First hawk attack

[KRack]

I'm still struggling to bring this little girl back to health. She was doing really well after she came out of shock very talkative and eating and drinking on her own her balance wasn't too bad. A week or so went by and she slowly stopped eating and drinking. She's getting super thin and her eye is huge and glued shut. Balance is horrible.

I tried doing multiple warm compresses to try to loosen the eye lids and putting Neosporin on it but that hasn't been doing anything. So I picked up an antibiotic that was supposed to be better than terramycin I read somewhere. It's called aqua zithro. We're on day four of me syringing about 3 to 4 ml. Then giving it to her for about 4 days and it hasn't really been doing too much that I've noticed. So I ordered the terramycin and have been giving that to her on her eye in addition. I hope that's ok. I've also been giving her one tab of B complex for the last 4 days and medicine dropping raw egg because she won't eat scrambled. I did put yogurt in with her but I don't know if she actually ate it. It looked like there was less than what I had given her but I don't know if the water content evaporated causing it to look like that. I'm really trying everything. Did I screw something up here? Also I saw what seemed to be a bug crawl across her eye but it could have been my imagination. It could have been dander it was tiny and white. I looked under her wings and her butt but I didn't see anything at all. And she's been inside ever since so I'm not really sure if she does have bugs. I gave her a bath anyway with Dawn's soap blow-dried her. While doing this I noticed there's a bare spot on top of her wing that I hadn't noticed before. It doesn't look inflamed it just looks like bone. I sprayed it with vetercyn just in case.

I need honest feedback did I make a mistake with the antibiotics? I'm trying everything and I feel like I'm failing her. I'm starting to cry just using speech to text here.

Is there anything I can do at this point or should I just put her down?

I would avoid baths while she’s so fragile, but I’m no expert. I just think they stress the birds more. Have you ever wormed her?

Someone else will have to comment about the eye, but I wanted to share what eggcessive shared with me when I was recently in a similar spot. I syringe fed my hen raw egg and she ate that, but I also made little food balls (like dough balls) of feed and water and put them in her beak to mash up and swallow. Then I’d give her dropper fulls of water (just alongside her beak) and she’d drink. This was how she lived for a while because she refused to eat on her own. But it worked!

I’m so sorry you’re in this spot. I’ll be praying for your sweet girl!

 

[LizGio]

I would avoid baths while she’s so fragile, but I’m no expert. I just think they stress the birds more. Have you ever wormed her?

Someone else will have to comment about the eye, but I wanted to share what eggcessive shared with me when I was recently in a similar spot. I syringe fed my hen raw egg and she ate that, but I also made little food balls (like dough balls) of feed and water and put them in her beak to mash up and swallow. Then I’d give her dropper fulls of water (just alongside her beak) and she’d drink. This was how she lived for a while because she refused to eat on her own. But it worked!

I’m so sorry you’re in this spot. I’ll be praying for your sweet girl!

Thank you for your reply. I only give her a bath because I thought I saw bugs on her. It must have been my imagination though but wanted to be on the safe side. And she actually seemed to enjoy it a little bit. She's used to being inside now and me being very hands-on with her as it's been weeks since the attack. I have not wormed her. And I have been feeding and syringing her since noticing she hasn't been eating and drinking on her own. I actually just bought more crumbles to make crumble balls like you describe.

 

[KRack]

Thank you for your reply. I only give her a bath because I thought I saw bugs on her. It must have been my imagination though but wanted to be on the safe side. And she actually seemed to enjoy it a little bit. She's used to being inside now and me being very hands-on with her as it's been weeks since the attack. I have not wormed her. And I have been feeding and syringing her since noticing she hasn't been eating and drinking on her own. I actually just bought more crumbles to make crumble balls like you describe.

Oh that’s great! I saw you were syringe feeding but didn’t see the crumble balls.

I realize she’s been through a lot, so we’ll see what someone more experienced thinks. After losing a really thin hen to worms that’s always one of the first things I try to rule out, but I understand there’s a bit more to her story than just that.

Best of luck!! I’m really rooting for you both.

 

[LizGio]

You didn't miss the crumble ball I didn't include it yet as I haven't got that far I did manage to pop some pellets down though

 

[Wyorp Rock]

If you think she's got bugs on her, then dust her with Permethrin instead of giving a bath.

She's needs fluids and nutrition.

How much are you tubing or syringing into her each day? Juvenile birds need about 10% of their body weight several times a day.

Her poop is likely like that due to not eating. I'd be tempted to treat her coccidiosis as well.
See that her crop is emptying overnight.

You're putting ointment in her eye, is it still infected or you're just putting ointment in her eye to keep it from sticking together?

I don't know about the Aqua Zithro dosing, never have used it, this may help.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...ive-my-4-pound-chicken.1299848/#post-24898452

How to crop feed
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/crop-feeding.75454/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...ely-molting-hen.1437023/page-20#post-23839502

 

[LizGio]

Eye still infected when she opens it, it is completely cloudy

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I'd work on flushing the eye with saline and applying ointment in the eye 2-3 times a day.

I'm sorry to hear she's not improving.

 

[LizGio]

Just to put things into perspective she weights 1 lb 1oz

 

[LizGio]

She was hatched at the end of july

 

[LizGio]

A definite decrease