- Jan 25, 2015
- 14
- 13
- 92
Hi all! This is my first time posting to one of these forums but I am at a loss here!
Shortly before Christmas, a raccoon got into our coop. I heard our girls squawking around 1:00 am and ran outside (barefoot and in my underwear!) to see what the commotion was. A raccoon had our Araucana, Blanche by the neck and was dragging her out into the run. Luckily, I scared it off - with absolutely NO help from the dog (thank you very much!) and it dropped her. She was quite stunned and had a small cut on her comb, but was unharmed otherwise. The worst part was that it was my own fault. With all the commotion with house guests and holiday festivities, I had neglected to lock their door. I never would have forgiven myself if she had died. Our 8 year-old daughter is VERY attached to them!
So my problem now is that her health seems to be declining. She lost all her tail feathers in the first couple weeks and now she's losing feathers around her head. Her comb is no longer bright red but a dull pink color. She used to be a bit of a diva - pecking at the other girls and bossing them around but that is clearly no longer the case. She is eating and drinking normally and doesn't seem lethargic so maybe I'm worrying for nothing. Mostly, I'm concerned it will continue to get worse.
Does anyone have any recommendations? Supplements? Change in diet? Obviously locking the coop at night is a good idea ;-) Is this normal after that kind of trauma?
Thank you all so much!
Shortly before Christmas, a raccoon got into our coop. I heard our girls squawking around 1:00 am and ran outside (barefoot and in my underwear!) to see what the commotion was. A raccoon had our Araucana, Blanche by the neck and was dragging her out into the run. Luckily, I scared it off - with absolutely NO help from the dog (thank you very much!) and it dropped her. She was quite stunned and had a small cut on her comb, but was unharmed otherwise. The worst part was that it was my own fault. With all the commotion with house guests and holiday festivities, I had neglected to lock their door. I never would have forgiven myself if she had died. Our 8 year-old daughter is VERY attached to them!
So my problem now is that her health seems to be declining. She lost all her tail feathers in the first couple weeks and now she's losing feathers around her head. Her comb is no longer bright red but a dull pink color. She used to be a bit of a diva - pecking at the other girls and bossing them around but that is clearly no longer the case. She is eating and drinking normally and doesn't seem lethargic so maybe I'm worrying for nothing. Mostly, I'm concerned it will continue to get worse.
Does anyone have any recommendations? Supplements? Change in diet? Obviously locking the coop at night is a good idea ;-) Is this normal after that kind of trauma?
Thank you all so much!
