Chicken leg limp after dog attack

[Mathew544]

One of my 10 week old roosters was attacked by a dog yesterday. It only had what appeared to be two puncture wounds under its wing toward the top of the back. I cleaned and disinfected this area. I put the rooster in a separate building on a towel with food and water right in front of its beak. I'm not sure if its eating or if it can even reach for food. I've tried to put food and water up to its beak but no response. The biggest issue is that the right leg is completely limp and the rooster cannot get up at all but lays on its side. The leg is warm the whole way down except the toes. There doesn't appear to be any broken bone or inflammation. Does anyone have any advice on what to do? I do not want to let the chicken suffer, but I also don't want to kill it if the leg will heal. Do you think this is a broken hip or even nerve damage and will it heal? Any advice is appreciated.

 

[scratch'n'peck]

Poor chicken. He might be still in a state of shock after the attack, and may not start eating and drinking right away. Keep him in a warm spot just in case he is in shock. Hopefully after a couple of days he will start eating and drinking. make sure you keep checking the wounds and applying antibiotic ointment since puncture wounds are the most prone to infection. It is hard to say what to do about the leg. Just watch and wait; it has only been a day. If he is not actively bleeding, you could give him some asprin. I cant remember the dosage for chickens, but I know if you do a search on this website you can find it.

 

[cntrywmnkw]

I've had a similar experience. Last Sept, I had a 4 month old Silver Lace Wyadotte attacked by a pack of dogs. She had all the feathers on her back pulled out & 2 gashes on her back where the dog had grabbed her, after I rescued her, I brought her in the house, washed her wounds with a very mild solution of warm water & Epsom Salt. I irrigated her wounds 2-3 times a day for about 3 days, kept her warm & quiet & made sure she had food & water available always. She too couldn't walk, her right leg was limp & she couldn't seem to use it. I did take her to a vet that treats chickens & had her checked out, he said he thought the nerve was inflamed & did give her an antibiotic shot, (just to make sure she didn't get an infection) & said she should be ok after the swelling went down. It took awhile, but she's fine now, My DBF made her a recoup pen, so she could go outside a little & eat grass & bugs & enjoy the sunshine & take a dirt bath & be protected from the other girls, who did try & pick on her. She's now the top hen & you can't tell she ever had any problem with that leg.

If you can, you might have your roo checked out by a vet, but make sure it's one that treats chickens (not all do), just to make sure your boy is ok. Just keep an eye on him, as the above poster said, he's probably in shock right now, but come around in a day or so. Good luck & sorry about your boy.

 

[Wanderingturtles]

I've had a similar experience. Last Sept, I had a 4 month old Silver Lace Wyadotte attacked by a pack of dogs. She had all the feathers on her back pulled out & 2 gashes on her back where the dog had grabbed her, after I rescued her, I brought her in the house, washed her wounds with a very mild solution of warm water & Epsom Salt. I irrigated her wounds 2-3 times a day for about 3 days, kept her warm & quiet & made sure she had food & water available always. She too couldn't walk, her right leg was limp & she couldn't seem to use it. I did take her to a vet that treats chickens & had her checked out, he said he thought the nerve was inflamed & did give her an antibiotic shot, (just to make sure she didn't get an infection) & said she should be ok after the swelling went down. It took awhile, but she's fine now, My DBF made her a recoup pen, so she could go outside a little & eat grass & bugs & enjoy the sunshine & take a dirt bath & be protected from the other girls, who did try & pick on her. She's now the top hen & you can't tell she ever had any problem with that leg.

If you can, you might have your roo checked out by a vet, but make sure it's one that treats chickens (not all do), just to make sure your boy is ok. Just keep an eye on him, as the above poster said, he's probably in shock right now, but come around in a day or so. Good luck & sorry about your boy.

How long did it take for you chickens leg to improve/ go back to normal?
My Hen was attacked a little over 2 weeks ago by a neighbors dog. One deep gash and an another small puncture. I irrigated, just like you did. Been keeping it clean. She’s scabbed over pretty well now. And her feathers and starting to grow back in. But she still has a pretty bad limp.
Oddly, the limp is on the opposite side of where the wound is/was.

I’m hoping she will make a full recovery, she’s been in my bathtub this whole time. I’m worried about binging her back around the other chickens with that limp. That she won’t be able to make a quick get away if she needs to.