chicken toupee?

[farmerChef]

I have a pullet that was scalped by the other hens in the layer pen she was in for over a month with 2 other broodmates. i dont know why they did this to her, she was in there about a month before this happened. The only thing i could think of is that maybe she challanged the top hen, the others ganged up on her. she was the smallest in there. Her mom is the top hen(when she's in there, she's broody alot), but she was not in there at that time. She actually killed the hen that was the top hen when she was moved back in the layer pen.

Anyway, is there some way I could make some kind of toupee for her? the skin around the area healed, but it was to big to heal all the way, and she has a bald spot the size of a quarter. I've tried putting her with other pullets and a few cockerals, but she beaks them down! She is sweet to me, but if you put her with another chicken, she will be all over them. The only one she didn't beat down was my dominate cockeral from the boy pen. I'm trying to put somebody with her because she is goin to a friends house.

Skellybean, formerly Limabean(mom is butterbean)

 

[CMV]

You should probably Blukote it to prevent further injury. Unfortunately, none of us has yet figured out how to keep protective bonnets on our birds. If you figure out a solution to the problem please let us all know how you managed it!

I have a girl who is permanently scarred on the back of her head from just such an injury. I wish I could have figured out a way to protect the back of the back of mine's head. It would have saved the lives of 2 males who were fighting over her. That injury is typically a rough roo injury. As it was, I ended up culling the 2 boys and the girl survived her scalping, but she is permanently marked from the adventure.

Sorry I couldn't be more help. Good luck.

 

[farmerChef]

I was trying to figure out if there was some why to sew a little patch on (my mom works at a animal hosp), but i was worried dirt might get stuck and it might get infected.

 

[CMV]

Quote:
As well you should be worried. Stitching anything to anything is not a great idea. I have dealt with many chicken injuries and I have opted to stitch up injuries exactly zero times. I have the supplies necessary to do it, but the risk of infection is so great that I always opt for a less permanent fix for the purpose of infection control. Stitching injuries creates its own problems. I will use it as a last ditch effort, but an injury would have to be pretty extreme for me to consider stitching.

That injury is too old to do anything other than dress it. You may want to address the issues that caused the injury in the first place. If she is going elsewhere then perhaps she should go sooner rather than later.

Good luck with her.

 

[farmerChef]

She's by herself right now. I wanted to send her off with a buddy, but it seems like she doesn't want one. It happened, probly 2 months ago I think? I figured it wouldn't close up, but I was hoping. I've tried putting her with a small group (2-4) pullets, but she tries to fight to the death, idk if this is behaivor inherited from mom, or frim what happened to her. Its probly some of both.

 

[CMV]

I have a bird like that. Antisocial, anti-flock, big bully...whatever.

If you can't find a friend to go with her then perhaps she is best on her own. Some birds are just aggressive by nature. There is not much you can do about them. You are obviously doing the best you can by her, so the rest is up to her. She will have to survive and thrive by her own rules. Your job is done once she goes somewhere else. Don't worry too much about it. Her aggression will probably make her queen of her new flock... if it doesn't land her in a stew pot.

I hope she does well.