Lacerated side to my hen

[BillJackson]

Hi all:

We have just discovered a hen with a deep laceration to her side, under her wing, that may be to the bone. In fact, the open wound may expose a lung. We have no definitive idea how it happened--no sign of predator tracks in the newly fallen snow. We are worried it is a rooster injury, although the depth makes us wonder about that.

Question. How may one go about treating such a severe injury. It is a Sunday, so the vet's office is closed. We have pulled her into the garage and placed her in an isolation dog-cage, so no other chickens may get to her. We debried what we could, but she has dirt-bathed recently, and we are worried that too much rinsing will lead to open bleeding.

Is there a definitive sign of pain in chickens? If so, then we will not want her to suffer. However, if she is not in pain, then we would like to see if we can treat.

Are there any predators that cause injuries like this?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Judy]

it's most likely a rooster injury. I'd trim the feathers so they aren't in the wound, and goop it up with neosporin. If it still looks like there's a lot of dirt in there, you might want to flush it with dilute Betadine or mild soapy water and a gentle flow from a syringe or turkey baster or similar tool. A dose of penicillin from the feed store won't hurt. She may heal up fine; chickens heal some pretty amazing injuries.

You can give aspirin for pain. The dose is in the sticky in this forum; I'll find it for you. -- Well, I copied the wound care section as well. There are a zillion ways to treat a wound. I think the bottom line is, the care -- a clean place to heal, nutrition and hydration, observing the wound -- all the common sense stuff for any wound.


Wound Care

Saline for flushing wounds to clean them of debris. Can be applied with the large droppers you get in the infant section for dosing medication or with a large, needleless syringe. Saline can be purchased by the bottle at some pharmacies or as eyewash kits, though the eyewash kits are often more expensive and do already come with an ideal attachment for dispensing.

Vetericyn topical wound treatment labeled as safe for birds and safe for animals to lick. See the Vetericyn website and the drug label information for more information.

Neosporin topical first aid ointment for wound treatment. Can be used on eyes.

Honey - honey can be applied directly to infected wounds and covered. Honey has natural antibacterial and healing properties.

* Some have recommended Blu-Kote and use it without issue, however, the label states not to allow the animal to lick it and states that it is not for use on food producing animals. See here to read the label information. Also, it does produce blue staining.

Vet Wrap - this is a bandage that adheres to itself and is great for wrapping wounds. It is basically the same stuff as an Ace self-adhesive wrap bandage for humans but comes in a larger variety of sizes and colors and generally costs less.

Styptic powder use to stop bleeding in cases where direct pressure may not be a viable option. Flour can be used as a styptic powder or you can buy styptic powder at most pet stores (they carry it for nails cut too deeply). Kwik Stop styptic powder is labeled for use on birds.

Therapeutic grade oregano oil natural general purpose antibiotic for use on external bacterial infection. Does not create resistant bacterial strains like synthetic antibiotics do. Some reports indicate it can be used internally as an effective natural antibiotic, as well. Must be therapeutic grade.

Duramycin-10 (tetracycline hydrochloride) broad spectrum antibiotics for use in chickens and other livestock. See the drug label information for dosage and usage information. When antibiotic treatment is complete, feed plain yogurt or buttermilk to restore good gut flora.



Pain Relief

Aspirin - for pain relief. Dosage is approximately 25 mg per pound of chicken's body weight each day (A standard baby Aspirin is 80 mg, and a standard adult Aspirin pill is 325 mg). This information is from the Poultry Podiatry website. Warning: aspirin thins the blood and should not be used if internal bleeding is suspected or in cases where a wound will not stop bleeding.