Please Help Injured Comb on Bird!!

[slfiggins]

I am desperately in need of some assistance. I just went out to check on my hens and I have a Buff who was covered in blood. It looks like she may have gotten her head stuck in our coop fence. Her waddle is half torn off and hanging in her face. He face and neck are all bloody.

I am wondering how I can help her. My first instinct is to wash her with water and try and clear up all the mess. Should I put some neosporin on the waddle? Do I need to separate her from the other birds so she doesn't get pecked on?

This is my first injury so I am a little shook up. Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Sara
http://learningthefrugallife.blogspot.com/

 

[Dora'smom]

For continued bleeding you can put flour or cornstarch on the area. I would clean her up, and have a look at the damage if the bleeding has slowed considerably or stopped. You might want to use a wash of betadine in water over the area to clean it up (maybe using cotton balls since it is near the bird's face), and then neosporin without the pain ingredient to the area. It might be possible to kind-of re-approximate the edges of the wound, and let it dry that way. You can see if it wants to separate again. I would suppose that if it is clean and dry, you might be able to use a small section or two of steri-strips, wound closures to attempt to hold it together.
I would also separate the bird from the rest of the flock so that the wound wouldn't be pecked at, and put some vitamins and electrolytes in her water. Good luck with your bird.

 

[valsey]

My rooster beat up his son once and the kid had his comb ripped off. I cleaned it with chlorhexedine and dabbed it with Wound-kote. That stuff works like a miracle and also disguises any red blood because of it's purple color. Healed up in no time at all and no one came pecking either.

have used this on another bird that was REALLY torn up from what appeared to be a hawk attack. Worked FANTASTIC! Funny though the feathers (black) seem to have a purple sheen after they grew back - might be my imagination