Dog attack! He seems ok, but

[AmyBella]

What can I do for him? Are there specific things I should look out for? I didn't see what happened... just the dog running off.

I gave him 3 drops of rescue remedy before I checked him over. I found him after a half hour of searching. He was right on the deck in an empty planter. Poor guy lost a lot of feathers and most of his beautiful iridescent tail feathers. Even so, it was super hard to look through all the feathers that were left for injury! Nothing is broken. There is no blood or puncture wounds that I could see apart from a scrape on his shank. He's panting from time to time, but totally alert and making mischief. He's crowing his head off now, two hours later! I have never been so happy to hear that noise... he is such a good, sweet, boy. I never intended to keep any roosters, but this guy is extra special.

 

[Lollipop]

As long as he`s acting OK and not having any breathing rattles, or wheezing, he should be fine. May take a while to get all those nice feathers back, though. Be sure to take precautions for that dogs return. He will, ya know.......Pop

 

[theFox]

Make sure you check him all over for any wounds that are bleeding, if you find any clean the wounds and blue kote them. Chickens go bonkers in the pecking department if they see blood and it escalates if they get a taste. You already have enough to deal with and will not need any more issues.

The advice about the dog being back is spot on.

Good luck with your roo, chances are that other than a momentary shock everything will be fine.

 

[Akita]

My rooster was badly attacked by a dog, and I had to keep him fed and hydrated for about a week after the attack. I swear by Gatorade Rain - he still loves it to this day. I credit it with saving his life. We did give him Baytril injections and fed him raw egg yoke - but the Gatorade Rain worked like a charm to keep him alive for that first week.

Has anyone ever seen a condition called Bumblefoot? My rooster had that over the summer (says his vet) and actually lost a toe. He's ok now, but it sure did take a long time for him to get better.
Dorie

 

[Carel]

AmyBella-
I've had several chickens attacked by dogs. Twice, they have lived even though they were injured. I find that if they are killed they are incredibly resillient. One got a good bite puncture in the side but she lived. She was just a little shocky for a couple days. More recently, a dog got ahold of one of my chickens and literally filleted her right ride. But, amazingly, after laying there for a while she got up and limped over to her group. She was sore for a few days but is perfectly fine today. They can really be amazing. I poured some hydroxide on her the first day - that was it. Hope this makes you feel better.

Carel

 

[AmyBella]

My Big Boy is totally fine, I am so relieved! Yesterday I watched him for almost the entire day... pretty normal... every once in a while he would silently pant, but not today. I looked him over again and apart from the scrape on his shin which doesn't seem to be bothering him, there is not a mark on him.

I decided to get that plastic fencing to go across the end of my driveway... that will take care of the access point for this dog. The rest of my yard is pretty protected... a river wraps around it. There is no way I could fence the whole thing. Of course, the river brings a whole different set of predators- fisher cats, racoons...

Thanks, everyone!