Rooster Attacked by Fox! Need Advice ASAP

[lunagrove]

My silkie rooster was attacked by a fox at dusk last night around 8pm. He was just going into the coop when he charged at a fox to protect his hens. The fox snagged him and took off with him in the woods. My partner screamed that a fox took off with the rooster and we let the dogs out and took off after him. We followed the trail of feathers through all the thorns, the dogs blew way ahead of us, scaring the fox enough to where he dropped the rooster on the trail. We approached the roo and he was limp, seemingly dead but we believe it was shock. He opened his eyes and responded to our voices so we picked him up and ran with him back to the house, wrapped him up, cleaned his wounds and dressed them and placed him in a box in a warm, dark room in the house. I immediately administered electrolytes and continued to do so every 30 min until around 2 am. When I woke this morning, he was responsive to the light coming on and to my voice but he really cant hold his head up much. I'm hoping it's just swelling causing him to keep his head low. He will hold his head up and look around when startled so I do not think his neck is severely injured (at least I hope not). He had a pretty severe gash on his back, wide open that I cleaned out... skin was ripped open, showing the tissue. It wasnt bleeding too bad. Also appears to have another bite near his breast but no deep puncture wound there. Lots of feathers missing. No wheezing or trouble breathing although it was rapid last night. He is pooping normal poops and today I gave him a little sugar water and pumpkin baby food because he cant really eat due to not having strength to hold his neck up, but hes willingly taking water and soft food from the syringe. I want to redress the wounds today and double check them. I tried calling vets but no one takes in chickens or knows anything about them in my area. The feed store is closed today and the only antibiotic I have on hand is Penicillin VK 500mg for humans, which is supposedly good for animal bites or skin infections. Could this be crushed and added to water? And if so, does anyone know the dosage? Thanks in advance for any info. I'll try to get pics when I redress the wound today.

 

[LikeTurkeys]

Sorry this happened to you

Pictures?

It's good that he is eating. I'm not sure about the penicillin, I've heard rather conflicting information on injection/oral administration to chickens. Hopefully someone else can help you on that!

What did you dress the wounds with? I'd be tempted to put Neosporin on (triple antibiotic) to help with any bacteria on the surface.

 

[lunagrove]

Here are a few photos Can anyone tell me what they honestly think at this point? I'm really hoping he pulls through. He is still alive. Eating and drinking by syringe, willingly. I have him eating turkey, peach, pumpkin and green bean baby food. Any other suggestions? I also have him on rooster booster and Pen G injections now.

In the photos, you can see the large gash on his back. I didnt have sutures on hand and no vet in my area knew anything about poultry. So I did the best I could with vetericyn and neosporin (without pain relief). I've been keeping it as clean as possible and cut all his feathers back around the wound and swollen part of his neck for easy access. His neck is severely swollen and bruised (as seen) with a small puncture wound. In fact, its so swollen, he cannot lift his head for very long but he does open his eyes and look around.

I guess my question now is, will this gash on his back heal properly? I'm sure at this point it's way too late for sutures but I did order some supplies and a disposable medical stapler for emergencies in the future.

 

[lunagrove]

Anyone at all? I really would love a reply or an opinion on how his wounds are looking.

 

[micstrachan]

Hi there,
I’m sorry about your rooster. We have seen horrific injuries on these forums that end well. If you are able to care for him through the healing process, I think his chances are good. Keep it up with the cleaning and are you using a triple antibiotic ointment?

 

[micstrachan]

I also forgot to add... keep a close watch on the smell of his wounds and make sure flies can’t get to him. He may benefit from
anti-inflammatories. How much does he weigh? My hen, who was almost seven pounds at the time due to fluid build-up, did great on half a low dose aspirin for a few days. Maybe half that for silkie? Ibuprofen is also ok and we can help you with dosing.

 

[LikeTurkeys]

Here are a few photos Can anyone tell me what they honestly think at this point? I'm really hoping he pulls through. He is still alive. Eating and drinking by syringe, willingly. I have him eating turkey, peach, pumpkin and green bean baby food. Any other suggestions? I also have him on rooster booster and Pen G injections now.

In the photos, you can see the large gash on his back. I didnt have sutures on hand and no vet in my area knew anything about poultry. So I did the best I could with vetericyn and neosporin (without pain relief). I've been keeping it as clean as possible and cut all his feathers back around the wound and swollen part of his neck for easy access. His neck is severely swollen and bruised (as seen) with a small puncture wound. In fact, its so swollen, he cannot lift his head for very long but he does open his eyes and look around.

I guess my question now is, will this gash on his back heal properly? I'm sure at this point it's way too late for sutures but I did order some supplies and a disposable medical stapler for emergencies in the future.
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That is a pretty serious injury. I wonder what is causing the severe swelling on his neck? Is it from that smaller wound alone?

Good job with the penicillin injections!

Yes, I think at this point it is too late for sutures. The wound has been open to bacteria for too long, and closing it now could lead to a serious infection.

In the pictures of the injury on his back, what is that white colored area? Pus?

Keep applying the triple antibiotic.

Honestly, I'm not sure the wound will ever fully heal. There will be a lot of scar tissue, and he may have trouble walking (I am saying this because it looks deep and may affect the movement of his legs, but of course I may be wrong). I think that if you were to suture, even regular thread and needle would do in an emergency. Obviously not ideal but better than nothing.

I hope your rooster pulls through!

Edited to add: What @mistrachan said is good advice. An anti-inflammatory would probably help with the swelling on his neck.

 

[lunagrove]

Hi there,
I’m sorry about your rooster. We have seen horrific injuries on these forums that end well. If you are able to care for him through the healing process, I think his chances are good. Keep it up with the cleaning and are you using a triple antibiotic ointment?

Thank you so much! I've been stalking the forums for months here and have also seen some pretty terrible wounds. Fingers crossed because I love this little guy. I've seen major improvement since this happened 4 days ago. And yes, I'm using Neosporin (without pain relief).

 

[lunagrove]

I also forgot to add... keep a close watch on the smell of his wounds and make sure flies can’t get to him. He may benefit from
anti-inflammatories. How much does he weigh? My hen, who was almost seven pounds at the time due to fluid build-up, did great on half a low dose aspirin for a few days. Maybe half that for silkie? Ibuprofen is also ok and we can help you with dosing.

I have been keeping a very close eye on them and smelling the wounds each day before I clean them. I'd love dosing info! He weighs around 4lbs. I wasnt sure if ibuprofen was okay or not- I've heard conflicting info and I didnt want to give him aspirin because he was bleeding. No more bleeding now though.

 

[lunagrove]

That is a pretty serious injury. I wonder what is causing the severe swelling on his neck? Is it from that smaller wound alone?

Good job with the penicillin injections!

Yes, I think at this point it is too late for sutures. The wound has been open to bacteria for too long, and closing it now could lead to a serious infection.

In the pictures of the injury on his back, what is that white colored area? Pus?

Keep applying the triple antibiotic.

Honestly, I'm not sure the wound will ever fully heal. There will be a lot of scar tissue, and he may have trouble walking (I am saying this because it looks deep and may affect the movement of his legs, but of course I may be wrong). I think that if you were to suture, even regular thread and needle would do in an emergency. Obviously not ideal but better than nothing.

I hope your rooster pulls through!

Edited to add: What @mistrachan said is good advice. An anti-inflammatory would probably help with the swelling on his neck.

I'm not 100% sure what the swelling came from but I do not believe it's from the puncture wound. I'm almost certain it's from the way the fox grabbed him and carried him off. My partner said when he saw the fox running away, he noticed the roo's neck hanging and slinging all over the place. The inflammation has gone down a little and he can hold his neck up longer as each day passes. He even started pecking at the syringe tonight which is a first!

I forgot to add that the white is triple antibiotic cream I had on hand before I opened a new tube of neosporin. I kinda like the cream better- it seems thicker and stays in place better (not as oily!). No pus as of yet, just very bruised and sore. He allowed me to remove remaining feathers in the wound today, hes such a trooper. He does walk okay, hes just sore and he stands up just fine. I'm really rooting for this guy the size of the wound on the back just concerns me but I did see a few threads where wounds this size have healed over. I feel so bad for him.