Ingrown feathers leading to wider infection

[All my hens are roosters]

I'm hoping someone can come up with a treatment for my little hen.

She is a runt who had a chronic ear infection a couple of years ago which I managed to get rid of.

Her latest ailment has to do with the feathers on the back of her neck. It started with a few ingrown feathers that were infected. That skin had become hard and tough and the feathers weren't breaking though (I'm assuming). I removed them, but ever since that area has been prone to having the folicals become infected. She is now nearly completely bald on the back of her neck.There is no reddening of the skin, but there is white pasty content surrounding the folical or base of grown feathers. The folicals are plugged and appear zit like, without the redness though.

I have been applying polysorin in the hopes of warding off bacterial infection, and have managed to get the worst infections eradicated, but after a week of treatment the entire area is weeping clear liquid from the folicals if disturbed.

In this area, the feathers do not seem to be developing that hard shell to break the skin.

Other than this condition she has seemed to be behaving normally, her comb and face aren't pasty and she is active, however I am getting worried that this infection isn't going away. I have isolated her in the house to keep her warm.

We have no vets around here who know anything about birds, so any help would be appreciated.

 

[adoptedbyachicken]

Is she with a rooster? Often the roo grabs hens in that area to hang on for mating. This could be keeping the wound open, or keeping that area of skin hard.

Other than that I think it sounds like your doing things right, just needs more time. Try removing the roo, or her if you have her in with one, and see if she heals up better.

 

[All my hens are roosters]

She has been pretty good at avoiding the roos by staying up on the perch much of the time. I've got her inside now, so roos aren't the issue. What is concerning me most is that this ailment seems to be spreading around her neck. I had had success just removing the odd ingrown feather which would clear up, but this has been going on for most of the winter and while there has been improvement - I'm down to only a few feathers with an obvious white infection around them, and the skin is much more supple, so shouldn't be block feather growth, and there are feathers coming in - the weeping bothers me. However, with the weeping being clear (as opposed to milky or red), I think that is a good sign?

FYI, she is two years old now and a little banty. She is also a very good patient who has been very cooperative while being treated. I'm really hoping I can clear this all up so she isn't in discomfort.

One thing I am wondering is whether I should be supplementing her diet, which is 16% layer pellets plus whatever greens she finds in the yard (which is the same for the rest of my flock, none of whom have anything like this little hen). I suspect that part of the cause of this problem is the shell on the feathers not developing, although that could also be a byproduct of the polysporin for those growing in now.