Pet chicken lost tail in dog attack

[Luckysfam]

Hello, 2 months ago me and my wife found a chicken on the side of the road in Georgia, the locals told us she probably fell off a chicken truck, so we decided to take her home to Florida and we named her lucky. She has been a wonderful pet and we love her so much, but yesterday she was attacked by a dog that was off its leash, by the time we got to her she had lost most of her tail and a lot of feathers, we took her to the vet and they stitched her up and we have been taking care of her, right now my biggest concern is how wobbly she is when she stands up, I'm afraid she won't be able to run or walk properly once she heals up, it's only been a day but I was wondering if anyone on here had some insight or has had experience with chickens who have damaged tails

 

[Luckysfam]

The vet felt that the wound needed to stay moist to avoid infection and gave us an antiseptic (thus the blue feathers) he said he would like to wrap the wound and fill it with table sugar? But he didn't feel that would be possible with her injury, I will look into the mention remedy of garlic, cayenne and orageno.

 

[Luckysfam]

Thanx everyone for your research and input! I made a paste out of coconut oil and organic tumeric powder, I had to put her cone back on because she keeps trying to pull her stitches. I'm going to watch it closely and see how it does

 

[Eggcessive]

Welcome to BYC. Every case is different, but I had a chicken last summer attacked in my driveway by a neighbor's dog. She suffered lacerations on her back, tail and wing feather loss, and she could hardly walk. It took a few months, but she started walking normally, all feathers came back in, and she eventually started laying again. Since she was so skittish, I sprayed her BluKote, and left her in the coop with her flock where she limited her own activity. Unfortunately she stills leaves the chicken yard, preferring to hang out near the road, so she didn't learn to stay with the flock for safety. Let us know how she gets along.

 

[Luckysfam]

Thank you for your reply, she has been eating/drinking and trying to move around more today, seems to be coming along, but I'm afraid that she is in pain and I want to do something for her, is there anything I can give her for pain? I've heard a lot of mixed opinions regarding pain relief for chickens, any insight is appreciated, any info to treat her wounds and keep her healthy and comfortable would be great. We've been working really hard to keep her clean and keep fresh good food and water in her. My wife has been sleepin on the couch and waking up every couple hours to take care of her wound, we just want to do everything we can for her.

 

[awarmrainyday]

It's awesome that you are taking such good care of your girl. Chickens are very resilient so I'm sure with time she will recover. I have a partially blind pet rooster and he doesn't let his disability slow him down, he just works around it. When I have him outside he always keeps his blind side to me. Good nutrition is very important during recovery. She might just be feeling a little weak. As for pain management, I personally wouldn't worry about doing that. Not to sound cruel, but her feeling pain lets her know what her limits are right now. If she doesn't feel pain she could end up overdoing it and hurting herself. Keep her in a fairly confined area (my blind boy stayed in a large plastic tote from walmart) and keep tending the wound. You're doing great!

 

[awarmrainyday]

Another thought, since it is a dog bite, did the vet say anything about doing a course of antibiotics?

 

[Luckysfam]

She is on antibiotics, we give it to her with watermelon, she is isolated in a big plastic tote, we have a big fluffy towel and we are using puppy pads and baby wipes to keep her and everything clean, we keep a mesh sheet over her tote so that flies can't get to her, she has been eating more today and she has been drinking more out of a little spoon, and we have been giving her pellets, fresh greens and some of her favorite foods, watermelon and cucumber to help keep her hydrated.

 

[Woobsie]

You could also give her some plain yogurt or buttermilk soaked in some multigrain bread to help the effects of the antibiotics.

 

[Luckysfam]

Thank you for that info, I will do that for her, she seems to be doing well all things considered,