Raccoon Attack

[claramarilyn72]

A raccoon came and attacked our four chickens. Unfortunately, only one has survived. She is alright, but has some flesh wounds which I don't know how to treat. Many of her feathers on one side has been pulled off, and some of her flesh has been scratched and is left bloody. Is there something we should put on her wounds? What do yall suggest?

 

[ReindeerStationFarm]

The sugar shrinks swelling so it works very well on abscesses. When I was a nurse, we packed it in bed sores. :^) If your chicken doesn't develop an abscess, you won't need to use the sugar. But the NFZ puffer should work if it's an open wound.

If the poor little guy's bottom looks sore, I think I would? I've never used it on chickens, but LipsChicks above has. The NFZ won't "stick" like the neosporin will.

 

[claramarilyn72]

UPDATE: Thank you all for the wonderful advice. I took Stacy bird to the vet yesterday, and they said she would make it through. I was really worries because her skin had been torn off so that
you could see the muscles. The vet gave me antibiotics for the next ten days, and also told me to apply honey on her wounds once a day, which is apparently a great antibacterial for chickens. I have to keep her inside for the next week or two until the wound heals, so that no dirt or any other pest gets into her muscles. She is staying in a dog cage and not enjoying the forced medicine twice a day BUT she will just have to deal with it. I'm letting her roam the house a little bit so that she doesn't feel cooped up. Thanks again!

 

[hennible]

First I would rinse it with saline solution. No sailing solution just wash with some water little bit of soap. Hydrogen peroxide would work as a disinfectant, or iodine is also effective. Just basic first aid care like you do if you'd been scratched... Try to keep her quiet and comfy and watch for signs of infection. I'm so sorry you lost your birds

 

[hennible]

Oh the feathers, were she's been plucked will probably grow back if not soon by the next time she moults...

 

[dekel18042]

You can also use antibiotic cream or spray after you have washed it, but make sure anything you use does NOT have a pain killer in it.
Good luck.

 

[LipsChicks]

I've used neosporin at times. I also found an antiseptic spray for chickens at TSC. I'm really sorry about your chickens!

 

[ReindeerStationFarm]

I'm so sorry about your chickens. The same thing happened to us a year ago. I had several with puncture wounds. The one thing you want to be careful of is to watch the wounds to be sure they fully heal from the INSIDE OUT. One of mine closed over and abscessed and I didn't know it until I smelled her. By the time I figured out what had happened it was big enough to put my thumb in and filled with yucky stuff. I rinsed it out and what worked the best for me was NFZ Puffer. http://www.tractorsupply.com/en/store/nfz-puffer-infection-treatment-159-oz But what shrunk the size of the hole was sugar (ordinary white table sugar). I packed it with sugar and it was half the size by night. I kept it packed with sugar and then switched to NFZ. If it started to smell again, I'd go back to the sugar. This actually completely healed the wound. Unfortunately, she was nabbed about a week after she was healed by some other hungry animal. :^( Good luck with your hen. I'd feed her treats and keep her quiet for a few days, too. Mine seemed very traumatized by the ordeal and needed a little coddling.

 

[alica31]

Reindeer- I've never heard of using sugar on chicken wounds....but I will definitely try it! I have a bantam frizzle too which was attacked recently and ALL his tail feathers pulled out. Should I use neosporin on his bare chick bottom?

He has been very traumatized!! and it looks very painful.....

 

[hennible]

Awesome info reindeer! Thanks for sharing.