Open sore/feathers missing on hen--what is it?

[saucywomyn]

I just noticed today one of my 11 hens has an egg-sized open wound/sore on her back side, to the side of the vent. All of the feathers are missing from the wound area. Some of her other feathers look a bit disheveled too, like maybe she got in a fight or something. The area isn't bleeding, but just...raw looking. She is acting normally, eating and grazing with the rest of the flock, but this can't be good! I don't know if she is laying eggs or not, but from 11 hens I'm getting 8-10 eggs a day, so I'm pretty sure she's laying. There also seems to be a bit of poo crusted around her vent area, if that makes any difference.

If you can't tell already, I'm a very newbie chicken owner--inherited my brood from neighbors who moved away about a month ago. They're mostly Aracauna and a few Orps, and we have one very nice rooster. I feed them organic layer pellets, plus scratch and vegetable scraps. They live in an old travel trailer for a coop--I gutted it and installed next boxes and roosting poles made from closet rods. They have plenty of fresh water and free access to and from their "coop" into a fenced area via a ramp and a little chicken door I made for them. Their bedding is straw. It's unlikely anything got into the coop or fenced area--it's a 6' fence. We don't have weasels or raccoons in this area that I've ever seen.

Could a rat be gnawing on them while sleeping or something? Could she or one of the others be pecking at her for some reason?

What could this be, and what can I do? Is she in danger of getting an infection? Will it heal on its own or do I have to take her to a chicken doctor or something? They are all pretty tame (they will eat out of my hand), but don't really care to be touched. Help!

 

[klmclain1]

I wish I could help but I'm tooooo new! I'm sure you'll hear from others soon! Hang in there - oh, and in the meantime, can you separate her from the flock??

 

[Erica]

Hi saucywomyn,

that sounds nasty! A photo may help forum members get a better idea of what's involved.

I would be looking closely to see if there are signs of infection (e.g. hot, reddened skin around wound, cheesy material in wound, smelly etc) and perhaps also check for maggots. Sometimes if droppings adhere to the skin for a long while they can break down the skin itself and cause entry wounds that flies use to lay in... In general maggots don't harm healthy tissue but they are a sign of greater infection (and do need to be removed so it can heal). Cleaning the wound with a good antiseptic solution will make it easier to see what's involved.

Other possibilities (as a non-expert) might be abscess from something just under the skin, or of course rat bites (indeed that was my first thought — rats do attack hens on the perch, when they're most vulnerable). A check of the pen for any signs of rat entry might be in order... At certain times of year rats are more inclined to go for birds than others, especially if there's a shortage of food lying on the floor.

Hope this helps.

 

[Miss Lydia]

sounds like you may have a feather picker, but then again she might be doing it to herself, hard to know for sure unless you see the act, but I would wash her up real good, even let her soak in some salty water maybe 1 tab of salt or epsom salt to a gallon of water, dry her off real good with hair dryer on low, then trim the feathers that the poo was stuck too. then if you have it spray blue-kote on her bottom and the area where the sore is.. the blue-kote will help with healing and the color purple will disguise the wound. I would keep her separate from the rest until your able to get some blue-kote because they will make it worse could even kill her. Chickens are drawn to the color red so hence the color purple which cover up red.. If you can see the culprit then take that one out for a few days so when you put back with the flock they have to establish pecking order again and the one being pecked on will have a better chance of being accepted again.. and

 

[Red&Yellow]

That, to me, sounds like the rooster was a bit too rough on her. Especially that you say it looks raw. As long as nobody is pecking at it, she should be fine. The feathers should grow back, too.

 

[saucywomyn]

Thanks for the replies so far--I don't think I can post pictures because of being a newbie, but Ill see about the blukote. Separating her is going to be hard --will try! Thanks again I feel better just getting some support here!!

 

[jaimslee4u]

Red&Yellow :

That, to me, sounds like the rooster was a bit too rough on her. Especially that you say it looks raw. As long as nobody is pecking at it, she should be fine. The feathers should grow back, too.

x2 - any roosters in the pack? they aren't very gracefull especially if they are young.​

 

[saucywomyn]

Just one rooster, and now that I think about it, the sore is right where his feet tend to "latch on" if you know what I mean. Since there are 11 hens, I figured no one would get too much 'attention' from him and therefore avoid injury. I'll keep an eye on things and report back.

BTW, yesterday someone laid the biggest egg I've ever seen from a chicken--like, a goose-sized egg. Not sure if it was from this girl--she's one of the largest hens, but I'm wondering if there's a correlation to this injury.

Thanks again for your thoughts!

 

[lady feathers]

If it's a deeper wound may not be a rat but possibly an opposum (I've heard they prefer to just take a bite of a fresh bird than go after eggs) we have them on our property all the time- furtunately my dog takes care of them when no one is looking, double check your coop for any entry point that may need reinforcement/fixing. If you are fairly certain that's not the case I would guess rooster or a fight took place. Good luck!

 

[saucywomyn]

Update: The former owners came by and told me it's from the rooster. Has cleared up completely, but new problems with her including limping, which went away too,and now she won't eat and is laying on her stomach with her legs behind her. I think she may have been eggbound...found 2 poopy eggs near where she's now splayed out. I'm going to do a new post about this. Thanks for your advice.