Hen Comb Injury

[Ashley Benningfield]

Hi everyone! I noticed one of my hens has an injury to her comb and I'm looking for a little advice since I haven't dealt with this kind of injury before. I noticed she had tiny bit of blood on her comb, and it looked as though one of the peaks on her crown was partially detached on the bottom from the back. Otherwise, she was acting just fine as was the rest of the flock. I cleaned it up, sprayed Vetericyn on it and covered it with Blu-Kote. An hour later, the comb peak is turning very dark. Any further advice for her wound care or things I should watch out for would be greatly appreciated. My initial thought is the dark discoloration may mean the little peak needs to be removed, but I’ve only just started to learn about comb clipping. Thanks!

 

[NatJ]

The black part will die and cannot be saved. You are right about that.

But whether it "needs" to be removed is a judgement call. You could clip it off, or you could leave it alone and it will eventually fall off on its own.

If the hen seems bothered by it, then snipping it off might be a good idea, if you are comfortable doing that. Otherwise, just leave it, and that bit will fall off in time (probably within a few weeks or maybe less), and the spot will heal up, and the hen will be fine.

 

[Ashley Benningfield]

The black part will die and cannot be saved. You are right about that.

But whether it "needs" to be removed is a judgement call. You could clip it off, or you could leave it alone and it will eventually fall off on its own.

If the hen seems bothered by it, then snipping it off might be a good idea, if you are comfortable doing that. Otherwise, just leave it, and that bit will fall off in time (probably within a few weeks or maybe less), and the spot will heal up, and the hen will be fine.

Thanks for the reply! I've checked on her this morning and I think it will indeed fall off on its own. Glad to see I was on the right track. It doesn't appear to be bothering her, so I'd rather not intervene unnecessarily and will continue to monitor her.

 

[Ashley Benningfield]

The detached piece hung around for over a week and eventually fell off on its own. Her comb is completely healed and healthy now. Thanks!

 

[NatJ]

The detached piece hung around for over a week and eventually fell off on its own. Her comb is completely healed and healthy now. Thanks!

Thanks for updating. It's always nice to hear how these things turn out, especially when the news is good