Silkie Chick with Open Head Wound-not healing after 4 weeks (WARNING: Graphic photos)

[rnchick74]

Raw honey is used in preemie babies now for horrible wounds - it's amazing stuff that heals quite quickly. You gently wash off the old stuff with sterile water every 12 hours. The honey cannot be pasteurized, so find a local beekeeper who can get you the raw stuff!

 

[Shesinthebarn]

There is a product called "Derma Gel" that is just a wonder product. It comes in a spray or a gel form. In canada you must get it from a vet but unsure about other countries. It is a mostly natural based product. I have used it on cats, horses, myself! Works like a charm on places that are slow to heal, much like your poor girl. My horse had a nasty cut on the underside of his jaw. Would not heal. Used derma gel and within 36 hours it was closed with no granulated tissue. Please give it a try!!

 

[Wol1]

There is a product called "Derma Gel" that is just a wonder product. It comes in a spray or a gel form. In canada you must get it from a vet but unsure about other countries. It is a mostly natural based product. I have used it on cats, horses, myself! Works like a charm on places that are slow to heal, much like your poor girl. My horse had a nasty cut on the underside of his jaw. Would not heal. Used derma gel and within 36 hours it was closed with no granulated tissue. Please give it a try!!

YES!

That's the hydro bandages/material. I can only find it online in the USA. See a pharmacist at a local drugstore or call around to vets and see if you can buy a few pads. That would be MUCH faster and probably cheaper than ordering online. If a vet doesn't have any on hand, a pharmacist can usually get them within a day or so. They place orders and get deliveries almost every day. They are sold individually and come in a 4"x4" size that you could cut up. Put it on her head, cover with a few small sterile pads and try to tie it onto her head with a bit of cloth tied under her chin If that doesn't work for her, use tape/duct tape, etc.

By the way, don't be worried if some material comes off her head when you change the dressing at first. That is the dead material that her body is destroying and it is part of the early healing process. The gauze/pads are to mop up any excess fluids that come out of the hydro bandage while the wound is healing..

 

[JessG35]

Thank you! I've been looking for information of this sort! I consulted a vet who explained that because many silkies have been bred to lack the top part of their skull (to achieve bigger crests,) it's very difficult to control brain swelling. What was showing was membrane, not actual brain, but the skin doesn't seem to want to form over it. Their recommendation was to cull the chick because it is unlikely to fully heal. However, the chick is active, happy and otherwise normal, so I opted to keep trying. She has a big box in our spare bedroom with some toys and is taking well to wearing a diaper around the house. She even has a bed, food and waterer set up in my office and accompanies me to work some days (she's known to wander about and some of my coworkers keep treats for when she visits on her "adventures.")

I'm going to keep trying some of the posters' recommendations, but a part of me has resigned to her just being a "special needs" indoors chicken. Which kind of drives my mate nuts, but he'll get over it!

Here are some recent pictures...

 

[Wol1]

Quote:

No skull! I should keep my mouth shut about things I don't know about for sure.

Could she wear a "bonnet" or a scarf over a bandage? She has taken to the diaper alright... maybe she and the other chickens would be ok if she wears a head cover of some kind.?? She could be with the others that way.

 

[JessG35]

Here's what Joan (that's her name now) looked like after her bath tonight. She's none too happy, but I again pulled lots of sprouting feathers away from the area where the skin should be growing. The swelling in her brain has gone down a bit and there was a lot less bleeding this time, so hopefully that's a good sign!

 

[Wol1]

Aack! Poor Joan. She does look unhappy. That's a good picture of how awful this wound is. The little "kerchief" is cute, but the wound seems too far forward for the kerchief/bonnet to work as I thought it would.

 

[JessG35]

Yes, the bonnet doesn't quite cover the open area, but I was hoping it might keep some feathers out of the healing area. Which was a lost cause, because she wasn't having it and quickly worked it off. A friend suggested liquid bandage, but I don't know how to begin getting the area dry enough for it to adhere, nt to mention keeping it out of her eyes or the feathers from sticking to it. Oh well, we'll give it a shot. She's such a sweet girl.

 

[rnchick74]

Yes, the bonnet doesn't quite cover the open area, but I was hoping it might keep some feathers out of the healing area. Which was a lost cause, because she wasn't having it and quickly worked it off. A friend suggested liquid bandage, but I don't know how to begin getting the area dry enough for it to adhere, nt to mention keeping it out of her eyes or the feathers from sticking to it. Oh well, we'll give it a shot. She's such a sweet girl.

You can't use liquid bandage on an open, deep wound like that. Vet wrap might work some since it clings to itself.

 

[Kathryn173]

I had a pheasant with a similar injury, she had her head pecked through the skull and you could see what must have been parts of her brain. All she got was pain killers and an alamycin spray on her head. I washed it a couple of times but it stayed perfectly clean anyway. It took quite a few months to heal but you could slowly see the skull and skin heal over. She has no feathers on the top of her head anymore but it doesn't affect her at all.