Need advice re: open wound on back - warning graphic photo

[lbartsch]

Hello my chicken friends. I need some quick advice

When I went out to clean the yard and coop today, I noticed that my 7 month old EE has a quarter-sized wound on her back between her wings. See photo below. It was a little bloody and looks like one of the other hens (we don't have any roosters) has been pecking at her. She has been the lowest in the pecking order ever since she was injured in a raccoon attack back in October. I have a call into our chicken vet but he won't be in until tomorrow. I cleaned it and put some neosporin on it and covered it with a little bandage. Here's my questions for tonight before I talk to the vet:

1. Should I bring her inside and separate her form the others? (I hate to take her out of the flock again and make them even less likely to accept her back)

2. Can I do more for her tonight with other medicines or something?

3. Should I get her a saddle or something to prevent this happening again? Anyone know how to make one?

Thanks!
Lynn

 

[klmclain1]

Oh my! Poor girl!! If it were me - I'd probably skip the vet, spray it daily with blukote and put a dollop of neosporin on it (my answer to just about everything!) and keep a bandage on it - you could even secure it by wrapping vet wrap around her torso - not too tight!. THEN I'd bring the number 1 hen in and isolate her from the flock for a couple of days...see if things don't settle down a bit, then reintroduce HER. Mind games you know?

 

[lbartsch]

Thanks so much for your advice! Our vet has warned us not to use blukote. Says it is really horrible nasty stuff and should be avoided. He has a great antibiotic skin cream that we used when she was wounded in the raccoon attack. It is a thick white cream that keeps everything out. I think I'll try to get some of that from him again tomorrow. Great idea about putting the top hen in jail for a while! I bet that'll help. I also ordered an apron - maybe it'll help and it'll look really cute.

 

[klmclain1]

Interesting...I've never heard anything bad about it before! Not even from our vet.. I always put it on cuts/wounds/abrasions because the others will peck at the "red" and eventually kill them so it's disinfects the area (it's an antiseptic) and changes the color as well! Has worked like a charm. One other thing I have used it for ... you're vet won't approve... I've sprayed it on my "top" girl's white feathers. She goes nuts because she "senses" that the others see her differently and hides for a good day - knocks her down the totem pole to the bottom. She eventually reestablishes herself, but after doing that twice, she's quit pecking! <thinking like a chicken>

The apron does sound cute!