1 month old chick attacked by hen. Now is lethargic

[saseals]

I have 6 chicks that are 6-7 weeks old. We put them in the outside pen on Tuesday to get them used to it. My only other chicken is a 2 year old Golden Comet who has been by herself for a few months since my other chicken passed away (that is why we were excited to introduce her to new friends). The chicks had a box that they could hide in if they were scared. We left them in the pen all afternoon. We locked them in a cage in the coop with her overnight. I took them out and put them in the run the next morning. Everything was fine, and she didn't mess with them at all. I came back later that afternoon and 3 of the 6 were bloody. 2 of them had been pecked on the back and had feathers pulled out. One of them had been pecked real bad on the head. The one that was pecked on the head has passed away. The worst of the other 2 has recovered and is running around with the 3 uninjured ones. The third one (yellow chick) was not as injured, but she is very lethargic. She was standing by herself with her eyes closed all of the time. When the other 4 kept getting playing and running over her, I put her in a smaller cage inside of their cage. So she is "with" them, but isolated. All 5 are in the house with a 75 watt bulb for warmth. Yellow chick has been laying around and sleeping. When I pick her up and she gets agitated, she will stand up and walk over and eat/drink. She seems to be eating/drinking as much as the others. She just won't stand or move around.

Is there something else I can do? I feel terrible that they are hurt, because I am the one who put them in there. I read on the internet that folks give their chickens gatoraid. I just gave her some of that. Any advice would be great. I hate to see her just lay there and give up. Could she just be taking it easy while her wounds heal? (they are scabbed over and she is growing feathers).

Sorry for the long post. I was trying to make sure I had all of the information included.

 

[La_TomboyGirl]

I don't let mine have access to each other until they are of adult size because, as you saw, if the older bird(s) decide to start the "pecking order", they are no match & can get hurt. In the future, if you are contemplating anything that you aren't sure about, or safety could be iffy, maybe you could post for an opinion first just to be sure. I'm really glad I've had all these more experienced Chickenfolks to turn to for help myself!

That said, I'd check the scabby areas, clean them with peroxide, & put some vaseline all over the scabs or bare areas where the feathers were pulled out. Reapply a thin layer of the vaseline once or twice a day as needed. Take some extra time to talk to her & love on her throughout the day, so she doesn't feel lonely. (Maybe it sounds crazy, but that's what I did! I think people & animals do better if they know they are loved.) I had a hen that was nearly killed by a dog, which ripped out almost 1/2 her feathers, & the skin was getting hard & dried out, so that's what I did. I fed her scrambled eggs, plain yogurt, along with the regular food, & you could get some polyvisol WITHOUT IRON. I've never used it, but a lot of folks on here say to use it when chicks are down. The Gatoraid, idk about that. I've never read about it, but it seems like it might be too sugary. I would try some Pedialyte, or a generic version of the Pedialyte , unflavored. You give it to infants/small kids when they are sick for hydration. You can get it @ Walmart, Walgreens, most drugstores. That might be your safest bet. Most importantly, make sure she's drinking & eating even if you have to help her out. I sure hope everything works out for the best. I'm sorry that it happened. Keep us posted, please! Best wishes....