Torn Earlobe

[TheFugitivePen]

Hello, friends!

I discovered my head pullet, Tickety Boo, has a torn earlobe. It is almost completely torn off except for a tiny piece of flesh at the bottom. She does not currently seem to be in pain (though I know it HAS to hurt) or bloody. She's eating and running around like usual, but I know I need to get the wound cleaned up and cared for before infection sets in.

My husband is going to the Tractor Supply store to get Vetericyn chicken spray. I have sterile saline to try to wash the wound and veterinary wrap bandages. I'm prepared to keep her separated from the flock if need be. She's currently in the run with her sisters until my husband is back and can hold her while I'll clean and wrap the wound.

Does anyone have any other advice? Should we try to cut the lose flesh?

I searched the forum and couldn't find much on earlobe wounds, but that may be my newness here.

I don't know if the tear is from a fight with another pullet or if she got caught on something. My husband is checking our wire fence for any sharp spots he may have missed in the initial setup. Our girls are all the same age and raised in the same brooder, so I've never noticed any major in-fighting. I've witnessed the occasional sizing up (rushing to another pullet, standing tall chest-to-chest, but that's it). Since they've been in the run and coop, she has seemed very secure at the top of the pecking order, always first to eat and investigate.

Any tips would be much appreciated. I'll try to get pictures, if I can.

Thank you!

 

[TheFugitivePen]

Oh, I found a post on this same kind of wound! Golly, this forum is amazing! I'll keep you all updated on how we treat her and how it progresses.
Thank you!

 

[MysteryChicken]

Can you post pictures of the injury?

 

[TheFugitivePen]

 

[TheFugitivePen]

Can you post pictures of the injury?

Just posted. Thank you!

 

[MysteryChicken]

Just posted. Thank you!

I'd clip off the flap.
Make sure to have some flour on hand, since the tissue is very vascular.

After it's not bleeding, & no longer covered in flour, clean once with peroxide, & apply non pain Relieving Triple Antibiotic ointment.

 

[TheFugitivePen]

I'd clip off the flap.
Make sure to have some flour on hand, since the tissue is very vascular.

After it's not bleeding, & no longer covered in flour, clean once with peroxide, & apply non pain Relieving Triple Antibiotic ointment.

Thank you!

Any recommendations on how long or if she should stay separate from the flock?

We rinsed her wound with saline and sprayed with Vetericyn. She's currently in a cage in our basement/garage and away from the flock.
Originally, we tried to bandage the wound, but she scratched it right off, and the second-ranking pulled started pecking her head and bandage, whether out of challenge or curiosity I dont know.

Depending on how the wound looks tomorrow, we may try to trim it if we can find something sharp enough. Any recommendations? We have puppy nail clippers, I think, which someone mentioned using in the post I tagged above.
And thank you for the flour tip!

 

[MysteryChicken]

Thank you!

Any recommendations on how long or if she should stay separate from the flock?

We rinsed her wound with saline and sprayed with Vetericyn. She's currently in a cage in our basement/garage and away from the flock.
Originally, we tried to bandage the wound, but she scratched it right off, and the second-ranking pulled started pecking her head and bandage, whether out of challenge or curiosity I dont know.

Depending on how the wound looks tomorrow, we may try to trim it if we can find something sharp enough. Any recommendations? We have puppy nail clippers, I think, which someone mentioned using in the post I tagged above.
And thank you for the flour tip!

Sharp scissors, or surgical scissors.

Just about a half a day of separation should be sufficient. If you're worried about possible picking, dye the area blue with food dye.

Bandaging isn't necessary, it needs to air heal.

You're welcome.

 

[TheFugitivePen]

In case anyone else pops into this thread because their sweet chook also has a torn earlobe, I wanted to give an update.

We separated Tickety from the flock and set her up a cage in our basement/garage with a roost, food, and water.

Each day, I'd spray her wound with Vetericyn chicken spray, and then I'd let her free range with supervision. This way, she could still interact with the flock through the wire fence but was not at risk of being pecked. At night, she roosted in her cage.

She honestly seemed to enjoy her new routine.

I tried to re-introduce her to the flock after a few days, but they pecked her wound until it bled again, so I immediately removed her.

After about a week, I was determined to cut the dangling bit of flesh, but, when I rechecked the wound, it was noticeably smaller and obviously drying up. Now, it's almost all gone on its own, and the hole is completely closed.

She went back to the flock two days ago. There was, of course, a bit of pecking as the pecking order was reestablished, but none of the pullets pecked her earlobe. She's happily a part of the flock again and all better

Thank you again, @MysteryChicken for your tips and advice! I really appreciated it, and I had flour and blue dye already to go if I needed it <3

 

[MysteryChicken]

In case anyone else pops into this thread because their sweet chook also has a torn earlobe, I wanted to give an update.

We separated Tickety from the flock and set her up a cage in our basement/garage with a roost, food, and water.

Each day, I'd spray her wound with Vetericyn chicken spray, and then I'd let her free range with supervision. This way, she could still interact with the flock through the wire fence but was not at risk of being pecked. At night, she roosted in her cage.

She honestly seemed to enjoy her new routine.

I tried to re-introduce her to the flock after a few days, but they pecked her wound until it bled again, so I immediately removed her.

After about a week, I was determined to cut the dangling bit of flesh, but, when I rechecked the wound, it was noticeably smaller and obviously drying up. Now, it's almost all gone on its own, and the hole is completely closed.

She went back to the flock two days ago. There was, of course, a bit of pecking as the pecking order was reestablished, but none of the pullets pecked her earlobe. She's happily a part of the flock again and all better

Thank you again, @MysteryChicken for your tips and advice! I really appreciated it, and I had flour and blue dye already to go if I needed it <3

You're welcome.