Help-wing BADLY pecked

[new2chickens2011]

Hi,
I have a new hen, Poppy, whom I was trying to integrate into the rest of the flock. All was going pretty well, just a little mild pecking. However, this morning I went out to find her entire wing all bloody and pecked, flesh exposed and lots of feathers gone. She was walking around and running and eating like normal and acts like nothing is wrong.
Now I have her in her own pen, but what do I do? I tried to bandage it but no matter what I do, she wiggles out of it.This is the first time this has happened with my chickens! Please help.

 

[Suzie]

Do you have any antibiotic powder? Blue Kote...??? I would suggest you treat her wounds with an antibiotic and keep her separated until her wounds have healed over or the blue kote can disguise the "bloody" area... when you re-introduce her...I would suggest you put her in the coop when it is dark and spray ALL of your chickens with a vinegar/water solution... it can help to integrate them all as they will smell obnoxious to one another... it has worked for my chickens...however, do avoid the face area with the spray!

Good luck

Suzie

 

[Harry Rooster]

First of all, so sorry about your hen. I'm not professional by any means, and probably someone with more knowledge will come along and help you further, but I do have expirence with this sort of thing having had 3 chickens severely injured in this way. My husband brought 3 Bantams into our flock of Dominecker hens we had had for about 5 yrs. and just plopped them in. I had no idea that there was such a thing as prejudiced chickens, but they were, and they severely one by one pecked my Domineckers, even put out the eye of 2 of them and just totally eat up the neck head and back of another. At the time, I didn't know about this site and didn't know who to contact, and didn't know anything about computer either, so I just seperated them by building another pen and put them in the (previously) dog house with lots of hay, and food close by, checking on them regularly and talking to them, giving them special treats ect. Lots and lots of TLC, and they recovered without and medication or bandaging or anything like that. 2 of them were permanently blind in one eye because of it, but otherwise fine. I kept them seperated in their own pen until they all died off eventually naturally of old age. It made me sick though because they had always been free range and would come up to you for treats whenever they saw you come out into the yard, never went into the woods and had a very domicile temperment, people lovers, and they were here first. It made me mad that they had to be confined because of these other chickens. But they always got lots of extra care and stuff because of it. The Bantams are not that friendly, won't let you pick them up and stay always at arms length from you. It is amazing how they can recover on their own if given a safe warm isolated place and plenty of food & water. However you could give her some antibiotics to make sure she doesn't get an infection, but I didn't with mine, and in my opinion, I would'nt want to give drugs unless it is ablolutely necessary. I did read on here you could give chickens asprin for pain, but only asprin or baby asprin (never tylenol or ibprofin it is toxic to chickens) is what they say. The dosage was: standard asprin dose for adult chicken lg. aprox 25 mg per pound chicken wt. Example: for a 6 lb leghorn rooster 2 times per day give 1/2 of a regular asprin = 300mg. total per day. For Bantam; 1.6 lb Bantam leghore rooster 2 times per day 1/2 of a baby asprin 75mg total per day. (Reg Asprin =325 mg and A Baby Asprin = 80mg) if this helps any. The antibiotic they sell at the feed store is Tetracycline, which I have been using for my sick chickens with respiratory illness. But like I said if you can, just wait a little for someone with more knowledge about chickens to answer. I've been listening a lot to "casportpony and chickmania, dawg53, and some others have helped me a lot with my stuff. Good Luck, I'm sure she'll be feeling better soon, just keep her away from any of the others or they will peck her even more seeing she already has an injury, some chickens are like that.

 

[Harry Rooster]

I didn't know that chickens or birds of any type could smell. I've always been told that birds can't smell. Can they really? Good tip, I've had problems with this before and didn't know about the vinegar. Can it be Apple Cider Vinegar? I always keep that for everything. I will try that when I introduce the new chickens we just got, if I do decide to intergrate them, the are under quarentine right now and probably will be for a while.

 

[Suzie]

Strange that you say that... do chickens actually smell food.. etc...??? Now that is a question! I would suggest that mine can smell - they eat certain foods and avoid others that seem somehow to deter them from picking them up and eating....

I do know that vinegar works to deter mine from attacking a newbie... it was something I read in a chicken husbandry book about integrating a new member to a flock of existing chickens... I gave it a try and it did work...so come on you experts here... do chickens have a sense of smell?

Suzie

 

[new2chickens2011]

Thanks everyone, so much!!! I ran to the feed store and bought some Blue-Kote, put that on her..hopefully that will help it heal.
And thanks so much for the vinegar idea!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Never heard that before and I will DEFINITELY use it.