Injured Pigeon, broken wing, open wounds

[heather77]

I found an adult pigeon yesterday. Its wing is obviously broken and hanging down. It is eating and drinking, but stool is runny. It has many open scratch wounds on its back also.

How do I care for the wounds? When should I tape up the wing and how?

Thanks for the help in advance!

[Pidgey]

Well, for the broken wing you can go here, read and study the illustrations:

http://www.pigeons.biz/forums/showpo...87&postcount=3

For the open scratch wounds, if they're not real bad then you can actually leave them alone. Do you have any idea what did them--a cat or a hawk?

Pidgey

[heather77]

I assume it was a cat. We have many feral cats where I live and I found it at my school in the parking lot. I examined the wounds further and they are not too bad. Skin is exposed, but seems to be mostly on the surface. One wound is about a quarter size and another like a dime.

If I let the wounds heal, how long can I wait to wrap the wing? The wounds are all on the center of the back between the wings. I don't want to wrap over the wound. Should I put non-adhesive gauze over wound and wrap anyway?

Thanks!

[Pidgey]

Well, it depends on where the break is. You might not need to wrap around the body if the humerus isn't affected. Did you study the drawings on the skeletal link and have you examined the wing in detail?

Pidgey

[Pidgey]

Depending on how the wing hangs, you can use masking tape to hold it in place. That actually prevents them Houdini-ing out of it, as well. You just need to figure out beforehand how you want to wrap it. For instance, if it's just the wing tip hanging low and the shoulder seems to hang fine, you can tape the wing tip to the tail in a somewhat normal position and it may do just fine.

Pidgey

[Trees Gray]

Hello and thank you for helping this bird.

Where are you located?

Perhaps we can find you some help locally.

[heather77]

I am in S. Texas. I got it out of the cage yesterday and put some antibacterial ointment on the wounds. I did not get a good look at where the break is, but it seems to be up by the shoulder. I will look at him later today. It was stressful for him to get him out, so I wanted to give him a break.

[Trees Gray]

Please check the following resources for a rehabber in your area.

Thank you.

http://www.tc.umn.edu/~devo0028/contactN.htm#tx

http://www.pigeon-life.net/prd.htm

[pdpbison]

Hi Heather77,


Cat Teeth and Cat Claw injuries often introduce bacteria iunto the wounds, which can cause systemic infections, even if the wound-site itself does not appear infected.

The medicine usually used for these occasions is 'Baytril', which you should get from a local Vet as soon as possible.

Many Birds will seem allright-enough at first, only to die in about three days from the systemic infection, if proper antibiotics are not used immediately...or as soon as possible.

Any family doctor or other medical operative can also supply 'Cipro' which is very nearly the same medicine and is a good one to use also.


Broken Wing bones...

You need to study the illustrations Pidgey sent you do understand the structiure of the Bird's "arm" which their Wing is of course.

If a Bone is cracked but not seperated from itself, the Wing will droop and so on, but it may be gently constrained in a proper way for the bone to heal nicely...with less worries about it being aligned, since it is self aligning, so long as no improper pressure or stress is being caused to bend or compromise it.


If a bone is broken so it is seperated from itself, broken in half, as it were, then it is crucial that the ends of the broken bone are correctly aligned, and brought together, in how the Wing as a whole is 'set' or bound or taped or made stable, by whatever means.

If the end of such a seperated broken bone has punctured the skin and poked out, then of course that area should additionally be cleaned with some dilute peroxide/Water or saline and allowed some topical antibiotic, before or as one sets the Wing for the broken bone-ends to be correctly aligned.

This is a fairly tricky thing to do when one does not have a lot of experience, since it is hard to feel or to tell whether one has the broken ends aligned with eachother and meeting nicely, or not...and if not, they will not heal or will not heal well.

So, if there are any experienced Avian Vets or rehabbers in your area whom you can have help with this, or have them do it, please see about getting with them...

And also, a.s.a.p., see about obtaining some Cipro or Baytril and double check with us about what dosage to use, with respect to whatever actual antibiotic you get.


Neosporin ( easy to get at any grocery or drug store) is good for the various injuries otherwise when they are on the surface of the Bird's body...

Keep them warm, and out of drafts and out of air conditioning...even useing an electric heating pad with a towell of it if need be. 'Warm' means that the towell nest the Bird is on, is like about your own body temperature.

The Wing and the Baytril/Cipro need to be as soon as possible defintely.


Too, the Pigeon needs to eat, if they will eat...

Do you have some nice Bird Seed? Canary Seed or Finch Seed sre excellent and most Grocery stores carry them. And a small flat bottom bow, of an inch and a quarter or inch and a half deep for them to have as a Water Bowl? Custard dish or somehting...?


Good luck!

Phil
Las Vegas