Injured Babies.

[SillyCityGirl]

So not to long ago I wound up with a broody bantam cochin and decided to let her set, I wasn't even really sure if anything was going to hatch out (since I have never hatched out baby birds before and wasn't paying any attention to the humidity.) so I didn't stress over it and pretty much forgot about it and wasn't worrying at all especially after my anticipated hatch date came and went.

So as Murphy's law to hatching eggs goes, this morning I got 5 little ones out there and more hatching out. Some of them got out and got into trouble and I blocked thier escape route and brought them in the house and popped them in a makeshift brooder that I have used before as a brooder.

I have them on wheat straw, but its thier injuries I am worried about. They look like they have been partially scalped. The skin on the back of thier poor little heads has been ripped and pushed forward. I honestly haven't expected them to make it this long. It has been 4 hours since I have put them in there. So far I haven't done anything to them but I am thinking about cleaning the wound. One of them is occasionally very loud and they have been moving around a little bit.

Any ideas and or advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you,
SCG

 

[Knock Kneed Hen]

I had something similar happen to a pullet. I put her in a warm cage, electrolytes with vitamins, I cleaned her wound with 10% Betadine solution (I hear you can use povidine/Iodine, but not peroxide) , dabbed it dry with a sterile gauze and applied antibiotic ointment. I only cleaned it the first day but applied the ointment twice a day. She has healed nicely. Just a spot on her head where her feathers start and stop. This pic was taken on day 3 btw, you can see how it started healing immediately. The wound closed up little by little each day. Just keep the birds warm and quiet so they aren't stressed and their bodies can concentrate on healing.

 

[drumstick diva]

Did they get injured escaping ??? Hurt on a fence, etc. or by animals on the farm. Do you think your broody injured them? In any case you could rinse out their wounds with a saline solution, then apply some neosporene ( with NO pain reliever). If they peck at each other's wounds - get some blu kote and put on them. Chicks and chickens can't resist pecking at wounds or anything showing blood, and can end up killing each other. The blu kote disguises the wound color and also tastes bitter. You don't want them outdoors where flies could lay eggs in the wound and hatch into maggots.

Nature could use some help here because mama ain't gonna do it.

 

[SillyCityGirl]

Thanks for the tips, I will get to cleaning thier little heads. That looks alot like what my babies have. Thier brooder is quite warm with a hot spot of 104.

Don't have any Betadine on hand that I can find. I did find some powdered terramyacin and was thinking of sprinkling some of that in thier wounds. Will go to the pharmacy in the am.

As far as what caused the injury, I think it was a couple of the other girls (the black and the black frizzle) in the pen and I think I might have to move them over with some other chickens. I have a black roo in there too, the lady I got him from said he was good with his babies and I did notice the other 2 black girls getting a little pecky with the babies when they ran out of the nest area aka big ol dog house, into the scratching and dust bath area and under thier feet. The lip of the dog house is just a little too high for them to get back in and mama is still hatching out a few more and can't be in 2 places at once. Moving the 2 non broody girls out would be easy. Moving the boy out would bit a bit more of a chore but not impossible. The other animals haven't been near them except for the 2 girly dogs that guard the brooder and I know they didn't injure them.

When I brought these ones in I was going to get the other ones, I know there are at least 3 more) and even managed to get one broody (my red hen) off her nest that was on the injured ones. There were a couple of more chicks that ran over under the other broody hen (my buff girl). I placed a barrier so the chicks can't get out of the broody area but everyone else can still come and go. I am considering firing up my other brooder and bringing the other babies in when I can catch them. I would like thier mother to do all the work but if she needs help.......

Someone told me to set up my brooder and move the mother and her young in there and I don't really want to mess with eggs as they are in the process of hatching, this was also the same person that told me one of my young chickens before was probably going to be the first to lay, after I had already identified that particular bird as and still is a him. So I don't always follow his instructions regardless of the amount of domestic discord. So I really appreciate all the help.

Thank you
SCG