My dog ate it

[dreamchaser77]

So, while we were out with Halloween festivities the other night, apparently my dog attacked my hens (if you read my introduction, this was a problem before, which we thought was fixed). As I was tucking my babies in for the night, I noticed two were missing. DH and I looked all over and found them; one hen had tons of missing and broken feathers and the other's neck was all torn up (no broken bones, thankfully!). I put them in a big plastic tub with some food and water and straw bedding and brought them up to my bedroom and laid them next to my space heater. I didn't think they'd make it through the night, but they did! They have stayed in my bedroom for the last two days, they have been eating and drinking and clucking and talking to each other. They let me pick them up and check them. We were ready to move them downstairs to a bathroom that the dog can't get into, but I noticed that the one with the neck injuries has this bright green coloring all around. At first I thought it was mold, it was that bright. When I got to cleaning her up, I noticed it was under the skin. She's moving her head just fine (though she's mad at me right now because I washed her up with a damp cloth and put peroxide in the wound, I hope that was all right, I read that in several forums on the web). Is it bruising? Or is she getting gangrene? Do I need to take her in to the vet? I really hope that she will live, she's done really well so far. Sorry this is so long. Thanks for reading

Charity
Inland Northwest urban farmer in training

PS-Oh, and FYI, we found the problem with the dog and fixed it. Apparently she was pushing the gate open and flushing the hens out. We've locked the gate more securely and I am now more proactively training her to stay away.

 

[bakerjw]

Do the green areas feel hot? That would be a sign of an infection.

 

[BigDaddy'sGurl]

Sounds like bruising to me

 

[AinaWGSD]

If she's eating and drinking ok, and moving ok, and the area doesn't feel hot to the touch, then it's probably just bruising. Birds can bruise in very impressive colors!

As for cleaning the wound, peroxide is ok for the initial clean-up right after the injury, but it can actually slow healing as it is damaging to the tissue. I would just use warm water and a clean cloth to clean the area. Maybe some saline, or if you have access to it a dilute chlorhexadine solution. But I would avoid using peroxide or betadine(iodine) on it as these will actually slow the healing.

 

[dreamchaser77]

Thanks for the answers. She seems to be fine this morning. Ok, no more peroxide, thanks for the tip and no, it's not warm to the touch and looks better today. Guess I will just keep them in the house for the time being. When can I bring them back to the coop? I read somewhere that the other hens will peck at the injured birds, is this true?

 

[CMV]

Chickens bruise in bright green. Seriously. Like Day-Glo green. The first time I saw it I nearly had a heart attack. Keep sniffing the wounds and as long as they don't smell sickly sweet and putrid, then you just have bruising and not gangrene.

You need to keep them separate until they heal. Chickens will pick at anything that is not normal. And wounds are a particular favorite.

I hope they stay on the mend. Good luck with them and the dog.