Wounded Chick

[MamacatPatch]

We put our 8 week old chicks into the outdoor chicken coop/run, where three grown hens reside. Two days ago I found one of them with an injured leg and later she had been attacked and had a bad neck wound. I put her in a cat carrier so she wouldn't be further injured. I thought she was so bad off that she would die but she's still alive. I put some food and water in the carrier but haven't seen her try to eat or drink.

How much effort should I put into trying to save her? Should I let nature take it's course or what? I'm not sure I could clean out her wounds as they are massive and messy. Can you give a chicken a warm bath to clean her up? The wound appears to be healing and if she's fighting to live, I think I should help her if possible. What CAN I do? What would YOU do?

 

[thebritt]

I would bring the carrier into the house first thing. You can wash her in warm water to remove any crusted/dried blood, dry her well, then flush wounds with a very dilute (light amber color) Betadine solution. Then I would apply a thin layer of Neosporin to the wounds and keep an eye out for infection. If you clean the wounds 2 times/day for a few days, there should be no infection. You'll see puss, swelling, and the wounds will stink if not clean enough and infection sets in. Then you would need a systemic antibiotic such as Amoxicillin, which you need a vet' Rx for. Hopefully you won't need to go there! I would be sure she's kept warm - I use a heating pad on LOW under 1/2 the carrier. Good luck.