Rooster attacked by flock

chloemama66

In the Brooder
Mar 25, 2017
22
2
21
Hi -

My rooster Floyd seems to have been attacked by his flock. My hubs went to close the coop last night and saw him on the floor under the roost. He never mentioned it or checked him. I guess he figured he wanted to be there (??) some hens will do that if they can't get on the roost.

This morning he woke me to tell me about Floyd. I sent him out to get him an was horrified to see him!! Bloody all over his head, comb has black all over. His beak looks broken/cracked in two places, both upper and lower mandible. Feathers missing from the back of his head. Also he now has gunk coming from his beak and he is lethargic and sleeping all day. He has woken up startled a couple of time.

He was perfectly fine yesterday, free ranging - keeping an eye on his flock etc. No fights or predators

We treated his comb are with a gentle tepid water rinse then Poultry Wound Spray, which i actaually let drip on him because the spray stressed him too much. I have treated it twice with the spray.

I have the other brand of BlueKote, forget the name, and baby aspirin. Ihaven't used either yet. Should I treat further?


Photos aren't great but the best he would let me take. The small shaving to the left of his beak is stuck, If I pull a little his beak pulls away from his lower jaw :(

 
as a side note we have just found them to have what looks like wood mites. :(


Anybody ????????
 
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Do you have other roosters? I would separate him and place him in a crate or pen with food and water. Add electrolytes and vitamins to his water. Use a bowl with high sides, and add a lot of water to some of his usual feed to make it runny (it will thicken, so keep it runny.) Offer him soft chopped egg or some canned tuna in water to tempt him to eat.This a good way to help a chicken with a cracked beak eat. Use saline to clean his eyes and face. If you don't have another rooster, I would wonder if he wasn't attacked by a predator. Feed stores sell Permethrin 10% concentrate for mixing gallons of spray. Spray him where you see the mites. Permethrin garden dust will also work. Mites hatch every 5-7 days, so he will need re-treating a couple of times at 7 day intervals, and the coop and other birds need it as well. Change the bedding material also. I hope this fellow gets better, but his beak injury complicates that. Here is some reading about beak injuries:
http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2013/01/repairing-chickens-broken-beak.html
http://www.tillysnest.com/2011/12/how-to-fix-broken-beak-html/
https://www.beautyofbirds.com/brokenbeaks.html
 
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Thanks! We did get Permethrin today. I tried to give him water with the aspirin. Then a little bit ago gave home electrolytes by syringe. His eyes won't open and he stays slumped in his basket ( we have him in a laundry basket in the house ). He does jump up, and fall over, I'm guessing weak or off balance.
We do have a young too , his offspring who is less than yr old, but they have never gotten into a tussle. Floyd chases and Jr runs but never any pecking.
 
Wow. Poor guy. Yeah, I've never seen hens attack a rooster. If you have another rooster I would suspect him or a predator. Looks like peck marks on his comb though, so if predator I wonder if a hawk would have done it?

But yes, eggcessive is right, crate him, keep him quite. I wouldn't do asprin yet in case it increases bleeding. Maybe a baby asprin a day starting at day three cause looks like he is in pain. So, maybe then I would do that for a couple of days. He may feel like eating by day three and that would help make him feel a little better.

I don't know much about cracked beaks though, It would make me nervous trying to give him anything orally with a beak injury. I do wonder though if something like superglue can be used to hold cracked beaks together until they heal. Anyone?
 
Thanks! We did get Permethrin today. I tried to give him water with the aspirin. Then a little bit ago gave home electrolytes by syringe. His eyes won't open and he stays slumped in his basket ( we have him in a laundry basket in the house ). He does jump up, and fall over, I'm guessing weak or off balance.
We do have a young too , his offspring who is less than yr old, but they have never gotten into a tussle. Floyd chases and Jr runs but never any pecking.

Well you may have to separate them for good. Just because it never happened doesn't mean it wont happen and it sure looks like it did happen and those fights do usually end in death from sheer exhaustion. The young one is now the top rooster. Floyd, if and when he recovers, may never be able to hang with the flock again and will either keep his distance from the flock or challenge the youngster again.
 
Even when roosters live together, the subordinate one will challenge the leader on occasion. Usually that happens around 4-6 months. I had some 3 young cockerels who ganged up on their father, and after beating him, ran him off from the flock. That was their last day in the flock until I re-homed the young guys for freezer camp. He might be sick or nearing a molt, showing some weakness, and that is when it can happen. Chickens can sense illness or weakness. So, while he is recuperation, I would check all of his bodily functions including his crop, and look for lice or mites, check his poops, and look for any weight loss through his breastbone or keel bone.
 

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