Help!! attacked chicken!

[edgidoe]

One of my ladies was attacked by my new puppy after she was left unattended outside. lots of feathers were pulled out. ive separated the chicken from the rest and put her in an old cage with shavings. i put neosporin on her wounds and a blanket over the cage. her feathers are very wet because its been raining a lot recently. she walks around and eating like normal. what should i do next? how should i dry her/warm her up? how can i make her more comfortable while she recovers?

 

[JustBabyMargo]

@Eggcessive @azygous

 

[azygous]

1. Treat for shock as the number one step. Give warm Gatoraid or mix a half teaspoon of sugar into a fourth of a cup of warm water with a pinch of salt and baking soda. Have the patient drink it all or syringe it into the beak.

2. Flush the wound well with saline. This is better than soap and water as it maintains the PH of the tissues. But warm soap and water will do. You need to wash away the bacteria from the wound.

3. Inspect the wound carefully. If it has a skin flap dangling, keep that. Do not cut it off. Look for bite, tear or puncture marks indicating a puncture wound. If you see this, the patient will need an oral antibiotic such as amoxicillin. Bacteria from the predator’s mouth can be injected deep into tissue and can kill in as little as 24 to 48 hours. You can order this https://www.kvsupply.com/item/aqua-mox-250mg-capsules-100-count/P06184/250mg once a day for ten days. Or you may be able to find this or something similar at TSC or a pet store.

4. Spray with Vetericyn wound treament and let dry. Use a topical antibiotic ointment such as Neosporin or a generic without pain killer in it to coat the wound. If there's a skin flap, lay it across the wound that has just been coated with the ointment. Then smooth on a generous amount over the top of the skin flap to hold it in place.

5. It's useless to try to stitch a wound on a chicken. Don't even try. It's also useless to try to bandage a wound other than on the feet. The chicken will not tolerate it. It will be pulled off faster than you can blink an eye.

6. Clean the wound every day following the above steps. Keep the wound covered with the ointment. Never allow the wound to get dried out or it will not heal.

 

[Regina Larsen]

One of my ladies was attacked by my new puppy after she was left unattended outside. lots of feathers were pulled out. ive separated the chicken from the rest and put her in an old cage with shavings. i put neosporin on her wounds and a blanket over the cage. her feathers are very wet because its been raining a lot recently. she walks around and eating like normal. what should i do next? how should i dry her/warm her up? how can i make her more comfortable while she recovers?View attachment 2849663

Is that on her rump? The skin is missing, the yellow stuff is subcutaneous fat. It has to regrow a lot of granulation (new skin cells) tissue. I dont think that sutures can be done, not enough tissue.
Hydrocolloids will help the cells form and thrive - its moist but not 'wet' which means the healing cells wont be pulled off. These are good options:

 

[Regina Larsen]

1. Treat for shock as the number one step. Give warm Gatoraid or mix a half teaspoon of sugar into a fourth of a cup of warm water with a pinch of salt and baking soda. Have the patient drink it all or syringe it into the beak.

2. Flush the wound well with saline. This is better than soap and water as it maintains the PH of the tissues. But warm soap and water will do. You need to wash away the bacteria from the wound.

3. Inspect the wound carefully. If it has a skin flap dangling, keep that. Do not cut it off. Look for bite, tear or puncture marks indicating a puncture wound. If you see this, the patient will need an oral antibiotic such as amoxicillin. Bacteria from the predator’s mouth can be injected deep into tissue and can kill in as little as 24 to 48 hours. You can order this https://www.kvsupply.com/item/aqua-mox-250mg-capsules-100-count/P06184/250mg once a day for ten days. Or you may be able to find this or something similar at TSC or a pet store.

4. Spray with Vetericyn wound treament and let dry. Use a topical antibiotic ointment such as Neosporin or a generic without pain killer in it to coat the wound. If there's a skin flap, lay it across the wound that has just been coated with the ointment. Then smooth on a generous amount over the top of the skin flap to hold it in place.

5. It's useless to try to stitch a wound on a chicken. Don't even try. It's also useless to try to bandage a wound other than on the feet. The chicken will not tolerate it. It will be pulled off faster than you can blink an eye.

6. Clean the wound every day following the above steps. Keep the wound covered with the ointment. Never allow the wound to get dried out or it will not heal.

I havent dressed anything on a chicken's rump before - they fuss about it?
Yr tips are all excellent, this place is such a great resource
I agree that sutures are a no go here.

 

[edgidoe]

Is that on her rump? The skin is missing, the yellow stuff is subcutaneous fat. It has to regrow a lot of granulation (new skin cells) tissue. I dont think that sutures can be done, not enough tissue.
Hydrocolloids will help the cells form and thrive - its moist but not 'wet' which means the healing cells wont be pulled off. These are good options:

yes its on her rump. im glad its just fat i was very worried bone was showing. i will look for some hydrocolloids.

 

[edgidoe]

1. Treat for shock as the number one step. Give warm Gatoraid or mix a half teaspoon of sugar into a fourth of a cup of warm water with a pinch of salt and baking soda. Have the patient drink it all or syringe it into the beak.

2. Flush the wound well with saline. This is better than soap and water as it maintains the PH of the tissues. But warm soap and water will do. You need to wash away the bacteria from the wound.

3. Inspect the wound carefully. If it has a skin flap dangling, keep that. Do not cut it off. Look for bite, tear or puncture marks indicating a puncture wound. If you see this, the patient will need an oral antibiotic such as amoxicillin. Bacteria from the predator’s mouth can be injected deep into tissue and can kill in as little as 24 to 48 hours. You can order this https://www.kvsupply.com/item/aqua-mox-250mg-capsules-100-count/P06184/250mg once a day for ten days. Or you may be able to find this or something similar at TSC or a pet store.

4. Spray with Vetericyn wound treament and let dry. Use a topical antibiotic ointment such as Neosporin or a generic without pain killer in it to coat the wound. If there's a skin flap, lay it across the wound that has just been coated with the ointment. Then smooth on a generous amount over the top of the skin flap to hold it in place.

5. It's useless to try to stitch a wound on a chicken. Don't even try. It's also useless to try to bandage a wound other than on the feet. The chicken will not tolerate it. It will be pulled off faster than you can blink an eye.

6. Clean the wound every day following the above steps. Keep the wound covered with the ointment. Never allow the wound to get dried out or it will not heal.

thank you so so much!! i didnt know what to do or how to clean it and this is very helpful!

 

[Eggcessive]

I would get her warmed up right away as well. Can get her into a warm room?

 

[edgidoe]

I would get her warmed up right away as well. Can get her into a warm room?

i put her in our insulated garage with the heat lamp so she should be pretty warm

 

[MysteryChicken]

Make sure to trim any feathers that are around the wounds to get easier access to clean, & apply ointment? The feathers will get in the way of treatment.