White fungus on one leg?

[Jajika]

I don't know what this is, so maybe someone out there can tell me.

One of my chickens, a Leghorn mix, has white scales or something on one leg.

She is not limping, eats, poops, drinks water and generally is acting just fine. I have all hens and they are fenced inside a large enclosure with trees, bushes, etc. So they "free range" within a yard.

She is one of nine and seems to get along just fine, however she can be a bully at times.

I feed them laying pellets enchanced with lots of treats. They have a bowl of oyster shell and plenty of bugs available.

Hope it's not serious.

Thanks.

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

Gosh I have seen scaly leg mites twice in my flock before but I don't see lifted scales in the pic you provided. What I see is this:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=33903
click on the pic in the first post to enlarge it and you will see the raised scales

What I would do since I am not sure if it is indeed scaly leg mites, is to treat for it anyway and see if it goes away. What worked for me was to dip each leg in a cup of mineral oil each day for two weeks. This smothers the mites. By the end of the two weeks I was doing it every other day. The scaly leg mite can also affect the face...be aware and vigilant.

If you believe it to be a fungus (gut feeling) then there are antifungal sprays out there that I hav,e seen recommended for favus on here. Do a search for favus on BYC if interested. I would spray it with an antifungal spray if the mite treatment didn't improve the feet after a few days of observing, if it were me. But don't be too hasty as it can take time - even a whole year until the molt of the scales- for the scales to go back to normal or near normal looking if it is a bad case, I have read.


http://images.search.yahoo.com/search/images?_adv_prop=image&fr=yfp-t-463&va=scaly+leg+mites
Here are some other photos of scaly leg so you can decide if that is what you are dealing with.

 

[lotzahenz]

You might rub some Vaseline on the legs if the mineral oil treatment if too hard to get done. I have also rubbed Ivemectin paste on the legs, to kill the mites. I only do this to Roosters though, not the hens cause we eat the eggs. Good luck figuring this out. Might just be chicken eczema???? Is there such a thing?

 

[bairo]

that has got to be the world record for leg mites.

If it were me I would clean out the coop well and top dress the new bedding with sevin dust, Isolate the one in the picture, dose everyone with Ivermec pour on, & spray the legs of the one in the picture with permethrin once a day for 3 days.

see my byc page for mix and dosage info

 

[bairo]

ps..you mentioned one leg. Both legs have mites, just the one is worse.

 

[Jajika]

Thanks for all the good advice. I'm going to try the cooking oil approach.

The good news is that my chickens are "tree sleepers" in a very large tree.

Also, it appears none of the others seem to have it----so far.

If anyone knows of a product called " Barrier Scaly Leg Spray" I'd love to know
where I can get it in the U.S. From everything I found it is only sold in the U.K. And I looked and looked and looked
for it in the U.S.

I found it online and did a log of research about it.

It is organic and specifically made to prevent and treat Scaly Leg Mites without the potential harmful
effects of toxins.

Purchasing it from the U.K. can be problematic as well as expensive.

So I wrote to one of the sites that sells it over there to see where I might buy it here.

In the meantime I will begin treating "Skinny Butt" tonight to get her started.

Thanks for all your great advice. I'll keep you posted on her recovery.

 

[ChicknThief]

 

[Jajika]

Well.....treating her did NOT go well at all. What a disaster.

I waited until about two hours after it got dark, set up the oil for treatment, all ready to go.

Had my protective glasses on, gloves, etc.

When out to the grapefruit tree where six on my chickens sleep and located Skinny Butt.

I went to grab her and she screeched and lept out of my hands, tried to grab another branch in the dark, struggled, screaming.
I was terrified she was going to break a wing.

She fell to the ground and went running around the chicken yard screaming like crazy.

I did manage to get her, not sure how, and she was freaked out.

I cood, spoke softly held her close to me and did manage to dip her legs in the oil. But 'm not sure she isn't injured.

I put her in the small coop for safety and to keep and eye on her. She just lay there and I knew I did something terrible.

Suddenly, before I could close the top, she screamed again and jumped out. I just let her be and went inside feeling horrible.

I have no idea how I'm going to keep treating her without killing her.

She is terrified now and I certainly can't keep climbing in that tree because it just doesn't work. She is not a docile chicken I can
capture easily, apparently even at night.

Possibly if I can get a spray type of medicine I might be able to treat her legs at a distance without having to capture her.

Some people recommend WD 40.

I really hope she is OK?

Ugh, what a mess.

 

[froggiesheins]

Really unusual thingy she has going on. Could be leg mites starting however. The easiest treatment is vaseline [tried and true].

When you went to get her you unfortunetly scared the heebegebies out of her [poor sweetie]. Next time you go to get her [I will pray for you], bring a towel and cover her with it....it will help calm her, also coo to her to help calm her. KEEP her wrapped in the towel snuggly while you work on her.
Can you brush off any of that white stuff with a toothbush? If so, do that before you apply vaseline...Repeat everyday....
Good luck....

P.S. grab her this time right at dark, don't wait so long as they get all snuggled in and in that sleeping mode...

 

[lotzahenz]

Sounds like she was having a right good dream when you woke her up, don't worry, I doubt she'll remember it. I have thrashed at mine with a straw broom, chasing them all over creation to get them in the coop at night, only to find them night after night in the very same place, looking at me and asking "Whaaaaat?" Silly birds. I agree, the Vaseline will stick better, smother those things and you only have to apply it a couple of times or so. Rub it in well, see if that helps. It is edible, so no worries about eggs and such.