Cancer or abcess? Treat or euthanize?

[TheGoldenPoppy]

My poor girl had this weird wound I picked and cleaned and well… see photos. My post story. The wound initially. Picking the initial wound there wasnt much under. Then what it grew into today! What do I do?!

 

[Susan Skylark]

An abscess should be kept open and draining and the bird should be on oral antibiotics as well. Cancer or an abscessEd tumor won’t respond to antibiotics or draining (except the secondary bacterial infection if any), so if you can treat her properly for a week and see how she progresses you’ll have a good clue for prognosis: healing is great, no response is bad.

 

[Wingstem]

My poor girl had this weird wound I picked and cleaned and well… see photos. My post story. The wound initially. Picking the initial wound there wasnt much under. Then what it grew into today! What do I do?!

I'm sorry your thread hasn't gotten much traffic yet, your poor hen looks to be in very bad shape. Let me tag a few people that may be able to help more... @azygous @Wyorp Rock @Eggcessive @casportpony

Is this the same hen you posted about earlier this month? How is her demeanor and appetite at this point? Making sure she's not in shock is a first good step, electrolyte/sugar water is good if she seems shocky. Combine one cup of warm water, 1 teaspoon sugar, 1 pinch of each salt and baking soda, and give as her only water source. If she's not drinking on her own, you made need to carefully syringe it in or dribble it over the side of her beak to encourage drinking.

I haven't dealt with cancer, but I know @azygous has some experience with squamous cell carcinoma. I have treated rooster mating injuries that became neurotic.

Oral antibiotics are a good idea.

It's hard to tell where the injury is. Is that her neck? Is it an open cavity? Is it involving her crop? It may be necrotic damage from the fly strike and or infection. Cleaning with sterile saline or vetericyn and debriding the unhealthy tissue and then cover with triple antibiotic ointment (non painfree, use plain only) is where I'd start. Keep her in a clean warm environment. Hopefully others with more experience will chime in soon.

 

[casportpony]

Wow, it went from really small to huge! How long has it been since you first noticed it?

 

[azygous]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...e-not-injury-confirmed-to-be-a-tumor.1543307/ I invite you to look over my thread on squamous skin cancer in a chicken. This type of cancer is extremely common.

I do mention in my thread that an enzyme called Serrapeptase can slow down the development of this cancer and give the chicken additional months and even years.

I've kept the thread updated, so you can follow the progression of the cancer on my rooster. He's still doing remarkably well.

 

[Wingstem]

Looks like the same hen here, from November 1st? https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/wound-on-girl’s-neck.1679302/