HELP! Chicken attacked emergency wound

[Melgug]

I lost 2 chickens in the last 2 days due to unknown predator. We thought hawk, now thinking a mink or weasel. This one (Penelope) was attacked while I was eating lunch. We did not hear a sound and she was attacked less than 10 feet away. I came outside to her laying down and bleeding. A few minutes later she was back standing upright and screaming. I brought her inside and isolated her. I cleaned her wounds with water and I believe the bleeding has stopped or slowed significantly. How can I help her more? Stitches for a wound this big? Her neck is basically exposed. I read to get the medicine for infections but I will just use neosporin now since I cant leave the house right now. Any help is greatly appreciated. I really want her to make it. She is my favorite hen and only 18 weeks old.

 

[Eggcessive]

Could she have been attacked by the other chickens? Is she new to the flock or low in pecking order? I would spray the wounds with Vetericyn or other wound spray, and apply plain Neosporin ointment twice a day. Flush her eye with saline, and use either Terramycin eye ointment or the Neosporin twice a day.

 

[nuthatched]

You can give her warm sugar water with a pinch of salt or Gatorade to help her with shock.
Rinse the would with warm water or saline and apply neosporin. If you have any wound rinse it might be checking to see if it can be applied to open wounds.

 

[Melgug]

Could she have been attacked by the other chickens? Is she new to the flock or low in pecking order? I would spray the wounds with Vetericyn or other wound spray, and apply plain Neosporin ointment twice a day. Flush her eye with saline, and use either Terramycin eye ointment or the Neosporin twice a day.

No it was a predator attack 100%.

 

[MarlaMac]

Hello. Sorry about your hen. We experienced a similar issue with one of our babies in Jan. She is now back with the flock, except she walks into our house at bedtime wanting to sleep inside with us still. Her wound was scary, I can link it in this reply. All I can tell you is what we did, with a lot of help from @Wyorp Rock.

1. Isolate her.

2. Flush the wound with chlorhexidine solution. Get at tractor supply or other feed/pet stores. Note that is is sold highly concentrated, so mind the label and mix accordingly. I did this for the first couple of days, twice a day. If you don't have clorhexidine, a salt water rinse is good too. I did this the first rinse b/c stores were closed. I got the clorhexidine the next day.

3. Cut away feathers that touch the wound so they don't get stuck in the healing/ointment.

4. After rinse, dry the area and put on regular triple antibiodic ointment (no pain relief). Continue with this until the wound scabs over and the scab falls off.

5. After feathers grow back in, allow her among the flock. During LC's healing we actually put her in a temporary run in the grass so she could interact with the flock. Do not allow her in the dirt until the wound heals or you will never get it clean again.

Good luck. I will go and copy my page on LC and come back and provide the link.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...what-i-dont-know.1559978/page-7#post-26622516

Also, keep a nose out for any foul oder which would indicate infection. If this occurs a broad spectrum antibodtic would be advisable.

 

[Melgug]

Hello. Sorry about your hen. We experienced a similar issue with one of our babies in Jan. She is now back with the flock, except she walks into our house at bedtime wanting to sleep inside with us still. Her wound was scary, I can link it in this reply. All I can tell you is what we did, with a lot of help from @Wyorp Rock.

1. Isolate her.

2. Flush the wound with chlorhexidine solution. Get at tractor supply or other feed/pet stores. Note that is is sold highly concentrated, so mind the label and mix accordingly. I did this for the first couple of days, twice a day. If you don't have clorhexidine, a salt water rinse is good too. I did this the first rinse b/c stores were closed. I got the clorhexidine the next day.

3. Cut away feathers that touch the wound so they don't get stuck in the healing/ointment.

4. After rinse, dry the area and put on regular triple antibiodic ointment (no pain relief). Continue with this until the wound scabs over and the scab falls off.

5. After feathers grow back in, allow her among the flock. During LC's healing we actually put her in a temporary run in the grass so she could interact with the flock. Do not allow her in the dirt until the wound heals or you will never get it clean again.

Good luck. I will go and copy my page on LC and come back and provide the link.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...what-i-dont-know.1559978/page-7#post-26622516

Also, keep a nose out for any foul oder which would indicate infection. If this occurs a broad spectrum antibodtic would be advisable.

Thank you SO much. This was so helpful. God bless and am so glad to hear your bird is doing great and all healed. Praying mine has the same turnout. I will try my best.

 

[Melgug]

Hello. Sorry about your hen. We experienced a similar issue with one of our babies in Jan. She is now back with the flock, except she walks into our house at bedtime wanting to sleep inside with us still. Her wound was scary, I can link it in this reply. All I can tell you is what we did, with a lot of help from @Wyorp Rock.

1. Isolate her.

2. Flush the wound with chlorhexidine solution. Get at tractor supply or other feed/pet stores. Note that is is sold highly concentrated, so mind the label and mix accordingly. I did this for the first couple of days, twice a day. If you don't have clorhexidine, a salt water rinse is good too. I did this the first rinse b/c stores were closed. I got the clorhexidine the next day.

3. Cut away feathers that touch the wound so they don't get stuck in the healing/ointment.

4. After rinse, dry the area and put on regular triple antibiodic ointment (no pain relief). Continue with this until the wound scabs over and the scab falls off.

5. After feathers grow back in, allow her among the flock. During LC's healing we actually put her in a temporary run in the grass so she could interact with the flock. Do not allow her in the dirt until the wound heals or you will never get it clean again.

Good luck. I will go and copy my page on LC and come back and provide the link.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...what-i-dont-know.1559978/page-7#post-26622516

Also, keep a nose out for any foul oder which would indicate infection. If this occurs a broad spectrum antibodtic would be advisable.

I am just noticing her beak is broken and she is wheezing to breathe. What can I do about that?

 

[Melgug]

You can give her warm sugar water with a pinch of salt or Gatorade to help her with shock.
Rinse the would with warm water or saline and apply neosporin. If you have any wound rinse it might be checking to see if it can be applied to open wounds.

Thank you so much.

 

[Melgug]

Could she have been attacked by the other chickens? Is she new to the flock or low in pecking order? I would spray the wounds with Vetericyn or other wound spray, and apply plain Neosporin ointment twice a day. Flush her eye with saline, and use either Terramycin eye ointment or the Neosporin twice a day.

Can you help me, she is wheezing now and seems like she’s having a hard time breathing.

 

[Eggcessive]

I would make sure that her nostrils are clear of blood and mucus, and hydrogen peroxide and QTips can be used for this. If she is able to eat and drink. I would be tempted to leave it alone. Broken beaks are very sensitive to pain for a few days. Sometimes they can be repaired with an empty clean teabag cut into patches, and superglued to the beak. But I would offer mushy wet feed at first, to see if that won’t be necessary. An avian vet is best for broken beak complications.