Bobcat attack :(

[kjkchicks]

Last night we had a bobcat grab two of our 7 week old ducklings through the fence and kill them . Luckily our adult ducks were untouched. We brought the other two inside and discovered that one of them has been hurt. He has a gash on his wing and it looks like his leg is torn or something. I can't get a really good look at it because they were raised by their mother and are pretty afraid of us. When I try to get too close they run away or start flapping around and peeping like crazy if I pick them up. I let him have a swim in the bathtub to clean it off and he seems lively and not lethargic or anything. But he is limping. We put them back outside this morning. We are putting more protection on the pen today. I just don't know if I should be doing anything else for him or just let him try to heal it himself?

 

[Miss Lydia]

Last night we had a bobcat grab two of our 7 week old ducklings through the fence and kill them

. Luckily our adult ducks were untouched. We brought the other two inside and discovered that one of them has been hurt. He has a gash on his wing and it looks like his leg is torn or something. I can't get a really good look at it because they were raised by their mother and are pretty afraid of us. When I try to get too close they run away or start flapping around and peeping like crazy if I pick them up. I let him have a swim in the bathtub to clean it off and he seems lively and not lethargic or anything. But he is limping. We put them back outside this morning. We are putting more protection on the pen today. I just don't know if I should be doing anything else for him or just let him try to heal it himself?

He's going to be awfully stressed if you separate him from the rest so maybe catching him long enough to examine and see how bad the wounds are and if they need treated. Infection is the enemy now, so making sure the wounds are clean and the bleeding has stopped is important. So sorry for your loss, and good that your reinforcing your pen, anything as small as a weasel can and will grab a duck through the fence if they can. Matter of fact it is saidd a weasel or mink can get through 1" wire so it's amazing something else hasn't gotten them before now. Hardware cloth is the best for protection from grabbing and somehow making sure preds can't dig under or climb over is another source of worry. If you have to treat there is triple antibiotic and also veterycin spray make sure what ever you use doesn't have pain killer in that ends with caine.

 

[kjkchicks]

Can I buy these antibiotics from a feed store or do I have to go to a vet? Thank you for your reply! I will look into hardware cloth. We had them in a pen with chicken wire and never had any problems. But we just moved them to a new pen with no climb fencing but the gaps are a bit bigger. I guess we learned our lesson

 

[Miss Lydia]

Can I buy these antibiotics from a feed store or do I have to go to a vet? Thank you for your reply! I will look into hardware cloth. We had them in a pen with chicken wire and never had any problems. But we just moved them to a new pen with no climb fencing but the gaps are a bit bigger. I guess we learned our lesson

triple antibiotic is very cheap and you can buy it at dollar stores etc, Veterycin spray is a bit pricey but worth the extra money only because it can be used around the face and is excellent to use to keep infections at bay and can be used on parts of the body where other things might not work so well. it can be bought at most Tractor supply stores and some feed stores. Don't rule out antibiotics by mouth also just keep an eye on the wounds. make sure it has plenty of fresh water and feed and might want to pick up some electrolytes to add to their water just to help during the stress. they can be gotten at TSC and feed stores too. It's always so heart breaking when we think we got it right and find out we didn't, but now you know what you need to do so the others will be safe. If you decide to use an antibiotic which may not be necessary Penicillin added to water is what is rec for blood born infections. Please post updates and will be thinking about your duckling and hoping he makes complete recovery.

 

[kjkchicks]

I had a really hard time finding any topical antibiotics. I even went to a couple vet offices. I ended up getting some powder tetracycline hcl. Do you think this will help? And if I give it to the one duckling in his water will it be ok for the other one to drink the same water?

 

[Miss Lydia]

I had a really hard time finding any topical antibiotics. I even went to a couple vet offices. I ended up getting some powder tetracycline hcl. Do you think this will help? And if I give it to the one duckling in his water will it be ok for the other one to drink the same water?

http://www.walgreens.com/store/c/walgreens-triple-antibiotic-ointment/ID=prod5383838-product this is one of the things i was talking about, I'd use an antibiotic as last resort internal. but if you feel it's necessary then go by your gut. It's going to cause gut issues so I'd offer some kind of probiotic while giving it in their water. you can find powdered probiotics at feed stores.
http://vetericyn.com/technology/

http://www.cvs.com/shop/product-detail/CVS-Triple-Antibiotic-Ointment?skuId=482648

 

[kjkchicks]

Well he seems to be doing well! I did opt to give him a little bit of the antibiotics. He is limping a lot less. However, he and his brother have been hanging out inside their house since yesterday which I find odd because they haven't really wanted to be in there since they got a bit older. But as far as I can tell they haven't left the house in a bit. For the couple of days after the attack they still chose to be outside. But not anymore. It's strange. They seem happy though when I check on them

 

[Miss Lydia]

Well he seems to be doing well! I did opt to give him a little bit of the antibiotics. He is limping a lot less. However, he and his brother have been hanging out inside their house since yesterday which I find odd because they haven't really wanted to be in there since they got a bit older. But as far as I can tell they haven't left the house in a bit. For the couple of days after the attack they still chose to be outside. But not anymore. It's strange. They seem happy though when I check on them

Maybe they know the bob cat is still lurking around, did you reinforce their enclousure? They can pick up on things we can't. Glad to hear he is doing better.

 

[kjkchicks]

Yeah they are safer now. And they were outside when I came home

 

[Miss Lydia]

Yeah they are safer now. And they were outside when I came home