Chicken attacked 3 days ago is now yawning, is this normal?!

[Raachhh]

My red star was found laying in the grass at 3 am, 3 days ago, missing an eye and with a pretty bad gash under her wing. She's about 2-3 years old and is doing okay: eating, drinking, pooping, even laying eggs. Just tonight I noticed she appeared to be yawning every 10 seconds or so. I know chickens do this to move contents out of their crop or if they have gape worms, but do i need to perform some kind of immediate intervention or should I just wait a day or 2 to see if she stops. I love this chicken so much and don't want anything to happen to her, i don't know if this is normal behavior as I've never seen her do it before. I was feeding her grower/finisher crumble after the attack because it would be easier for her to eat instead of pellets since she has some trauma to her face. I took this away just now in case she has too much in her crop, to give it time to empty. She ate scrambled eggs about 24 hours ago. Her water is mixed with honey and ACV (with "the mother"). I have only been raising chickens for a little over a year and have NEVER had any health issues with them. Any help would be greatly appreciated, and i thank you veteran poultry raisers for your time.

 

[getaclue]

Check in the morning, to see how her crop feels. It should feel empty. If not, that's a problem. If it's empty, I would suspect infection as a result of her attack. Try Tylan 50 which is injectable, but you can use a dosage syringe and give it orally. 1/2 ml for every 5 lb of weight, 1/4 ml for bantam, 1 ml for over 5 lb. daily for 5 days.

 

[Raachhh]

Crop feels empty... In fact I can't feel a crop at all... Is that normal?? Is it just really, really empty?? The "yawning" has stopped... She seems fine, other than the injuries from the attack. I plan to continue with her high protein, soft food diet. Should i add chick grit?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Crop feels empty... In fact I can't feel a crop at all... Is that normal?? Is it just really, really empty?? The "yawning" has stopped... She seems fine, other than the injuries from the attack. I plan to continue with her high protein, soft food diet. Should i add chick grit?

How old is she?

It's good that the crop emptied overnight and she is no longer yawning. If she is a chick, then chick sized grit offer free choice is a good idea. If she is an adult, provide "poultry grit" or regular size.

I would continue to give her the grower/finisher (what's the protein%?), if she's having trouble eating it, you can always make it into a wet mash. Egg is fine to add along with the feed.

How are her injuries healing up?

 

[getaclue]

You mentioned she's 2 years old, or older, so use poultry grit, not chick grit. Grower feed is fine, along with free choice oyster shell. I like to use triple antibiotic ointment without pain relief on wounds. Since she has quit yawning, that's a good sign. I'd simply keep the ointment on the wounds for now. It is normal after an attack, for the chicken to be in a bit of shock for awhile. Sounds like yours will pull through fine.

 

[micstrachan]

I think you are doing a great job and have nothing to add and am just here for moral support. The fact that she stopped the yawning motion is great; I suspect it was crop related.

 

[Raachhh]

So the yawning thing started again tonight.... Still can't feel a crop... I don't think she's eating too much because now that she's missing an eye, it's hard for her to see where the food is i think. I got some vetRx for her but I'm not even sure what's wrong with her to know if that will help. Could it be gapeworm?? What dewormer do y'all recommend that covers intestinal parasites as well as gapeworm? Also tylan 50 says it's for cattle and swine only, but it's okay for chickens? I'm new to poultry veterinary treatments, i just really want this chicken to live... This is the first issue I've had with any of my birds

 

[Raachhh]

Also, chick grit is all i have at the moment so is that safe to give her or should i hold off until i can get grit for standard sized birds? I do have oyster shell to give her but i dont know if that has the same effect. The pieces just seem so big

 

[getaclue]

I wouldn't start worrying about gapeworm yet. She's been through major trauma, and has lost an eye. First, be concerned about infection. There may be internal injuries that have not become fully apparent yet, but let's hope not. Keep her isolated, at a good temperature, and keep an eye on her.

 

[Raachhh]

Yeah i definitely want to get something for her to protect against infection or treat her possibly already existing condition. Will the VetRx help or should i get something stronger? VetRx technically isn't a medication