Goose bitten on nose by dog

[wendymj]

Hi there,
I am a farm sitter and not too experienced with geese and would appreciate any help. We have a lovely big gander and found him sore and sorry yesterday with blood on his nose and it seems a little crushed. We believe he got a nip from one of the dogs. It is most certainly very bruised with blood under the surface in between his nostrils. He is breathing ok, and talking a little but not eating or drinking. He spent most of the day with his head nestled in his body. It rained all night so he's certainly had water and is a bit more active today, wants to eat but only had a little try to peck some pellets and then gave up, same with greens. He's been feeding with all the chooks prior to the accident and has had plenty of food so not in danger of starving I don't think. We don't really know how to catch him but managed to spray some iodine on the wound. He left the pen after we did that, probably thought it was better being outside with the chooks. Any suggestions would be welcome.
Regards
Wendy

 

[redhen]

Hi! Can you capture him and get a GOOD look at his beak??
Make sure that it isnt crushed badly?? You dont want him to suffer if it is....
Also.. really soft foods may help...cooked plain oatmeal... cooked grits...scrambled eggs....

 

[CMV]

Beaks are the most sensitive part of a bird's body. If he got a wallop on the nose he is not going to be using it for a couple days. If he got a really good wallop he's not going to be using it for many days. Since you can't catch him and don't know him that well, you are going to have to adopt a "wait and see" approach. Probably the safest approach to take with an unknown gander (Believe me!). I would take redhen's advice about offering soft foods, but don't be too surprised if he won't touch any unusual foods you offer. Geese can be very stuck in their ways and distrustful of change, and a change in their food is practically a crime in their eyes. The best you can do is offer it and if he'll eat then great, but if not you are going to have to wait until he feels a little better.

I hope he does OK. Remember that geese carry a lot of fat on their bodies, so missing a couple days of feed won't kill him as long as he continues to take in fluids. If he won't take any fluids then it is time to consider more drastic actions.

Good luck.

 

[Mamma_Duck04]

Or just try adding some warm water to his regular pellets. That way you're not offering a totally different food, but it'll be a bit softer for him if he'll give it a try... maybe... Poor kiddo

 

[sourland]

Quote:
X 2 This seems like a good way to go. A well soaked mash will be easier for him to injest.