hen is injured- looks like bites- how do I dress the wounds

[LibrariHen]

Came home from work tonight to a bunch of feathers from my 9-month old Ancona. found her hanging out in the veggie patch, acting pretty normal (she ate a treat that I offered her), but she has clearly been attacked by something, and there are a couple of puncture wounds. The most damage is on her rump, right above the vent (which appears normal). There were fly eggs already laid, so I rinsed out the whole area with water. Any advice on dressing it would be much appreciated - for instance, should I apply antibiotic ointment? diluted hydrogen peroxide? should I bandage it?

I'm attaching a couple of photos, but they were hard to get while holding her with one hand...




thanks!

 

[Wyandottes7]

You've done the right thing so far in cleaning the wounds. I'd continue to make sure that they stay clean (keep her in a clean place). Make sure to keep her away from the other birds as well, as injured birds are often pecked by healthy chickens, and chickens love pecking at blood.

I would apply some antibiotic ointment. Be sure that it doesn't contain any "-caine" or "-cain" ingredients, or painkillers, as these can be dangerous to chickens. From what I've read, hydrogen peroxide can actually slow healing, so I'd avoid that for now.

Chickens have a remarkable ability to recover from serious injuries. As long as you keep it clean, she may very well turn out fine. Be on the look out for signs of infection, such as a bad smell or severe discoloration. If you notice any signs, start antibiotics. In fact, I might lean towards starting antibiotics now, especially since you found maggots in the wound. Penicillin would be one antibiotic to try. Baytril is another good one, though you (I believe) can only get that from a vet. You can try Duramycin or Terramycin as well, though these are more geared towards respiratory diseases.

Good luck with her! I hope she recovers.

 

[BantamLover21]

You were given some good advice by Wyandottes7. Fortunately, chickens are rather resilient creatures, and can usually recover from wounds that are even worse than your hen's. Good luck!

 

[LibrariHen]

Thanks for the replies- I'd already washed the wounds with a 25% hydrogen peroxide solution, but I won't use it again. I also spread some homemade blu-kote (honey mixed with a few drops of tea-tree oil and blue food coloring) on it for its anti-bacterial properties. There actually weren't maggots, just the eggs- but still really gross- and she's sleeping in the house tonight in a dog crate.
I let my girls free-range around my yard, but I think maybe I need to reconsider that This one especially likes to jump the fence and go in the front yard.