Pullet attacked by wild bird - head puncture wound - UPDATED 5/28 questions on healing process and vision/hearing prognosis

[Derek Sawyer]

My five week old sapphire gem was injured by a wild bird, she still alive and moving around and chirping when we move her. I have never had traumatic injury on a chicken before and I’m quickly searching basic first aid. I’m willing to try to help her but can anyone tell me if this injury seems too severe to come back from??? I’ve been a chicken keeper for 2 years and have never lost a chicken, I don’t know when is the right time to let her go or how to do it. Any advice on first aid also appreciated

 

[Banana01]

My five week old sapphire gem was injured by a wild bird, she still alive and moving around and chirping when we move her. I have never had traumatic injury on a chicken before and I’m quickly searching basic first aid. I’m willing to try to help her but can anyone tell me if this injury seems too severe to come back from??? I’ve been a chicken keeper for 2 years and have never lost a chicken, I don’t know when is the right time to let her go or how to do it. Any advice on first aid also appreciated View attachment 3126490View attachment 3126491

No reason to think this injury requires her to be put down. Here is what I would do.

Prepare a warm, quiet box or private place that you will put her. Put some food and water in front of her barely out of reach, but where she can reach it without standing up, but not so she will spill it.

Rub gently the wound with a damp clean cotton towel and also the feathers around it. Dont use any chemicals or alcohol based products. Just water. Once you know the extent of the damage, how deep it is, are there tendons or muscles visible, is the skin torn, etc. Hopefully you can determine it is superficial and the bleeding has stopped.

Eye drop some water maybe 10 or 20mL with vitamins or electeolytes, and place her in her box to rest.

The initial shock may last the whole following day, but hopefully you will see her eat. I personally apply coconut oil to these types of wounds, but you may get other advice to follow. It looks superficial around the ears with no damage to the eyes. A lot of blood in the photo, but once you wipe it away there may be only minor cuts hopefully. Keep her head and the wound dry so she does not get cold.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Welcome To BYC

The poor dear.
I would get her stabilized. Electrolytes or a little sugar water given drop by drop. Do keep her relatively warm (70-75F).
For her wounds, can you tell if they are just around her head? Any air bubbles under the skin or punctures around her back, under her wings.
Birds of prey often drive their victim into the ground, so sometimes there's internal injuries. Not to be graphic, but I've witnessed that first hand.

For her head and facial wounds I would gently rinse with Saline, this can be used in the eyes to rinse away the blood as well. You can use purchased saline or make your own. The recipe is 2tsp salt to 1 quart water, boiled to make sterile, then let cool to room temp.

Vetericyn spray can also be used on the wound around her head, eyes and face if you have that.

Apply a thin layer of triple antibiotic ointment to the wounds.

Keep us posted on how she's doing.

 

[Derek Sawyer]

Thank you so much @Wyorp Rock and @Banana01 for taking the time to see my post and respond. We treated for shock and she eventually slept, slept for 12 hours straight overnight and now she seems to be walking around a bit and perhaps coming out of shock. Both eyes are now swollen shut so she can’t see, and perhaps deaf too from the ear injuries, poor lady, so given that I think she’s acting much better.

Based on your advice and other threads, my steps so far:
- have been giving 10 ml electrolytes by dropper every 5 hours or so. If anyone knows if this is too much or too little let me know
- keeping her in a warm room, sometimes under heat lamp
- clean wound with warm water and soap on cotton towel to get dirt off
- irrigate irrigate irrigate with warm soapy water with syringe
- veteracin spray
- neosporin

See below pics. her right eye was open yesterday but now swollen shut, I saw some fluid oozing coming from it overnight. Left eye still shut. Only wounds I can see are a puncture wound on each side of the face, I think where her ears might be. The right side is quite large (maybe almost a centimeter diameter) and can see some guts/internal stuff, the left is smaller and covered in the photo by a small feather patch. She has been pooping, I imagine her system is now emptied since the attack was 16 hours ago now.

My questions remaining:
- prognosis for her eyes and vision??
- when and how to introduce food, I don’t see her interested in eating or drinking on her own anytime soon
- I have a two week vacation in only 5 weeks from now, I was planning to have her and the other chicks integrated with the big flock by then. My chicken sitter is rather unwilling/unable to administer any first aid and much special treatment. Is there any chance of having her in the coop with the big ladies in 5 weeks, or should I started building her her own coop/run?
- will she likely be deaf?


Thank you SO much to anyone with the time and willingness to respond.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

have been giving 10 ml electrolytes by dropper every 5 hours or so. If anyone knows if this is too much or too little let me know
- keeping her in a warm room, sometimes under heat lamp
- clean wound with warm water and soap on cotton towel to get dirt off
- irrigate irrigate irrigate with warm soapy water with syringe
- veteracin spray
- neosporin

irrigate irrigate irrigate with warm soapy water with syringe
- veteracin spray
- neosporin

I think where her ears might be. The right side is quite large (maybe almost a centimeter diameter) and can see some guts/internal stuff, the left is smaller and covered in the photo by a small feather patch.

My questions remaining:
- prognosis for her eyes and vision??
- when and how to introduce food, I don’t see her interested in eating or drinking on her own anytime soon
- I have a two week vacation in only 5 weeks from now, I was planning to have her and the other chicks integrated with the big flock by then. My chicken sitter is rather unwilling/unable to administer any first aid and much special treatment. Is there any chance of having her in the coop with the big ladies in 5 weeks, or should I started building her her own coop/run?
- will she likely be deaf?

Cut out irrigation with the soapy water. Use Saline or the Vetericyn for the face. Once the wounds on her head have been clean, then spray with the Vetericyn or apply Original Neosporin.
Swelling of the eyes in the first few days is not uncommon, but I would gently rinse them with Saline and put a dot of Original Neosporin in the eye or you can use Terramycin eye ointment.

Since she's not eating and doesn't seem to be able to right now, you may need to tube feed her. Instructions in the link below.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/crop-feeding.75454/

No one can say how long recovery time will be. In 5 weeks, she should have made some improvements, but with her being separated out from the flock for intensive care, even if mostly recovered, I would not just put her back and expect all to be well. She would very likely need to be re-introduced to the flock (chickens are not that nice to "newbies" or a lone bird), this takes some time and the bird needs to be fit and well enough to defend themself and evade attacks. Do expect some chicken drama.

 

[Banana01]

I would keep her wounds dry and personally I would not use any chemicals or ointments, i always treat with coconut oil. Only after scabbing starts would I put anything at all, it needs to be clean and dry. If it is seeping that is sign of infection, and i personally use coconut oil it is a natural antiseptic and antibiotic layer. But use your discretion.

Keep the eyes clean and dry. Not sure why they are swollen. You can check for signs of her inner eyelid being damaged, but if it isnt damged that is good.

If you are able to open her mouth to feed 10mL water, then you can pinch a ball of food and slip in near the back of her throat. She will get the message really quick and learn to eat just by putting it in her mouth. Its easier to put it near the back of the throat. Try balls of fish, liver, or even moist chicken feed anything that is soft enough to swallow.

I personally forget tube feeding, never had to use it. The birds have natural instinct to swallow when you put food in the back of her mouth. I have raised blind and paralyzed birds doing this with fish, liver, and pellet feed moistened.

The only potential problem with her recovery is if her ability to swallow has been lost due to pain or due to the injury. Try putting food in her mouth, a very small piece, and see if her swallowing is working, or if it seems painful and labored. But if she can still swallow, she will eat whatever you put in her mouth. Fish is best, but other stuff works.

Take it day by day, hopefully you get her back to at least sitting attentively in a week.

 

[Buckingham Palace]

aww poor girl. I hope she gets better soon sending good wishea your way.

 

[Derek Sawyer]

Thank you for all the responses. @Wyorp Rock I noticed this air bubble today and remember you asked about air bubbles - what could that mean?

Her head turned a blueish hue this afternoon, thinking it could be an oxygen issue.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Is she struggling to breath or is there a clicking noise when she breaths?
If you are sure that's air and not her crop, then it's probably a ruptured air sac. Often that can resolve on it's own, but if she's showing signs of distress or difficulty breathing, then releasing the air may help. If you have vet care, that is always best.
To release the air, insert an 18ga needle just under the skin, then push out the air or you can draw the air out with a syringe.

Does she have a drainage from her eye?

Most of the time a bird can heal well without antibiotics, but it may be necessary to give her oral medication. Amoxicillin (Fish Mox/Fish Antibiotic) is good to have on hand. Depending on where you live, you might luck out and find it in your local TSC. It can be ordered online as well.