gangrene / amputation? (Photos)

[Allsfairinloveandbugs]

It’s mainly yellow but there is darker up higher on the other leg (higher up then on the bad leg…and I don’t recall either of the legs having darkness when she first came…so I’m not sure what to think either

From your description and the photos, I think the darker color is completely normal. Many Easter Eggers hatch with lighter colored legs (with a darker wash) that turn to slate/blue/green during the first few weeks. Purebred splash Ameraucaunas as well as splash Easter eggers are often born with bright orange legs that gradually turn slate-colored.

And I noticed she’s missing belly feathers - like a broody hen might….wondering if her bad foot is snagging on the belly feathers and pulling them out because she always has feathers and fluff stuck to her foot when I clean it.

That is possible, but it is also possible the feathers are being rubbed out if she is spending an excessive amount of time resting on her breast/belly due to being immobile. When older/bigger birds are immobilized, it is recommended to make a sling or chicken chair to prevent breast blisters from developing.

I see some separation beginning to develop between live and dead tissue, but it may still take some time before the foot comes off. With older birds, it usually takes approximately 6 weeks after the initial injury before auto-amputation completes, sometimes a little less and sometimes a lot longer. But the average time frame may not apply to your chick since she is so young. Time will tell; that's for sure.

 

[m2wandc]

Excellent point on rubbing belly feathers off. How would a sling work for daily use? Or does that just give a short break here n there? I wonder if I could create a belly pad…sort of like an upside down saddle?

I also noticed one toe on her good foot is getting a popped up callus like on it…maybe from over working when she’s running around.

Gosh I really would prefer the foot to fall off sooner rather then later (she’s 2 weeks old tomorrow) I noticed how much bigger the normal foot is - because it’s still growing. The bad foot is newborn sized.

THANK YOU for all your thoughts and comments - I truly appreciate all the replies. I’ve had chicks and chickens for several years and this is my first (hopefully last) self amputation experience with a chicken.

 

[Allsfairinloveandbugs]

Below is a thread with lots of pictures of slings and chairs people have made. If your chick struggles to escape her sling or chair, you may need to improvise using your own idea. Slings and chairs aren't normally intended for full-time use, though they can be used full-time if a bird is permanently paralyzed. In that case, people attach feed and water cups to the chair. Your chick's condition is temporary, and so will be used simply to relieve constant pressure to her breast/belly. Think of a sling/chair as similiar to turning over an immobilized human to prevent bed sores. It must be strange to see her healthy foot growing while her necrotic foot remains newly hatched in size. Yet another difference from adult birds with a similiar injuries.
"Versions"
https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...njuries and Cures-,Versions,-of "chick chairs

 

[m2wandc]

Thank you again for a great resource

I was thinking too maybe a sock heel with leg & poop holes might be a type of outfit (think tube top/tank top/jumpsuit) to cover her belly from rubbings.

She gets up and runs around like the others chicks

It’s odd too see one leg/foot not growing - almost like in the beginning she looked like it might be more peg legged but now it’s looking like that leg will be shorter (not just missing a foot)

Time will tell….

 

[m2wandc]

I also found this on Amazon for when she’s a big girl and needs a break - easy to sling in this holder

https://www.amazon.com/Chicken-Slin...2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9waG9uZV9zZWFyY2hfYXRm&psc=1

 

[m2wandc]

This is her foot today after a soak/scrub and Neosporin slather.

There is one toe that looks like it’s SORT OF still getting circulation but no way can survive since the foot above is all necrotic.

Any thoughts on that toe are welcomed.

 

[Susan Skylark]

Is the foot partially dead/partially alive? Black/gray/cold/drying out vs. pink/warm/growing. It would be best if the whole thing sloughed leaving you with a nice clean stump but having half viable and half dead makes it prone to infection/never healing wound. It is hard to tell from pics but I would guess the foot had partial circulation keeping 1/3 alive and the rest lost its blood supply and is dying. You may want to consider amputation at the point of stricture if the foot isn’t obviously sloughing dead tissue and healing it over but is just half dead/half alive and doesn’t change much. The stricture probably won’t grow out but it will grow proportionally with the bird.

 

[Susan Skylark]

Gangrene (and dead tissue!) turns black/purple/dark green/gray/dark blue. It will smell terrible, be squishy and moist, and the bird will be acutely I’ll (depression, listless, not eating). Normal dead sloughing tissue can be very similar just without the sick bird. What you want to see is granulation tissue, a reddish pink moist tissue layer under the dying tissue, that is a healthy wound. Take your cues from the bird, if she acts sick, amputate above the necrosis and get her on penicillin/amoxicillin etc. asap. If she’s acting fine, debride (remove dirt and dead tissue) daily and keep clean and dry and let the body heal from the inside out.

 

[m2wandc]

Thanks for all the help.

How long would it take to heal if the vet amputated above the wound?

How do you get a Rx for a chicken of antibiotics? And dose for a itty bitty girl?

She does eat drink and run around trying to fly with the other chicks in the brooder.

 

[Susan Skylark]

You’d need a vet for a prescription of antibiotics (which with the theoretical amputation you could get them) since penicillin isn’t over the counter anymore. I’d guess the stump would heal over in a couple weeks and then several months for it to callus enough to bear weight. I just used amoxicillin in my quail water (clostridium) at 500 mg per liter, but that may or may not be high enough for acute gangrene, probably fine prophylacticly but I’d go higher if she’s actually sick (birds have ridiculously high metabolisms so the dosage rate for many drugs is much higher than mammals).