Help chicken is bleeding from broken feather on foot

[jzervas92]

Hi everyone, my easter egger hen is bleeding on her foot. I soaked her in some salt water and I'm not really sure what to do next. It seems to be slowing down. Should I put some neosporin on it or just leave it alone? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

 

[jzervas92]

I should of added that she is not in any pain. She's walking around with no problem, eating, drinking, and being her normal self.

 

[Eggcessive]

Some threads I have read said to pull out the bleeding feather in the direction it grows, then apply pressure, and you can use blood stop powder or flour to clot the blood. Here are a couple of threads to read:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/250787/broken-feather-with-blood-on-feathered-foot-hurts
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/872930/blood-on-feather-looks-like-broken-vein

 

[Nambroth]

When it is on a foot or wing, I usually recommend pulling broken blood feathers, as even if you get it to stop bleeding it's very easy to break back open in these locations. Strong tweezers will work, but even better are forceps or needle-nosed pliers. Pull straight out with firm and constant pressure. The chicken may cry out (it hurts!!) but it will help her heal faster. Apply gentle pressure and a clotting material (believe it or not, powdered cayenne is great for this, as it will help clot and has some antimicrobial properties) until any bleeding stops, then keep an eye on the foot for a day or two. She will re-grow the feather in its place.

 

[jzervas92]

Thanks for the responses! Those links were very helpful. I inspected it some more and saw that the shaft actually split on one side. I was to afraid to pull it out so I put some neosporin and corn starch on it. I'm going to watch it closely for any changes. She's probably a little over 6 month old maybe when she molts it will come out.

 

[Foghornnmsprisy]

If you still have problems with it. Pull the feather. If it bleeds a lot put pressure on it as long as she'll let you. Don't use septic powder, it's ok to use on nails but don't use it anywhere else. That crap burns like hell fire. Use flour or cornstarch to clot it. If it just bleeds a little wipe of the blood and apply one or two drops (no more) of super glue. More than that and it becomes a mess to deal with. If you use it after using cornstarch or flour you'll have to clean and dry the wound first. Blow on it til it drys and the glue gets that filmy look to it. That will give the wound a thin barrier to keep out dirt and help healing. When the wound is healing the glue will come off by itself. I've super glued dozens of times with no ill effects. Animal and human. Super glue was originally made to bond skin. That's why it try's to glue you're fingers together so very well. It's does not sting, trust me. Good luck.

 

[Squishychick]

Just a note with regards to the super glue. Yes it works great, and yes, it's original use was for skin. Most of the time there are no problems, BUT do keep in mind that it also seals everything into the wound. If there are any nasty bacteria in there you have just sealed them in too. I have had the misfortune of seeing a few cases of surgical glue sealing in infection and it was not pretty. Also this was in the case of the procedures being done with sterile tools and the area having been properly disinfected. Just a word of caution....

 

[Foghornnmsprisy]

True. This only works on fresh still bleeding wounds. I should have mentioned that. Just check for redness or swelling. If much time has gone by the chance of infection goes up. Feet are hardest to deal with.

 

[jzervas92]

Thanks for the responses! So far we've had no issues. It healed nicely, but I'm still keeping close watch.