Predator wound on a duck/maggots

[boxermizer]

A couple nights ago 2 of my ducks disappeared and one has a broken leg. I assume coyotes got them as they have started meandering into the tall grass. This morning one of the missing ducks showed up. She had at least 3 wounds that I could find, 2 were puncture wounds. All were covered in maggots. I washed/sprayed her several times in the shower to try to rinse them out, but I could see that the puncture wounds were packed with maggot, their butts were all I could see. I tried soaking her in epsom salt water not knowing if the salt would burn, but I felt I needed to get them off her. I also used a syringe to squirt peroxide into the wounds. All of this got a lot of the maggots off, but I could not even begin to clear the puncture wounds of them. I've read that maggots can be the best thing for healing wounds, but I'm still stuck on the notion that they would just eat her alive. I don't know which is true. She wasn't interested in eating or drinking, but I did drip a little water with electrolytes (Rooster Booster) into her mouth, some of which she seemed to drink. I will also say that when I initially picked her up some liquid came out of her mouth and she smelled like she was dying. After several attempts to clean her, I decided to let her rest, feeling like I might be exhausting her even more, plus it was far past time for me to get something to eat. Anyway, a couple hours later my son informed me that she might have died. Indeed she had and was already stiff. Was I doing the right thing trying to clean her up or should I have left the maggots to do their thing (pretty sure there were plenty still left on her) or did I wear her out (I probably spent a couple hours or more with her) or was she likely already too far gone? I was really hoping that since she had managed to get away and find her way home that there was still enough left in her for me to help.

And if anyone has any tips on the one with a broken leg that would be great too. I thought it was broken at the knee, but pretty sure its above the knee now. I have wrapped it and braced it with some popsicle sticks and she is standing a little now and definitely eating and drinking better. Not sure how long healing will take and whether I should just keep her like this or should I periodically unwrap it and let her swim in epsom salts for a short while for exercise and clean her up. She's quite dirty like the one I lost today.

 

[coach723]

You were doing the right thing. What she had was flystrike, which can be fatal. The maggots do eat the bird alive. There are very specific species of flies that will only eat necrotic flesh, those are used for wound care. Most of the flies that we deal with are not those, they eat any flesh, including healthy flesh. It's hard to say if the wounds themselves were serious enough to cause death, but if maggots enter the abdominal cavity or reach organs (they eat their way there) then there was probably nothing you could have done. Here is more info on flystrike, so you will be prepared if you ever have to deal with it again. This is about chickens, but the treatment would be the same.
https://www.theartofdoingstuff.com/flystrike-a-chicken-killer-cuddles-beats-the-odds-again/
https://the-chicken-chick.com/flystrike-in-backyard-chickens-causes/

 

[boxermizer]

Interesting. Thank you for your reply. That is helpful. I didn't realize there were different types of maggots, at least in terms of their preferred tissue. I wonder if they had already made their way inside since she expelled some liquid when I first picked her up. I knew then that the prognosis probably wasn't good, but then after she put up with so much of my effort I was hopeful she would pull through.

 

[boxermizer]

You were doing the right thing. What she had was flystrike, which can be fatal. The maggots do eat the bird alive. There are very specific species of flies that will only eat necrotic flesh, those are used for wound care. Most of the flies that we deal with are not those, they eat any flesh, including healthy flesh. It's hard to say if the wounds themselves were serious enough to cause death, but if maggots enter the abdominal cavity or reach organs (they eat their way there) then there was probably nothing you could have done. Here is more info on flystrike, so you will be prepared if you ever have to deal with it again. This is about chickens, but the treatment would be the same.
https://www.theartofdoingstuff.com/flystrike-a-chicken-killer-cuddles-beats-the-odds-again/
https://the-chicken-chick.com/flystrike-in-backyard-chickens-causes/

Thank you again for this! The night this one disappeared I found a lame one. Her leg is broken. I didn't realize at first that she had other injuries and by the time I noticed, she had 4 wounds with maggots crammed in. I used the tweezers, to my dismay, to pull each one out. I think I got them all, but keep checking her over. She was eating, drinking and pooping before, but once I removed those she really went to town. Now if I could just figure out how to splint this leg properly.

 

[coach723]

Do keep checking for maggots, they can continue to hatch. Remove any that you find.
Glad she's perked up some.
I will attach a splinting manual, anatomy is the same. Make sure all splints are padded and nothing is too tight. Keep checking for swelling and change as needed. If things get too tight you can cut circulation off.

 

[boxermizer]

Do keep checking for maggots, they can continue to hatch. Remove any that you find.
Glad she's perked up some.
I will attach a splinting manual, anatomy is the same. Make sure all splints are padded and nothing is too tight. Keep checking for swelling and change as needed. If things get too tight you can cut circulation off.

Yes, I will keep checking for maggots. I actually found an undiscovered wound by rechecking the next day. But I'd read that about the eggs. I appreciate the splinting manual!

 

[RoosterHuggerLiz]

How are they?

 

[KimTatum03]

I’m be been very gently treating my duck that was attacked by dogs. Today during further inspection, I lifted her wing and could see her heart beating. What do I do. Vets won’t see her