The Accidental Smallholder Forum

Livestock => Poultry & Waterfowl => Topic started by: WoodlandsDevon on September 12, 2014, 06:44:59 pm

Title: Effective treatment for scaly leg?
Post by: WoodlandsDevon on September 12, 2014, 06:44:59 pm
I have some cases of scaly leg in the flock. Wondering what the best way is to treat it?
thanks
Title: Re: Effective treatment for scaly leg?
Post by: HesterF on September 12, 2014, 06:55:58 pm
Vaseline is supposed to be good if you can be efficient enough to treat daily. I've only had one case and I took him to the vet who gave him two shots of anti-mite stuff (can't remember which - sorry), ten days apart and it cleared up like magic. Didn't even take until the next moult to disappear which I had believed to be the case.
Title: Re: Effective treatment for scaly leg?
Post by: Eve on September 12, 2014, 07:31:03 pm
I used a scaly mite spray, from net-tex think.
Title: Re: Effective treatment for scaly leg?
Post by: Marches Farmer on September 12, 2014, 08:08:59 pm
Old method was to paint on white spirit. 
Title: Re: Effective treatment for scaly leg?
Post by: lord flynn on September 12, 2014, 08:30:34 pm
benzyl benzoate (which is whats in the Nettex stuff) -you can get it in 500ml from the equine section of hyper drug. dilute it 50/50 in water and dunk each leg in it for 30s, weekly for 4 weeks. Scales that drop off will contain mites for 4 weeks so you need to continue treatments for this long. I've also used ivermectin on vets prescription for scaly leg.
Title: Re: Effective treatment for scaly leg?
Post by: HesterF on September 12, 2014, 09:40:01 pm
Ivermectin - that was it! Don't use white spirit - supposed to be very painful for the bird.
Title: Re: Effective treatment for scaly leg?
Post by: devonlady on September 13, 2014, 08:02:02 am
Google RUGGLE-IT, it is wonderful stuff. Scaley legged hens, itchy dogs, sweet itchy ponies et al.
Title: Re: Effective treatment for scaly leg?
Post by: Victorian Farmer on September 13, 2014, 10:41:04 am
Get the hen and dip each leg in a cheap sun cream for a week then get a nail brush and skrub each leg .The cream kills the might then treat whith a skaley leg spray .Happey hens  :sunshine: :sunshine:
Title: Re: Effective treatment for scaly leg?
Post by: ScotsGirl on September 13, 2014, 05:01:09 pm
Would any of the sheep treatments such as clik or crovect be ok on chickens? Obviously withdrawing eggs for a week or so.
Title: Re: Effective treatment for scaly leg?
Post by: Hevxxx99 on September 13, 2014, 09:03:51 pm
Either ivermectin: a few drops on the back of the neck, which'll clear up all external and internal parasites, or suffocate the blighters by coating the legs in a thick oil, repeating about once a week until the legs look better.  I've ever seen scales fall off, but maybe they do and I've just never noticed.  I thought they just flattened out again!
Title: Re: Effective treatment for scaly leg?
Post by: ScotsGirl on September 15, 2014, 10:10:00 pm
I tried dipping legs in diluted iodine last night. Not sure how much it will help but not much likes iodine and my local gamekeeper sticks it on everything! They seem none the worse for it but no idea if it helped. As they don't seem to produce many eggs I might just bite the bullet and dose them with ivermectin
Title: Re: Effective treatment for scaly leg?
Post by: chrismahon on September 16, 2014, 09:20:50 am
Do not use white spirit or WD40 WoodlandsDevon. Very painful for the bird, in fact they can scream in agony.


We usually use Benzyl Benzoate and brush it up the scales. But the ground is very dry here and it doesn't seem very effective now. So we tried an alternative concoction based on hemp oil with healing oils added and brushed that on. The idea is to suffocate the mites and condition the feet and scales at the same time. The effect was immediate, in that the birds calmed down and were overall noticeably better natured and relaxed. Scaley leg mites must be far more painful than is apparent to us, or can imagine.
Title: Re: Effective treatment for scaly leg?
Post by: lord flynn on September 16, 2014, 10:20:57 am
I've used ivermectin in the past to clear up a stubborn case and I also needed to make sure I didn't move the problem with me last year. worked a treat and I've no more cases since we moved.


I do think its painful chrismahon, I wince at some of the remedies out there-both because the treatment itself sounds sore and also so many are ineffectual.
Title: Re: Effective treatment for scaly leg?
Post by: Castle Farm on September 16, 2014, 01:47:28 pm
Sudocrem.

Title: Re: Effective treatment for scaly leg?
Post by: tizaala on September 17, 2014, 05:00:33 pm
Any cream or grease will do to suffocate the mites, even udder cream is good , or red biddy.
Title: Re: Effective treatment for scaly leg?
Post by: nicandem on September 18, 2014, 06:55:13 pm
I have just been given two chickens and both have scaly leg.  they are quarantined from the others.
popped into the vets and asked advice


he stated don't do injection or drops, but surgical spirit weekly for 3 weeks and vaseline on legs every day for same period
did it today and neither bird gave any indication of discomfort.




one thing i did see on the net re the spot on is don't eat the eggs for x amount of time after its use