Hawk Attack - injured hen

[dmartin101]

We had our first hawk attack today. :-((( Luckily my husband was home and scared it away before it got one of our girls. But it did do some damage to our sweet Gracie Purple.

Overall she seems ok. She’s drinking water and eating some fermented food. Right now she’s sleeping. I’m going to get some vetericyn because I don’t have any Neosporin without pain relief.

Should I put her in our brooder and bring her inside? I’m worried about the other girls pecking her injury - it isn’t super easy to see and I’ve added some new things to the run to keep them busy.

Obviously we’ve put them all away in the coop and will keep them there for the next few weeks.

 

[dmartin101]

Thank you for the help! I’ve put her in the brooder in the garage. Cleaned and disinfected the wound. She’s eating and drinking but doesn’t seem happy about being there.

 

[Eggcessive]

It is common for the other chickens to be curious, and jump up on the cage, when one is in a cage. Speckled sussex, at least the ones I had, are mild mannered and mellow chickens. So they are easy to pick on. I would keep her in the coop in the crate at night. During the day try some free ranging outside while you are there to supervise. There will be some pecking at first, and I wouldn’t let it become too serious, but just be there in case you need to stop it. When I have separated broody hens to break them, 4-5 days out of the flock is usually okay, but if they are out for more than that, it can be met with chasing and pecking. When you are not able to stay with her, keep her in the crate, but have her out with the others.

 

[dmartin101]

It is common for the other chickens to be curious, and jump up on the cage, when one is in a cage. Speckled sussex, at least the ones I had, are mild mannered and mellow chickens. So they are easy to pick on. I would keep her in the coop in the crate at night. During the day try some free ranging outside while you are there to supervise. There will be some pecking at first, and I wouldn’t let it become too serious, but just be there in case you need to stop it. When I have separated broody hens to break them, 4-5 days out of the flock is usually okay, but if they are out for more than that, it can be met with chasing and pecking. When you are not able to stay with her, keep her in the crate, but have her out with the others.

Thanks! The crate is too big to fit in the henhouse at night. I put her in the henhouse one night and she did fine but last night she was getting pecked the first few minutes so I’m bringing her back into that garage. I’ll try to find something smaller she can go in at night so she can stay in the coop.

I had them all out of the coop while I was in the yard the other day, but the injured girl ran back into the coop and wouldn’t come out. It’s been raining every day since then so I haven’t had a chance to try again. Hopefully I can let them out again soon to see how they do.

Thanks for the help!

 

[Offshoreorca]

I would separate (particularly if picking, which is likely to happen if wound is visible), flush out the wound, and stitch up if needed (or tape closed to heal). They can come back from a lot, but you need to make sure she doesn't go into shock.

We had a racoon flay open the back of a cockerel in early October and he is doing just fine!

 

[Auntiejessi3]

I'd give it a good saline flush and apply the vetericyn, if you're going out to get it you might as well pick up some Neosporin. I would not stitch it or anything else, just keep it clean and reapply the Neosporin daily. You might want to bring her inside even if it isn't visible to the chickens you don't want flies to get on it and lay eggs.

 

[Offshoreorca]

Thank you! I’m going to separate her. Any suggestions on how to stitch or tape it up? I’ve never done this before.

As mentioned by @auntiegessi3 I wouldn't stitch unless it's a large wound and gaping in a way that would make it difficult to heal (hard to tell from your photo) - I've successfully stitched with a needle and fine dental floss (plain, not mint), but you can also usually get glue or tape at the pharmacy to glue it together to allow for healing. I have seen many people do this successfully, but you would need to make sure it's disinfected really well before during this. Locking infection inside the body is never a good idea.

The most important thing is to keep it clean

 

[Offshoreorca]

Thank you for the help! I’ve put her in the brooder in the garage. Cleaned and disinfected the wound. She’s eating and drinking but doesn’t seem happy about being there.

They never want to be there, but it is best for them and their recovery

 

[dmartin101]

I just want to thank you all for the tips and help! Gracie P is recovering well. She’s graduated to the infirmary in the coop and seems much happier there. The rest of the flock is absolutely fascinated by this development.

She’s eating, drinking, pooping, and sleeping like a champ. I’m spraying the wound a couple times a day with vetericyn. It seems to be healing well.

A few questions about what to do next…
1. Do I put her in the henhouse at night or bring her back into the garage?
2. She has a pretty good sized bald spot - about 3” long by 2” wide. Will her feathers grow back? She’s 7 months old so hasn’t molted.
3. How do I know when it’s safe to let her back with the flock? I had her with them today while I was setting up the infirmary so I could observe. Most left her alone but she was definitely anxious and staying away from them.

Thanks again for all the help!

 

[Eggcessive]

Let us know how she does, and good luck.