Giant gash in chicken

[alcornchicks]

Hello! I came home from work on Wednesday to find that one of my hens had a large gash on her side, extending under the wing. It's pretty terrible. The skin is completely torn, and granular tissue is exposed. I brought her inside, washed it out with diluted hydrogen peroxide, and smeared the whole wound with bacitracin. I've been washing it out with saline since.

Am I being completely unrealistic or do you think there is a chance that she can heal? She is eating a bit and drinking. I wasn't able to stitch her up, the wound was too dry by the time I got to her and I thought it was too late. Is it? A friend suggested an antibiotic, anyone have any recommendations?

 

[bargain]

Okay I would suggest keeping her in a warm dry place, Does the wound seem clean? as in is it swollen, oozing pus etc? Were you able to gently clean away debris from wound site. If it seems clean and she can be kept inside away from contaminants etc with space to walk and eat, I would probably keep her inside and watch her eating and drinking patterns. If she is not infected and otherwise healthy, I would give her a good prognosis. If you see infection of any sort, I would likely talk to a vet about her. I have had poultry recover from a wound site like that, It took a while - about 45 days but she did. If you ordinarily give treats, I would try some of those to perk her appetitite. Mine love yogurt , etc and get it regularly so that might help her perk up. I am sure she was in shock. Hugs and prayers your way.

 

[bargain]

PS after initial hydrogen peroxide do not continue to use it as it kills bacteria, yes, but also healthy skin, if you need a cleaner in future, please buy some betadine. It doesn't kill the skin. Don't worry about one time use those, You had to clean the area.