Scaly leg/tassel foot and scaly face in quail and some thoughts on keeping quail and chickens together

Knemidocoptes mutans a very successful, microscopic burrowing mite, is one I have dealt with before within these pages in its relationship to my hens and cockerels. I also mentioned that it could be a major problem with game birds but at the time I had no photographic evidence to show - well I do now!

A couple of years ago Carol, a friend of mine in Honduras who runs a bird and animal sanctuary in her beautiful back garden, wrote asking me if I had ever come across scaly leg in quail and I wrote back to tell her that I hadn't but knew of it. She told me she had found it in several of the quail that she had recently rescued. I have also had commentators on my quail videos asking about my keeping quail and chickens together, in particular as I have hatched and raised quail many times with a bantam hen. The commentators usually have one particular theme: which is with specific reference to diseases that could be transmitted from one to the other. Well I have to say that I do not ally myself to Pasteur's 'germ theory' but to that of 'terrain' theory. If you are unaware of these two opposing theories then it might be a good idea to look into them as they are exceedingly relevant to all kinds of health issues. In fact it is a misnomer to even say that germ theory belonged to Pasteur as it had been around for some time before, for example, M. A. Plenciz, a Viennese physician, published a germ theory of infectious diseases in 1762. Conversely from Hippocrates 460-370 BC:

“It is more important to know what sort of person has a disease than to know what sort of disease a person has.”

The reason why I am mentioning the above in the same article now is because, having just bought six 'bargain basement ' quail from a friend who has moved and given up raising quail pro tem, I have finally come across scaly leg mite aka tassel foot in them. I believe this happened because these quail were kept with an old hen, whom I had noticed was suffering badly from the parasite. So although I don't believe in disease transmission from hen to quail, I do believe in that of parasites. Even so and if you know of my previous article and my discussion of the link between nutrition and parasitism, then I would add that the general state of the individual quail is what counts. Only one of these quail (pictured above top) has an infestation of Knemidocoptes mutans and she also had, before I cut them, extremely long nails, so I deduce has not been digging around for any extra wild nutrient.

Another of the females has slight scaly face or rather neck and the beginnings of scaly leg and she too did have exceedingly long nails. Thus I would suggest that this adds weight to the contention of there being a nutritional aspect to parasitism, which in turn dove-tails with terrain theory. Thus for any bird to get parasites from another host, it is the state of the bird the 'terrain' that is the important factor.

So just to recap what we are dealing with here, Knemidocoptes mutans, the burrowing mite that causes scaly leg and scaly face, is a short-lived arachnid, belonging to the phylum Arthropoda, which also includes insects and crustaceans. Like its relative the spider, it has eight legs although in contrast to the former, it is viviparous, giving birth to live larvae. The female burrows down into the keratin of the skin and underneath the scales of the bird to give birth, the nymphs also burrow to create pockets in which to shed their skin. As I expressed in my previous article on the subject, I am not totally clear as to whether additional burrows are also due to them gnawing their way through the keratin to consume it. In all I have read, I am not sure if, like their cousins Knemidocoptes pilae, parasites of caged psittacines and in particular budgerigars, the latter exude the enzyme keratinase in order to help them break down and absorb the keratin. This enzyme in itself seems to have irritant properties but once the holes are made, there is a possibility that fluid and cells, combined with powdery debris from the mite causes further problems. Certainly my less infested quail has been scratching her neck and as you can see from the above photo-montage abraded and removed some of her feathers. The major problem with this mite is that although the conditions it causes are slow to develop to infestation proportion, if left to do so, they can become disfiguring, cause lameness or high facial and neck coverage and lead to necrosis. However, there are specific steps, which can be taken to ensure that you never have to deal with these consequences. As always prevention and a holistic approach is my priority.

Observations on possible nutritional deficiencies

My newly-bought quail were previously kept in a small, trodden-earth floored outbuilding with a 'deep litter' covering which could potentially provide invertebrates. The barn's single opening, a part-wired doorway which faced South allowed them direct access to sunlight. There was no evidence when I visited  that they received very much vegetable matter in their diet. However they were on a game-bird feed which would have provided an albeit synthetic vitamin content, which their bodies would then have to convert to the natural form for assimilation.  

Low Vitamin A 

Knemidocoptes mutans (portrait left) feeds on keratin, which is the proteinaceous substance that protects the epithelial cells from stress and damage. Epithelial tissue is the sheet of cells which covers the body's surface or lines the body cavities. When we think of this in relation to birds and mites we may consider the β-keratin found in feathers, beaks, scales, claws and skin. Parasites are opportunists and to multiply to infestation level they need a lot of food! As discussed in relation to my other birds, although in the main when we think of Vitamin A deficiency, we may at first think of its effect on sight, this is but a part of the overall importance of this fat soluble vitamin. Vitamin A deficiency has a leading role in the maintenance of the epithelium and it is here that the symptoms of deficiency are most visible.  Although the exact nature of the problem depends on the locations and types of this tissue i.e. a primary build up of keratin or squama (scale), the resulting condition is the same and can be simply expressed thus:

        excess production of keratin = abundance of mite food

Grass is high in carotenoids, such as beta-carotene, a precursor to Vitamin A

Incidentally à propos of Vitamin A, it is also crucial to quail as their ability to lay is said to be directly linked to the amount of Vitamin A stored in the previous year.

.....low Zinc

Zinc is critical to the transport transportation of Vitamin A from storage in the liver for use in the rest of the body. Ants contain the highest levels of zinc of any other creature and my quail love them! Above my quail devouring an ant nest I'd found in a flower pot, comprising ants and two kinds of eggs, their favourite being those of the flying ants which are much larger than the regular eggs and pink instead of white! My new quail were given an ant nest yesterday and completely and thoroughly consumed it!

...and low Vitamin D₃

The evidence of external mites will be a good indication that the pathway of 7-dehydrocholesterol (the precursor to Vitamin D₃  has been compromised i.e. with the blocking of the preen gland by excess keratin and thus the bird may develop all kinds of conditions symptomatic of D₃ deficiency. One of these conditions is, as you may have guessed, keratosis, the over-production of keratin. With one door way to the sun, it is not always certain that all my purchased quail will have obtained their necessary daily dose of high energy ultraviolet b (UVB).

Our baby quail getting some rays

Rather than repeat everything here and for more in depth information on vitamin and mineral deficiency and the role played by stress in the infestation by Knemidocoptes mutans,  I have put links to my previous articles below.

In Part Two we'll look at the treatment and there will be an accompanying film.

Thanks for dropping by and do feel free to share experiences or ask for further information in the comment section. If you have enjoyed this piece and found it useful think about sharing it with your family and friends, on social media and also maybe about joining this blog and/or subscribing to my Youtube channel or even supporting us on Patreon or

It all helps to keep me going!

Until next time, all the very best from sunny Normandie! Sue

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© 2020 Sue Cross

Illustrations of scaly leg mites with thanks to the Pinterest boards of:
zooclub.ru
University of Edinburgh - StudyBlue 
diendancacanh.com

Scaly Face Mite - Treatment for Organic Poultry Part 3

There are already two previous parts to this article, one of which covers the identification and prevention of mite build-up, including crucial nutritional support and the other which deals with the treatment of scaly leg mite. If you are new to this subject and/or if you suspect your bird may have scaly face then it may be as well to go back and read these first as they both have bearing on the condition. You can find the links to these at the bottom of this page. That said here is the treatment I use for scaly face.

Above, Little Goldie, a Sebright/Polish Frizzle with a lovely personality and one of the few birds outside a couple of my Cochins with whom I have ever experienced scaly face. As you can see she is in new feather growth and I believe it is the abundance of keratin sheathing, aka mite food, around these new feathers, coupled with the fact that she has just been broody that engendered this condition.  A broody hen tends to be a little erratic in both her feeding and grooming habits. Little Goldie, an omnivorous creature of great foraging ability and meticulous personal preening has been caught out. You can see evidence of the mite beneath her eye, around the corner of her beak and over her ear flaps. She will also have it no doubt at the back of her neck, another difficult place to groom and because of the difference in location of the mite, my treatment will vary accordingly.

Above is our very dear old cuckoo Cochin Pingu, she has had a recurring case of scaly face, although her scaly leg mite has now gone. However, as already discussed in the previous articles, these microscopic arachnids are so slow to accumulate in a volume large enough to be seen, that it is as well to err on the side of caution and carry on the treatment of the legs as long as the facial problem continues. I've also observed her scratching the back of her neck, so I will be focussing my treatment with her around that area. You can tell from her beak that as an old lady, who likes to take things easily, she's not as keen on foraging as she used to be but she eats well. It is most important with all health issues including parasite attack, that your bird eats apart from the rest of the flock. As in the case of Pingu here, I am then assured that she is getting a fair share of  invertebrate protein, root vegetables and green leafy kale and also that she is not just filling herself up on, albeit sprouted, grain. As Pingu is also a sybarite and sun-worshipper,  I'm pretty sure she's well topped up on her Vitamin D3, as she is now on her B complex vitamins, amino acids, Vitamins A, K and zinc.

Think of Your Poultry as Individuals

This site is not called The Holistic Hen on a whim, I believe and hope I see all my poultry as individuals, thus it is not a foregone conclusion that all my Cochins, broodies or moulting Frizzles will have scaly face. Knowing the habits and personalities of my birds helps greatly in the prevention and cure of these conditions. Many parasitic and for example, respiratory problems need close contact to proliferate, so knowing who sits next to whom on the roost at night or how your poultry mix socially will help you to troubleshoot potential hosts. Both Badger (above) and Millefeuilles (below) are in the same coop as both Little Goldie and Pingu. At the present moment neither of the former are showing signs of scaly face nor scaly leg but as the Badger is sister and good companion to Pingu, I will be keeping my eye on her. Millefeuilles is pair-bonded to the coop's dominant cockerel Spike and also an inveterate forager, so I'm not so concerned about her. In an ideal world I would keep a book or spreadsheet on all these relationships and conditions but I usually rely on my memory and constant observation!

 

Raw Virgin Coconut Oil 

If you haven't this miraculous substance already in your pantry then I advise you to get some, both for your own and your poultry's health. Applied externally, this oil particularly comes into its own when the areas you are treating include those around which essential oils should not be used because they are so sensitive.  Organic raw pure virgin coconut oil is a magical substance, which contains lauric, capric and caprylic acids, these have wide ranging properties, such as antimicrobial, antioxidant, anti-fungal, antibacterial and soothing qualities. Coconut oil is a great support for the immune system and has both healing properties for the skin and promotes the regrowth of feathers/hair. We use it in cooking as well as in making cosmetics. Although a saturated fat coconut oil is made up of two thirds medium-chain fats aka medium-chain triglycerides or MCTs, these are metabolised in a completely different way to most fats, in that they do not need bile or digestive enzymes. Thus, when used internally, MCTs in coconut oil are readily available for use by both the body and the brain and not stored as in the usual way of fats. In the case of a stressed, tired bird or one lacking in energy due to mite activity, this is an assured way of giving a great boost to both motor and nervous system function. So when I treat externally with coconut oil, I always make sure the bird gets a nice nugget of coconut oil to eat as well - my birds love it!

Lauric acid makes up about half of the fatty acids in coconut oil. When lauric acid is digested, it transforms into a monoglyceride called monolaurin. Both lauric acid and monolaurin aid in ridding the gut of harmful pathogens such as bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites. This, as we have already discussed in the previous articles on this subject, is a bonus in the case of external mites, where continued activity can have compromised the gut and thus the immune system and digestive processes. So even if your bird is now eating well it may still not be able to extract the nutrients from its food. Coconut oil therefore is a most important asset to your medicine chest.

In the sensitive areas around the eyes, beak, nose and ear flaps, I only use pure coconut oil and as always, to apply it I'm using organic cotton buds. Be generous in your use of these, as with all microscopic creatures, it is easy for some of them to avoid direct contact with the treatment. As you apply the coconut oil, layers of these creatures and their debris will be removed, so to avoid any being reapplied and surviving, change the cotton bud often as practical. It is also possible as you get nearer to the skin that you will remove creatures that are burrowed below the surface, this may cause redness and in fact some slight bleeding. Stop the 'cleaning' treatment of these areas at this point and just gently pat on some coconut oil. This will both aid in skin repair and stop, by the antimicrobial effect of the coconut oil, any potential infection.

Why the Need for Essential Oils?

You might think that killing the mites by suffocation, i.e preventing them from accessing oxygen through breathing tubes or rudimentary lungs by blocking them with oil would be sufficient. However, when I first had to deal with external parasites many years ago, I read a lab report in which  it was documented that arthropods treated solely with a carrier oil had in fact been able to 'hold their breath' for more than an hour. Thus their breathing apparatus had had time to absorb the oil, become unblocked and therefore the mites had been able to survive the treatment. Thus the addition of an essential oil with insecticidal properties is necessary to be sure of ridding them from the host.

Essential Oil - Tea Tree (Melaleuca alternifolia)

Tea tree essential oil amongst its many properties is an insecticide and is used in organic farming as such. In fact it was a farmer friend of mine, who shadowed an organic vet as part of her continuing education, who first recommended tea tree to me as a cure for scaly leg many years ago. Tea tree also has wound healing properties, as does the coconut oil and as these mites can cause skin lesions, this is a very welcome extra virtue.

At the back of the neck, around the top of the head or to treat any other area away from the ear, eye, nose or beak,  I add one drop of tea tree essential oil to a teaspoonful of melted (carrier) coconut oil. This is the amount for each bird to be treated.  Thus, if I have a very large area to treat and run out of the essential oil/carrier oil mixture, I revert back to just using the pure coconut oil. The are several reasons why I only like to use 1 drop of tea tree when treating scaly face. The first being because tea tree is a strong oil and I don't like to use too much on the skin (unless as with my pigeon, in an earlier article, this is a case of gangrene or infection). Secondly because one of the greatest receptors for  essential oil is through the lungs, so as I'm treating the bird in areas in close proximity to its nose, I keep the dose to a minimum of one drop per day.

Essential oils are quick acting and should only be used for a short period, I work on a schedule of five days of treatment and then five days with no treatment before starting again, I have rarely ever got past the first five days. The ailment has either cleared up or I have realised I had made the wrong diagnosis and switched treatments.

Above All Communicate 

Your bird will be very grateful to you for solving this problem as parasites are, I imagine, a horrible thing to endure. However, your chicken may not enjoy being treated for them, despite having a piece of yummy coconut oil to eat. Talk to your birds throughout the treatment, reassuring them by the tone of your voice that all is well. If you have noticed the similarities between human and chicken-speak, then you will already understand that tone and cadence are all important. Your chicken will instinctively know what you are saying.

Below is Snowman, a White Columbian Cochin, he was never a very domesticated creature until one day, on a rare occasion he let me pick him up, I felt the tell-tale excrescences of scaly mite on his feet. Post treatment, he began to follow me about in the garden and continued to do so just like a puppy. We became the best of friends, my only regret being I hadn't forcibly inspected those large fluffy/feathery feet much earlier and thus prevented him any distress. However, his continued affection led me to believe that he had forgiven me.

Hope this was of help and please feel free to share this article and or ask questions or add your experiences with this condition. If you are interested you can also visit our Patreon site, where you can learn what other projects we have in store. In the meantime until the next article, 

All the very best and Happy Holistic Poultry for 2018,

Sue

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© 2018 Sue Cross