watching his hens, or drumming and showing off for the company. She has other livestock, and everyone who comes likes to take pix of him, and he loves to show off.

There are certainly times where there is some mud around - between the ducks and the fact that we live in the Pacific NorthWet, but they have ample covered areas, and the turkeys tend to come in when it’s gross out.
There is a combo of gravel, concrete, and astroturf, along with some small “sheds” with straw under the roof.
The large outer area is grass in low traffic areas and dirt or mud in the main areas.

She is very meticulous about cleaning.

He is 2 years old- a Sweetgrass from my crew / originally from Porters. He was getting picked on here and has been very happy there for the past year or so.
He gets quality all flock, consistent access to grit and clean water, oyster shell is out for the girls, and my friend does sparingly toss them some black oil sunflower seeds or mealworms….

The only inflammation I noticed was some bumble on his center toe- it didn’t seem hot and he wasn’t limping, but it was def bumble. She knows what to do for that.

that brown patch is just a head scratcher!

 

[Eggcessive]

It sounds like you all have it covered. He sounds like a character and a cherished pet.