Possum in the coop

[chikiechik]

My chicken gave a yell last night so I ran out to investigate to find a opposum poking his head out from the coop!! Ran inside to grab the gun and when I came out he was gone and so was one of the hens in the coop (only 2 hens in the coop total) the other hen was poking around at the egg and feathers - looked everywhere & couldn't find her or the possum anywhere, no blood, just a few feathers - anyways long story short ended up hearing her this morning, she hopped the neighbors fence and came back over this morning. Found a small wound on her I've attached a picture, I started to clean with vinegar - any other suggestions for wound treatment as well as keeping the possum away. TIA

 

[21hens-incharge]

How did it get in the coop? That is where I would start. I would secure the coop and run so it cannot get in again. If that means adding latches or repairing some wire then that would be my first step.

If you leave the pop door open all night that should change since it is to easy to go in.
It does not need to be fancy to work. A piece of wire that is twisted around a bent nail on the inside of the coop is better than nothing.

If your run does not have wire or a roof I would add that post haste. Many predators find that an easy way to a meal.

The would although it looks awful is not so horrid that she cannot recover. Keep it as clean as you can and check it for infection daily. It should heal on its own.
If you use an antibiotic cream on it make sure it does not have any pain killer in it. This is harmful to chickens.

 

[MeepBeep]

Possums generally don't make their own access points, they are a creature of opportunity and generally exploit existing openings... Plus your chicken was able to escape, so you need to address that as the possum or something else will be back...

So as said above I would address how they so easily got into the coop as a primary concern, the bird should be fine as long as the wound is kept clean...