6 weeks post injury from dog attack, still not laying

[andrea70]

6 weeks ago our family dog attacked one of our barred rock hens. We nursed her back to health & her feathers have almost all come back in. She has a bit of a limp still, she's eating & drinking well. Her comb is still pale. She has not laid an egg since she was injured. Is there anything I need to do or just let her be? Will she lay again? They are only 8 months old & she is one of 5 hens that we have. Thank you

 

[FoodFreedomNow]

6 weeks ago our family dog attacked one of our barred rock hens. We nursed her back to health & her feathers have almost all come back in. She has a bit of a limp still, she's eating & drinking well. Her comb is still pale. She has not laid an egg since she was injured. Is there anything I need to do or just let her be? Will she lay again? They are only 8 months old & she is one of 5 hens that we have. Thank you

Congratulations on your pullet's recovery! Assuming that the injury didn't affect her reproductive system, she may not be laying due to the resource-intensiveness of the recovery process; in addition, many chickens are molting (she's young, but it's not unheard of at her age) and their laying slows significantly this time of year due to the shorter daylight hours, so there could be other factors.

As long as she is getting a nutritionally-appropriate diet (I'd consider bumping up protein to help with recovery if she's eating 16% layer feed), time will tell.

 

[Eggcessive]

I have a hen who was injured seriously in August over a year ago. She was lame, lost feathers on wings and back, and suffering cuts. She immediately stopped laying, went through a molt, and later recovered. It took almost 4 months for her to resume laying, and instead of laying her normal hard shell extra large eggs every day, she has laid either shell-less or thin-shelled eggs ever since.
Hopefully, your hen will recover fully, but it just depends if any damage to internal organs has occurred. Providing good nutrition, fluids, helping her heal her wounds, and keeping her safe is all you can do. Good luck.

 

[andrea70]

Thank u for your messages. I will add more protein to her diet. She didn't appear to be injured anywhere other than the feathers being pulled out on her back & the limp in her leg. I'll keep a close eye on her. The others girls have definitely picked on her a bit, so I've been giving her special time & treats

 

[Eggcessive]

Let us know how she gets along, and good luck on her recovery. We had a couple of chickens injured when they were young and jumped our yard fence. I had good luck with the temporary use of a dog shock collar on my golden retriever who whouldn't leave the chickens alone. It only took 2 shocks and he would not even look at them afterward. The rest of out dogs learned from him that chickens were off limits, unless there were chicks under 2 months out.