Open Wound

laney45

Hatching
5 Years
Apr 29, 2014
3
0
7
I took my chicken (who is no older than maybe 4 months) out from under the heat lamp and into the big hens coop just to let the older hens get used to her overnight. Later in the next day I came up to the coop to find about an inch long of just an open wound right behind her comb on her head. This wound looks kind of fleshy and I can't tell if its showing bone or not(sorry i dont know how else to explain it besides that its big and open) It's pretty big and I've never had this happen before (I knew the older hens were going to establish a ''pecking order" but I didn't know it was going to go this far). I placed her in a separate cage in my garage away from the older hens last night and today she seems just like how she would orginally, walking around, eating and drinking water. Now I would like to know what I should put on it to help her recover (hopefully). I read on here to make a sterile saline solution from 1/4 tsp. of salt and a qt. of water but i didn't know if it would hurt her too much. I also read that you should put neosporin on it but Im afraid that it may hurt her with the pressure on her head of putting it on or that she may be to young for it..?? Please help, any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you. (BTW if anyone wants, I think I can post a pic of it) Also is it safe to let her outside with me to let her peck around?
 
Welcome to BYC. It is very risky putting a young single chicken in with a bunch of older hens. They will attack an older hen even. They always need to be integrated gradually, and I try never to just put one in by herself. They should be between a fence or put her inside a cage in the coop for a week or so. You won't hurt her to treat the wound as you would your own--weak betadine or saline, and dry it off, and apply antibiotic ointment such as Neosporin without painkiller daily. After it heals, get some BluKote and spray on it so it isn't pecked. This is what I use to integrate chickens--with a netting added to the top, and it can be turned over for smaller birds with poultry netting for chicks:

 
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Thank you so much! (sorry i forgot to mention that she was in the coop with her two other siblings but I will keep that in mind). Do you know If I can get "Blukote" in a local store, i found some online but it would be more convenient if I could just go buy some at a store. <-- sorry if that is a stupid question, Ive never heard of it. Also just to clarify you say i should apply the saline I mentioned above (1/4 tsp. boiled in qt. water) and neosporin afterward, And later BluKote? Correct?
 
You don't really even need the saline, just soap and water, but I like betadine if I have it for disinfection. From my old memory I believe normal saline is 1 tsp of table salt to 2 cups of water boiled for 15 minutes to sterilize it. Then after it has healed and you want her back in with others put the BluKote on. TSC and most farm stores sell it. Wound Coat is another brand, and plain old gentian violet 1 ounce bottle in the first aid aisle of Walmart for $3 is mostly the same thing, and can be applied with a Q-Tip..
 
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