Help! turkey chick injury

[clockworkem]

I know that this forum is mainly for chickens, but i don't know where else to go.

We've put our turkey chicks outside recently, and they've adapted well to the new enviroment. However, I woke up this morning to my little sister telling me that they were attacked last night, and that 3 were missing. I went out, and found that one was crouched under their pen, with a wounded wing. I brought the turkey chick inside (its about 4-5 weeks old). It's in a box right now, with some clothing as bedding, and food and water. It has eaten a bit, but it hasn't touched the water yet.

The wing looks whole, but quite a few of the primary feathers have been torn off. A patch of skin has been stripped because of the feather-loss. I cleaned the wing a little with a soapy cloth, and sprayed it with Dermoplast (a human treatment for sunburns, cuts and minor scrapes, it releves pain and sterilizes the wound). It's sleeping in the box now, but I still worry that the wound will get infected.

Any advice, please?? I'd much rather not take it to a vet unless absolutely necessary.

 

[arlee453]

Sounds like you are doing all the right things...

I'd skip the Dermoplast though - some topical human painkillers can cause toxicity pretty quickly in poultry, and I'd rather be safe than sorry.

Use neosporin instead or Granulex (you can get that at the TSC/Farm supply)

Key things are to keep the bird quiet and warm. Keep the wound away from flies or other parasites, & make sure he's eating and drinking.

Because animal bites will often fester, you may want to start antibiotics - terramycin or tylan are used for chickens...not sure if they are also OK for turkeys, but I'd guess so?

Hopefully someone else can help you on that piece. Hope your turkey baby pulls through for ya!

 

[clockworkem]

Thanks very much for the response

Yes, i will skip the Dermoplast if necessary, but it seemed to really help the bird with the pain. The active ingredients are Benzocaine and Menthol. are those poisonous?

Something is starting to disturb me though. When i was checking on the chick, and the chick isn't cheeping, i can hear a soft sort of crackling noise coming from inside him. is this normal digestion, or do you think he has internal injuries now??

He seems insistant to stand for some reason as well.

 

[clockworkem]

Here are some recent pics of the injury:

sorry if they're a bit graphic...

 

[priszilla]

it could very well have internal injuries- but other than supportive care- there isn't much you can do for those I don't think.keep it warm, hydrated and feed well. Maybe give some yogurt with its feed too. Poor thing.and figure out how to predator proof ! what ever attacked may come back.

 

[pebblessix]

I have quite a few turkeys and it is always a challenge finding vet care for one that is injured. It sounds to me as if you are doing all you can do. The only thing I can suggest is make sure the baby stays warm. I believe I have lost some young birds just because they weren't warm enough. Wrap in a towel and keep close to you as much as possible. Your body warmth can make all the difference. It always worries me when there is just one young bird because they seem to get cold so easily and an injured baby is more easily chilled.

 

[clockworkem]

Thank you all, your advice has made me feel much better about all this.

The chick has been eating and drinking, and moving about (although i think the leg on his attacked side has suffered some damage, he has a bit of a limp). The wound no longer looks shiny, and so far looks pretty infection-free. What i've been doing lately is filling small zip-lock bags with small amounts of water, microwaving them, and placing them next to the chick. It worked well once when i was taking care of a kitten that got caught in a thunderstorm, and it seems to be working well now.

I'll let you all know if the little one pulls through

 

[pebblessix]

Please do keep us updated. I am hoping for the best. Sounds like he/she will pull through.

 

[clockworkem]

The chick is doing MUCH better, the wing no longer looks shiny at all, and new feathers are starting to grow. It stands on one leg, eats, drinks, and is very loud!

I've started "therapy" on the injured leg, fearing that it will become stiff if it dosen't start using it. The muscle is still scabbed and bruised, and the chick holds it out behind it instead of using it. I've been gently moving the leg back and forth and massaging the muscle. Do you guys have any other ideas on how to take care of the leg, or will what I'm doing now be sufficient?

 

[scubagirl]

Well I had a chick injury, Dog got it real quick, it looked horrid at first. I gave him a warm bath, blow dried him, spread ointment with a q-tip just lightly over the wound, kept him inside a few hours, and then put him back out with the flock,after I fixed the exscape route of course.
He healed perfectly, I was totally amazed. At the same time my friend had the same thing happen to one of her turkeys, but he seems to be doing fine now as well.