Common Chicken Problems - Bumblefoot

I’ve had a frustrating week. Along with my oven-busting during the greatest baker competition, I also found one of my hens was lopsided and weird in the coop and being bullied the other day.

A weak lopsided chicken who can’t stand is always a bad sign. So I scooped her up and hurried her inside to diagnose and treat her. Upon closer inspection, I found poor Speckles has a respiratory issue, and Bumblefoot plugs in both of her feet.

I had brought her inside the other day to spend the night in the heated bathroom because one of the roosters chased her into the ducks' watering pool- and with cold weather already here, I didn’t trust her to be warm enough when wet, even with the heating lamps. Seems my efforts were in vain. Poor girl.

My first order of business was to treat her cold. It was evening so I soaked her in a warm Epsom salt bath, then wrapped her up in a towel and held her until she was almost completely dry, then gave her a dose of antibiotics (every chicken parent should keep a stock of antibiotics on hand).

I withheld grain and water for the night because she was drooling - and my original fear was a sour crop. This morning when fussing with her, making sure she was eating I heard the slight gurgle and wheeze in her breathing. I noticed she was nursing one of her legs, flopping over to her left.

I picked her up and flipped her over onto her back like a baby to listen to her breathe and that’s when I saw it: the evil black dot on her foot. It is very fortunate that Speckles is one of my sweetest hens, and thus a very good patient.

What is Bumblefoot?

Bumblefoot is a common problem in rodents, small animals, and birds. Bunnies, chinchillas, rats, chickens, ducks, etc most often experience bumblefoot when they have a scrape or cut on the bottom of their feet and bacteria get in.

It's a typical wound infection that affects the entire foot. It can cause the feet and toes to swell so badly that the skin can rip apart and even burst.

The bacteria that cause it are exactly what you would expect: E. Coli, S. aureus, and Pseudomonas.

If you're guessing all of that comes from walking around in your own waste, you'd be correct. A bird coop or rodent cage isn't the cleanliest of living spaces - even with a very attentive owner. These animals just poop and pee anywhere and everywhere, and yeah they will even eat it.

Welcome to the animal kingdom, a place that isn't for the faint of heart.

Only homesteaders and farmers who are extremely aware of their flock catch Bumblefoot before their chicken's toes and feet get swollen. It’s hard to catch because most of the time chickens don’t display signs of distress until then. It’s suspected that they don’t feel a lot of pain in their feet.

If you Google images of Bumblefoot you will see chicken feet so swollen that their feet have torn open and toes have fallen off. I won’t put an example in here because it’s disturbing and gross.

So let’s talk about how to treat Bumblefoot when you’ve caught it early enough.

1. Boil the chicken live…

Just kidding! But a nice lukewarm Epsom salt bath for about 15-20 minutes to soften the scabs on the bottom of the feet is needed. If you have an antiseptic wash, you can also just soak the foot. I don't suggest soaking the entire animal (if it's not a chicken) in the wash, just the foot, even if rodents and chickens are really grubby and gross by nature.

If you have an anxious chicken (or rodent/animal) wrap them in a towel to make them feel safe. As mentioned, Speckles is the best patient ever, so she didn’t need that.

2. Pull the plug from the foot/feet.

The plug should be soft and flexible. You might be able to pull it out in one piece, but most likely it'll come out in chunks. If your chicken has been brewing the infection for a while, pus may come out from under the scab. Not all chickens and animals can be as amazing a patient as Speckles though, so you can keep the animal wrapped in a towel for comfort.

Clean it with antiseptic as you do, and even though it's a chicken - and we all know birds are GROSS - sanitize your equipment as you would with any other wound care.

Tip: Don't worry about hurting your chicken. It's more painful for the plug to be in. If you've soaked the foot long enough, the scab will be soft and pliable and won't tear the healthy skin. There should be a nice little hole in the bottom of your chicken's foot when it's gone.

3. Put some antibiotic cream on the wound and wrap it.

Bacitracin or neosporin should be just fine for your chicken, as you are going to wrap it up. Some people just a little bit of gauze on the wound, and then wrap it up in vet tape.

We did not have any vet tape, so we used gauze and regular tape. Works just as well, since she's going to be in a tote in the tube until she's recovered anyway.

4. Repeat this process 3 or 4 times a week until the foot is healed.

If you caught it early enough, the foot shouldn't need a lot of time to heal. Obviously, if your chicken needs proper surgery then it will take longer. My hope is Speckles' feet heal pretty quickly since I caught her bumblefoot so early.

Soak your chicken's foot every other day or two to keep it clean in the hole, and wrap it with antibiotic cream until it's better.

Should your chicken's feet get too swollen, you should consult a vet immediately.

If you bandage the feet correctly, they should be able to stand and walk still - even if it's a little awkward. But I think our patient here looks much better. She's now able to stand! I imagine pulling the Bumblefoot plug is relieving, like taking a huge thorn or broken glass out of your skin.

I think she will be okay, as she was very eager to stand after a day and night of having issues, and she's still eating and drinking very well.

Wishing Speckles a quick recovery!

Keep an eye out as I write about the process of helping a chicken recover from respiratory illnesses.

For now, I think I'll go find some poems by Heather Hubler and The Dani Writer and read them to her. She's very well-read for a chicken, I made sure of it.

Time is precious, thank you so much for taking some to read my article. I hope you enjoyed it and it proved useful in some way!

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