Help bear attack... should I euthanize?

[Farm Up North]

Hi! How's your chicken doing? Have her wounds mostly closed up?

 

[CCinVT]

Thanks for checking in! I've taken pictures a few times, but then when I get to posting I swear the wounds have healed and changed more. I feel shes been healing "quickly" this whole time. All things considered, but now it's just amazing. I think we are in the final stretch, and I can see the light at the end of the tunnel now! This first picture below is the puncture that connected to her gash. It's still fairly deep (like tip of a q-tip), but is clearly closing up. I just stopped packing it yesterday because she really fights this one, and I think its closing up nicely. It does still.connext to the gash. I put antibiotic ointment into it, after spraying it out with vetericyn.

This one below is her skinned area under her wing. Honestly can barely tell where it was now! Shes a ton of "dandruff " from the new feathers, and shes had limited dust bath opportunities, but otherwise the skin and feathers all look wonderful.

The gash! I'm still packing it, but she basically pulls the packing out daily. It closes up significantly without the packing. I also just have been irrigating this with vetericyn, and then packing it at night. By late morning shes got it pulled out. I figure its helping still keep it clean while it's in there. I'd say shes been pulling it out regularly for the last 2 weeks-ish. I'm thinking I'm close to being done packing this one, but not quite because it's still deep. Shes totally sick of being in the house and wrapped in a towel for wound care. As soon as i think her back can stay clean/not get hurt from the rooster. I'll move her to a brood pen in the coop so she can intigrate. But she hangs in The yard still multiple times a week, and everyone comes to visit her I dont think shes a total stranger to the flock.

I took these pictures tonight after cleaning the wounds but before packing the gash. I've started giving her egg shells for calcium with her feed. I realized I hadn't been doing that, and shes eatting and still resting during the day. What a tough bird.
Also no further signs of the bears messing with our coop! They are totally still visiting because our garbage gets explored (even though theres no food in it).

 

[HollyWoozle]

This is really amazing progress! All credit to you and your tough little hen.

 

[Farm Up North]

She's looking great! Thank you so much for the update. It's amazing how well the wounds have closed up, considering how big they were. Congrats on your awesome chicken nursing!

 

[KaseySnow]

It looks like she is almost totally healed up! What a change since your last post, wow! I bet she'll be pecking around with her old pals again outside in no time.

 

[CCinVT]

It looks like she is almost totally healed up! What a change since your last post, wow! I bet she'll be pecking around with her old pals again outside in no time.

I agree! It exciting, and amazing. Every day the gash hole is smaller and smaller. I think I'm just waiting for that one. Our rooster is a tiny bantam guy. So as long as shes healed up enough for him, and that it stays clean. Its finally started to seem not as deep, but I'm still packing it. I pack it she pulls it out. But its healing nice. The hardest part now is not rushing it, and putting her out too soon!

 

[CCinVT]

Hello all. I'm going to try to get a picture later tonight, but I've stopped packing her gash. It's about as dep as the head of a q-tip now, and the opening is smaller around than that. The scabbing on the I side of it is lifting up and close to wanting to come out. The new feather pins around the outside edge of the wound though are pointing down and in. Am I correct in assuming this will sort itself out as it continues to heal closed. I was putting ointment in it at night and sort of moving them to face out of the opening. Last night few nights and today with the scab lifting as it is I'm just spraying with vetericyn to keep debris out of it. So close to healed! The hole in her side that connected to this I have a hard time even finding now! So amazing how healed up she is!

 

[Swbertrand1]

Great news!

 

[ryneaeiel]

Hello all. I'm going to try to get a picture later tonight, but I've stopped packing her gash. It's about as dep as the head of a q-tip now, and the opening is smaller around than that. The scabbing on the I side of it is lifting up and close to wanting to come out. The new feather pins around the outside edge of the wound though are pointing down and in. Am I correct in assuming this will sort itself out as it continues to heal closed. I was putting ointment in it at night and sort of moving them to face out of the opening. Last night few nights and today with the scab lifting as it is I'm just spraying with vetericyn to keep debris out of it. So close to healed! The hole in her side that connected to this I have a hard time even finding now! So amazing how healed up she is!

If the pin feathers aren't red and are in the way, you could try to cut the tips back a bit with very precise scissors, but honestly I'd just do that as a last resort if they impede healing (and if you do, keep blood-stopping powder ready in case they do bleed.) If they aren't agitating the area, they should just be left in as the skin should heal up the opening and push them aside on its own.

I'm so glad to hear she's doing so well!

 

[CCinVT]

For reference the first picture is tonight before I spritzed clean with vetericyn, and the final picture is after cleaning her up. Some scab came out and its healthy and nice underneath. Theres still scab on the inside nooks and such inside. I am only using a q tip at this point. In the last picture to the right of the white feather pin one pin came out while I was cleaning. It has happened her and there when I try to move or hold her feathers out of of the way. Especially if she starts wiggling. I have just been taking the q-tip and gently getting it behind the feathers best I can and twisting it to sort of coax them more forward. I dabbed some ointment on the spot where the pin came out. Theres so obvious redness or irritation since I've started helping the pins out while.cleaning. the first day I noticed they were poking into the bottom skin more of the wound. They also are starting to have the tinest bit of feather poking from the tops so I think they aren't as sharp now. I hope the pictures are helpful. My finger might help give it some scale for how small it is now.