treating hole in my chickens neck

[kecrow]

My blue andilusian apparently got into a spat with my bantam rooster. They had been fine and now this. Plenty of space and grass. I found her this am in the corner of the run with a hole the size of a dime with blood coming out and very fleshy. I did seperate her into a trough with antibiotic water and some food. I am thinking I want to clean it and then add a bandage. What is the best to clean it with? I considered peroxide, betadine, alcohol or ???? She's not going to be happy. Its deeper than the surface, but doesn't seem to go to the bone. I am looking for anyone with some experience with this. The vets office prices are RIDICULOUS. I am willing to do the care and buy whatever is necessary. Thanks in advance for your help. Kathy

 

[dawnchick]

Just common sense first aid has been my way. Peroxide would be good for the initial cleaning as it should boil out any debris. Use an antibiotic ointment. You shouldn't need antibiotics in the water. I wouldn't try to dress a wound that small. Check it at least daily and put some more antibiotic ointment on it as indicated. If you feel you must clean it again, use warm soapy water or one of those drug store wound cleansers. You are right to isolate the bird until there is nothing red there for others to peck at. You may find you only need to keep her separate for a few days.

It is quite possible the bird would heal fine without treatment, unless others start pecking the wound.

Two precautions: never put a "caine" product on a chicken as it can kill them (some ointments have benzocaine, lidocaine, novacaine, etc.; avoid these.) Peroxide and Betadine are good first time wound cleansers, but they do kill some tissue, so they are not good for repeated cleanings, unless you have to deal with a really large and dirty wound one day.

 

[janetk]

you can put on some antibiotic ointment. you will want to spray it with blue kote. check it daily-watching for maggots & any sign of infection. it will scab over eventually. i've read somewhere that peroxide will burn a chicken so i wouldn't use it. i had a chicken that was attacked by other chickens & left with open wounds. i didn't clean the wound, i just applied triple antibiotic ointment and blue kote and separated her until her wounds closed up. the other chickens will pick at her so the blue kote will help that.

 

[TeamChaos]

I use vetricyn on anything that needs to be cleaned and covered to heal- it forms a nice gel. I've used it on several fight-induced wattle and comb tears on my roosters.

 

[MotherJean]

These myths about hydrogen peroxide seem to unreasonably persist - perhaps it's the Betadine lobby trying to discredit that 99 cent bottle of peroxide so you'll buy their more expensive product.

FACT - hydrogen peroxide is approved by the FDA for use as a mouthwash. Many toothpastes now contain peroxide as an antibacterial and tooth whitener. If the the FDA thinks it's ok for me to put it in my mouth on a daily basis, by what stretch of the imagination can we conclude that it is harmful to use an initial wound wash on a chicken's neck? Can peroxide burn the skin? Yes - but not in the weak solution (5%) that comes in the brown bottle and is used as a first aid antibacterial wound wash. Your hairdresser uses 20% peroxide to dye your hair. She uses 40% peroxide to bleach it. Can it burn and sting at those high concentrations? You betcha. Nevertheless, it is still approved for use on unbroken human skin at those high levels. Believe me. I know. I'm a retired hairdresser.

FACT - chemically, hydrogen peroxide is water with an extra oxygen molecule (water=H2O, peroxide=H2O2). When you use it on a wound, the extra oxygen molecule is released (killing bacteria) and the solution becomes pure water. The other closest option is to use saline (saltwater). Can sodium chloride (salt) burn skin? Ever heard the expression "salt in the wound?"

Bottom line is, everything right down to mother's milk has downside it seems. A little common sense and moderation in all things goes a long way.

Now, you all can honestly say, "I read somewhere that hydrogen peroxide is okay." It is. BTW, there are a lot of folks who are allergic to Betadine. I'm one of them. Maybe I have a chicken who is allergic too?