Help!! Cat scratched a chick

[mamanite]

Hi I need help! We are first time chicken owners. We have 10 of them and they are a little over 2 weeks old. I have cats so I made sure the brooder was fully inclosed, well I put in a little roost for the chicks and didn't account for our cat's arm length and he scratched one of them from the breast to under the wing. she keeps pecking at it and pulling the down out and it's pretty long not to dept not sure what to do for it...I have a first aid kit for them not sure what to use tho! right now I have her in a towel to calm her down and so she will stop pecking at it.

 

[Granny Hatchet]

good morning. they peck at red. clean the wound with some warm water, put some antibiotic ointment on it (without pain reliever) its toxic . make sure its dry good. and keep it under the heat. i have seen the others peck but not themselves. i dont think its old enough to do much damage to itself. you may have to wrap it if it is though.

 

[mamanite]

Thank you for your help! I cleaned it out and put petroleum jelly on it, I'll but antibiotic on it too. I looks like it when through the skin not that I cleaned it out. of course the one thing we haven't gotten yet is vetape, I do have gaze and gaze tape

 

[Hollywood Chickens]

You need to cover the wound. If you can separate her also that it is better. None sticky bandages are the best (after the antibiotics) and I have found pine tar soap to be a great bandage. They won't peck it and after the wound is healed just wash it off.

 

[mamanite]

ok I'll see what I can find around the house I can use to "tape" it up with that will not stick

 

[mamanite]

Thank you Thank you! For the time being I just unfolded some gaze squares and wrapped it around her. Had to do it twice the first time I wasn't thinking and wrapped up her wings...poor thing couldn't walk well after that. So now it's going under her wings, she's not to happy with it, but she can walk now.

 

[ten chicks]

Many use blue food coloring to mask wounds.

 

[mamanite]

I do have some blu-kote. She keeps pecking at the bandage now too, she's driving me crazy lol! She's like one of my kids and not wanting a bandaid when they need one!!

 

[Granny Hatchet]

if she is not actively bleeding you can take the bandage off and try the blu-kote.

 

[mamanite]

She's finally doing ok with it, so I'm going to just leave it till she gets it off. Then I'll do the blu-kote if/when she gets it off again.