Once the fowl gets to this point, the problem is nearly impossible to correct. This can result in hock disorders. Wet litter - Birds walking on damp litter tend to develop tender foot pads. They are prone to sit on the wet litter leading to breast blisters and swollen hocks. If the pads on their feet get badly cracked, they often get infections leading to bumble foot.
Bumble foot is a pussy core in the pad of the foot which swells and causes the bird to go lame.
If you can remove the core and clear up the infection you can sometimes correct his problem. Bumble foot can also be a problem for birds raised on gravel, concrete floors, or hard- packed ground. Improper diet - Starter diets that are adequate for laying chickens do not do the job in meat chickens, turkeys, and waterfowl. Use a complete starter and grower mash balanced for the specific types of fowl whenever possible. People often feed whole grains to young fowl trying to save money.