ER!! help chicken bit by possum

[momof5girls]

Help!!! We were just awoken by chickens screams ran outside to coop....possum inside chcikens missing.
Found chickens loose in yard...picked up to secure back into coop...
Our rhode island red 1yr old has a big chuck bit out of chest. No blood just skin and goo.
Ou americano 1 yr old has droppy wing..

They are secufe in another coop...possum chased off.
Too dark to see much though.

What to do, we are complete newbies and know nothing yet....HELP!!

 

[Wisher1000]

Clean the wound with diluted peroxide (only once) and apply antibiotic ointment. Not sure on the wing, it depends on if it is broken or not. There is always the option of taking them to the vet but that could get expensive, quick. You will be surprised how well they can do with just a little help from you and time.

 

[Judy]

Yup, or clean with mild soapy water if you don't have peroxide. Antibiotic ointment is a good idea.

If it looks like the wing is broken, try to secure it to the chicken with duct tape or some kind of cloth tube, like a piece of a sock or the sleeve of a T shirt. Check to make sure it's not too tight.

Chickens can heal from remarkable injuries with a little attention and care. You may have to remove it from the others if they attack it, but I wouldn't take her away from the flock unless I had to. A little nutrition boost will be a good idea, especially if she is reluctant to eat at first. She might be in shock for a while, kind of dazed.

Good luck!

 

[StephanieD]

Make sure you don't use anything with "CAINE" in it, it's deadly for chickens. Everyone above has good advice for the wound. I have a chicken bit by a dog and after I cleaned it I put peroxide on it and then sprayed a liquid bandage (Without CAINE) and it's been 3 weeks and it's healed up nicely. I also kept her seperated from the others.

 

[momof5girls]

*****UPDATE*****

Wing ok!!

Did everything all said on our RIR. But when cleaning found a second BIG hole from a tooth? And we cleaned it as well.
Gave her a blueberry (her fav) and she ate it....but hasn't moved since.

What to do next? Should I take her to a vet now that its daylight?

 

[AmyRey]

You might find this thread of mine helpful (I knew I bumped it for a reason!):

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=441059

 

[Bi0s]

hope they are ok and get better can you say possum stew

 

[noodleroo]

Keep her separated from the other chickens until she heals. We use a cat carrier (and put it in our dining room) for recovery purposes. You want to keep her still and clean and provide fresh food and water. Nature usually takes care of the rest. They really are remakable healers...

 

[momof5girls]

*****UPDATE***

She's eating...layed an egg...and desperately wants out of the coop. And our other chicken won't leave her side.
She's walking and making normal talking clucks...so good right?


But everyone I've called says she needs stiches and it would cost aroud $500 which there is no way we
Could afford...

I'm so confused..what do you guys think? Should I let her out....keep her confined...
Put her on antibotics? We can not do the $500 but maybe the 50 vet visit...w/o stiches.

 

[noodleroo]

I would leave her confined or at least separated from the other chickens until the wounds heal. I would not bother with stitches; we had a hen with a huge wound that was at least 4 inches long and 1 inch deep that filled in and covered back over with feathers. Just amazing, how do they do that?