Young quail has been scalped and eye is badly damaged. Wound smells bad.

[Sara L]

I would give him some time to heal and let the medicine work and let the swelling subside. I have had birds with a bad scalp wound and/or eye wound that healed ok with minimal intervention. Sometimes the eye area is so swollen that the eye looks like it's gone, but a few days later once the swelling goes down the eye is there and the bird is able to see.

Usually this kind of wound only happens when there are too many roosters and not enough hiding spaces for the hens or lower ranking roosters to get away from the dominant one. If you have 4 birds, and know 3 are male including this one, I would bet all 4 are male. In my experience a rooster won't try to mount another rooster unless there are no hens available. I suggest adding more hiding spots to your enclosure with the other birds.

 

[MelissaRose]

I would give him some time to heal and let the medicine work and let the swelling subside. I have had birds with a bad scalp wound and/or eye wound that healed ok with minimal intervention. Sometimes the eye area is so swollen that the eye looks like it's gone, but a few days later once the swelling goes down the eye is there and the bird is able to see.

Usually this kind of wound only happens when there are too many roosters and not enough hiding spaces for the hens or lower ranking roosters to get away from the dominant one. If you have 4 birds, and know 3 are male including this one, I would bet all 4 are male. In my experience a rooster won't try to mount another rooster unless there are no hens available. I suggest adding more hiding spots to your enclosure with the other birds.

Ok. I will add hiding spots. They are going to move to a hutch which will have two rooms, so that might help a little. I have to deal with the fact that I have 3-probably 4 male quails. I thought I might be able to have a bachelor flock but now I don't know.

 

[Sara L]

Ok. I will add hiding spots. They are going to move to a hutch which will have two rooms, so that might help a little. I have to deal with the fact that I have 3-probably 4 male quails. I thought I might be able to have a bachelor flock but now I don't know.

You might still be able to have a bachelor flock, just know that this is what could happen if the birds don't get along. This could happen with a single rooster and a large flock of hens. Adding places to hide and stuff to keep the birds occupied should help prevent this from happening again.

Don't beat yourself up about this, just help this guy heal and learn from the experience.

 

[MelissaRose]

The quail is now scratching his food and eating small pieces. He also keeps drinking electrolytes.
He holds his head to the side so his good eye if faceing forwards. Does he do this so he can see or is his neck hurt?

 

[Lizzy733]

Sounds like the damage is more cosmetic than anything else - didn't really seem like he was in too much shock considering how he's been reacting. Do get some saline drops for the eye - just normal eye drops are fine. Some of the contact stuff is for overnight soaks and 'not' safe to put directly on an eye. It will say so on the bottle.
You really want to flush out the eye - or eye socket - to get it super clean. Drench and don't spray - that might be too much pressure and cause damage.
He could still have issues if he develops an infection - the eye would be my biggest concern. Make sure his temp enclosure isn't too dusty.
Sounds like he'll come out of this with some gnarly scars. If he loses the eye, you could name him Wednesday

 

[ChristineR]

It's almost never a good idea to use hydrogen peroxide. It damages healthy tissue and slows healing.

I came home to blood all over my quail pen and a quail with both eyes swollen shut, no feathers on his head, etc. I think the lady I got them from was mistaken about their sexes. Anyway, I used vetricyn spray and gel on him for a couple days and now about a week later he's back to normal (except for the missing feathers).

I love vetricyn. I've used it on many different animals and wounds with success. It disinfects without stinging or damaging healthy tissue.

 

[MelissaRose]

Vetricyn isn't the same thing as Vetrx is it?

 

[ChristineR]

Vetricyn isn't the same thing as Vetrx is it?

No.

 

[MelissaRose]

His head smells like dried blood and rotting flesh. Should I wash it with something? And should I clean his head and eye or let him be?

 

[Willowspirit]

Sounds like the damage is more cosmetic than anything else - didn't really seem like he was in too much shock considering how he's been reacting. Do get some saline drops for the eye - just normal eye drops are fine. Some of the contact stuff is for overnight soaks and 'not' safe to put directly on an eye. It will say so on the bottle.
You really want to flush out the eye - or eye socket - to get it super clean. Drench and don't spray - that might be too much pressure and cause damage.
He could still have issues if he develops an infection - the eye would be my biggest concern. Make sure his temp enclosure isn't too dusty.
Sounds like he'll come out of this with some gnarly scars. If he loses the eye, you could name him Wednesday

could you use Terramycin ophthalmic ointment on his eye after you rinsed it in straight saline?