Skinned near ear - HELP

[MelodyR]

I just got home late from work. My four new boys were lined up to greet me and everything seemed fine. They were excited and there was a bit of running up and down the 3 FN levels. A few minutes later I noticed one of them had "skinned" the base of his ear (near the bottom of the ear canal on the side of the face. It was fresh and bloody. I don't know if someone did it to him (it definitely does NOT look like a bite, more like it was skinned) or if he scraped himself somehow running up and down or on the edge of the Bass pan --sometimes the fleece liner slips away. There are no signs of argument, no fur slips or anything. But all four are 4-6 months old, he is the oldest and just yesterday starting humping everything.

It is definitely fresh. It's not deep, just a skin pull-back, and I tried to move it back over the scraped spot. As it is, I don't think it requires a vet visit, it's not horrible, just scary. I'm more concerned about what the source was.

What should I do???? I took him out and sprayed some AviVera on a cotton ball and wiped it clean (it's aloe that is safe for birds and works great on them-- stops bleeding and numbs it). Other than that, the only thing I have around is Quik-stop, which is a sulfer powder. I put him in a temp cage for now. He seems fine, but keeps scratching at it with his hind leg.

I've never had an injury before. The boys never fight and they've been together over a month -- they came together from the same breeder. I have to be gone most of tomorrow and that concerns me. What should I do?

 

[Laurie]

Blu kote works for cuts and scrapes. If you don't have blu kote you can allow him a CLEAN bath fresh dust.

 

[MelodyR]

I can't leave well enough alone. He was bouncing off the walls in his temp cage, so I put him back in with the boys and everyone was fine. Then I got to thinking I should have used sulfer on it instead, so I took him out and put a bit of that on it instead. Well, apparently that itched like crazy, so he started scratching and ripped in open again - I'm so mad at me. It was doing nicely till I tried to improve upon it.

I will try a fresh dust bath as I don't have blu kote. Thanks!

 

[MelodyR]

Is blu cote the stuff you use on horses - like gentian violet?

 

[MelodyR]

Lat night things went smoothly - there are no fights so he must have injured himself. But he kept scratching at it and opening it up. I checked many times during the night plus they are in my bedroom.

It seems to have dried nicely during the night and isn't bleeding anymore, it looks like it is healing already. BUT it kind of looks like when he was scratching away at it (at the very base of the ear) last night, he pushed the skin back and it almost looks like cartilage is showing? It's not sticking out or anything, it's just that the center of the injury looks a bit different than the surrounding skin, flatter. And you can see the skin has been pushed back a bit, leaving a center that looks different. But the whole area looks healthy and like it is healing well. There is NO inflammation or anything bad.

Should he go to the vet? I'm afraid, since it is doing quite well today and seems to be healing, she would only make it worse at this point by poking and prodding. Plus he is acting perfectly normal, eating and playing, and the vet visit might stress him out.

Is it acceptable to watch it for a few days to see what happens?

I don't have blu kote, but I do have Betadine - should I put a dab of that on it with a Qtip? I am concerned because when he scratches he gets it on his toes and then licks his toes.

Dang, I (fortunately) just am not used to chinnie injuries, even though I have owned them for 5 years.

 

[alli713]

How big is the cut? Like the size of a dime?

I'm just wondering if you seem to be able to see something under the skin whether or not it might need stitches?

But if it's smallish and is already scabbing up and he's leaving it alone then it would probably be fine.

 

[tunes]

Yes, Blu-Kote is gentian violet, same as for horses. If it is already closing or scabbing over, then I would put a dab of Blu-Kote on it and let it be. A lot of times healing makes them itch, just like with other animals or humans.

If it gets red, has any kind of drainage, doesn't appear to continue to heal completely, then you would want to check with a vet.

 

[MelodyR]

The total area -- It's about the size of a dime, no larger. It looks like he tore the skin and it slipped back a bit, possibly exposing the base of the ear (it's hard -- cartilage? -that part is about the size of a pencil eraser diameter or smaller). I would think it would be impossible to stitch because the skin has already re-adhered itself where it ended up and is so very thin in that area. It's not even scabby, it already looks pretty healed up. He actually did a better cleanup job that I did. That's why I hesitate to keep fooling with it. I just wish I could stop him from scratching at it.

 

[alli713]

Oh okay, I wasn't clear as to what it looked like. But I agree with Peggy, I think for now just leave it be (put blu-kote on there if you can get some, Tractor Supply Co and other farm supply stores sell it).

 

[MelodyR]

Thank you for your help. I know I was borderline hysterical, but I had never had a chin injury before!

It's almost been a full day, and the boys are still getting along as peacefully as ever, so I am convinced it was not due to a bite/fight, but rather he scraped himself on something.

The injury is healing remarkably well, looks like it did this morning - he has not reopened it and it is obviously starting to mend and does not look inflamed. He's no longer scratching it. I bought some Blu Kote though and dabbed a bit on (with a Qtip) anyway just to be sure. He didn't mind too much, but he did turn his head around quick to see what I was doing, so he now has a few purple whiskers as well - lol. He's a homo beige and very beautiful and the sweetest chin ever, course right now he looks more like the Phantom of the Opera! Here's hoping everything continues in the right direction!

Thanks again!

 

[MelodyR]

Just an update - Latte's injury seems to be healing remarkably well and quickly. He has not reopened it, so I have left it alone since the initial application of Blu-Kote. I still have not figured out how it happened, but I do believe it was accidental and not caused by a fight. I certainly hope so.