As a few of you know, two of my hens were attacked by two miniature pinschers. They are both doing well and seem to be healing fine. But!! (doesn't there always seem to be a but!?)...one of my hens has pale green spots near, but not on one of her wounds areas. The green areas are under skin and a pale green color. I think they look like bruises, but my DH-to-be thinks it may be gangrene. She has a few in the area, not together, but in separate areas and all about 1/2 inch or more from a wound. I looked online for gangrene pictures (GROSS!) and they are not the dark, olive green, but rather a light green color. They are not swollen or anything either. Like I said, I think they are bruises. She has been on antibiotics since she got hurt and the wounds are irrigated daily (or more often). So far she seems to be free of infection. They were attacked early Saturday morning, so it has been about the right time for a bruise to show up, but not be a dark black/purple bruise. DH-to-be says bruises are usually green. How can I tell the difference between a green bruise and gangrene?
Granted a hurt chicken (chicken with a hint of Betadine), but nonetheless, she does NOT smell like rotting flesh. She is eating, drinking and walking around just fine. All of her wounds look like they are healing well. I think DH-to-be is just being a worry wort about every little thing with the two hens that are injured right now. I am sure it is just a pretty green colored bruise. I will look again this evening when I get home and check again just to keep an eye on it. It wouldn't just start in a random spot near a wound right? I could understand if it was an extremity, but this is on her back! She has a bald spot on her wing (neither of the two hens are feather pluckers that we've noticed before) and she hasn't molted yet, so I think she is starting to molt too. I won't be surprised if we start seeing more bruising once her feathers are thinned out. Poor girl!
