All animal owners should keep something on hand to treat wounds.  After some experimentation, we have settled on two favorites.

The first remedy is an aerosol spray that comes in a couple of varieties.  Wound-Kote by Farnam and Blu-Kote by Dr. Naylor both seem to work equally well.  This is a purple spray typically sold for horses, cattle, and dogs, but it works great on chickens, as well.  The manufacturer does not recommend using it on cats, however.

Wound-Kote or Blu-Kote can be sprayed onto any wound, large or small, to promote healing and prevent infection.  Just reapply whenever the purple color wears off.

Two cautions: First, it will not absolutely safeguard an injured chicken from cannibalism.  If a chicken is severely injured, it should be isolated from the rest of the flock until it heals.  Second, both Wound-Kote and Blu-Kote stain anything they touch, so don’t get any of the spray on your clothes.

The second remedy that comes in handy is Corona Ointment.  This is not quite as effective for superficial wounds because it can easily be smeared off.  It is great, however, for those times when your animals need something a little more like a lotion.  For example, it can soothe chapped, calloused elbows on the dogs, and it can help a chicken with blowout onto the road to recovery.

Corona Ointment is labelled for both large and small animals.  It comes in either a tube or a jar.  The tube is much cleaner and easier to deal with.

You can find any of these items at a variety of farm supply stores, online and otherwise, as well as at Amazon.  Be aware that prices change periodically.