Bullying injury to young hen

[lv9777]

I had a broody raise two RIR chicks in the fall and they are now laying. I also did this the previous year and everyone integrated fine. Things seemed to be going well with the everyone util now. One of my young hens has been scalped. I have never had bloodshed prior. My 2 yr old RIR is second in command and I am sure she is the culprit. Two questions: How do I manage this wound and should I rehome someone.
1. Managing the wound: Do i clip off the scalped part? It flops down as she moves her head so to reattach it I am going to have to bandage her head. I have her in a crate, but she is stressed about being caged. I have cleaned it and sprayed it with vetericyn plus. She is eating and I gave her nutridrench. She is still active and eyes are clear and bright.
2. Is there something I can do to manage this pecking order better. I have 8 hens and they have a 20 x 30 run with places to hide. Every evening they get to run around the entire back yard, so space should not be a problem. This young hen does appear to be trying to move up the ranks while the other one is content to be on the lower end of the order. My 2 yr old RIR (Marla) is very bossy, but has never done anything like this prior.

 

[Eggcessive]

You can spray some saline or a wound spray such as Vetericyn on it. Then you could try to place the flap back over the wound. Keep it moist with antibiotic ointment twice or more a day. It may grow back together or curl up at the edges, but that is okay. @azygous has done this a number of times, and it worked, and she can tell us if I said that right. If it does curl around the edges and dries, you can trim the dead skin.

Separate her in a wire dog crate with food and water on a clean towel. This is a common area for a hen or especially a rooster to hurt a hen. It can take some weeks to heal, but if the graft takes, it will speed that up.

Is the villain definitely a hen? I would keep an eye on her to see if she is doing to this to others.

 

[lv9777]

You can spray some saline or a wound spray such as Vetericyn on it. Then you could try to place the flap back over the wound. Keep it moist with antibiotic ointment twice or more a day. It may grow back together or curl up at the edges, but that is okay. @azygous has done this a number of times, and it worked, and she can tell us if I said that right. If it does curl around the edges and dries, you can trim the dead skin.

Separate her in a wire dog crate with food and water on a clean towel. This is a common area for a hen or especially a rooster to hurt a hen. It can take some weeks to heal, but if the graft takes, it will speed that up.

Is the villain definitely a hen? I would keep an eye on her to see if she is doing to this to others.

Any idea how to keep it on her head? Unless I bandage her entire head it won't stay on.
I saw my other RIR pecking her, but she has never drawn blood before. This is the first bullying I have had in my small group.

 

[goats-n-oats]

Any idea how to keep it on her head? Unless I bandage her entire head it won't stay on.
I saw my other RIR pecking her, but she has never drawn blood before. This is the first bullying I have had in my small group.

This happened to a dozen of my hens last summer, due to overcrowding and too many roosters. I identified the roosters and sent them to the butcher.
With regards to the skin flap, I'm not sure there's a way to bandage it to her head, you'd have to wrap her whole head around her neck and that might put pressure on her airway or esophagus. With mine, I just sprayed them with BluCote and separated them in their own cages, and the wounds healed as they did. I would expect the skin to fall off and new skin to grow over the scalp, if you just leave it. You can reapply the vetericyn or BluCote as needed. I'd also give her some immune support in her water like probiotics and/or oregano oil.

 

[lv9777]

Thank you. I just noticed that her sister (same age) has a bit of blood on her head as well. Can I keep them in the same cage or will they peck the bloody spots? I had her in a cage, but she seemed so stressed that I let her out again and cooped the suspected bully instead. I will cage her tonight, but she may be happier if she can be with her buddy.

 

[lv9777]

Thank you. I just noticed that her sister (same age) has a bit of blood on her head as well. Can I keep them in the same cage or will they peck the bloody spots? I had her in a cage, but she seemed so stressed that I let her out again and cooped the suspected bully instead. I will cage her tonight, but she may be happier if she can be with her buddy.

 

[Eggcessive]

Does her is sited have a wound or just blood? In my earlier post, I didn’t mean for it to be bandaged. If you could get another picture, it might help. A loose piece of TShirt cuff as a scarf or cover might help, but we usually don’t recommend dressings.

 

[lv9777]

Does her is sited have a wound or just blood? In my earlier post, I didn’t mean for it to be bandaged. If you could get another picture, it might help. A loose piece of TShirt cuff as a scarf or cover might help, but we usually don’t recommend dressings.

Her sister just has a small scab. She runs away, the injured hen does not. I let her out as she was having a fit in the cage. Everyone is now roosted and quiet. I think I will cage her as late as possible so that the morning is not a problem. I can't keep the flap on her head. I just hope she can regrow feathers since this wound seems really deep. She is acting totally fine, eating and scratching as usual.
I am trying to find another small coop that I can use as a sick coop as opposed to a cage.
Thank you so much. I do have a vet that would see her. If I take her do you think there is much they can do? Would they stitch the flap? (I know she is just a chicken, but she is my responsibility)

 

[Eggcessive]

If I saw a vet, I would not let them put her to sleep to sew it up. They do not tolerate anesthesia well. I think that the flap will either become a skin graft or it will shrink up, but either way she will most likely recover. Her biggest problem is to get her back into the flock after being apart. If she is in a dog crate with the flock, that may help.

 

[azygous]

I use lots of wound ointment to "glue" the flap onto the wound. Bandaging is futile on a chicken. Don't waste your time. You'll only get frustrated.

After cleaning the wound well to remove all bacteria, soap and water or a antiseptic wash, rinse with saline as the final step in wound prep. This restores the proper ph for cell growth.

Dry the wound with a air dryer so the ointment sticks. Use plenty. Put the flap in place and cover liberally with more ointment to seal it in place. This serves to keep the flap from popping back off and it also keeps the wound moist, essential for healing.

You must repeat this process for about three days until the graft "takes". Only a flap that is still attached and still has blood flowing to it will work as a graft. If the flap is dried and lost its color, the tissue is probably dead and will not work as a graft.