Wound care advice, please

[CMV]

Hi All-
I posted yesterday about a hen who survived a hawk attack and got some great advice. Thanks so much. The hen continues to survive, but her wounds are even worse than I had originally thought, and honestly if I had realized the full extent of her injuries I probably would not have tried to save her. Now I feel like she fought this hard to stay alive that I can't give up on her. I tried to find an avian vet around here, but they are either too far away, not taking new patients, or too expensive. I cleaned the hen's wound really well this morning and discovered that her entire lower back is flayed. I still do not see any muscular damage. I covered the whole raw mess with a thick layer of Neosporin and then set gauze pads into the layer of goo. She is attempting to groom the Neosporin out, so I thought the gauze might prevent that. Does anyone have any other advice? Is there a wound dressing I can use? Should I start her on oral antibiotics even though there is no sign of infection, yet? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Freebie]

I had a hen attacked by a dog a year or so ago. The dog had taken a bite right out of her back. A huge chunk of meat gone, puncture wounds around her neck. My husband wanted to put her down. but she went in a dog crate in the garage. I kept it darker and went and tended to her twice a day. Cleaning and putting ointment on her wounds. I did not let her back with the flock till the big wound was healed. It took about a month. But she healed and even grew back her feathers. I would say if you have the space and time, just see what happens.

edited to add. I did give her antibiotics in her water for about a week.

 

[jlmann]

Have you thought about trying BLUKOTE? It is an anti bacterial and antifungal spray.
Ditto on the antibiotics. Or you could even get Penaqueous and inject into her breast.

 

[noobiechickenlady]

I'm not trying to hijack the thread, but I had my first chicken attack yesterday afternoon and I'm needing the same info. I've followed the advice of others on washing the wounds, I'm going to stop by the feed store this afternoon and get some Wonderdust and see if they have an antibiotic I can give her.
She was attacked by a cat, my 6 yo was watching them and got distracted. Young tomcat just took his opportunity. Told him he was getting the one freebie
I understand that cat wounds can be very bad?

She has a wound right between her wings on her back, slight flesh wound and a small puncture/tear on her breast about crop level.
So I'm guessing that I should dress it with ointment, gauze then fasten with rubber bands or tape criss-crossed over her back? Is that the best way? Or should I get & use vet wrap?
Like my name says, I'm a nube.

 

[jlmann]

I don't know if I would use a gauze/dressing unless it was a really bad wound. Try to find some of the Blukote. You spray it on the wound about twice a day ( if I remember right) and it helps to dry the area and prevent infection. Also keep injured birds away from the rest of the flock so they don't peck at it.

 

[CMV]

I was wondering about Blue Kote. A vet I talked to (who was extremely expensive and openly hostile about the prospect of treating a chicken) said that Blue Kote was not appropriate for poultry use. He made it sound like it would kill the hen if I put it on her. I had initially thought of that. Has anyone used it on poultry? I'm willing to try anything at this point. The hen is not doing as well today.

 

[jlmann]

I had two ducks that were attacked by dogs and they did fine with about 2 weeks of blukote every day. TSC puts blukote on chicks that have been pecked. I've never had or heard of any problems with it. Sounds like the vet wanted you to send him on vacation this year.

 

[CMV]

I'm worried abut the Blue Kote only because of the sheer size of the wound. The poor hen has no skin left on her lower back. I initially thought the wound was about 4x4 inches, but it's more like 8x8 inches. She is in bad shape, but she is a fighter, so I'm willing to give her the best chance I can.

 

[jlmann]

When my ducks were attacked they both had bare backs and places on both thighs that were maybe 1" deep where the dogs had "eaten" some of the flesh. The blu kote helps to dry out the wounds so they can begin healing. Do you have antibiotics?

 

[I'vegotchickenfever]

We used blukote on our hen that was ripped open on both sides from rooster spurs. You could see right down to the meat of the thigh. We did a variety of things, first used neosporin and gauze, wrapping around her to keep the gauze in place. She got outta that in about an hour. She continued to peck at her own wounds. Got some blukote and used that with a chicken saddle (we just went to the dollar store and bought a bib) She wore it just like a baby does, except backwards, so the cloth goes under the wings, but covers the wounds. She did get out of it a couple of times, we just replaced it. It's helping heal quicker cuz she's fooling with the bib, not her wounds. Hope yours starts healing soon!