Help, Hens sides torn open by Roo

[BarnsB]

I have a hen whose sides have been torn open by a roo.
I've had experience with wounds before but this is ugly.
Unfortunately the wound is not fresh; at least a few days old. (Can't believe I missed it) On one side the injury may be older; it is a smaller wound & the skin is semi-healed, raised & puckered up out about an inch around the opening. On the other side there is a huge gaping wound and some yucky stuff, grey skin, detrius & some oozy fluid that doesn't look great. The wound does not include damage to underlying muscle tissue; but the pocket under the skin seems huge. The visable opening to the underling muscle the size of a tin can lid & the pocket extends down such that I can see the top of her thigh under the skin.
I don't have any vets that work on chickens in my area. Help!!!
Because the tears are not fresh I imagine it is too late to sew up; short of actual surgery to get fresh skin edges (vet problem again) & I'm not sure you could be certain there isn't anything foreign under the skin in that gaping pocket.
Amazingly, she seems bright & happy. I've isolated her & put the roo on probation in a different location so he won't hurt any other hens. I've flushed the wound as best I could with Betadine. I will put neosporin w/o pain medicine around the opening & on the surface of the uncovered muscle tomorrow...(still confused about wether the pain med thing is fact or rumor) but will play it safe. Can you use too much Neosporin? Should I put in under the loosened skin as well & if so how much...It looks like a whole tube would go in that hole.
I really think if there was a time for a broad spectrum antibiotic this would be it! But I'm at a loss with vets here. I have looked at several supply places & they only cary H2O soluable antibiotics & they're geared toward respratory illness. I think that an injectable antibiotic would probably be best (fastest) given that there already may be some infection.
Can anyone give me some advice. If & what antibiotic & where I might get it.
Thanks!

 

[Cindiloohoo]

I've heard injectable Tylan is best. I hope she gets better!

 

[BarnsB]

Thanks.
Do you know what dosage? does 1/10CC or 1/4CC for 3-5 days sound right?
As these ladies are egg producers. Once I've run the course of meds. How long should I wait before consuming the eggs again?

 

[Cindiloohoo]

I honestly have no clue. i have been fortunate enough to have never had to get any! I would just follow the package instructions. Again instructions to know how long before consuming the eggs. Wish i could help more!! Oh and

 

[Imp]

There's some great info here.

Imp

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=227915

 

[NancyinAlaska]

What I would do............... Pluck or cut off feathers surrounding the wound, and remove any debris you can see. Use sterile H20, DO NOT use hydrogen peroxide, boil H20 if that's all you've got, I have IV bags I use, flush the inside of the wound well. Use something like betadine to clean the wound after flushing . Then Neosporin can be used all over inside of the wound, don't be afraid of using too much. In animals blood is better than not, if the meat looks gray and dead, scrape that stuff off till it bleeds. Once it's cleaned out realy good for at least a day, you could put a stitch in the middle, DO NOT close the wound. To do this you would have to rough up it skin edges till they bleed where you are going to put the stitch, the "fresh" tissue will grow together quickly. Wounds such as this heal from the inside out. Keep clean with betadine daily and use neosporin on the still open areas. You'll know when it's ok to stop. The most important thing is to keep it clean. I've had wounds like this on hens and treating this way it's healed up really quickly. If you get hardness inside the wound, treat as you would bumble foot, I just learned this from Ruth here on BYP, I had a hen with a knot on her head, and this took care of that problem. Good luck...............let me know how it goes................Nancy

 

[Sunny Side Up]

I'm sorry your first post has to be on such an awful topic.

The good thing is your hen's demeanor, I put a lot of reliance on that. (The same goes for my kids.) Chickens can be very resiliant and have a remarkable capacity to recover from things we might think would send them to The Other Side of the Road. Often it just helps to keep them clean, warm, comfortable, hydrated, nourished & secluded while they heal on their own.

I had a hen with injuries similar to yours and she recovered on her own with just the above care given. Although I wish now I had tried to stitch or super-glue the skin back in place because it seems to have healed back too loose, and it looks like she's wearing bloomers. You could give it a try, have someone hold her down & try to tack the skin in place in a few spots with super-glue or a few stitches. I'd attatch it in enough spots to hold it up in place, but leave some spaces for drainage & air to prevent infection.

You could let her soak in a bucket of warm soapy water for 20 minutes or so, that should get the area clean enough. I had my hen stand in a horse feed bucket with the water up to her injured part. I put the bucket in the shower, closed the curtain, turned off the light & closed the door so she was there in the dark and she didn't move.

There may be some broad-spectrum water-soluable antibiotic powder you could put in her drinking water just to help her fight any infection, but I don't know what to suggest. You can also make sure she gets good nourishing food while she recovers. Lots of cooked egg & garlic & greens, maybe even some chicken broth, good stuff to keep her health up.

And then just keep her off the ground until she heals, in a safe, warm, comfortable place where nobird will bother her.

I pray for wisdom for you & a total healing for your hen!

 

[ruth]

I have discovered hens with old wounds and have cleaned them up and sewn them up and had them heal just fine. Here's a link to a similar thread where I responded with some pics and how tos:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=129651&p=2

You can see how poorly stitched she was and yet she healed beautifully. That was one of my first stitching jobs - I've gotten much better and the pre-threaded sutures with cutting needles that I now get from my vet make it sooooo much easier but any old needle and thread work well.

When I discover one that has an old wound or any black or infected stuff, I have to clean really well. I do use hydrogen peroxide because I want it to bubble out all the dirt. Plus, it has a tendency to "eat" the flesh so it helps create a new wound and new skin. You only want to use it the first time and not use it for future cleansings. I also use warm water and scrub/pick/peel, whatever I have to do, to get the edges clean of any dried/old blood/tissue.

Anyway, take a look at the thread and let me know if you need any help. They are amazing creatures. By the way, I've never given antibiotics and I've never had a chicken develop an infection or not heal.

Good luck.

 

[countrychics]

sea salts are amazing natural healers too!!!!!! hope baby gets better soon.

 

[azygous]

Now that we have the first aid out of the way, what about preventative action to head off a repeat of this near tragedy?

Questions arise: What have you done with the rooster who did this? Does the rooster have long sharp spurs? If so, perhaps you ought to remove them. This is a simple task, just grasp the base of the spur with pliers and twist, and it comes right off, leaving a flexible nub behind which is harmless, and doesn't hurt the roo.

Or is this roo a really bad actor and needs termination?

I would certainly be inclined to take immediate action to prevent further damage of this sort.