Duck attacked by hawk!

[AlexChicken]

Hi everyone! We have a 2 year old female muscovy who was just mauled by a hawk in our yard. We yelled him off of her but now she's wobbling around terrified. It's Sunday of course, so nobody is open to look at her.

She won't stand upright and when she tries to walk she will bobble side to side but has her wings out to catch herself (hopefully not a broken wing then??) but will still fall forward. I can't really get a good look at her legs buy it looks like the right one is twisted and dragging.

How do we differentiate between some sort of neck injury or a leg break? And at what point is supportive care no longer warrented and we should euthanize?

She seems to be holding her head up well and we have offered her some food and water but she's not interested yet. We haven't tried to pick her up yet because she's a little skittish in the first place and I don't want to outright injure her more.

Sorry for the novel and thanks in advance!

 

[AlexChicken]

 

[Amiga]

I would get her into a tub of lukewarm water. That will rinse the blood off and you can get a better look at her. I can appreciate your reluctance to further traumatize her.

At the same time, water can be soothing to a duck and help her begin to recover. Ducks can recover from awful injuries, given a chance.

I would look under the wings, around the legs and vet for puncture wounds.

Keep her in, away from flies as they'll lay eggs in open wounds.

Tub time will take weight off her legs - it could be a bad pull or sprain.

Electrolytes in her water can help her through the shock.

And if you post on the Duck Forum, more duck people may see it and add their wisdom.

@Captain Cluck

@casportpony
@Miss Lydia
@Orca5094

 

[AlexChicken]

I would get her into a tub of lukewarm water.  That will rinse the blood off and you can get a better look at her.  I can appreciate your reluctance to further traumatize her.

At the same time, water can be soothing to a duck and help her begin to recover.   Ducks can recover from awful injuries, given a chance.

I would look under the wings, around the legs and vet for puncture wounds. 

Keep her in, away from flies as they'll lay eggs in open wounds.

Tub time will take weight off her legs - it could be a bad pull or sprain.

Electrolytes in her water can help her through the shock.



And if you post on the Duck Forum, more duck people may see it and add their wisdom.

@Captain Cluck


@casportpony

@Miss Lydia

@Orca5094

Thank you! Completely wasn't even paying attention to the fact that it was chicken emergencies vs duck.

We let her settle for a while and brought her in; after she calmed doan we got a good look and we're almost positive it's a broken wing. She was so floppy and awkward walking though but seemed to become more alert and stable as we let her sit.

We're going to see how she does tonight and I'll be stopping to get some wrap and see if she'll let us set the wing. She does have some punctures on her face and chest but nothing too deep so I'm thinking they'll be fine. Thank you again.