perlover48
In the Brooder
- Apr 5, 2016
- 65
- 1
- 39
I was going to check on my chicks and Fred and water them when I saw this
This never happened and I don't know what happened with the chicks
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how would I treat it? I won't want this to be my first chick to dieMight have stuck its head into something and either got stuck and panicked or scraped it against something sharp, tearing the skin. Could also have been from an older chicken if they have access.
The biggest issue at this point is preventing it from getting infected. Wash with regular soap/water to clean it. Then coat it with Poultry Vetericyn spray--most feed stores carry it and it's perfectly safe unlike some antibiotic ointments. Set up a hospital cage for her so she doesn't get dirt/poo/shavings in the wound and so the others don't peck at the wound.
I strongly recommend you take her to a vet tomorrow to see if it needs stitches or if you can manage it as an open wound.
I wrote an article on just this subject, and you will see the photos of my chick with a wound exactly like your chick's. It's the first of the four links listed below my post.
My chick was two weeks old and playing in the chick pen in the run when she stuck her head through the poultry mesh and my rooster pecked the back of her head, leaving a wound very similar to your chick's. Since, I have modified the chick pen with small mesh screen so this will never happen again.
I go through step by step instructions on how to care for the wound and what to expect. My chick was able to remain with the other chicks and it took about six weeks for the wound to close. It never got infected. The secret is to clean the wound twice a day so bacteria doesn't take hold, and to keep the wound moist until it completely heals.
The biggest issue at this point is preventing it from getting infected. Wash with regular soap/water to clean it. Then coat it with Poultry Vetericyn spray--most feed stores carry it and it's perfectly safe unlike some antibiotic ointments. Set up a hospital cage for her so she doesn't get dirt/poo/shavings in the wound and so the others don't peck at the wound.
I strongly recommend you take her to a vet tomorrow to see if it needs stitches or if you can manage it as an open wound.
I just had same thing last week. Rinse with saline, apply neosporin with pain relief twice this week. This week healed over looks great.