hematoma on leg, below the hock

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rmack2

rmack2

In the Brooder
7 Years
Oct 22, 2012
31
0
22
Looking for some advise/thoughts form people. I have a white leg horn with a golf ball size hematoma on one leg. This started a couple months ago when I thought she had landed hard and twisted her knee. It swelled and she was a little lame. At the time a couple days rest and some ice packs seemed to help a lot. The lameness went and she was acting her normal (2nd in command) self though the swelling had not subsided much. About two weeks ago she seemed to hurt it again, and another round of in a cage in the house a few days and a combination of ice pack/ warm compress and a few days rest and she was back in the coop. Four days ago she must have hurt it again, I found her hiding from the #1hen behind a water jug with a pecked crop and a much more swollen leg joint. It does not feel as if anything bone wise is moving abnormally so I don't think its actually broken anywhere. The swelling is about golf ball sized and she did pick it to bleeding 2 days ago. I've treated the wound with styptic powder and put a gauze bandage covered in triple anitbiotic on it, then bandaged it all around with self adhesive gauze, like a soft splint. As I was reading every thread I could find I noted that one said anything below a wound/swelling that is black color is lost. The swelling itself is pretty black but the blood she pecked was normal red, the other side of the joint is normal color as are the rest of the leg and foot toes below the swelling. She is eating drinking and pooping normally and does seem to be putting some weight on the leg from time to time. I have her in the house in a small dog cage with a low perch she can step up onto which she does and she does curl her toes arond the perch though weakly. Any thoughts?

Changed bandage today. Just a small drop of red blood from a different spot than where she pecked a wound, but on a black spot. Toes are working, still feel and look normal color and temp. Think the swelling may be slowly going down, but she has a long way to go. Would still like to hear from anyone if you think there is more I could do. Her comb and wattels have been pale and smaller since found her hiding from #1 hen. I am giving her some electrolytes in the water.
 
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Thank you for responding, and the "bump". My hens are about 18months old now, 5 White leghorns and 1 black sex-link. The links you sent gave me a couple of ideas for PT, but I plan to wait a few days until she is using it more. This hens name is Two-toes, because she is missing half a toe on the other foot. I noticed it the day after I brought her home as a day old chick. (But thats a different story) The soft splint seems to be helping some so I plan to keep that on a while and change often. She does strech the leg periodically and streches the toes so I think it will be ok. I was worried about the remarks I had read that anything below a black swelling is lost, her swelling is on the inside of the leg but doesn't go all the way around. It has some black areas, looks like pooled blood but no wound beyond the one she pecked. I think the small drop I found yesterday was more like the ooze you'd get from an over full blood blister. I was also concerned she might have partially fractured a bone and was bleeding through it, causing the hematoma ( pooled blood) like a giant bruise. The swelling has stopped as far as I can tell, and may have begun to go down a little since I wrapped it, so she seems to progressing in the right dirction. It does help to hear from other people who have hens, Thank You.
 
At the next dressing change she pecked at it again, drew more blood again... She seems to better with it covered for the moment. The last dressing change, and warm cloth cleaning, I noted that a couple of areas sloughed off, like a scab falling off, and there was some clear ooze. Under that there is some more normal color growing in under some of the area. Looks like she is beginning to slowly heal from the inside, but am not sure it will ever return to normal size. Toes still move though weakly, and remain normal color and temp. Im still using a wet bandage (gauze pad with triple antibiotic under the rolled gauze soft splint)
She was molting when this happened but I thought she was at the end of her molt. She is now loosing a fair amount of feathers, not sure if this is from the stress of the whole ordeal, shes actually getting worse and Im not seeing it, or if she is getting acclimated to the warmer climate inside the house. I did add a little asprin to her water for 2 days, then the fether loss increased quite a bit, I stopped the asprin in case thats the cause of fether loss. I also removed the perch after the last pecking blood episode and put in a folded cloth dougnut that she refused to rest in, so now its just paper for a couple of days. She is streching occasionally, and eating/drinking, normal poo, moving around a little and talking to the resident cockateal nearby.
 
I use Vetericyn for all animals as well as myself, its costly but goes a long way and is a MIRACLE!!! I had a girl with bumblefoot and anti oint didnt do ANYTHING, but after the veterycin and the next bandage change IT WASNT EVEN RED!!! amazing!!
 
where can I get this? I have local pet shops like petco and petsmart but nearest farm place beyond basic feed of is quite a drive. does it have instructions on dosages?
 
I was able to ge the vetricyn on line through a company I've used for years for most pet suppies (Drs. Foster and Smith) great resorce and they can do pharmaceuticals if your vet will fax a perscription. My vet doesn't do chickens. Anyway, Two-toes did improve slowly over time to where I would let her into the yard to peck a little bit then take her back inside. Last Sunday, as I was out getting the paper, she pecked a little too much and I'm pretty sure threw a blood-clot, she seized once and passed away within a couple minutes, in daughters arms. we think it was either a blood clot or an aneurysm either way we lost her.
 
Oh not the news I was waiting for poor thing.... so sorry so sad
hugs.gif
 

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