My goose stood on a syringe

[Halkybod]

Hi Everyone,

When I went into the garden this morning I noticed that my grey goose was sitting very still. When I went outside 10 minutes later, he was still in the same position and when I went out a third time and he was STILL in the same position I suspected that something was wrong.

I went over to him and noticed that he was having difficulty standing up so I checked his foot and pulled out a two inch long needle from a syringe.

I pulled it out, rubbed it with some alcohol and wrapped a very makeshift bandage around it that I cut from a clean dishcloth in the hope that it would keep the worst of anything out of the would, which, while deep, is only a pin prick.

He is clearly in pain and is having trouble walking around. It was lodged pretty deep into his foot.

Has anyone else had a similar experience? I am worried that it may become infected or something. Is there anything else I should be doing? I have to go out to work but I was planning on changing the bandage when I get back later on.

Any advice anyone can give would be greatly appreciated. I am worried for the little guy

 

[Halkybod]

We also live in Cambodia so sound, reliable veterinary care is pretty thin on the ground.

Since posting my original message, he has managed to get his bandage off and has jumped into the paddling pool.

 

[mightymax]

Puncture wounds (which this is) are some of the worst wounds for harboring infection. Your best bet is to try and clean it out thoroughly with a diluted betadine solution and then apply a loosely wrapped bandage around it (too tight with no space for drainage or airflow, and you could end up with a playground ripe for infection). You can use a large syringe (without the needle!!!) to 'flush' the wound as deep as you can get the stream of water to go without actually inserting the syringe into the hole. Do this with the betadine solution over and over until your certain that nothing foreign could possible still be in there or until the bleeding (if any) stops. It's sometimes helpful to gently press the area around the puncture at the same time you're doing the lavage in order to help anything in there (including harmful bacteria) to wash out with the solution. As far as bandaging the foot is concerned, I wish you the best! As I'm certain you already know, geese feet are notoriously dirty. They are perpetually covered in one type of yucky muck or another and just the visual image of one keeping a bandage on makes me chuckle. That being said, you'll still have to keep the foot exceptionally clean, for the first few days at least. If it were my goose, I would put her in an exercise pen or something similar and keep her the house on clean bedding for week or so. At least until I was sure the scab was sufficient enough to withstand a good goose pounding and that there were still no signs or symptoms of her having an infection, either in the injured foot or systemically. I would also advise keeping her out of any water until it's completely healed. Hopefully this will help you and your goose recover without the aid of antibiotics, but if signs of an infection do arise, she'll definitely need not only antibiotics but also more advanced medical attention than can be given here. IMO. Good luck and I wish your goose a speedy recovery.

 

[Halkybod]

Thanks MightyMax,

I did not have a syringe so a cotton bud and some betadine was the best I could do. There was, and as far as I can tell never has been any bleeding although the goose is still in pain and is limping around.

I washed the foot all over with the cotton bud and solution and then soaked a tissue in betadine and put it inside a sock which I then placed onto his foot and secured using a cable tie. It is not too tight and so far appears to be doing the job in terms of staying on.

I guess I will just keep re-applying the same dressing for the next few days.

How will I be able to tell if the wound has gotten infected? Will there be any external oddities to look for?

 

[mightymax]

There are several signs of infection to watch out for. They can include: redness around the point of entry, oftentimes manifested as a slightly raised red ring, pus, continued swelling, lethargy, fever and most likely the area will feel hot to the touch. These are just a few of the more obvious signs of infection. Occasionally, there aren't any signs at all, but that's extremely rare. If you suspect infection, please consult your Vet. Leg tissue can become neurotic quickly and it's far easier to give antibiotics than it is to deal with a goose with an amputated leg. Good luck and please let us know how she's doing.

 

[Halkybod]

Will do. No obvious signs of infection yet and I've cleaned the foot twice already today. The cable-tied, sock bandage seems to be holding on so I think I will stick with that.

Going to go on the hunt for some anti-biotics and I have been in touch with a vet so I feel better about the whole thing. Still hate seeing the little guy in pain though.

 

[mightymax]

Glad to hear that he's doing well and displaying no signs of infection! Not sure what they have in Cambodia, but I know that around here most feed stores carry a few general, broad spectrum antibiotics that they can sell you OTC without a prescription. Very few, if any, are tailored made specifically for waterfowl though, so you'd probably have to consult with your Vet. again in order to get the correct dosage Almost all of them need to be administered either IM (intramuscularly) or SubQ (subcutaneously; just under the skin) and I don't know if you want to mess around with a syringe and needle after what you've just been through...lol !!! Seriously though, giving your goose an injection is really not that hard and the benefits of injectable antibiotics are far superior to those of oral ones, IMO. They tend to work faster, require fewer doses and can usually be given without regards to food or water. Not to mention the amount of time and stress that could be avoided by not having to shove a ginormous pill down your goose's throat! Anyway, hope all of this was somewhat helpful and that your big boy returns to his normal self again real soon. Drop us an update when you can.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Do you have any idea what was in the syringe? that would be the scary part. Hope he doesn't get an infection and heals up quick. and Welcome to BYC,

 

[Halkybod]

Thank you. Don't know what the syringe was for but I suspect it was just part of the debris that seems to make up a lot of the Earth over here. We are constantly getting bottles caps and other assorted pieces of crap making their way to the surface of the garden everytime there is a heavy rainstorm but I was shocked by the sight of the needle stuck in his foot.

He seems to be doing okay and is walking around a bit more, although still limping. I'm cleaning him up with Betadine and changing his sock bandage twice daily. This morning was a bit of a struggle while I also had to fight of the squadron of mosquitos who obviously saw me as a bit of a sitting duck. Hopefully I do not contract malaria now.

Going to see about some orally ingested anti-biotics this afternoon but the sight of him walking about this morning was very re-assuring. Unfortunately responsible needle disposal is not sommething that has made it to Cambodia yet and the thought of not being able to safely walk around my garden is rather distressing.

Thanks for your help guys.

I will post pictures of his bandage once he is all better and I feel comfortable laughing at what is right now, and especially was at the time, a very distressing situation

 

[mightymax]

Hi there !!! I was in the goose 'neighborhood', so I thought I'd drop you a post and maybe find out how you goose's foot is doing? It's been a couple of days now, so hopefully there's been nothing to write about, and his wound is healing up nicely !!! Still like to see some of those pictures of him with his 'bandage' on. Either he knew he needed it, or you did a wonderful job placing it, because I tried to put an E-collar on mine one time. What a disaster! He not only broke through the patio screen trying to jerk his head around enough to fling the dastardly thing off his neck, but he almost took my ear off in the process !!! So, my hat's off to you (and thankfully, not my ear too). Hope all is well. Take care.