Does this look like cancer?

[azygous]

Would you be willing to try one more thing to debride that wound? It's very important to try to remove that scab. It requires work and it may seem cruel, but any chance of healing this wound requires it.

This technique I have tried with good results. Take Dawn concentrated dish detergent, and yes, it must be Dawn because it has a special surfactant that reacts with water to make water "wetter", and dowse the scab with the liquid right out of the bottle. Cover the scab generously with the Dawn. Then have a bowl of hot water ready. After the scab has been softened for about five minutes by the Dawn, place a wet rag soaked in the hot water over the scab without trying to rinse or wipe off the Dawn. Re-wet the rag every couple minutes and keep holding on the scab for a total of ten minutes.

You should find the scab has turned to jelly and will peel off. Any part that is stubborn and hard, reapply the Dawn and repeat the hot water compresses until those soften and can be peeled off.

We need to see what the condition is of the tissue under that scab. What is happening is bacteria is living protected under the scab and multiplying and destroying the tissue. Eventually, the infection will get into the blood stream and go systemic unless halted at the epidermal layer. If it's gotten below that outer layer, it would be extremely difficult to treat. But we still need to assess that.

 

[Heres2U_MrsR]

Would you be willing to try one more thing to debride that wound? It's very important to try to remove that scab. It requires work and it may seem cruel, but any chance of healing this wound requires it.

This technique I have tried with good results. Take Dawn concentrated dish detergent, and yes, it must be Dawn because it has a special surfactant that reacts with water to make water "wetter", and dowse the scab with the liquid right out of the bottle. Cover the scab generously with the Dawn. Then have a bowl of hot water ready. After the scab has been softened for about five minutes by the Dawn, place a wet rag soaked in the hot water over the scab without trying to rinse or wipe off the Dawn. Re-wet the rag every couple minutes and keep holding on the scab for a total of ten minutes.

You should find the scab has turned to jelly and will peel off. Any part that is stubborn and hard, reapply the Dawn and repeat the hot water compresses until those soften and can be peeled off.

We need to see what the condition is of the tissue under that scab. What is happening is bacteria is living protected under the scab and multiplying and destroying the tissue. Eventually, the infection will get into the blood stream and go systemic unless halted at the epidermal layer. If it's gotten below that outer layer, it would be extremely difficult to treat. But we still need to assess that.

I’m willing to try just about anything as he’s still fighting. Dawn! That’s a very innovative use of it. I’ll let you know how it goes.

 

[azygous]

Hah! Believe it or not, Dawn is a staple tool in just about every machine shop and automotive repair shop. It's a degreaser par excellence. It's also a primo toilet de-clogger.

I just now got through using Dawn undiluted to soften gunk in the nares of one of my chickens. It made it easy then to remove the clogs safely and gently. It's a permanent item in my chicken first aid supplies.

 

[Heres2U_MrsR]

@azygous I will definitely keep Dawn in my arsenal going forward!

I attempted again to get the scab off but it won’t budge. It’s such an involved mass of tissue it seems like. I scraped with a gloved fingernail and tried pulling at edges. I’m really afraid I’m going to leave him with a gaping wound if I pull or scrape much more. Is it worth trying multiple times?

I can irrigate around it, but I think I’m seeing internal organs on both sides. Can that skin ever heel over gaps like this? Ugh. I’m so mad at myself for not seeing this before. His feathers concealed it so well. For what it’s worth he’s not one to perch unless it’s at night, but he IS prone to overestimating his abilities to fly and spar with other roosters.

*the red line is running the length of a gap I’m seeing.

 

[Eggcessive]

Seeing organs on each side sounds like there won’t be enough skin to ever cover them, or for healing to occur. Azygous is very experienced and she is the best to advise you. I haven’t experienced such a wound before. I really hope that you can save him, but it may be difficult. Does he seem to be in any pain?

 

[Heres2U_MrsR]

Seeing organs on each side sounds like there won’t be enough skin to ever cover them, or for healing to occur. Azygous is very experienced and she is the best to advise you. I haven’t experienced such a wound before. I really hope that you can save him, but it may be difficult. Does he seem to be in any pain?

No, he doesn’t and that’s really throwing me off. He’s trying to escape the bathroom I have him in, he’s alert, and just ate a banana like it’s going out of style. I think I will re-wrap him for tonight and try Dawn again in the morning. When I bandaged him earlier I used a menstrual pad coated in coconut oil, soaked in silver, and then placed it over the wound with the absorbent side against him.I’m following with vet wrap around his body. He seems to not mind that at all.

 

[azygous]

If Dawn won't soften the scab, then perhaps it's not a wound but a cancer tumor after all. But even cancer tumors, and I've dealt with two with black scabs, will soften with Dawn. At least the two I dealt with did.

And don't feel terrible about not catching this earlier. One tumor I dealt with was as large as you say this scab is. It was on a hen on her back near the base of her tail. Her feathers concealed it until I noticed her withdrawing and acting lethargic. It was too large and advanced to do much about so I had to euthanize her. It was very painful for her.

I did manage to remove the scab a couple of times, treating it as a wound to see if it would heal. When it refused to improve, I knew it was a cancer.

The second one is on the leg of one of my current roosters. Again, I did manage to soften his black scab with Dawn and remove it, but it kept coming back, and now his cancer is three times as large as when I first discovered it. It causes him some pain, but it doesn't seem to interfere with his life beyond localized discomfort.

I cannot make out the wound in your photos. I was hoping to be able to determine if it's a cancer or wound. If you really are seeing a deep split in the skin and internal organs are exposed, that sounds like it's beyond help.

 

[Heres2U_MrsR]

If Dawn won't soften the scab, then perhaps it's not a wound but a cancer tumor after all. But even cancer tumors, and I've dealt with two with black scabs, will soften with Dawn. At least the two I dealt with did.

And don't feel terrible about not catching this earlier. One tumor I dealt with was as large as you say this scab is. It was on a hen on her back near the base of her tail. Her feathers concealed it until I noticed her withdrawing and acting lethargic. It was too large and advanced to do much about so I had to euthanize her. It was very painful for her.

I did manage to remove the scab a couple of times, treating it as a wound to see if it would heal. When it refused to improve, I knew it was a cancer.

The second one is on the leg of one of my current roosters. Again, I did manage to soften his black scab with Dawn and remove it, but it kept coming back, and now his cancer is three times as large as when I first discovered it. It causes him some pain, but it doesn't seem to interfere with his life beyond localized discomfort.

I cannot make out the wound in your photos. I was hoping to be able to determine if it's a cancer or wound. If you really are seeing a deep split in the skin and internal organs are exposed, that sounds like it's beyond help.

I am so incredibly appreciative of the help and insight that you and eggcessive have given. I’ve learned so much along the way! Dawn in the chicken first aid kit . I’m keeping him comfy tonight so I can think about what’s next. I do think I’ll keep trying as long as he doesn’t seem to be in pain, but I think you might be right about the tumor. I wonder if he scrapped with other roosters and there was trauma to it, causing infection? Who knows?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

@Heres2U_MrsR how is he doing?

 

[Heres2U_MrsR]

@Heres2U_MrsR how is he doing

@Heres2U_MrsR how is he doing?

He’s NOT enjoying confinement, eating and drinking, but I think it’s getting worse. The smell and appearance are awful. I don’t see how he’s even alive and doing as well as he is. I think we will him down tomorrow unless anyone thinks anything more can be done. He’s on antibiotics, I’ve tried soaking/softening(it’s not budging at all), topical ointments, wound cleaning, etc.