Rooster's outer spur fell off and exposed quick won't stop bleeding

[buffy-the-eggpile-layer]

My poor bantam roo has had a bad couple of days. He's been acting run down--I think because of a molt--and then yesterday afternoon I noticed that he had fully lost one of his spurs--only the inner stump (quick?) is left, and won't stop seeping blood. Yesterday, it looked as if it wasn't actively bleeding, but upon checking on him every few hours I notice continued fresh blood. I started using corn starch to help, but eventually the blood seeps through that, too. Last night he left blood stains on his roost bar.

This morning, I added more cornstarch and once again it has seeped through. It's not bleeding a lot or quickly, more a continuous seep--and I can't tell where it's coming from. Do quicks bleed from all over, or just at the seam, where it meets the foot? I'm getting styptic powder delivered today, but I'm unsure about where to apply it and how to best stop the bleeding with it. Any insights are much appreciated! I'm growing concerned because, even though the bleeding isn't dramatic, it seems to be never-ending--and I don't want him to bleed to death very slowly over time (that would be horrible!).

The picture is tough to make out--he has a feather stuck to the quick, but I'm worried removing it will cause what little has clotted to be dislodged.

 

[azygous]

Do you have Veterycin wound spray? If not, get some. It's very easy to squirt on the spur nub several times a day.

Don't worry about a little blood the first few days. He won't bleed to death. Eventually, the spur will harden.

I have a rooster that bleeds for several days after spur removal. Yes, blood gets everywhere, but it eventually stops and the spur starts building new cutaneous tissue.

It helps if you keep him in a calm enviornment so he isn't too active. (No hens) Avoiding banging his feet against things for the fist week will also help.

 

[Eggcessive]

I would be inclined to leave him alone, and not put anything else on it, since that may cause more activity and fighting. Most times the blood will eventually clot.

 

[buffy-the-eggpile-layer]

Do you have Veterycin wound spray? If not, get some. It's very easy to squirt on the spur nub several times a day.

Don't worry about a little blood the first few days. He won't bleed to death. Eventually, the spur will harden.

I have a rooster that bleeds for several days after spur removal. Yes, blood gets everywhere, but it eventually stops and the spur starts building new cutaneous tissue.

It helps if you keep him in a calm enviornment so he isn't too active. (No hens) Avoiding banging his feet against things for the fist week will also help.

I do have vetericyn--I'll spray some on him throughout the day. It's good to know he likely won't bleed to death. That was my biggest fear. While the bleeding is slow, I figured there'd still be a point where he'd have lost too much. And 24 hours seems like a long time

Thanks for sharing your experiences--it is very heartening to hear this is normal/expected. I have him in his own separation pen, still out in the run with the others. He's just chilling. He'd been low energy recently and I'm sure the spur wound isn't helping--I think it's causing him some discomfort.

 

[buffy-the-eggpile-layer]

I would be inclined to leave him alone, and not put anything else on it, since that may cause more activity and fighting. Most times the blood will eventually clot.

Good to know. I'll keep the styptic powder on hand, but I'll wait and see how he does. I have him in his own enclosure in the chicken run--so he's still with the others, but can't get into drama. He's just taking it easy.

So, would you not recommend bandaging him? Others have told me bandage ASAP to prevent infection and stop bleeding, but it seems tricky to do that and keep the bandage on. Plus I worry that messing with it to that degree may exacerbate any bleeding.

 

[azygous]

Yes, there is some discomfort involved. But he'll survive.

Bleeding spur nubs is not the norm, although it's not a major health emergency. Normally, there's only a little pale pink serum oozing which is preparing the nub for new cutaneous tissue growth.

No, you don't want to bandage the spur. Air on the spur nub is necessary if it's going to harden. Bandaging prolongs the raw condition, preventing hardening.

 

[buffy-the-eggpile-layer]

Just to close the loop (in case anyone comes here for advice): my rooster's spur stopped bleeding as of this morning. It looks dry and much better. So, I think you can expect a spur's exposed quick to continue seeping blood for 24-72 hours--though it should only be minor.

When I stopped applying corn starch, it seemed to get on its way to hardening much faster--which is evidence that the bloody quick needs to be exposed to air in order to heal/harden (so resist the urge to mess with it beyond topical care--i.e. vetericyn spray). Again, this is only if continued bleeding is minor. If it's gushing blood more steps may need to be taken to get it under control.

Thanks @azygous and @Eggcessive for your help, and from stepping me away from the panic button.