Open wounds on Chickens - pecking injuries? What to do.....

[Spatchcock]

Hi All

We have 6 Goldlines who we have raised from 1 week old chicks and they are now around 21/22 weeks old and have all recently started laying. Tonight as I was putting them to bed, I discovered that a couple of them have injuries under their wings that are open wounds and look sore. I didn't want to stress them out by doing too much tonight, but we did have a close look at them to see if we coudl see any mites/lice and did check the coop as well to see if there was any evidence. Couldn't see anything, but will have a good clean out tomorrow with more lice power/spray.

For the chickens, I have been looking at various threads and I think it is more likely one has caught an injury from somewhere, perhaps in the coop or when free-roaming in the garden, so will double-check the coop for that tomorrow as well. they have all seemed very happy to date and they were all eating and drinking this afternoon. We have not see them peck each other.

They have around 4/5 sq ft each in the run and just under 2 in the coop. We were told this was fine for them by the breeder we bought from although I appreciate now that view vary on this. They are also able to get out regularly to exericse in the garden with much more space. We have built levels in the coop that allows them a bit more floor space, boosting that to just under 3 per chicken - so there is space for them to move around - but I will look into making more space for them.

My main query is about the plan we have for tomorrow and if there is anything else we can do.

I am going to check each chicken for wounds, check again for lice and mites and any infection and then gently clip any feathers that might be sticking/aggravting the wound.

I will then wash each in warm soapy water.

Then apply an antiseptic spray we got from the breeder which contains chlorocresol and is violet in colour which we hope will aid with reducing any pecking from the other birds - will rinse and repeat daily to ensure they get to healing.

Hopefully this will help them recover. Separating them is difficult so if there are any other tips on reducing pecking they would be gratefullly received.

Also, can the sprays be used on open wounds that are wet?> I am presuming not, so what are the options there, or would it be better to go the vet.

Sorry for the long post. I have been looking over other posts on similar subjects and seen various approaches which have informed my decisions above. Hopefully we are doing the right thing, but happy to take any advice from the more experienced owners.

Thank you.

 

[sourland]

I believe that their problems are related to overcrowding and boredom. 4 sq ft /bird is a minimum for coop space and far more than that for the pen if they are not allowed to free range.

 

[Spatchcock]

I believe that their problems are related to overcrowding and boredom. 4 sq ft /bird is a minimum for coop space and far more than that for the pen if they are not allowed to free range.

Yeah, that is my thought, which is why we are going to sort out more space. We were assured that we had enough space by the breeder, but I am quickly coming to realise that we may have been misled. In the meantime, we will make sure they get even more oportunity to get out and about in the garden. It has only started in the last couple of weeks as they didn't have any injuries when we clipped their wings 2 or 3 weeks ago, so hopefully we can get a handle on it quickly and improve things for them.

 

[ILoveDaffy]

To prevent boredom pecking, or anger pecking, We bought a hen zylophone and hung a cored apple on a string, worked like a charm, and helped prevent pecking on my newly integrated, and picked on, hen.

 

[Spatchcock]

To prevent boredom pecking, or anger pecking, We bought a hen zylophone and hung a cored apple on a string, worked like a charm, and helped prevent pecking on my newly integrated, and picked on, hen.

Thanks - we've been looking at toys as well. they have a couple fo things to play with, but will get more to keep them occupied while we improve the run etc.

 

[Spatchcock]

Hi All

Thanks again for the advice, we added a few more toys and hanging things for them to play with and treated them with an antibacterial spray and they seem to be recovering well. We also added more space to the run, so they have around 30 sq feet in the run and now an additional nerly 40sqft in and around the garden so they can come and go from the run as they please but are also still sheltered and can't escape.

However, one of the hens, Turnip, seems to be turning into a bully and we have seen her pecking the other chickens wings andshe has opened up an old wound on Penny. We separated her today and will keep her separate for a short time and then try the pinless peepers which seem to be recommended. I have also read that protein can be an issue so will look into that to make sure they are getting enough - but we had to split them up tonight because it was getting bad and we can't really wait for other things to change they way she is pecking.

My new question is.....I am reading conflicting on separating the "bully" hen and have read that they should be kept completely separate from the main flock for up to 10 days before being reintroduced, and other advice that suggests they need to be kept within sight and sound of the flock. We have something she can stay in tonight in the kitchen, but it would not be robust enough for outside and will need to get something if she needs to be near the flock.

I presume also that they would be kept completely separate and not allowed to roost in the coop together - they seem calm at night with no squabbling, but I guess we can't be 100% sure they are not fighting.

So should they be compelely separate or within sight and sound of each other?

Cheers