Raccoon Attack!!! Advice please

[yadaguhtoo]

I have a 7 month old rooster who managed to not get put away late Christmas night (he must have been roosting in a tree).
I thought he was a gonner but then I found him 2 days later standing in some bushes. I brought him in and cleaned him up and the only injury I can find is a small cut behind one of his ears, I washed it and applied blu-cote and set him in front of our heater with food and water. His whole head was swollen so I thought he might do better once the swelling had gone down. It looks like he took a bite to the head.
So far I have only been able to get him to take in small amounts of water but , no food.
He won't open his eyes but can open one a little if I pick him up, he stands and grooms himself a little but mostly just wants to sleep.
I tried feeding him a mashed up boiled egg but it was a no go. The only time he gets a little drink is if I dip his beak in a bowl, he won't do it on his own.
I'm wondering if anyone can give me some advice on getting him to eat again. Maybe some one has a trick I haven't tried yet?
Thanks

 

[rollkeeg877]

well if some crazy animal bit your head and two days later your best friend found you and tried to feed you i don't think you would eat because after felling like your gonna die so i would say give him time he might make it threw or he might die depends what happened

 

[real_redhead]

Sorry that happened. I don't have any sound advice but I would keep trying. I would keep him crated in a warm dark place. And keep food and water available. Are there any treats he likes? Maybe something special and he will eat. My girls love ham! Have you checked a farm supply store to see if an antibiotic might help? Hopefully someone else with more experience will reply. I haven't had to deal with something like that! GOOD LUCK

 

[chicks4kids]

I would go to your local pharmacy and ask for Polyvitamins without iron. It's for infants and you have to get it from behind the pharmacy counter even though it's an otc vitamin-roughly about $10 but a must have for your chicken first aid kit. Stick a dropper full of vitamins along with 2 or 3 dropper fulls of water in a bowl and mix. Give that little roo as much as you can get down, as many times a day as you can for at least 2 days. Water and vitamins are most important right now. Keeping him hydrated is key. food is less important.

Make sure he has scrambled egg so that he can eat if he wants to, but seriously push those vitamins. It will help his body fight off any bacteria in his wounds and help him get stronger. It'll take some time. He'll have some readjusting to do. Afterall, he is King of his Castle, but weak right now. Just push those vits/water...he'll pull through. Chickens are a risilient breed! Good luck!

 

[froggiesheins]

I would go to your local pharmacy and ask for Polyvitamins without iron.  It's for infants and you have to get it from behind the pharmacy counter even though it's an otc vitamin-roughly about $10 but a must have for your chicken first aid kit.  Stick a dropper full of vitamins along with 2 or 3 dropper fulls of water in a bowl and mix.  Give that little roo as much as you can get down, as many times a day as you can for at least 2 days.  Water and vitamins are most important right now.  Keeping him hydrated is key.  food is less important. 

Make sure he has scrambled egg so that he can eat if he wants to, but seriously push those vitamins.  It will help his body fight off any bacteria in his wounds and help him get stronger.  It'll take some time.  He'll have some readjusting to do.  Afterall, he is King of his Castle, but weak right now.  Just push those vits/water...he'll pull through.  Chickens are a risilient breed!  Good luck! 

X's 2 AND keep him warm in the house......

 

[Pyxis]

I have a drake in the house that was attacked by something (probably a mink) and I can offer some advice. Firstly, you may want to cut away the feathers around the wound area. At first with my boy I only found three puncture marks but after doing that I found a HUGE wound I didn't even know was there that was infected and required attention. Next, soak the wounds and the area with an epsom salt soak. It really draws out infection. This is per the advice of my vet, as I did take my drake in to see him. Lastly, you may want to give him a general antibiotic in case the infection has gone systemic. My vet put my boy on a trimeth-sulfa suspension.

As for getting him to eat, try bringing one of your more gentle hens in and feeding them together. They're very social and he's more likely to eat if he sees another bird doing it. Just remember pain is a very good appetite supressant and this may not work. If it doesn't, you can try making a warm 'chicken food smoothie' and feed him that from a syringe. And as others have said, definitely get some vitamins for him.

 

[yadaguhtoo]

Thank you all for your replies! He has been in the house in front of our heater since I found him with the exception of some supervised outside sunshine time, I don't have him crated right now as he just has been pretty much stays in the same spot ( a large towel with garbage bags under it )and only takes a few steps at a time.
I had a friend come over yesterday that has nursed many animals back to health. She suggested I try just putting a piece of food on his tongue and see what happens....he swallowed it right down! So that is what I have been doing along with being able to get about 3 tablespoons of vitamin water during each feeding.
He seems to be coming around and one of his eyes is slightly open today.
One question I do have is how often should I be feeding him? I know I should probably start slow at first so I don't shock his system but, I also know they can eat quite a bit when out free ranging. Any more advice?
Thanks!

 

[KootenaiRiverChick]

I nursed a hen back from a major hawk attack. Ditto to what others have said re: cutting feathers away, vitamin/electrolyte water, and food. I would also suggest that you get some antibiotic powder from your local feed store and apply it to any wounds he can't reach with his beak. My hen had puncture wounds on her neck and a large patch of skin torn away on her back, so I applied several different things including antibiotic powder to the wounds and covered it with a piece of Vaseline coated gauze to prevent sticking. The powder comes in a little shaker, looks like a small baby powder bottle. Sounds like he's doing better today, so best of luck to you!

One more thing: after the attack, my hen wouldn't open one of her eyes. I thought the hawk plucked it out but after a few days when she completely came out of shock she started opening it again. Her eyelid is still a bit saggy on that eye, like she had a stroke, but she recovered just fine. The attack happened in mid-June of this year.

 

[luvmigrls]

A little TLC goes along way with them. Something I give them when they are in rehab is tuna fish. They love it. I also give a little plain yogurt for digestion to keep things moving, as well as vitamin water, greens and grains. Keeping in a warm quite place with dim lighting at first then bring it up as they improve. They are really resilient creatures. Best of luck to you.

 

[luvmigrls]

Also...TIME as some else mentioned.