Hi,
My favorite Barred Rock, Chickpea, was attacked today by what I think was a coyote. She is a big girl, but no idea how much she actually weighs. She had a beautiful huge tail that probably saved her life, and that tail is gone now. She has a HUGE tear in her skin/muscle, behind her wing all the way to her tail, and her tail is chewed up.
My husband heard her screaming and spooked the attacker away as he went through the woods to get to her. She ran up the mountain on her own, and was pecking for food immediately, trying to act fine while I caught her.
I brought her inside to inspect her wound and it looks pretty terrible, but the whole time, she was walking around and pecking at specks on the floor, and as soon as my daughter brought in food and water, she started eating and drinking! She is acting 100% fine, but does not look fine at all. Just by looks alone, we were more considering euthanizing, but her behavior made us reconsider.
Anyway, I washed the wound out with saline, then applied bactine, and my doctor friend actually came over and sutured her up, and we put antibiotic ointment all over her. Despite the stitches, she has lots of raw skin and open punctures. She is in a crate in the house right now.
My questions are: 1. does she need antibiotics? (I think so, but what is the best for a coyote bite? I know nothing about antibiotics for chickens.) I have penicillin pills for humans, but is it true that oral antibiotics are not ideal for this situation? Will she be ok until tomorrow afternoon when I can go to the ag store to get antibiotics, or should I try to give her part of a crushed pill now? She eats anything, and I bet she'd eat it.
2. How long do we keep her inside? Her wounds are awful and despite the stitches, there are several deep punctures and raw open sores. How long should we just leave her to rest indoors before we try to put her back outside? It's currently winter here in western NC, in the teens at night and anywhere between 20-55 during the day--will she freeze at night without her tail? Will her tail ever regrow? It was so magnificent, almost like a tom turkey before.
3. What do we do about keeping her integrated with the flock? Should we put her back in the run in her dog crate during the day and bring her into the house at night only? For how long?
4. Should I cover the wounds at some point? Doctor friend thought to leave them open and not trap germs inside, but at some point would I want to cover them if she goes back outside? If so, HOW do I even bandage a chicken?!
Thanks in advance!
My favorite Barred Rock, Chickpea, was attacked today by what I think was a coyote. She is a big girl, but no idea how much she actually weighs. She had a beautiful huge tail that probably saved her life, and that tail is gone now. She has a HUGE tear in her skin/muscle, behind her wing all the way to her tail, and her tail is chewed up.
My husband heard her screaming and spooked the attacker away as he went through the woods to get to her. She ran up the mountain on her own, and was pecking for food immediately, trying to act fine while I caught her.
I brought her inside to inspect her wound and it looks pretty terrible, but the whole time, she was walking around and pecking at specks on the floor, and as soon as my daughter brought in food and water, she started eating and drinking! She is acting 100% fine, but does not look fine at all. Just by looks alone, we were more considering euthanizing, but her behavior made us reconsider.
Anyway, I washed the wound out with saline, then applied bactine, and my doctor friend actually came over and sutured her up, and we put antibiotic ointment all over her. Despite the stitches, she has lots of raw skin and open punctures. She is in a crate in the house right now.
My questions are: 1. does she need antibiotics? (I think so, but what is the best for a coyote bite? I know nothing about antibiotics for chickens.) I have penicillin pills for humans, but is it true that oral antibiotics are not ideal for this situation? Will she be ok until tomorrow afternoon when I can go to the ag store to get antibiotics, or should I try to give her part of a crushed pill now? She eats anything, and I bet she'd eat it.
2. How long do we keep her inside? Her wounds are awful and despite the stitches, there are several deep punctures and raw open sores. How long should we just leave her to rest indoors before we try to put her back outside? It's currently winter here in western NC, in the teens at night and anywhere between 20-55 during the day--will she freeze at night without her tail? Will her tail ever regrow? It was so magnificent, almost like a tom turkey before.
3. What do we do about keeping her integrated with the flock? Should we put her back in the run in her dog crate during the day and bring her into the house at night only? For how long?
4. Should I cover the wounds at some point? Doctor friend thought to leave them open and not trap germs inside, but at some point would I want to cover them if she goes back outside? If so, HOW do I even bandage a chicken?!
Thanks in advance!