Is this a clotting mass of broken blood feathers?

[KaseySnow]

I volunteer for a local history park with their flock of chickens. When I went and checked on them yesterday morning, I was greeted with the sight of blood all over the coop floor and a huddled polish that I call "Fancy Brown."

We've had to keep them inside for a day or two during the recent cold snap when the daytime high was -7. My first thought was that they'd pecked on her due to confinement boredom. She lost her tail feathers during molt last fall and was pecked a bit during that time, so I figured they were at it again.

She seemed pretty lethargic and unresponsive. I let the girls out and, to my surprise, Fancy Brown followed a few minutes later. I was able to snap a few pictures and this was what I saw. She was dribbling gore everywhere she went and walking stiffly, though she was pecking a little at food and water.

Now I was worried about it possibly being a prolapsed vent due to location, but it was hard to tell. We'd had another bird with that issue about 8 months ago that had looked similar.

I wanted to wash it off, but due to the sub zero temps all day and being unable to take her home with me to nurse her (I live in a no pets apartment) I was afraid to soak her rear and expose her to frostbite. Poor thing is usually quite wary of people and won't let us get near, but while I was observing her in the run, she walked right up to me and sat by my leg, which she has never done. Even let me pick her up no problem to examine her. This unusual behavior really concerned me.

I contacted the park coordinator and she ordered some vetericyn that I went and picked up and then sprayed on the area after wiping it off a little just in case it was an open wound. I isolated her in the coop under a heat lamp with food, water, and a towel for a little extra warmth. Felt terrible that that was all I could do for her until the next day, which was supposed to be warmer.

Was thankful to find her alive this morning after another bitterly cold night. Also happy that she seemed very alert and eager to get out. It was 37 degrees and sunny today (feels warm in the dry Colorado air) so I set to soaking her for a few minutes in warm water I'd brought with me. I was trying to get the matted mess of blood, pine shavings, and faeces off to see what was going on. Here was the result:

Was able to loosen most of it and tried to carefully pull the debris gently away to see what was underneath. I had to cut away some of the soft, fluffy feathers that were stuck in the mat, but was careful not to cut any of the growing shafts. It was hard to get pictures since I was by myself, but I did get a good look at her vent and it was very healthy--no prolapse or injury of any kind, thankfully.

It started to look like I was pulling away blood globs from around the tips of growing feathers, however, so I stopped. I was afraid I would cause bleeding to resume if this mess was actually a big scab for broken blood feathers. The glob was sticky and slimy from the water, but didn't appear to be actively bleeding. Here's the best picture I could get of the mass:

It's hard to tell, but basically the bloody stuff appears to be stuck on the end of about 5 or 6 emerging feather shafts. I got a look at it from the side and could see clean, healthy skin underneath the shafts that were holding this 1" clot together out away from the body. I can't tell how many feather shafts are stuck in it and how many, if any of them, are broken. The few that I did manage to separate from the mass were fine and unbroken. But I assume a busted feather must be the source of the bloody goop since her vent looked fine, right? Unless she pooped this bloody mess and it got stuck on the growing feathers??

She doesn't seem to be bleeding anymore, but I put her back in her isolation pen just in case since it's still bright red and I don't want them pecking. She's got food, water, heat, and oyster shells.

So my questions are, could this be anything other than broken blood feathers? If it's a clot for the feathers, should I leave it there? Or clean it off and apply cornstarch? I was afraid to take more off since I had no way to stem the bleeding if it was a clot, but I can bring some tomorrow.

I've read that it's sometimes best to pull the blood feathers out if they are broken, if it turns out that's what this is. She's an old bird though (at least 8, probably older) who I'm sure is stressed about so much human contact already. Both times I put her down after holding her she seemed in shock and laid on her side until I set her upright. And even then she was wobbly and swaying for a good 5 minutes after. Would pulling the feathers out kill her from stress?

Thankfully she didn't seem nearly as lethargic today as she did yesterday (perhaps from blood loss?) so I assume she is feeling a bit better. She ate some mealworms and preened a fair bit in the sun. She did seem to be favoring her right leg by lifting it off of the ground frequently, but I didn't see any external leg injuries while looking her over. Also the mass is on the left side of her rear, so it's probably unrelated, right?

Fancy Brown thanks you for your help and wisdom! This is my first time trying to doctor an injured hen--I figured if this was caused by something I hadn't considered that someone here would know.

Sorry for the long story, I wasn't sure what details might be important. Thanks for reading!!

 

[azygous]

Don't apologize for all the detail. It's necessary if we're to be able to understand the situation. You are there. We are not. You do seem to have a fairly good grasp of chicken care, so that's a definite plus.

Behavior is the prime indicator of whether or not a chicken has something serious going on. The fact she's able to stand and walk and balance is good. It's possible she was acting from a sort of "predator shock" from not being used to being handled. That she recovered is a good sign.

Since you've determined the gore is not from a prolapsed or injured vent removes a huge concern. So you are probably right that she has a mass of injured feather shafts, especially since you've examined the skin and determined no injures.

You are correct that one remedy for bleeding emerging blood feathers is to yank them. That will stop further bleeding and new feathers will then emerge over the next few weeks to replace them. The minor discomfort associated with yanking the feather shafts is short lived and makes it possible then for them to be replaced. Not yanking them perpetuates the broken feather shafts and invites more injury and discomfort, and invites also the unwanted attention from the other chickens, which may be how she ended up in this shape.

Here's a little tip. If you suspect a chicken is suffering shock, give them warm sugar water with a pinch of salt and baking soda. It will revive them. Or warm up a bit of Gatoraid. It will do the same thing.

 

[RosemaryDuck]

Could anything have gotten into the pen/coop while you had them inside? It really looks like something grabbed her whole back end and just tore/pulled. You may also want to check around the whole area they stay in and make sure it wasn't something she got trapped in or stuck on. Poor girl!

 

[KaseySnow]

Don't apologize for all the detail. It's necessary if we're to be able to understand the situation. You are there. We are not. You do seem to have a fairly good grasp of chicken care, so that's a definite plus.

Behavior is the prime indicator of whether or not a chicken has something serious going on. The fact she's able to stand and walk and balance is good. It's possible she was acting from a sort of "predator shock" from not being used to being handled. That she recovered is a good sign.

Since you've determined the gore is not from a prolapsed or injured vent removes a huge concern. So you are probably right that she has a mass of injured feather shafts, especially since you've examined the skin and determined no injures.

You are correct that one remedy for bleeding emerging blood feathers is to yank them. That will stop further bleeding and new feathers will then emerge over the next few weeks to replace them. The minor discomfort associated with yanking the feather shafts is short lived and makes it possible then for them to be replaced. Not yanking them perpetuates the broken feather shafts and invites more injury and discomfort, and invites also the unwanted attention from the other chickens, which may be how she ended up in this shape.

Here's a little tip. If you suspect a chicken is suffering shock, give them warm sugar water with a pinch of salt and baking soda. It will revive them. Or warm up a bit of Gatoraid. It will do the same thing.

Thank you for your encouragement, that makes me feel a lot better.

I didn't know that about predator shock, definitely makes sense! She was not hand raised and is always the hardest one to catch when the vet comes to check on them, so that explains it for sure.

I didn't know that about sugar water and salt/soda, thank you! Do you administer it with a syringe? I think we have some Pedialyte in the barn, is that the same thing?

And last question: Do you think I should even attempt to clean the rest of the mass off tomorrow and try to stop up the shafts with cornstarch? We were planning on isolating her until she heals so the others wouldn't mess with her. Or is it better to just locate the bleeder and yank it?

 

[KaseySnow]

Could anything have gotten into the pen/coop while you had them inside? It really looks like something grabbed her whole back end and just tore/pulled. You may also want to check around the whole area they stay in and make sure it wasn't something she got trapped in or stuck on. Poor girl!

It's possible. We had a rat problem in the coop last year. We've sealed up the holes since then though and I've been setting out traps in the barn and in the run at night when the girls are locked up--haven't caught a rat in months. Just the occasional mouse in the barn.

I worried about predation too at first, but I think it's unlikely. On top of having traps out, I am in the habit of looking around the coop perimeter every time I'm over there to check for new holes or signs of rats. This is especially easy when it snows, which it had during the days they were kept in the coop, and I saw no rat prints or tail drag marks anywhere near the run or coop. Only saw a few bunny prints.

I also feel 90% sure that there is no damage on the skin, just the feather shafts. Admittedly, it was kind of hard to maneuver her by myself to get a good look, but while cleaning her up it looked to me like this mass was only stuck to the ends of feather shafts and not coming from anyplace on her skin from what I could tell.

I'll check again tomorrow to be sure though! Never can be too careful, especially since she's sleeping on the ground right now in the isolation area.

 

[azygous]

Pedialyte is the same thing - electrolytes including sugar for glucose support.

It is entirely your decision whether to leave the broken shafts or remove them. Whether you wish to handle and intervene as little as possible or undertake more care and treatment to restore the chicken's full health and comfort by restoring the broken feathers. You and your associates will weigh the pros and cons. What I would do in my own private flock may not be practical for your operation.

But I know you will end up giving this chicken the best care you are able. Thank you for your efforts and dedication.

 

[KaseySnow]

Got another picture of the area today.

Turned her over and looked all over her rump, legs, and belly and couldn't see any other place this blood could be coming from. So unless she pooped out blood that got stuck to her feathers, I'm gonna say that it's a big ol' blood clot from some growing feathers. So that's a relief!

It appears to be scabbed over and her energy is good. For now, I think we'll keep isolating her for another day or so until all red color is gone, then let her out with the others and see if they bug her.

Once the weather warms up I'll try to soak them again and separate the clumps. We'll keep spraying the vetericyn on it until then.

If anyone knows whether or not leaving these feathers to heal on their own is painful for her, let me know. I definitely don't want her to be hurting while she heals.

 

[coach723]

It's not painful. If you can get it all cleaned off, and see each feather shaft you may find that it's only one that's bleeding. A large broken shaft can bleed copiously (it's like a hollow straw stuck in a blood supply just draining it out), and would explain the matted mess you found. If it's only one then it would be easy to pull just that one. If there is no sign of bleeding once you get it all cleaned up, then it may have stopped on it's own and be fine. If it's starts to bleed again, I'd pull it.

 

[KaseySnow]

It's not painful. If you can get it all cleaned off, and see each feather shaft you may find that it's only one that's bleeding. A large broken shaft can bleed copiously (it's like a hollow straw stuck in a blood supply just draining it out), and would explain the matted mess you found. If it's only one then it would be easy to pull just that one. If there is no sign of bleeding once you get it all cleaned up, then it may have stopped on it's own and be fine. If it's starts to bleed again, I'd pull it.

Thank you for the info! I'm glad to know she's not in pain with them being clotted and kinda stuck together like they are now.

I'm going to try to soak it and separate them/clean them off a little better when it warms up this weekend. I was too nervous before about unstopping the bleeding since I didn't have any kwik stop/cornstarch on hand and she was still so weak. Should've probably cleaned her off a bit more anyway, but now I know for next time! haha. I'm thinking of leaving her in isolation away from the others until then just in case they peck at it or she gets it caught on something and tears it open again.

Out of curiosity, do you know if a broken feather that stops bleeding will continue to grow? Or will it just fall out and start over on its own?

 

[azygous]

Any broken feather will be destroyed when broken, especially since the blood supply has been drained from it. I could be wrong. Once I was. But the best solution is to just yank it.

Are you keeping a watch on this chicken's behavior? It is possible for a chicken to be weakened from loss of blood. In fact, I'm dealing with just that situation this very moment. An hour ago, I found my nearly thirteen-year old Brahma hen collapsed in the run after seeing gobs of blood spilled in the coop.

Lady Di made it halfway to where her pals were when she collapsed, too weak to go any farther. I brought her in and cleaned the wound on her foot where it appears some foot feathers were broken off at the base, causing all the heavy bleeding. The younger chickens likely made it worse, pecking at the injury so actual tissue was also lacerated.

I tubed some sugar water with Nutri-drench into her, and I'm going to be giving her some raw egg by tube in a little bit to get some nutrients into her to replenish her blood volume. This is easier than hoping she will drink on her own since she's also blind.