Help my chicken has a large whole on her back full of reddish pus *pictures*

[kasiloveschicks]

Hi, Im new to the forum but i need help with my chicken Jemima, she has this large sore on her back filled with brownish-red grainy pus, I though it was dirt but when i started scratching at it, but saw it was a large hole and was quite swollen, it doesn't seem to bother her to much but I've noticed she's lost a lot of feathers around it where i think she been pecking. I scraped a lot of the stuff out but the whole is very deep. If you have any ideas what this i sand how i can treat it please let me know. there are no avian vets near me.

 

[MrsBachbach]

Hi, Im new to the forum but i need help with my chicken Jemima, she has this large sore on her back filled with brownish-red grainy pus, I though it was dirt but when i started scratching at it, but saw it was a large hole and was quite swollen, it doesn't seem to bother her to much but I've noticed she's lost a lot of feathers around it where i think she been pecking. I scraped a lot of the stuff out but the whole is very deep. If you have any ideas what this i sand how i can treat it please let me know. there are no avian vets near me.

I really have no idea what it is. It sure is a strange and uniform hole. Almost makes me wonder if it was some type of parasite. Where are you located? For now, if you think it is infected, you can try a drawing poultice on it. An iodine and sugar paste has been used on bumblefoot to draw the infection out. Try putting some of that on it and cover it with gauze(may have to wrap it around her) to keep her out of it. Change it daily, rinse it clean and then reapply until it looks like the infection is out. I'd probably try some topical antibiotic then. I think many recommend vetericyn.

 

[KayTee]

I have never seen anything like that before!

Mrs Bachbach is right - rinse it out, treat it (with an antibiotic cream if you have one) and keep it clean. If you can find any vet that will take a look at her, even if they're not an avian specialist, then I would take her. If it is some sort of local parasite then they would probably have come across it on other animals as well.

Let us know how she develops, and if you find out anything about what it is.

 

[Urban Flock]

I have never seen anything like that before!

Mrs Bachbach is right - rinse it out, treat it (with an antibiotic cream if you have one) and keep it clean. If you can find any vet that will take a look at her, even if they're not an avian specialist, then I would take her. If it is some sort of local parasite then they would probably have come across it on other animals as well.

Let us know how she develops, and if you find out anything about what it is.

x2 on the antibiotic cream. You could try calling the local vet even tho they don't do birds and explain the infection and symptoms. If there is a local parasite they may have some information. Wish I was more help but like the others so far, this is a new one to me. Wishing you the best.

 

[KayTee]

I've been thinking and surfing the web ... the only thing that it resembles is the hole left by a botfly larva (also known as wolf worms), which grow under the skin. Mostly the larvae get taken out by doctors or vets, (or non squeamish people!) before they get very big, but if you hadn't noticed it then I suppose it could have grown to full size and left the hole behind when it crawled out. I'm not saying that it's definitely that - it's just an idea. Where do you live? Normally botflies are active in summer months, but if you are in a very mild climate then they can stay active all year round. Also, do your girls free range, or are they in a run?

I assume that's her preen gland on the left of the hole, but it would be good to have an idea of the size of the hole - can you measure it or take a photo with your finger next to it, so that we can have an idea of the actual size? (I don't even know if your girl is a standard sized chicken or a bantam, which would affect how we see the size of the hole on the photo).

 

[kasiloveschicks]

I've been thinking and surfing the web ... the only thing that it resembles is the hole left by a botfly larva (also known as wolf worms), which grow under the skin. Mostly the larvae get taken out by doctors or vets, (or non squeamish people!) before they get very big, but if you hadn't noticed it then I suppose it could have grown to full size and left the hole behind when it crawled out. I'm not saying that it's definitely that - it's just an idea. Where do you live? Normally botflies are active in summer months, but if you are in a very mild climate then they can stay active all year round. Also, do your girls free range, or are they in a run?

I assume that's her preen gland on the left of the hole, but it would be good to have an idea of the size of the hole - can you measure it or take a photo with your finger next to it, so that we can have an idea of the actual size? (I don't even know if your girl is a standard sized chicken or a bantam, which would affect how we see the size of the hole on the photo).

I Live on Bribie Island, Australia, I don't believe we get botflies in Australia, not to say that another insect might do a similar thing. The hole is about a centimetre in diameter, she is ISA brown hen. So far I have cleaned out the wound and found nothing inside that seems worrying, since cleaning and putting ointment on her the swelling has gone down a lot and the hole seems to have shrunk as well. For now I am going to watch her carefully and keep up the ointment if the wound get worst or she seems sickly I'll take her up to the vet, my girls free range so she couldI've picked up a parasite somewhere, however I looked over the other girls and they seem to have nothing and my 2 dogs have got no sign of infection either. I'm hoping it was an insect that has crawled out and she'll be fine now, she seems like her normal self. Thank you everyone who answered it's been so helpful. If anyone does figure out what it is let me know.

 

[Nupe]

Is it possible the oil gland is infected?

Here's another thread on the subject with more pictures.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/181788/help-severely-infected-oil-glands-or-something-grapic-pics

The more I look at it, the more I can't tell.

 

[KayTee]

Nupe, I don't think it's an infected oil gland - you can see the gland on the left of the hole in kasi's picture, and it doesn't look particularly swollen or infected. The hole seems too regular to be the result of an infection. It is also huge at 1cm diameter!

Hopefully it was an insect that has now gone - it seems that your treatment is working - fingers crossed for a full recovery.

 

[Cakens]

Hi, I looked up this post about a week ago when I had no answer to the pus filled whole on my hen and found my chicken has the same unusual hole in the same place as hers. I have to agree with the poster that said it looks like a botfly larvae. I treated my girl with 5 drops of organic tea tree oil undiluted twice a day for 5 days and segregated her from the others. It began to scab over by the next day. I'm only posted this for the others who are looking for answers to this problem.
Thanks for posting the pic. It helped me diagnose her problem.