[GRAPHIC PICS]What might have caused this? Do I need to cull them? First aid?[GRAPHIC PICS]

[lacrego]

We've had a similar injury to one of our birds from our dog. She's a 65 pound love machine with a horrible habit of playing too hard. First she loves the chase and when she would bite, she wouldn't bite down hard enough to puncture the skin but did take lots of feathers out.

 

[cntrywmnkw]

Those pics look exactly like what my SLW looked like when she was attacked by a pack of dogs, I'm really leaning toward your dog & if he's done this before.... well 'nough said. You might try flushing their backs with a weak solution of Epsom Salt & warm water 2-3 times a day to help keep any infection out. That's what I did for my SLW after her attack. Vet told me that as well. Sorry about your girls, keep them warm & give them treats if they'll accept.

 

[LaynaDon95]

I would put money on your dog

A predator that hunts to survive wouldn't waste energy chasing the birds, it would kill and eat one, then try for another. The hawks and coyotes around here leave only a few feathers as evidence not bald chickens.... a pet that doesn't really know what it is doing would get excited and confused and chase too many chickens at one time. Your dog will figure it out and start doing a better job at killing if you don't put a stop to it very soon.

x2 my thoughts exactly

As for your girls, I agree is doesn't look too severe. I would recommend making sure their wounds are clean and then spraying Blu-Kote on them. If you can, order some hen aprons. That will help reduce pecking and also protect their bare backs. I ordered mine from Tess here on BYC. They were really good and I liked them, not to mention cute!

Granted, the elastic does wear out kinda quickly, but that can easily be replaced.

Other than that, make sure your dog isn't left alone with your chickens. If he's allowed to continue this it will be impossible to break the habit. Nip in the bud now so it doesn't happen again. He needs to be trained, and until he is he should not be with the flock unsupervised. It's not fair to him or your birds. He's trying to play and they are suffering for it. I have a dog who occasionally will try to play with a chicken and get too rough. He just has to be reminded that chickens are ABSOLUTELY NOT allowed near his mouth. I got him as an adult and his previous owners had allowed him to chase their cats, so he thought it was okay. I ultimately had to get a shock collar. I didn't use it for very long, and I didn't set it to very high, but for a little bit every time he would put his face near a chicken he would get a little zap. He learned very quickly that he was not allowed to chase them. I don't recommend a shock collar unless absoluetly necessary. If you overuse them they can do more harm than good. But it may be a good (very short) beginning for a dog already in the habit of chasing and tearing up chickens.

 

[mtngrl812]

x2 my thoughts exactly

As for your girls, I agree is doesn't look too severe. I would recommend making sure their wounds are clean and then spraying Blu-Kote on them. If you can, order some hen aprons. That will help reduce pecking and also protect their bare backs. I ordered mine from Tess here on BYC. They were really good and I liked them, not to mention cute!

Granted, the elastic does wear out kinda quickly, but that can easily be replaced.

Other than that, make sure your dog isn't left alone with your chickens. If he's allowed to continue this it will be impossible to break the habit. Nip in the bud now so it doesn't happen again. He needs to be trained, and until he is he should not be with the flock unsupervised. It's not fair to him or your birds. He's trying to play and they are suffering for it. I have a dog who occasionally will try to play with a chicken and get too rough. He just has to be reminded that chickens are ABSOLUTELY NOT allowed near his mouth. I got him as an adult and his previous owners had allowed him to chase their cats, so he thought it was okay. I ultimately had to get a shock collar. I didn't use it for very long, and I didn't set it to very high, but for a little bit every time he would put his face near a chicken he would get a little zap. He learned very quickly that he was not allowed to chase them. I don't recommend a shock collar unless absoluetly necessary. If you overuse them they can do more harm than good. But it may be a good (very short) beginning for a dog already in the habit of chasing and tearing up chickens.

The shock collars can be very helpful for teaching a dog. You can't always have a lease on them and one of mine learned real quick when a leash was attached and when he was free to skirt me and do as he wished. The shock collar was used as an invisible leash, I would use a very firm NO! with a very little zap. This dog soon learn the difference between his regular collar and the shock collar, so some days he would wear the shock collar even though it was not turned on.... that he couldn't tell and he didn't want to test it

after a while he quit trying to test me on everything and he no longer has to wear the zapper at all.