Flystrike Solutions?

[Isamama]

I have a small flock of three ISA Browns. One of my hens, Gertie, hasn't laid since early March, and has been having light diarrhea for about a month now. I've been keeping an eye on her and have separated her from my other two girls a few times (they are fine health-wise). I lost two hens during the winter suddenly (I'm still not sure why, it was a mild winter and I just got them as chicks last March) so I thought maybe I just got some very susceptible birds. Throughout this week I've noticed Gertie getting weaker, and limping. Tonight I found her on her side on the floor of the coop. I brought her in, soaked her for about a half hour, then put her in quarantine in my dining room in a large plastic tote. I went back to clean out the tub she'd been soaking in and noticed worms! So I began researching and thought she might have roundworms. So I went out and bought some Wazine. I started her on that. But then I found an article on flystrike and those maggots looked more like what I'd seen in the tub. So I flipped her over and there is this nasty hole in her flesh to the side of her vent crawling with maggots! I used tweezers and peroxide to get rid of all I could see and to cleanse the wound. I slathered it with triple antibiotic ointment. I'm honestly not sure she'll last the night. But if she does, what should my course of action be going forward? Any products to recommend or procedures to follow? I've kept chickens for about six years and never had anything like this come up. Until these ISA Browns, I've never lost anyone to anything but old age

. Any help or thoughts would be appreciated!

 

[Pyxis]

!

You've done good so far. You need to make sure you're keeping her inside where the flies can't get to her to lay more eggs until the wound is healed. It's also very likely that the flies have laid more eggs that haven't hatch yet on her, so you need to each day be sure you're checking the wound and removing any newly hatched maggots that appear.

There's a product called Swat that you can apply around the wound to repel flies if you are worried about more getting to her. Additionally, you can soak her in a tub of warm water with permethrin mixed in. The permethrin would kill any live maggots that you missed. It's very toxic to cats though so don't do that around cats.

Additionally, you should put her on a broad spectrum antibiotic since it's very easy for this to cause a systemic infection. You can buy injectable penicillin at a farm store and dose her with that.

 

[casportpony]

Welcome to BYC. Keep her inside in a room or cage that's 80-85 degrees. Watch for signs of overheating, but I don't think she will overheat. I know you already know this, but she is *really* sick. Any chance you can take her to a vet in the morning?

 

[Isamama]

Unfortunately she didn't make it through the night. Poor girl. I made sure she was warm and as comfortable as she could be. My other hens look perfectly fine, but I'm keeping a close eye on them. Thank you both for your advice.

 

[casportpony]

Sorry for your loss.

 

[drumstick diva]

Oh so very sorry to hear that. Poor baby. The thing is when maggots have taken care of rotting flesh, they move on to healthy tissue. They can migrate through the body to the brain. Just the thought of them makes me

 

[Farmgal101]

Unfortunately she didn't make it through the night. Poor girl. I made sure she was warm and as comfortable as she could be. My other hens look perfectly fine, but I'm keeping a close eye on them. Thank you both for your advice.

sorry for your loss

 

[TwoCrows]

Hello there and welcome to BYC!

Oh, I am SUPER sorry about your girl. Flystrike kills them fast when these nasty maggots eat them alive. I hope your heavy heart heals soon.