Injured hens

[kelleyazul]

Ive posted this in a couple of places and just looking for feed back. Two of my hens were injured by a dog... huge gaping tears to their skin... and one has a pretty good puncture but without real bleeding. Both are alert and both are being a little more feisty during treatment. I've been rinsing the suture lines with dilute betadine. Bothe are getting .3 cc of penicillin/day... i don't see any areas of obvious infection, pus or abcess. Any thoughts on how to proceed... how long can i keep the antibiotics going? Is .3 cc the best dose? I'm really only rinsing the surface with the betadine... should i be trying to get back under the skinflaps? Help?

 

[Eggcessive]

Procaine Penicillin G should be given once a day for 4 days--dosage can be .1 to .5 ml, so you're fine. Betadine shouldn't be used repeatedly, since it can impede healing. Saline can be used if it needs further cleaning. I would clean well under the skin flaps, then start only applying an antibiotic ointment or Vetericyn twice a day. Did you suture the wounds yourself? I worry about closing up a dirty wound such as a bite, since abscess occur. Some vets will do this, but after cleaning the wound well. Just keep an eye out for swelling, purulent drainage (pus,) redness, or a bad smell. If you could post a picture, it would help.