I have ten mother hens right now and multiple chicks of all different breeds and ages. They all seemed to be doing well, however, until today, when one of the hens (or possibly a predator, but I've seen these injuries caused by hens before) ripped the skin (and muscle) off the backs of two chicks belonging to my bantam hen, Dodie. She now only has one left. The two siblings aren't bleeding much, but I've never had success healing a chick after an attack, even small injuries lead to their deaths. These guys are a little older then before, 3 weeks estimated, but they don't seem to be doing too well. they chirp and move and can hold their heads up, but their tails are practically falling off, you can see down to the bone on some, one has a very deep wound on the neck that is turning black and the other was unable to stand and looked dead when I found him and now seems to be suffering internal injuries or a cracked beak.
I rinsed the injuries, then poured some hydrogen proxide on the wounds, then some iodine, then rinsed them again and wrapped them in paper towels. They are tucked under my shirt while I type this, chirping when I make any sudden movements. They sound so lively, but I'm afraid they'll go down hill. I tried to put some neosporin (triple antibiotics without painkiller) on their wounds, but the larger ones just seem too deep for that.
Is that enough or should I try some blue kote (we don't have any right now but I could get some tomorrow). We don't have the money to buy any special medication, but is there any kind of antibiotics I should give them? Electrolyte water? Is it better to keep the wound moist or dry (the large wounds I mean)? I heard some people sew wounds, but this is a tear, as in skin is torn off, so there isn't really anything to sew but muscle.
Is their any hope for these little guys? Is there anything more that I should do? I have a brooder with a cuddly box inside for them to hide inside, but will the dry air make their wounds even worse? After all, leaving the muscle to the air seems like it would just make it die and that would kill the chicks.
I would greatly appreciate any help.
By the way, I can't tell which chicks are which well, but the three babies names are Irons, Ivory and Koriand'ar. I locked the last chick up in the room with its mother to prevent further injuries (I locked up most of the mother's and their chicks as a matter-of-fact). I'm hoping to prevent this from happening again.
I rinsed the injuries, then poured some hydrogen proxide on the wounds, then some iodine, then rinsed them again and wrapped them in paper towels. They are tucked under my shirt while I type this, chirping when I make any sudden movements. They sound so lively, but I'm afraid they'll go down hill. I tried to put some neosporin (triple antibiotics without painkiller) on their wounds, but the larger ones just seem too deep for that.
Is that enough or should I try some blue kote (we don't have any right now but I could get some tomorrow). We don't have the money to buy any special medication, but is there any kind of antibiotics I should give them? Electrolyte water? Is it better to keep the wound moist or dry (the large wounds I mean)? I heard some people sew wounds, but this is a tear, as in skin is torn off, so there isn't really anything to sew but muscle.
Is their any hope for these little guys? Is there anything more that I should do? I have a brooder with a cuddly box inside for them to hide inside, but will the dry air make their wounds even worse? After all, leaving the muscle to the air seems like it would just make it die and that would kill the chicks.
I would greatly appreciate any help.
By the way, I can't tell which chicks are which well, but the three babies names are Irons, Ivory and Koriand'ar. I locked the last chick up in the room with its mother to prevent further injuries (I locked up most of the mother's and their chicks as a matter-of-fact). I'm hoping to prevent this from happening again.
