Dog mauled my chicken, please help

[mark2eye]

Today my german shepherd who has shown no interest in my chickens in the past walked up with our most beloved 2 year old barred rock chicken in his mouth.

After he let her go I noticed the lacerations from her lower back to her vent. the feathers are almost completely gone and so is the skin around her tail and I can see a good amount of exposed tissue. Her left foot also seemed to be loosely clenched and whenever she tried to walk she would fall over. I don't think there is a broken bone as everything is still straight and there are no protrusions.

After the accident I was in a bit of a panic and cleaned her wounds with hydrogen peroxide, dried it, and applied neosporin. Since, I have also given her some electrolyte supplement in her water with one tablet of 325 mg aspirin. I also gave her some fresh corn mixed with antibiotics.

I really don't want to lose her and would sincerely appreciate any information on what I should and shouldn't do. Please help, thank you.

Here are some general questions I have:

1) should i clean her wound everyday with a saline wash and reapply neosporin. or just reapply neosporin?
2) what should i do about her leg if it doesn't seem to be broken but obviously hurt



Thank you for your time.

 

[CrazyChickens09]

best thing is to keep her warm and in a quiet place to reduce stress and try and keep Neosporin on it.. She probably will use her leg again as it maybe just a simple it hurts or she may always a limp like my bantam cochin hen did after her dog attack.

 

[mark2eye]

thank you she is resting in my restroom as we speak.

 

[CrazyChickens09]

I had just about the same thing happen last year.. dang dog grabbed my banty hen. She as white as snow and my dad asked when I dyed my chicken pink.. took awhile to process then went screaming to find my dog and she had my hen in her mouth..it looked a lot worse than it was but I brought her into the house, put her in a cat carrier and kept her warm(not hot) and gave her some electrolyte drink mix and gave her some every couple of hours and then free choice at night. She survived but had a pretty good limp when walking but chasing but you couldn't tell anything happened.

 

[mark2eye]

o thats awful im glad shes okay though. Hopefully all will be well here.I'll try to update soon

 

[Nutcase]

Oh your poor chicken! I hope she recovers okay. Don't forget to keep her hydrated!

 

[cntrywmnkw]

Sorry to hear about your baby. I had my flock attacked by a pack of dogs last summer & they killed 2 & injured my SLW, she had most of the feathers on her back gone & 2 gashes on the sides of her back, I irrigated wounds with a weak solution of Epsom Salts & warm water, 3-4 times a day & kept her inside house for almost 3 weeks. My DBF built her a recoup pen so she could go outside & get some sun & eat grass & bugs without other big girls picking on her. We didn't think she'd ever walk again, but she's find now. See my post Silver Laced Wyandotte attacked by dog. Good luck, again, sorry about your girl. Just out of curiosity, what happened to dog?

 

[mark2eye]

The dog got a serious reprimanding and is never going to be allowed around chickens again. So, is it a good idea to irrigate the wound daily?

 

[cntrywmnkw]

I did for several days, just to make sure there wasn't any infection. I DID take her a vet (make sure it's one who is familiar with chickens) to find out about her not being able to use leg & about infections. He examined her, gave her an antibiotic shot & said that the leg should return to normal, which it has, completely. My DBF & I really thought we'd have a "special needs" chicken, but she's fine now. Keep her warm & safe & give her LOTS of treats if she'll take them. It'll take time, but she should do better in a few weeks.

Good luck with your girl. Keep an eye on that dog, don't ever trust it again.

 

[mark2eye]

Thought I'd give a daily update to all those who have been kind enough to help and concerned enough to care. And also in the hope that this thread may help someone in the future.

Today my barred rock, who's referred to around the house as crooked comb seems to be more alert. She did have some heavy breathing this morning which caused some concern but since then that has improved a bit. She's eating and drinking regularly and even devoured a large amount of yogurt. In addition she stood up for a while which made me very happy and even had it in her to lay an egg. I reexamined her wound and it's clear that the nub of her tail is severed from her back.

Stitches seem like they would be futile as there's a wide gap between the two parts, but I'm no vet so i'd appreciate if anyone can give me some insight into whether or not the wound will heal without stitches. (picture posted below)

I have been giving her cephlaxin an antibiotic three times daily roughly 125 mg each time. I have also given her about the same amount aspirin once daily



in her water and cleaning her wounds twice daily with saline and neosporin. I'd appreciate any additional info or advice from those in the chicken community who have been so kind and thoughtful. Thanks