I have a feeling Rick keeps his hand. It would be too hard to pull off the permanent aftermath realistically in a weekly TV series on basic cable.
They'd have to either green screen the hand and then make up his arm, which wouldn't be cheap, or they'd be forced to resort to the old "tie his hand behind him" stunt. Either way it would either look like crap or strain the shows already diminished budget.
Yeah, I know, we're going to see Merle without a hand. But Merle's not the main character, meaning it won't be as time or money consuming to do the effect. If it happens to Rick it's an ongoing, weekly cost.
