Flystrike - Questions about flock of 2 and isolation

[Megger2]

Hi - newish to chicken keeping. Currently have 2 Dominiques about 4 years old we adopted when we bought our current house. They are located in a not-great coop set up - spending a lot of time under a coop that is impossible for humans to reach/clean out. One developed fly strike after the hurricane and horribly warm weather here in NY (she wasn't allowing us to pick her up to clean her backside). I started treatment last night (thanks to great info here - bath, picked out all maggots, Vetramycin, vitamins/supportive care). But my question is really about isolation. She only has 1 hen friend and last night went right back up on the roost. Her friend snuggled right up next to her, no signs of bullying/picking. With only 2 chickens in this flock how important is isolation? How devastating would it be for the chicken left behind?

To make it more complicated in my brain, I'm currently isolating 7 babies (7 weeks) in new coop. Was planning to introduce the groups after 1 month isolation this weekend. However wasn't planning to do coop integration until the littles were much older this winter (like 14-16 weeks). If I end up isolating the sick chicken (or "shudder" she dies) does it make sense to try and speed this process up?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Welcome To BYC

Can you post some photos of the wound and set-up?

I'm all for keeping a bird with the flock if possible.
With an open wound, she might need to be separated to a cage within the run to keep it clean during the day, but if the other bird isn't bothering her, then roosting in the coop at night with her friend would be an option.
You want those 2 to stay together since.

How big is the new coop? You will be introducing the 2 adults to the 7 chicks?
I would not integrate until the hen is fully recovered from the Flystrike.

There likely will be a bit drama no matter when you do introductions. Depends on personalities, room/space, etc.
The chicks are establishing the new coop as their territory, but they are still young. Waiting until they are a little older may not be a bad idea.

 

[Megger2]

Thanks for the reply- I’ll post pics when I’m home. Old coop has attached run, not covered, but the problem is the coop is so low to the ground we can’t reach them there and it is impossible to clean. I think this is why she’s suffering so much



I do have a pet carrier I’m planning to use in the run at various points - and could set up a moveable fence to separate if needed. Today I left her in my brooder/sick chicken pack n play in the garage and she’s being tended to all day. I am discouraged though by how terrible her wound looks and numbers of maggots this morning again. I’ll treat her again after work.

New coop is 8x18 covered run with henhouse raised 3 feet off the ground. Easy to keep run nice. I’m so excited about it…

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Staple some chicken wire or mesh fencing to the bottom of the coop to block/fence off the underneath part - that way you don't have to worry about trying to get her out.

Flystrike can happen when a hen is not well, if she has a slight wound, has an accumulation of poop on the vent/feathers, etc. Something attracts the flies to the bird where they lay eggs. Larvae can emerge in less than 24 hrs if weather conditions are right and they do a lot of damage in a short period of time.

I'm sorry to hear that maggots are still appearing even after cleaning. Sometimes that happens, they can get under skin or even breach the abdominal cavity depending on the location of the wound. All you can do is keep soaking and picking. Some folks apply Swat Gel around the wound which seems to be helpful in killing the maggots, but the wound and gunk from the maggots needs to be flushed away.

Keep us posted on how she's doing.

 

[Megger2]

Staple some chicken wire or mesh fencing to the bottom of the coop to block/fence off the underneath part - that way you don't have to worry about trying to get her out.

Flystrike can happen when a hen is not well, if she has a slight wound, has an accumulation of poop on the vent/feathers, etc. Something attracts the flies to the bird where they lay eggs. Larvae can emerge in less than 24 hrs if weather conditions are right and they do a lot of damage in a short period of time.

I'm sorry to hear that maggots are still appearing even after cleaning. Sometimes that happens, they can get under skin or even breach the abdominal cavity depending on the location of the wound. All you can do is keep soaking and picking. Some folks apply Swat Gel around the wound which seems to be helpful in killing the maggots, but the wound and gunk from the maggots needs to be flushed away.

Keep us posted on how she's doing.

Oh I like your idea of the chicken wire - why didn’t I think of that before! I think she had some feces in the area and we did just have perfect conditions here…Thanks foe the support.

 

[Megger2]

So update: the second and third treatments for today were pretty rough. There are larvae that are much smaller now - think they just hatched. The wound is also very deep. I’m afraid of breakthrough to the abdominal cavity. She was eating and drinking a bit this afternoon but I’m not too hopeful - it’s just devastating. If she’s still with us in the morning in her current condition Im really thinking it might be best to put her down. Thanks for the support and guidance.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

So update: the second and third treatments for today were pretty rough. There are larvae that are much smaller now - think they just hatched. The wound is also very deep. I’m afraid of breakthrough to the abdominal cavity. She was eating and drinking a bit this afternoon but I’m not too hopeful - it’s just devastating. If she’s still with us in the morning in her current condition Im really thinking it might be best to put her down. Thanks for the support and guidance.

I'm sorry your still finding maggot activity. Sometimes there can be a lot.

Possible they have broken through, it can be hard to tell sometimes. A lot of birds can recover from Flystrike, but some do also succumb to infection or they already had an underlying illness/condition that had weakened them and they just were not able to overcome.

Putting one out of their misery can be heartbreaking, but you are her keeper and the one that must come to that conclusion. Not an easy thing to do.
I hope she shows improvement, but sometimes that doesn't happen. I'm very sorry you're having to deal with this.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Would it be a good idea to keep her in the house where flies cannot get to her? Is it possible flies are continuing to lay eggs on her since she is outside? Keeping her inside until the wound heals seems like a good idea to me.. that's what we did with an injured hen and she recovered just fine, but it took about three weeks.

 

[Megger2]

I'm sorry your still finding maggot activity. Sometimes there can be a lot.

Possible they have broken through, it can be hard to tell sometimes. A lot of birds can recover from Flystrike, but some do also succumb to infection or they already had an underlying illness/condition that had weakened them and they just were not able to overcome.

Putting one out of their misery can be heartbreaking, but you are her keeper and the one that must come to that conclusion. Not an easy thing to do.
I hope she shows improvement, but sometimes that doesn't happen. I'm very sorry you're having to deal with this.thanks for your kind w

I'm sorry your still finding maggot activity. Sometimes there can be a lot.

Possible they have broken through, it can be hard to tell sometimes. A lot of birds can recover from Flystrike, but some do also succumb to infection or they already had an underlying illness/condition that had weakened them and they just were not able to overcome.

Putting one out of their misery can be heartbreaking, but you are her keeper and the one that must come to that conclusion. Not an easy thing to do.
I hope she shows improvement, but sometimes that doesn't happen. I'm very sorry you're having to deal with this.

Thanks for your kind words. I’ll see how she is in the morning I suppose.

Would it be a good idea to keep her in the house where flies cannot get to her? Is it possible flies are continuing to lay eggs on her since she is outside? Keeping her inside until the wound heals seems like a good idea to me.. that's what we did with an injured hen and she recovered just fine, but it took about three weeks.

Yes! The first night she seemed ok so I kept her with her buddy but now have her in the pack n play brooder in my garage. Covered in mosquito netting. She turned a corner overnight!

 

[Megger2]

Third day update: my poor hen seemed to have turned a corner! Only 4 or 5 larvae found this morning during her wash out. She’s up on her feet and wolfing down a scrambled egg. I cannot believe it. I finally have wound pics too. Still seems like a lot to recover from but what a difference 12 hours made.