Bumble Foot

Yet another young gull with a bad leg at brochers brae, this one has been around for a while and limping quite badly. I saw it sitting close to the manhole that has been spewing out sewage every time it rains hard, it seemed poorly, still has baby fluff and was not eating. Perhaps the parents have abandoned it because of it's limping and apparent illness. I managed to catch it and take it home for a good look, although it can fly OK. The left foot appears to have the start of a painful condition called bumble foot, with swelling on the underside due to bacterial infection. This usually enters the foot due to a cut or scratch and if left untreated can enter the bone and other parts of the body with dire consequences. It crossed my mind with all the sewage overspill in that area, did it get the infection there ? Anyway since the other gull I have at present is all but cured of it's leg injury, I banished it to the garden to make room in the aviary for the new patient. I consulted Sue my Avian adviser and have administered some antibiotics and anti inflammatory medication. After two days it has already shown signs of recovery and is now eating with gusto, when the limping disappears I will take it back to brochers brae and release it. Meanwhile the other gull from the same area is getting familiar with the new casualty.