Something horrible has happened to my golden boy :-( Godzilla had a tiny bit of what looked like frostbite on his comb this morning, just a couple small oozy spots, which didn't worry me too much. I did some chores outside an hour ago and he was fine. I went back out just now and his entire head and neck are covered in blood! I've moved him into a dog crate in the house, and put some gentamycin ointment on his comb and wattles. I feared with him being so banged up, the cold might do him in tonight. I plan to give him some yogurt, maybe with some raw honey mixed in. I don't have any injectable penicillin, but I do have 500mg cephalexin caps, does anyone know the proper amount? I could grind them up and put them in some food. I have no idea how this happened, I haven't seen anyone messing with him. Some of the wounds on his comb look like rooster-fighting stuff, I suspect our 2lb banty has beaten the tar out of this 14lb boy :-( And yes, he really is 14lbs, I stepped on the scale when I brought him in! These birds are supposed to be for meat and eggs, but I absolutely adore Godzilla, and I want him to make some giant chicks in the springtime I'd strongly prefer not to cull him, and I think he'll pull through, but I'm so worried:-( An amusing tidbit, DBF says he is suprised at himself over this. Suprised at how willing he is to go immediately cull Captain Nasty (the bad banty), suprised at how he feels about our giant boy
Most comb injuries do not require antibiotics. I would just monitor him and keep him separated so he can heal up alright.
I've went out before and found my big ol leghorn boy COVERED in blood. I brough him in and cleaned him up and found a small little cut on the tip of his wattles. I looked him over but found nada, just that little tiny cut.
I wouldn't use antibiotics either. He will probably heal just fine on his own, and yes, banties can be quite mean. I had one that tried to pick on every other chicken I had. If they sense the slightest weakness, they pounce. Good luck, but I bet he'll be fine.
Thanks for the encouragement, I was a little frantic earlier :-/ He doesn't seem to care in the slightest that he looks like a chainsaw massacre, but I didn't want him sleeping in the cold when he's already fighting something, so...rooster in the living room. DBF and I are pretty much ready to make soup with the banty. He's some sort of game mix, and an absolute terror. We've kept him because...I don't know why. But really, I want Godzilla's genes in my lines, not stringy meatless little banty genes
We had a rooster mauled by dogs. He had deep bite wounds on his back and neck. His tail feathers were plucked, too. When I first found him, I thought his head had been bitten off, but apparently it was defending itself by hiding its head. I couldn't help it but I felt sorry for him. Anyway, we cleaned him, put him in a crate, and put some antibiotics on the deep wounds, and after wards let nature take her course. He ended up fine and pretty much the same bird he was before the attack.
