Open gash on Silkie hen

[Wyatt0224]

I noticed tonight that one of my Silkie hens has a large gash on her side. As it goes under her left wing the skin begins to peel off to the point where it is a flap of skin around 1/8" inch thick at the base of the tear. I have already cleaned her sound with hydrogen peroxide and put neosporin on it. She is isolated for the night. Are there any types of medicine I can give her? Also what should I do about the wound? Is there anything else I can do for her?

 

[allykay219]

I had a chicken get attacked by a dog. My sister is a vet tech so I made her come check her out. She had a large wound on her neck. I thought it would need stitches and thought about culling her. My sister cleaned it and bandaged/wrapped it and it healed fine. I had to changed the bandage and clean it twice a day for about a week. I'd let it air out a bit after cleaning. So maybe you can try that... It healed fine but then got killed by a fox.

 

[Wyatt0224]

That is terrible! So sorry for your loss! I don't have any bandages yet so I'll have to get them tomorrow.

 

[Madison-Jamil]

If you have iodine on hand soak some sterile gauze in it and apply it to the wound and try and wrap her both Coban. Keep her calm and warm. Don't use anymore Hydrogen Pyroxide as it can kill good tissue also, if that's what you have for initial clean up that's ok but don't use it once it starts to heal. Vetericyn gel would also be extremely helpful.

 

[Wyatt0224]

I have her isolated in our shed but it gets really hot in there during the day. Should I give her watermelon to help her stay cool during the day? Today it's supposed to be 90. Her wound seems to have a lot of dead tissue on it but I haven't looked at the base of the wound yet.

 

[Madison-Jamil]

I would bring her in if you have a dog kennel or crate. The other thing you can do if put in two liter bottles full of frozen water wrapped in a towel. I would try to bring her in though as the heat will not help. Maybe you can borrow a kennel from someone if you don't have one. Give her some clean towels to bed on or if it's a wire crate Inhave put a very low perch for them to roost on and clean the pull out try several times a day. Food/water cups that clip onto wire cages are always handy for dealing with emergencies too.

 

[Wyatt0224]

She seems to be eating and drinking fine for now. After this post I'm gonna go out and check on her again. We have a RIR roster and a BA rooster with many other hens with her. Both roosters are young but the BA has the sharpest Spurs though not that sharp. Could he have ripped her side open when he went to breed her? Like I said before it's a pretty thick piece of skin and fat at the base of the tear and then thins out.

 

[Madison-Jamil]

Eek. I file and buff all my roosters Spurs to keep them from having points. I don't know if she could have got the gash like that.. If it is the Spurs causing a problem you may want to get hen saddles. Most Spurs point upwards which is probably by design so they don't harm the hen. I file and buff my guys Spurs just to reduce the chance of accidents while I handle them.

 

[my poules]

I noticed tonight that one of my Silkie hens has a large gash on her side. As it goes under her left wing the skin begins to peel off to the point where it is a flap of skin around 1/8" inch thick at the base of the tear. I have already cleaned her sound with hydrogen peroxide and put neosporin on it. She is isolated for the night. Are there any types of medicine I can give her? Also what should I do about the wound? Is there anything else I can do for her?

 

[my poules]

Great!