Injured Hen- First Aid!! UPDATE post #20

[DTRM30]

I think you're doing everything you can. General first aid rules apply to just about anyone and anything. As stated earlier, do be careful with the betadine as overuse can damage healing wounds. Also be careful not to overapply the antibiotic creams either. Very small amounts is all you need. For the stuck gause, don't pull it - just soak it with warm water or the creams. Once the scabs under it soften you shoud be able to gently pull it back. But if you feel any resistance - or see any bleeding - stop and re-soak. Worst case - she heals around it and it comes off on its own eventually.

I hope she's not coming down with a secondary problem from a weakened system due to the initial injury

If you give her a general antibiotic, see if she'll eat some yougurt as well - to help keep the colonies of "good" bacteria in balance. Antiobiotics don't know the difference between the "good" and "bad" bacterias and will just kill them all - causing digestive issues (the reason we get dirrahea when we take them )

Good Luck - I hope she heals and you can get your flock to accept her. It amazes me at how well a flock works together when they all know each other - but add someone new and they become the meanest things ! And there's no reasoning with them either !

 

[rhaj]

Thank you very much. Her injuries seem to be healing well

What do you think I should do about her eyes?

 

[Miss Lydia]

Do you have any salve or saline wash that s for eyes only, I've even read of some on here using tetracycline mixed in warm water to wash out the eye[ I'd make sure thats okay first though].

 

[rhaj]

I can make a saline mixture for the eyes by boiling water and adding some baking soda. Would that be ok? (of course you cool it before using)

I'll look it up to be sure but I'm thinking it's 1 tsp of baking soda to 2c of water.

I thought maybe she looked sleepy at times, but I could be reading into nothing. Right now, she looks fine, is walking around my livingroom livin' it up

No sneezing though, is that weird??

 

[Miss Lydia]

I am not sure about the sneezing, hopefully thats a good sign, just keep an eye on her which shouldn't be to hard if she's walking around in your living room. I've never had a chicken with watery eyes so I can't give much advise but Maybe just wash them out good, Sounds like shes getting excellent care.

 

[rhaj]

ok to recap, my hen got attacked by the rest of my flock, she got pretty bloodied but is healing well.

While healing, her eyes started to get wet. Today they are worse. Her left eye was stuck shut and her right eye was pretty foamy. I cleaned it off but I'm thinking I probably need to treat this now? I have Duramycin powder and Tylan 50 injection.

She is not sneezing, which seems odd. Is it pure conicidence that she is coming down with this now after her injuries??

What should I use and dosage please?

 

[Judy]

Just about every resp. disease they can get includes discharge from eyes, so without other symptoms, there is no way of knowing whether you should treat her systemically, much less with what.

I would make some saline (1 tsp salt in 1 quart boiled water) and clean the eyes with this, then get some ophthaqlmic antibiotic ointment from the feed store and put it in her eyes, once or twice a day. You can actually use regular old Neosporin ointment in eyes -- for this I wouldn't want the one with pain killer simply because I learned this before they started making it with pain killer and I have no idea how the eye would react to the drug. Also, use ointment, not cream.

 

[rhaj]

aah ok, I will use neo then. Thanks!

Any idea what the next step would be if that didn't work?

 

[rhaj]

oh and her poop still looks fine, if that helps at all. No sneezing, but she does look a little sleepy at times.

 

[rhaj]

Does it have to actually get into her eyeball?? Her eyes were closed when I did it.