Dog licked chick almost to death, now what? *Update*

[juniperyogi]

Update in last post


My partner came home yesterday to find our 6 week old buff out in the yard and not moving. It appears as though the dog layed in the grass, put her between his paws, and licked her whole left side over and over. Her head on that side has been licked raw and bloody. Her vent is missing all the little fluff and is bloody and raw. Her eye on that side last night was swollen but open, this morning it is swollen shut and she is limping to turn around to see me when I open the box.

We cleaned her off with saline solution, and gave her rescue remedy, electrolite water, and mashed food. She's up and walking htis morning, but limping, not making a sound, and her one eye is shut. Is it possible she could have an eardrum burst? Since she's not making noise I'm worried she's lost her hearing. She will take water out of a dropper, but is not so into food.

I have searched and searched but can not find anything on a chick being almost licked to death. He didnt' bite her, but he has this strange facination with just her, not the other two. He picked her up out of thebrooder a couple of weeks ago and we found her dazed and wet in the garage. WHen they are all outside he follows only her. I am wondering if she does end up becoming blind and or deaf, what are the consiquences?

 

[Hangin Wit My Peeps]

Oh wow...that is very strange I have to say. Sounds like you did everything right and now it's just a waiting game. Poor girl. I wish you the best with her. Hope someone can give you answers on your questions.

 

[CoopCrazy]

If she does end up up deaf or blind in that eye/ear she should be fine.. I have seen blind chickens that do great and the only worry I would have about being deaf is arial predators, since she wont hear them...

I would just keep an eye on her and keep trying to get food in her scrambled eggs are very nutritious and shoudl help to pep her up...

ETA she may not be making noise because she is still in shock.. Maybe put her somewhere dark and quiet for the night and see how she is tommorow

 

[CMV]

Sorry about your baby. You have done everything you can do at this point and will just have to wait and see. If she is blind and deaf (which seems unlikely) she will manage (probably) without intervention. There are many tales on her of animals that have adapted to each handicap with little difficulty. Long term- don't make any drastic changes to the environment in which your baby lives and she will make a mental map of her area and be able to locate all the resources. Good luck and best wishes for a speedy recovery.

 

[AHappychick]

sounds like you are doing all you can. I would give a probiotic mash of yogurt, hardboiled egg (yolk only) some shredded apples and starter feed (all same amounts of each) This will help boost here immune system and give her the strength needed to recover. So sorry, but I think she will heal but the dog will probably kill her if there is a next time. You wont know if there is any long term damage for a while, I would look into making a sweater out of a sock to keep her skin covered.

Good Luck!

 

[juniperyogi]

Quote:
We just had a coop dropped off last night. It was made by the same couple who sell the chickens. He said to let the others out in the coop after a couple of days, but wait on her until we see some sort of recovery. I'm nervous that having the other chickens knowing the new coop setup will not be easy on her. She is the mother hen for sure. I just brought her in the house and put her in a box on the table with food and water so I can watch her. NOW she's talking loudly and keeps running into the wall of the box on her bad side, like her equalibrium is off and she can't move right, so she's not eating or drinking because she can't seem to even find it with one eye!. I tried to feed her water out of a dropper, she took some.. D. and I both have to go to work this morning and won't be home until around 6 or 7 this evening. Ugh, I feel like I'm leaving an injured baby on it's own. I AM leaving an injured babe on it's own. I wonder what work would say if I brought a chicken in...

 

[Gypsi]

If it's temperate, you could put her box in the seat of your car. (smile) I've done it with dogs & cats. One at a time.

 

[juniperyogi]

I made a mash of hard boiled egg yolk and yogurt, she caught on after a while, but we had to spoon it to her and water is still through a dropper. D. is going to take her to work and keep her in the car so he can keep her fed and watered. She gets so tired, she falls asleep standing up and her head on the ground. It's like she refuses to lay down. D. named her Wonderwoman after last night, but I said we should avoid naming them as this is all to emotional for chickens. If we name them now I'm afraid I'll get to attached if one dies. We were both tearing up last night as it was.

 

[Sam The Yam]

That happened to my silkie once. It was pretty bad. She even had a large gash in her neck. I got some of that purple spray medication and kept the wounds sprayed with that. She survived and is healthy as can be now. Feathers have fully grown in and she is beautiful. I was very lucky.

 

[drumstick diva]

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