my duckling has a bloody head that is running constantly

[ray29965]

hi my name is ray and i had a backyard duck that had eggs and last night it got attacked by a raccoon. the mother duck flew away and all her baby’s got eaten except one. But he/she is very injured on the head with a scratch that doesn’t stop bleeding. i don’t know how to cure it or stop it from bleeding. PLEASE HELP ASAP.

 

[Kiki]

Welcome to BYC and I am so sorry this happened.
Do you have corn starch in the kitchen?

Can you post a picture of this bleeding one?
Have you tried holding a clean rag to the spot that is bleeding...applying light pressure?

 

[MROO]

hi my name isn’t ray and i had a backyard duck that had eggs and last night it got attacked by a raccoon. the mother duck flew away and all her baby’s got eaten except one. But is very injured on the head with a scratch that doesn’t stop bleeding. i don’t know how to cure it or stop it from bleeding. PLEASE HELP ASAP.

Poor Baby! Without pictures, it's hard to tell, so my first instinct is the usual "apply pressure." If that doesn't work, and none of our resident experts has chimed in, you can try some cornstarch. It works like a styptic pencil or the powders used to stop bleeding claws/toenails that were clipped too short. That won't work for a large wound, but should safely help dry up a smaller one.
What type of wound are you dealing with, surface? puncture? gash? Again, pictures would help.
Good Luck!!!

 

[ray29965]

Welcome to BYC and I am so sorry this happened.
Do you have corn starch in the kitchen?

Can you post a picture of this bleeding one?
Have you tried holding a clean rag to the spot that is bleeding...applying light pressure?

Welcome to BYC and I am so sorry this happened.
Do you have corn starch in the kitchen?

Can you post a picture of this bleeding one?
Have you tried holding a clean rag to the spot that is bleeding...applying light pressure?

 

[ray29965]

Poor Baby! Without pictures, it's hard to tell, so my first instinct is the usual "apply pressure." If that doesn't work, and none of our resident experts has chimed in, you can try some cornstarch. It works like a styptic pencil or the powders used to stop bleeding claws/toenails that were clipped too short. That won't work for a large wound, but should safely help dry up a smaller one.
What type of wound are you dealing with, surface? puncture? gash? Again, pictures would help.
Good Luck!!!

 

[MROO]

Again ... poor baby! Can you clean it up at all? Maybe just by dribbling some plain, room-temperature water, no soap? If nothing else, besides being able to see what you're dealing with, the baby can see better and possibly won't be so frightened. Once you've stopped the bleeding, make sure you get some electrolytes into the little one. It'll help combat shock.
Again ... poor baby! and poor you! Hang in there ... BOTH of you!

 

[ray29965]

Again ... poor baby! Can you clean it up at all? Maybe just by dribbling some plain, room-temperature water, no soap? If nothing else, besides being able to see what you're dealing with, the baby can see better and possibly won't be so frightened. Once you've stopped the bleeding, make sure you get some electrolytes into the little one. It'll help combat shock.
Again ... poor baby! and poor you! Hang in there ... BOTH of you!

thank you so much. i appreciate your help. everyone has been saying to try cornstarch and i will and hope it works. and would showering it with dawn and room temperatures water make the wound infected?

 

[Pennys Mama]

welcome under sad circumstances! I agree with prior replies. Clean it, cornstarch, apply pressure. Keeping a cloth or towel over the head helps to calm my birds, this might be helpful while you're trying to clean it & apply pressure. I've had chickens fall asleep in my lap while I'm "working" on them with their heads covered. Good luck to ya. Did mama duck come back?

 

[ray29965]

welcome under sad circumstances! I agree with prior replies. Clean it, cornstarch, apply pressure. Keeping a cloth or towel over the head helps to calm my birds, this might be helpful while you're trying to clean it & apply pressure. I've had chickens fall asleep in my lap while I'm "working" on them with their heads covered. Good luck to ya. Did mama duck come back?

thank you so much. i will try to wash him and use cornstarch and put a clean cloth on it after. And sadly the mother came back but left and didn’t want it anymore. because the eyes aren’t opened yet and still blood running. And another question... will using dawn in the bath infect the wound?

 

[MROO]

thank you so much. i appreciate your help. everyone has been saying to try cornstarch and i will and hope it works. and would showering it with dawn and room temperatures water make the wound infected?

Unless the whole duckling is bloody or dirty, I'd keep the water away from everywhere but the wound. You don't want to make its' little body work hard to maintain heat as well as fight the injury. I also wouldn't use any soap, just yet, unless you see dirt. Dawn is used more for true baths, and oily cleanups. Blood is water soluble and water shouldn't irritate the injury any more than necessary. Once the injury is cleaned a bit, it will (hopefully) be easier to see and stem the bleeding. Do you have any antibiotic cream handy? That should help, as well.
Ducklings are very resilient. They can really surprise you with what they can put up with and fight through!