Ida - Parasite Fight

Ida was part of a flock rescued by a lovely human who did not want them to be killed when the farmer no longer wanted them. We were helping her human with treating for leg mites and noticed that Ida had a strange looking crop, so she came to live with us so she could more easily access treatment.

She is thought to be over 10 years old and the leg mites had done quite a bit of damage to her legs. On top of that, she had a worm burden AND lice! Lucky for us, all this is treatable with one type of medication, Ivermectin, and Ida received her three week course. We also began trimming her nails little and often to correct them where they were growing twisted.

After the leg mites had gone, Ida was left with very dry feet. They were so dry that they were cracking and painful. Ida received frequent foot soaks to clear the hard and dry skin and had to have one of her spurs removed. Her scales haven't grown back yet but her feet are looking so much better!!

Ida's crop is a strange shape but is functioning fine. She is monitored closely to make sure it is clearing and on occasion wears a crop bra to help. She now lives with the main flock. She is wise, gentle and keeps herself out of trouble.

Our learnings:

• Foot soaking for dry feet is important to prevent infection of cracked skin.

• Regular inspection is important (we noticed a spur hanging half off and if dirt had got inside this, it would likely have caused an infection, so we had it removed).