Help! Dog attacked chicken.

[djdrost]

One of our dogs nipped one of our hens, she's 9 months old and a Buff Orpington. She weighs around 7 pounds. The wound is not bad, a very small puncture if anything that we cleaned out with hydrogen peroxide. She broke quite a few feathers and they had been falling out.

The major problem is her wing, it's hanging down farther than normal when she tucks it. But we can move it for her without any pain and she can extend it and fly. I think it may be because the puncture between her wings, so putting it in the normal position may hurt her. Should we tape it in its normal position? Or can she leave it how it is?

Her behavior is off too, just standing a lot and not moving very much. She is eating and drinking, and we gave her a quarter of a baby aspirin pill disolved in water. We are keeping her in a dog kennel inside at night, and letting her free range alone during the day so the other chickens don't hurt her. She doesn't seem to have much interest in walking around, she just stands or sits in one spot. Her stool is normal with no blood, and she doesn't have much bruising. Since the wound isn't bleeding or opened at all, we dont think the $100+ vet visit is necessary, but we will take her if it gets worse.

Should we cover her wound and put antibiotic ointment on it? Does she need more aspirin? We also have livestock penicillin, we just need to know the dosage and if we should give it to her before she appears infected? How long will her recovery time be and how long do we have to isolate her? Will we need to discard her eggs, if so, for how long?

Please help us! We really want to nurse her back to health!

 

[chickencrazy21]

One of the best advices i was given...superglue. it helps heal them faster and keeps the wound clean. If possible put the glue and press the wound closed. If not. Apply a thin layer almost like a scab. It wont hurt your chicken. Sounds like its just recouperating. It should be ok. They are pretty resilant even when attacked. I had a coyotee attack one of my chickens. By the time i realized it was her who had been attacked it had been a day. Most of the time if yhey are going to die they died within 24 hours.

 

[ChickenChaser9]

One of our dogs nipped one of our hens, she's 9 months old and a Buff Orpington. She weighs around 7 pounds. The wound is not bad, a very small puncture if anything that we cleaned out with hydrogen peroxide. She broke quite a few feathers and they had been falling out.

The major problem is her wing, it's hanging down farther than normal when she tucks it. But we can move it for her without any pain and she can extend it and fly. I think it may be because the puncture between her wings, so putting it in the normal position may hurt her. Should we tape it in its normal position? Or can she leave it how it is?

Her behavior is off too, just standing a lot and not moving very much. She is eating and drinking, and we gave her a quarter of a baby aspirin pill disolved in water. We are keeping her in a dog kennel inside at night, and letting her free range alone during the day so the other chickens don't hurt her. She doesn't seem to have much interest in walking around, she just stands or sits in one spot. Her stool is normal with no blood, and she doesn't have much bruising. Since the wound isn't bleeding or opened at all, we dont think the $100+ vet visit is necessary, but we will take her if it gets worse.

Should we cover her wound and put antibiotic ointment on it? Does she need more aspirin? We also have livestock penicillin, we just need to know the dosage and if we should give it to her before she appears infected? How long will her recovery time be and how long do we have to isolate her? Will we need to discard her eggs, if so, for how long?

Please help us! We really want to nurse her back to health!

I will point you to this thread that I've think is relevant: https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1113514/please-help-chicken-wound-from-dog
Please STOP DRUGGING THE BIRD. I understand some people have had success not killing their birds with drugs for humans but I can not recommend it. She does not need narcotics and she is probably so lethargic due to being high as a kite off the painkiller in her system. As for the drooping wing, if she can fly then it is okay and her favoring it is just for her own comfort as the injury is healing. Isolation should be for as short a period as possible but she needs to be acting and moving normally before leaving the infirmary. As for penicillin I would say infection is a cause for concern but you can clean her injuries with a bird bath and avoid giving her any more medication unless there are actual signs of an infection presenting. A picture is worth a thousand words. We want to help you and your bird so keep us informed.

 

[runt325]

SUPERGLUE it works trust me it works

 

[runt325]

n+

 

[djdrost]

Okay,

Thank you for helping me! She was sluggish/lethargic hours before we gave her any aspirin, but she also doesn't seem to be in as much pain today so we won't be giving her anymore. I did consult a vet about the dosage prior to giving it to her.

By chicken bath, do you mean submerging her whole body (other than neck and head obviously) in a lukewarm water bath and washing her off with soap to make sure all the extra blood/dirt is off her? Do we only need to do this once? Can I let her air dry inside or should I towel or blow dry her?

We have two different "sets" of birds that we got at two different times, one with 3 and one with 2 (Peyton--this hurt bird, is part of the 2 with one other bird who is either a dwarf orpington or a runt because she has always been small). So today I caged the 3 and let the 2 free range, and Patsy (the other of the 2) looked at her back for a second but didn't have any interest in bothering her or hurting her. So they have been free ranging all day today, Peyton has been eating and drinking but taking more breaks than normal to lay down in the shade. We are going to bring her inside tonight again in the dog kennel after her bath.

Thanks for all your help!

 

[coach723]

You can put neosporin on it (without pain killer), Vetericyn wound and skin care spray is really good for this also. http://www.chewy.com/vetericyn-vf-wound-skin-care/dp/117457 some feed stores carry it. Most of the time I leave wounds uncovered unless it's necessary to cover it to keep it clean.
How long ago was the attack? She may just be in shock. If you don't think the wing is broken and it's not likely to get hurt worse I'd probably just keep her separated for a while and watch. Can you post a picture of the wound?
If the wing needs support you can search the web for figure 8 slings for bird wings to see how to wrap it. Barring infection they can recover from some pretty awful wounds with proper supportive care. Recovery time can vary greatly from bird to bird. I would keep her separated until she is fully recovered, so that other birds don't peck at her wounds or further injure her, and to make sure she is eating and drinking normally, and can hold her own in the flock. If she's not interested in ranging I'd just keep her in the kennel and let her rest.
Watch for infection and keep the wound as clean as you can. You may need to pull a few feathers to keep it clean depending on how it looks and where it is.
Here is a link to an excellent post on emergency and supportive care....https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...ergency-and-supportive-care-updated-4-11-2016
Best of luck

 

[djdrost]

Thank you for the superglue tip, she doesn't really have an "open wound" but if after her bath tonight it looks open, we will use superglue! She's being very gentle on herself and any damage, and her wings/feathers seem to cover most all the damage.

 

[coach723]

My two cents for what it's worth, I would NOT bathe a sick chicken.
If she's in shock or hypothermic at all it could likely make it worse or maybe even kill her.
Give her a thorough going over exam to make sure you haven't missed any wounds, clean any wounds.
The link to the post above for emergency and supportive care concurs with not bathing a sick chicken.
She needs to stay warm and dry for now.

 

[runt325]

I have a chick that needs help she acts like she is dieing and I need some help emergency