Injured hen - Fox Attack

[V2vee]

Unfortunately a Fox managed to get into the hen house on Thursday night and we went from 12 to 4 chickens. ☹

I found one of the hens facedown in a patch of nettles breathing with its beak open. No visible injuries other a bald spot where it’s tail feathers have been ripped out.

She’s drinking normally and eating a little. She also laid us an egg yesterday which I’m hoping is all a good sign.

However - she spends most of her time standing and seems to struggle to lie down. Her wings both seem to hang low with one lower than the other so I’m suspecting she has a wounded wing? She’s just standing still hunched up most of the time & moves around a bit but very slowly and only to stand hunched up in another spot with the odd half attempt to scratch at the ground with her beak.

I was thinking of bandaging her wing but I don’t want to do anything that could make it worse and cause her more discomfort particularly as she is not used to being handled.

Please take a look and let me know what you think!

 

[V2vee]

Also - as an aside she has been making a purring sound (which I’ve never heard her so before!) It’s when she moves into a sunny spot in the garden (I’ve moved her there with a friendly hen to keep her separate where I can keep an eye on her.)

She only does it when she’s stood in a hot sunny spot. Is it contentment or do they also purr when they are distressed / in pain?

 

[coach723]

Have you examined her all over for any wounds that may be hiding in feathers? Punctures in particular can hide and be hard to find. You really have to go over them inch by inch, separating feathers and looking everywhere. You also need to examine both wings, check for any fractures or injuries, if you aren't sure of something, compare it to a healthy bird. Often when a predator attacks they are shaken and squeezed, so it's hard to know for sure what injuries they may have internally. That she's still alive is a positive, as is the egg laying. I would make sure there are not any injuries you have missed, make sure no infection is brewing anywhere. How do her droppings look? Is she eating and drinking? I would keep her somewhere warm until you know for sure what is going on, a sick or injured bird will not be able to regulate body temperature normally and can become hypothermic.

 

[LuciferRoo]

I just had a similar experience, except in my case it was 3 dogs that got into my fenced back yard (fence had some damage from a storm and they found an opening).
I lost 6 young hens which were just starting to lay. I found one still alive and laying on the ground. Unfortunately even after treating her wounds and putting her inside the house, she did not survive. I think she died on the following day.
A young rooster that was also severely injured and could not stand after the attack, got well enough to rejoin his flock after 1 day.

I still have one more rooster that is in critical shape. The day of the attack, he just stood in one place and looked in shock. He had no reaction when I picked him up and examined him. His wounds did not seem very bad.
He did go into the coop for the night. Next two days he found a quiet place, away from all the other chickens and stayed there mostly all day.
Again, I had no problem walking up and picking him up. Then he was attacked by another rooster and I separated him from the main flock, and put him into an enclosure with two very mellow hens. An old big plastic dog crate became his home for the night. After one day, things got worse. Suddenly he could not stand up any more. I suspected an infection, even though I could not find one. Based on what I read here, I gave him about 250mg of amocicillin mixed into coconut oil this morning.
Maybe it is just wishful thinking but I swear that he already looked better this afternoon.
He got another 250mg of amoxicilling in coconut oil this evening. I chilled it in the fridge and then put it on top of his food.
He ate the antibiotic mix and continued to eat his food.
Yesterday he looked very tired and had his eyes closed or half open. This afternoon he looked alert. Also, when I put him into the dog crate for the night, he attempted to stand up and managed to be in sort of a half standing position before laying down.
I know I am writing a lot, my main point is that if she has an infection, antibiotic treatment is likely required.
I got mine from online and it's labeled for fish. In reality, there is no difference between it or one for dogs or humans.
Good luck to you. My heart sank when I saw my dead young hens. One of which blessed me with an eggs for 4 straight days before the attack.
The dogs responsible had already returned onto my property a couple of days later. One of them, the pack leader, will not be killing any more chickens.

 

[V2vee]

I just had a similar experience, except in my case it was 3 dogs that got into my fenced back yard (fence had some damage from a storm and they found an opening).
I lost 6 young hens which were just starting to lay. I found one still alive and laying on the ground. Unfortunately even after treating her wounds and putting her inside the house, she did not survive. I think she died on the following day.
A young rooster that was also severely injured and could not stand after the attack, got well enough to rejoin his flock after 1 day.

I still have one more rooster that is in critical shape. The day of the attack, he just stood in one place and looked in shock. He had no reaction when I picked him up and examined him. His wounds did not seem very bad.
He did go into the coop for the night. Next two days he found a quiet place, away from all the other chickens and stayed there mostly all day.
Again, I had no problem walking up and picking him up. Then he was attacked by another rooster and I separated him from the main flock, and put him into an enclosure with two very mellow hens. An old big plastic dog crate became his home for the night. After one day, things got worse. Suddenly he could not stand up any more. I suspected an infection, even though I could not find one. Based on what I read here, I gave him about 250mg of amocicillin mixed into coconut oil this morning.
Maybe it is just wishful thinking but I swear that he already looked better this afternoon.
He got another 250mg of amoxicilling in coconut oil this evening. I chilled it in the fridge and then put it on top of his food.
He ate the antibiotic mix and continued to eat his food.
Yesterday he looked very tired and had his eyes closed or half open. This afternoon he looked alert. Also, when I put him into the dog crate for the night, he attempted to stand up and managed to be in sort of a half standing position before laying down.
I know I am writing a lot, my main point is that if she has an infection, antibiotic treatment is likely required.
I got mine from online and it's labeled for fish. In reality, there is no difference between it or one for dogs or humans.
Good luck to you. My heart sank when I saw my dead young hens. One of which blessed me with an eggs for 4 straight days before the attack.
The dogs responsible had already returned onto my property a couple of days later. One of them, the pack leader, will not be killing any more chickens.

Thank you! She’s now much better and although she has a sore wing she’s on the mend.

I just had a similar experience, except in my case it was 3 dogs that got into my fenced back yard (fence had some damage from a storm and they found an opening).
I lost 6 young hens which were just starting to lay. I found one still alive and laying on the ground. Unfortunately even after treating her wounds and putting her inside the house, she did not survive. I think she died on the following day.
A young rooster that was also severely injured and could not stand after the attack, got well enough to rejoin his flock after 1 day.

I still have one more rooster that is in critical shape. The day of the attack, he just stood in one place and looked in shock. He had no reaction when I picked him up and examined him. His wounds did not seem very bad.
He did go into the coop for the night. Next two days he found a quiet place, away from all the other chickens and stayed there mostly all day.
Again, I had no problem walking up and picking him up. Then he was attacked by another rooster and I separated him from the main flock, and put him into an enclosure with two very mellow hens. An old big plastic dog crate became his home for the night. After one day, things got worse. Suddenly he could not stand up any more. I suspected an infection, even though I could not find one. Based on what I read here, I gave him about 250mg of amocicillin mixed into coconut oil this morning.
Maybe it is just wishful thinking but I swear that he already looked better this afternoon.
He got another 250mg of amoxicilling in coconut oil this evening. I chilled it in the fridge and then put it on top of his food.
He ate the antibiotic mix and continued to eat his food.
Yesterday he looked very tired and had his eyes closed or half open. This afternoon he looked alert. Also, when I put him into the dog crate for the night, he attempted to stand up and managed to be in sort of a half standing position before laying down.
I know I am writing a lot, my main point is that if she has an infection, antibiotic treatment is likely required.
I got mine from online and it's labeled for fish. In reality, there is no difference between it or one for dogs or humans.
Good luck to you. My heart sank when I saw my dead young hens. One of which blessed me with an eggs for 4 straight days before the attack.
The dogs responsible had already returned onto my property a couple of days later. One of them, the pack leader, will not be killing any more chickens.

Thank you! We didn’t treat her with anything in the end as she started to look much better and despite a sore wing she’s nearly back to normal.

Fingers crossed your Rooster made it through?

 

[LuciferRoo]

My rooster is still healing but doing much better. He is in an enclosure with two hens and separated from the other roosters (I have a ton of roosters).
He walks with a limp still and sleeps on the floor of the small coop I built for them. The girls sleep on a low roosting bar.
This coop is only 2 feet high and will eventually become brooding coop.
The decision to sleep there was his. I had him in a large dog crate. Two nights ago he decided to sleep in the new coop.
Maybe he found fresh hay on the floor preferable to doggie pads(which is what I used to line the dog crate) or maybe wanted some company at night.