Severe neck wound

[rusty acres]

Thanks, I needed some reassuring stories! I was feeling pretty awful about my poor girl. But I'll keep on treating her and hopefully she'll heal.

 

[XanderWiFi]

Time for the hospital coop! My neighbor just let me have a little rabbit hutch of theirs. Makes for a great hospital bed with restricted space but enough for all the necessities.

Glad to hear she is doing well. And there are definitely some miracle stories of horrific wounds being survived with the aid of vigilant owners and their care.

Everything you are doing so far is very good. Someone touched upon it, and I would agree, a good solid irrigation will aid with faster healing and infection prevention. A good warm water and hydrogen peroxide mix is what I would recommend, with a warm water rinse after to ensure the peroxide is removed (it is bad for angiogenesis and tissue regrowth but great for debridement).

A little trim would definitely help with assessing the wound more in depth.

I see people touch more and more upon the psychosocial aspects of chickens. She may need her confidence instilled with time to heal and a slow reintegration to help ensure the wounds do not occur again.

Doing great! Keep it up!

 

[rusty acres]

Ok, some feather trimming and thorough irrigation are in order tomorrow. And I ordered a chicken apron and dressing supplies from Amazon which should arrive tomorrow. Any advice on trimming feathers? I remember from having parrots as a kid that feathers can bleed if trimmed wrong?

 

[XanderWiFi]

I'm definitely not an expert as I have only done it once, but I grabbed some bandage shears and just started snipping as near to the skin but not so close it ran the risk of an ingrown feather (is that even a thing?). I figure we can have ingrown hairs, why couldn't they have something similar lol.

 

[SilkiesForEver]

I'm definitely not an expert as I have only done it once, but I grabbed some bandage shears and just started snipping as near to the skin but not so close it ran the risk of an ingrown feather (is that even a thing?). I figure we can have ingrown hairs, why couldn't they have something similar lol.

Not sure about ingrown feathers (ouch!) but most of the time only the tail feathers and feathers on feet are prone to bleeding.

 

[rusty acres]

Update:

My girl is still hanging in there. Her neck wound is actually doing "ok" - it still looks horrific but not any worse. After doing some trimming, her back wound is worse than I thought. I've been cleaning it with Vetericyn twice a day and applying antibiotic ointment, but it's starting to look kinda funky. I should've used some hibiclens, but figured the Vetericyn would be ok. Apparently not. So tomorrow I'll be getting the hibiclens and doing some more intensive cleaning. Maybe betadine would be better if I put it on and let it dry?

I got an apron to help protect her back. I thought for sure she'd find a way to get it off, but seems to have adjusted to it. You can see where she's plucked herself bald on her lower neck.

 

[XanderWiFi]

Is there more wound under that apron that we cannot see? The bald spot that is exposed looks just like that: a bald spot-which is better than open wounds.

Did you irrigate the wound properly?

Based on what I have read vetericyn is a pretty good all around product to use.

 

[rusty acres]

Is there more wound under that apron that we cannot see? The bald spot that is exposed looks just like that: a bald spot-which is better than open wounds.

Did you irrigate the wound properly?

Based on what I have read vetericyn is a pretty good all around product to use.

Yes, that bald spot is just where she's plucked herself. The neck wound is above that. There is another wound that goes from her back near her tail all the way under her right wing. I didn't realize it was that extensive at first, so wasn't treating the whole thing. I've been using the Vetericyn spray to forcefully clean the wounds.

 

[Eggcessive]

Keep us updated on how she gets along. She seems to be getting along well. If either wound looks or smells funky, or has pus, it might need some Chlorhexidene or betadine for a day or two. Peroxide should be avaoided or used only once. Then back to the Vetericyn and antibiotic ointment.

 

[rusty acres]

The neck wound is still looking ok, but the back wound is definitely getting funky. I hand-scrubbed with hibiclens this morning and followed with a saline irrigation, dried her as best I could, and put a good coating of antibiotic ointment. I put on some telfa, then a paper towel to help absorb moisture, then a gauze wrap around her body under the hen apron. Of course when I got home this afternoon and checked her, the gauze wrap and paper towel was off. The back wound still was looking yucky, so I put on some betadine instead and fed her some treats while it dried. Then put on the antibiotic ointment and telfa under the apron. I'll repeat the betadine in the morning and see how it looks by tomorrow afternoon. She's still eating, drinking, enjoying treats, so if I can just get a handle on the back wound, I think (hope) she'll be ok.