Dog caught one of the chicks

[Jtp79]

The chickens are about 6 weeks old and we plan on moving them outside to the coop this weekend. Yesterday my 10 year old called me squalling. They had went home to change for ball practice and the dog came out of the basement with a chicken in its mouth. Im guessing it got out of the cage when she was watering and feeding yesterday morning and she didnt notice when she locked it up. We have 21 chicks btw

Of course her favorite "tiny" by name was the one the dog got. The dog picked it up in its mouth, ran around the yard,dropped the chicken, picked it back up and ran some more. There were no puncture wounds in the chicken. This happened about 24 hours ago. The chicken is breathing and there was no blood. Since being put back in the cage it has just laid around. It doesnt appear to be struggling to breathe. It does limp when it walks, it has walked some on its own but very little. It limps when it does walk.

Is there anything I can to to help it? Im hoping it just needs time to recover. We have not seen it eat or drink since this happened. We offered food by hand but it showed no interest.

Anything I can do other than wait? The chickens are about 6 weeks old I belive and the size of a small basketball. They are not tiny anymore by any means and are eating like crazy.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

A few years ago when my boxer was a pup she played toss the chickens with a few birds. They were pretty quiet the first week. They didn't eat much, and they looked miserable. By the second week they looked better and by the third week I released them back in the flock to heal fully. Depending on how much squeezing and shaking your dog will determine if they will be okay and how long it takes. I let mine be with water and feed close by. Generally if they live through that first 24 hours they recover. So just keep it quiet and comfortable, keep it within sight of the rest of the chicks and give it time.

 

[Chicken Chat]

I'm so sorry. If you don't see any outward injury, it is probably in shock. The little one is going to need some tlc and some rest. You may want to dropper some nutri drench or maybe some electolytes onto its bill to help. Good luck.