Chicken with large head wound after being attacked

[luvsungs]

You could make up a warm cleaning solution with a quart of water, about a tablespoonful of betadine, a teaspoonful of salt, and a 1/2 teaspoonful of Dawn or similar dishwashing liquid. Using Staceyj’s directions for holding her in a towel, try to rinse off the maggots. The salt and soap will kill the maggots awhile the betadine will help to disinfect. Then rinse off at the kitchen sprayer when all maggots are gone. Apply the Neosporin to help smother the maggots. This may need to be repeated again later in the day, and tomorrow if more maggots hatch or appear.

If you feel the chicken is too far gone or suffering when your parents are home, euthanizing her may be kinder. Good luck and hopefully you can help her. Here is a good article about flystrike and maggots:
https://the-chicken-chick.com/flystrike-in-backyard-chickens-causes/

Will the solution damage her eyes?

 

[Eggcessive]

Try to keep it out of eyes if you can. It won’t kill her if some gets in, but the salt amount is the same a saline eye flush for contacts and eye problems, and won’t burn. The soap or betadine would be more prone to burning, but will help her maggots and wounds. Chickens tend to close their third eyelids if something is getting close to eyes.

 

[Barbs Girls]

Oh this is daunting for an experienced chicken owner, completely understand if you are overwhelmed. Don’t beat yourself up, just do your best!

 

[luvsungs]

Try to keep it out of eyes if you can. It won’t kill her if some gets in, but the salt amount is the same a saline eye flush for contacts and eye problems, and won’t burn. The soap or betadine would be more prone to burning, but will help her maggots and wounds. Chickens tend to close their third eyelids if something is getting close to eyes.

l tried the solution but I'm not sure if it's effective. There are also some cracks and holes on the top of her head the maggots keep crawling in and out of

 

[luvsungs]

After the second try with the solution she won't open her eyes and keeps falling over.

 

[staceyj]

@Eggcessive , would you/could you look at the photo in post #44?

 

[Eggcessive]

It looks like the skull has been punctured by fangs of an animal. I would put the ointment on her and leave her alone to rest in a warm spot. I really don’t think that she will live at this point. Will your parents let you have a vet euthanize her? Do you have a relative or neighbor who could put her down? I don’t usually recommend this often, but I don’t think she will live with her injuries and flystrike. I am really sorry that you have to handle this all alone.

 

[staceyj]

After the second try with the solution she won't open her eyes and keeps falling over.

I think this is exhausting to her and you.
Keep her warm and let her rest in a dim or dark place for a little while.

Those skull fractures have me very worried.

I’m being honest with you because you’ve handled this whole horrible situation with such grace and maturity.
If this was just a scalping injury I’d say the odds of healing were nearly 100%.

Adding the maggots as a gross, time consuming and dangerous complication, her chances of survival are lessened.

Now to see that she has these skull fractures which the maggots have gotten in to, I’m frankly discouraged for her survival.
They’re no way of telling how deep they are. If they are deep, she may have a traumatic brain injury or bleeding within the brain.

It doesn’t take much for an injury to be deep. A chicken’s skull isn’t very thick.

 

[staceyj]

It looks like the skull has been punctured by fangs of an animal. I would put the ointment on her and leave her alone to rest in a warm spot. I really don’t think that she will live at this point. Will your parents let you have a vet euthanize her? Do you have a relative or neighbor who could put her down? I don’t usually recommend this often, but I don’t think she will live with her injuries and flystrike. I am really sorry that you have to handle this all alone.

Thank you for your thoughtful reply. I must have been typing as you posted. I’m glad you’re here.

 

[luvsungs]

Thank you so much for all the help. I'm going to leave her to rest until my parents come home, and let them decide what happens.