Dog attack: injured oil gland on gander

[fowltemptress]

**It should be assumed in anything I post that going to a vet is not on the table.**

My gander was sitting with his butt to the fence and was grabbed by the tail by a dog in an attempt to yank the gander through. Huge chunks were taken from the back and one side of the tail. The injury on the back of the tail was very deep - I'm assuming that's the area where his oil gland was because I sure can't find it now, and every time he bathes he's no longer hydrophobic and gets soaked. He could (and can) still wag his tail and move it normally, so no issues there.

The attack happened maybe a month ago so I'm not looking for advice on wound care. What I'm mostly wondering is if anyone has experience with injured oil glands, and if having that part basically "torn off" is something that can be healed, or if I should be expecting this to be permanent? And if permanent, anything I should know - like I'm assuming access to pools in winter will no longer be a thing lest I want a frozen goose.


This is the injury closer to when it happened, maybe one or two weeks after the attack. I didn't even think to take a picture earlier on, unfortunately. I was dealing with infection and not thinking of things like that. It was an extremely ragged wound and for a long time I wasn't sure what I was looking at, so it took me awhile to get confident in the things I was debriding, plucking, and snipping away.

This is the wound today. Lots of new feather growth (and a dandelion leaf?!) attempting to block my view.

Thanks for any thoughts or ideas.

 

[Stipenvlerk]

Wow! you did a really good job fighting the infection. that was a nasty wound. Happy he survived. Hopefully the oil gland experts will chime in soon!

 

[fowltemptress]

Wow! you did a really good job fighting the infection. that was a nasty wound. Happy he survived. Hopefully the oil gland experts will chime in soon!

Thanks. It was an ordeal.

 

[fowltemptress]

If anyone happens by this thread and for whatever reason is interested in a lot more details, I typed it out here.

Since it doesn't look like many people have experience with this, if anything changes (or if nothing changes) I'll be sure to come back here and add an update.

 

[alinas2010]

I wonder if some of the more experienced educators have seen anything like this. I feel like injuries to the oil glands have to be more common than we think.

@Wyorp Rock
@Eggcessive
@coach723
@azygous

Also I just read his story about this. I’m so sorry this happened. He is a trooper and so are you to get him through this. The picture you posted of sleeping next to him incase anything happened, I can relate to that. He looks like a sweet boy.

 

[Eggcessive]

I read this thread yesterday, and I don’t know the answer. It is a shame this happened to him.

 

[coach723]

Not an expert, and definitely not on ducks/geese, but if the gland is indeed gone, then fairly sure that's permanent. Skin heals but glands don't grow back. A quick search says that without the gland water birds will have chronic "wet feather". Most sources say no swimming, and extra care, especially in cold temps as they can become easily hypothermic. Some say there will be some improvement after molt, but it will be chronic. Some sites say that daily baths will encourage preening, but you have to dry them off thoroughly after. One site suggested keeping them indoors. I don't have ducks/geese, so have no personal experience, all I have are written sources. I would do some searching, read what you can find, and combine that with your own personal experience and knowledge to see if you can come up with a plan that works for you.

 

[fowltemptress]

I picked up Hans to look for his oil gland, just to compare. This is his . . .

. . . and this is Tex's.

Not looking good.


I found a picture online and pasted it on top of an earlier picture of Tex's injury for easy comparison. Looks like I'll definitely have to figure out how to rearrange things for him in Winter.

 

[alinas2010]

I think it seems like you are waging a new path for others to follow with this issue.

Seems like he might have part of the gland left, I wonder if nature will find a way once he is completely healed up?

Also, maybe a bit tacky to suggest, but what about something like mink oil? It might not make his feathers water proof really, but it could condition them a little maybe.

 

[fowltemptress]

I think it seems like you are waging a new path for others to follow with this issue.

Seems like he might have part of the gland left, I wonder if nature will find a way once he is completely healed up?

Also, maybe a bit tacky to suggest, but what about something like mink oil? It might not make his feathers water proof really, but it could condition them a little maybe.

My husband is much better at optimism than I am, and keeps telling me to give it time and maybe it'll get better. In the meantime, my brain is screeching at me that Tex may experience a buildup of oil under his skin that can't release itself and die of complications from that. I'm distracting myself by looking for goose diapers. At the very least, I can be prepared to bring him inside on rainy winter days, and maybe he'd be happier on such occasions if he had free reign of the house.

With something like mink oil, were you thinking of dabbing it where the normal oil would accumulate and letting Tex spread it himself from there? I wonder if that would make his feathers better or worse? Maybe it'll be worth trying later on. He's outside during the day now and his feathers look pretty good. He's drenched after he bathes, but he stands in the sun and preens until he dries. I'm trying to be hands off for awhile and let nature figure things out for now.