HELP! Bloody chick...

[BCollie]

My silver laced polish chick had like a broken tail feather or something and they all started picking at it an within an hour his tail turned into a bloody mess. What do I do? How do separate it from the others? I only have the one brooder and the one heat lamp. It's 3 weeks old

I'm currently just holding it over the brooder because I know if I put it back they'll all start relentlessly picking at it again

 

[BCollie]

Anyone?

 

[chickenhen]

Hi,

I have had chickens for three yrs,

It looks like it's molting although it's a chick so that doesn't make sense,

What is picking at the chick? Is it other chicks or Adult chickens?
I'll do some research for you if you'd like. Let me know!

Chickenhen~~~

 

[BCollie]

It's my other 12 chicks, same age as him, that are pecking at his bloody tail

 

[ten chicks]

shaft casing of feathers,can bleed profusely if damaged. New feathers are covered in a casing while they grow. Is your chick going through a mini molt(are feathers coming in), clean blood off,separate chick so the other chicks stop pecking at her.

 

[greentomato79]

I don't have much experience but will try and help as best I can.

You will have to separate it frome the others somehow, at three weeks you should be able to keep it at a good temp even with a regular bulb if need be, and it looks like you are in CA so you should not have to worry too much about temp, just keep it by itself in a warm spot maybe even in a box by a window with sunlight for now. But it does have to be separated until it heals or it will get pecked at again, once they see red aka blood they keep going for it. If it becomes an issue with others or if after you let this one heal and put it back and still have problems, there are "no peck" products out there, or research natural no peck remedies to use on the chicks, I had to get a no peck product for one group of my chicks, a purple gel stuff, from tractor supply and it worked great!

 

[amnich]

Blue-Kote is a spray carried by feed stores (for example Tractor Supply). It's an antibiotic so it will heal your bird faster and keep her from getting infected. Also, it's colored blue so that the raw area turns blue also. For whatever reason chickens are attracted to the color red, so this will keep them from being too interested in the wound. I would separate her first for a day or two though, to let it heal up before putting her back with her flock. Then keep using the blue-kote until it heals up all the way.

 

[BCollie]

Thanks, I will go to the store tomorrow and pick up some Blue-Kote.
ATM he is still in the brooder but is separated from all the others. I cut out a circle of chicken wire and closed the top so that he's still in with them but they can't actually get to each other.

 

[De Wet]

Blue-Kote is a spray carried by feed stores (for example Tractor Supply). It's an antibiotic so it will heal your bird faster and keep her from getting infected. Also, it's colored blue so that the raw area turns blue also. For whatever reason chickens are attracted to the color red, so this will keep them from being too interested in the wound. I would separate her first for a day or two though, to let it heal up before putting her back with her flock. Then keep using the blue-kote until it heals up all the way.

agree I use the same treatment on my female reeves pheasant and work