Something tore up chickens neck, Chicken still alive! Need advice

[0rca]

Hello, this morning one of my family members woke up to see one of the chickens in critical condition. From what I've seen the entire skin on the neck is gone, however the muscle underneath was not punctured as I cannot see any visible bones. She is also able to keep her head up.

When she was first found she was in the run in a corner. And by the time I retrieved her she had walked into the hen house then walked out back into the run to greet me.
- Despite injury she still walked around the coop
- She can still make noises as when I walked into the coop she made regular clucking noises. She sounded fine/her voice didn't seem strained or damaged.
- Her tail is drooping
- She cannot/will not move her neck downwards or upwards, but can move it side to side. I have been giving her water by bringing it up to her beak.
- One side of her neck seems worse, as it has missing feathers and the injury is more visible. The other side appears less damaged but upon lifting up her feathers to check. Skin is also missing from that side, meaning that she is missing skin all around her neck.

Pictures: Graphic

Side where injury is most visible.

These are the only pictures I took, if you need more pictures I can take more

She is currently in a cat crate indoors. Do you think she will live? If so what should I do to treat it?

 

[Aapomp831]

She will live as long as you prevent infection. Keep her separated, I would use peroxide ONE time to kill the germs, clean the wound as gently as you can, then regularly apply Neosporin that does not contain painkiller. Offer some electrolytes in the water and a little wet mash and scrambled egg to encourage eating - she’ll need extra protein to aid in the healing process.

 

[Kirkwooder]

It is likely that a mink is the offender. If so, it will be back. They love to take just the heads off chickens and will kill all they can catch. They can slip in through very small openings and can climb. Take all appropriate precautions.

 

[0rca]

Thank you both. I have some peroxide so I'll get to work in applying some. Hoping she heals fast

I used to keep the hen house open... Thought my closed run was good enough but I've learned my mistake. Will be keeping them in their hen house at night from now on

 

[kerbotx]

Aw, poor girl! Chickens are quite resilient, I'm always amazed at what they can recover from, and how well! Please be sure to check under her wings for additional injuries, both on her body under her wings, and the underside of the wings themselves. Trim away any feathers that poke into the wound or make cleaning the wound difficult. Like others have said, clean the wound as best you can, then apply a triple antibiotic ointment at least twice a day to keep the wound moist. Somewhere on here there are photos of wounds as they heal, to give you an idea of what to expect; just keep an eye out for yellow pus, and bad smells.