Chicks Bleeding Near Tails—Causes and Treatments??

[Prince and Pavo]

Hi there. I have 19 chicks that I hatched about three months ago, and some of them have broken feather shafts and are bleeding right by the tail. I’ve noticed several that have this, but I don’t know what it’s from. The others all try to peck at the blood, and the one in the picture below I have separated because she’s got it the worst. Maybe I had too many in a small area so they started to pick on each other…I let them out today, but I’ll still keep that one separate for a couple days. My questions are, How can I stop them from doing this to each other, and how do I treat the injured ones? I have dabbed some lavender and eucalyptus oil on the wound, sprayed it with some witch hazel spray, and applied honey to the affected area. Should I do anything else?

 

[Prince and Pavo]

 

[Prince and Pavo]

Hello. Today I went out to check on the chicks and noticed another one in the coop trying to hide, not doing anything but just sitting there all hunched up with her eyes closed. I brought her in and when I looked her over I saw this (if you are sensitive to the sight of exposed wounds do not continue):

This hole is her vent, but the other chicks have pecked at it so much that it doesn’t close and it looks like they’ve torn off the surrounding tissue. I did essentially the same thing that I did for the other one yesterday, but since this one is much more severe I’m not sure if it will be very beneficial. I don’t know if she’s going to make it. She did nothing when I was treating her, just sat there and made no sounds. Her breathing looks very labored. You can see inside her vent as it pulsates while she breathes. Can anyone help me?

 

[Prince and Pavo]

I don’t know if anyone’s read this, but in case you have, a quick update…

Unfortunately, the black chick in the second and third pictures died . The wound seemed to be too serious to treat, and I wasn’t able to save her .

However, the chick in the first picture was/is doing better. After a couple days of seclusion, her wound scabbed over, so I let her back with the others. She did fine during the day, but in the morning when they were all still locked up in the coop, the other chicks started picking on her again! I separated her for a second time, and she is still by herself. I am planning to let her back with the flock (again) in a couple days, but this time I will put her in her own cage at night for a while, until the injury completely heals.

 

[TRALALARA1]

I had this issue last year. I believe mine was from too many youngsters in too small of area. And boredom. I started letting them free range for a few hours each day and they seemed to stop. Once they start doing that it’s hard to get them to stop. And for mine it was not diet. They got plenty of protein and I even supplemented scrambled eggs. It’s a nasty habit.

 

[KreetchaKeepa]

The space for your girls is probably too small. When space and/or resources appear limited to them, they will pick the lower pecking order birds to death if a correction for either issue isn't implemented with haste.

 

[Prince and Pavo]

Thanks for your replies! I figured it probably had something to do with boredom or not enough space. I haven’t noticed it on any of the other ones since I’ve let them out, so I think that was what was causing the issue.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Look up Cannibalism in poultry.