Bad roo, poor hen, lightening strikes twice

[azygous]

What are the odds of a three-week old baby chick getting scalped by a rooster https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/healing-a-severely-injured-baby-chick.71976/ and eight years later, having the same thing happen again?

My eight-year old Speckled Sussex hen Geobett got scalped by the junior rooster today. He's been working up to this and I should have taken more seriously his obsession with her.

Toots, a three-year old EE/Cream Legbar mix, generally chases down Geobett until she submits, but this time, he cornered her in the coop. When I responded to what sounded like a bobcat trying to break out of a wooden crate, I found Geobett with all the skin ripped off her head and Toots standing at the ready to finish her off.

I cleaned her head with Veterycin wound spray, let it dry and loaded the wound with triple antibiotic ointment. Just as I did eight years ago, I'll spend the next six weeks, cleaning the wound twice a day and keeping it moist with the ointment.

No, I'm not going to kill him, but he's lost run privileges. He's lucky I'll let him sleep in the coop come night.

 

[Sequel]

I don't know whether to laugh or cry!!! I'm sorry for your poor hen but him standing there wearing a sign is really funny!

 

[azygous]

I also took the Dremmel to his beak and spurs, filed the spurs down to just short of the quick, and almost that much on his beak. He was pretty composed during this operation, but the sign ended up freaking him out. Can you sense how terrible I feel about putting him through such stress?

 

[Sequel]

I also took the Dremmel to his beak and spurs, filed the spurs down to just short of the quick, and almost that much on his beak. He was pretty composed during this operation, but the sign ended up freaking him out. Can you sense how terrible I feel about putting him through such stress?

Oh he's darn lucky he didn't get processed!

 

[Tortoise]

I don't know whether to laugh or cry!!! I'm sorry for your poor hen but him standing there wearing a sign is really funny!

My thought exactly.

 

[WannaBeHillBilly]

I don't know whether to laugh or cry!!! I'm sorry for your poor hen but him standing there wearing a sign is really funny!

I laughed first, but then swallowed really hard when i saw that poor hen! I hope she's gonna make it!

Oh he's darn lucky he didn't get processed!

That was my third thought! He deserves to burn in char-coal grill hell!

 

[Trux]

Bad, Bad, Bad Toots

 

[Eggcessive]

So sorry about your scalped hen Azygous. I hope that she gets beeter, and glad that he didn’t kill her. Toots looks pretty pitiful with his sign, but it serves him right to be banished from the hens.

 

[CindyinSD]

If he were mine, he’d be in my instant pot tonight. Literally.

 

[Kris5902]

I also took the Dremmel to his beak and spurs, filed the spurs down to just short of the quick, and almost that much on his beak. He was pretty composed during this operation, but the sign ended up freaking him out. Can you sense how terrible I feel about putting him through such stress?

Ummm? Putting him through such stress? I wouldn’t feel too badly about it considering what he did to the poor hen! She’s going to be under a whole lot of stress healing that up. He’s a very, very lucky boy that he’s still breathing, I’m sure many others wouldn’t give him another chance. I’m not sure what I would do in your place... but the sign is adorable!