Hi everyone! I have done several successful surgeries on ducks and chickens. I had a mallard hen that was injured by one of my dogs. Here injuries were fairly extensive, but were only skin tears. I found that if you are wanting to stitch up an injured bird that you can take a soft, dark colored sock and gently place it over the birds head. I usually put a small hole in the sock that the birds bill or beak is free so that it can breathe freely.
Then I take an ace bandage and secure the bird to a sturdy surface, such as a piece of wood. I put an old t-shirt or baby blanket on the board so that the bird is more comfortable. The dark sock will make the bird "go to roost" and fall asleep.When doing this I have noticed that the birds do not seem to be in any pain and will just sleep through the entire process. One time I did have a bird to make a small squawk, but it did not sound like a pain sound, more of a surprise squawk. I hope this makes sense.
If the bird is injured or if you are doing any surgery, I recommend using betadine to sterilize your tools and any wounds that require stitches. Be sure to keep the bird warm and as comfortable as possible, as cold temperatures may cause your bird to go into shock. Then use "very sharp" tools for making incisions and that will keep the pain minimal. A dull scalpel will be painful. If you are sewing up an injury, you can take plain white sewing thread and a small sewing needle and sew up any tears or injuries. Be sure to thoroughly clean any wounds from debris and pour betadine into the wound and apply plenty around the outside area as well. You can make a small ice bag from a zip lock sandwich bag and ice the skin for a few seconds to lessen the pain as well. Then just sew the wound together making sure that you make your stitches about 1/4 inch inside the edge of the skin. Gently pull the wound edges together and finish off the stitches with a knot. You can let this dry for a few minutes, usually about 10 minutes and then put some super glue along the center edges of the stitches and you will have a wonderful completed bandage. You do not need to remove the stitches as they will dissolve by themselves eventually.
Then I usually put the bird in a warm dark rubbermaid box with light food and water.It is important to keep them away from other birds that might pick at the injury. I have also made a body stocking for a severe injury once. I used a length of panty hose and cut a snug slip on shirt thingy with leg holes and make sure the wings are through the holes too. If a wing is damaged you can leave it underneath the stocking for a few days until the wing has healed. This might take a week to 10 days. If the bird has been injured by another animal, it is a good idea to add some antibiotic to it's water for a few days to ward off any infections. After a few hours give your bird some chick starter crumbles, not too much and keep him or her warm and dry for a few days. I have done this many times with success.
I have never caponized a rooster yet, but I plan on giving this a try later this summer. I have way too many Orpington chicks that I don't want to cull. Capon sounds delicious!
I hope you will forgive the lengthy post, but I felt that there were many questions here about how to safely sedate a bird to do minor surgery. I hope this will help you to get the job done without you or your bird suffering too much trauma!
Sincerely! BunnyMomma
