HELP! dog got into coop badly injured one and killed 8

[Alace]

...sorry so long....

so to kinda give a little history... i run a daycare center and last year had some kids not understanding where eggs came from so we got a mix of chicks for the feed store and these babies were handles a lot (probably to much).... so these are not just chickens and but my kids babies. we moved them all out to our house outside of town in the fall.

we have 2 very large dogs that have never shown any interest in the chickens. the chickens run free on weekends but in the pen when we are not there. one of the dogs on monday broke threw the fence and killed 8 and hurt one.. when i talked to the local feed store they said anything this bad we should just put her down but she is eating and acts alert but hurt. shes not acting depressed or anything. she doesnt try and walk away from me either just stands and waits for me to pick her up

about 1 year old brahma hen

the one we have that is hurt has from under one wing to the other wing all the way across her back sliced open, from what i can see. i didn't want to lift her wings and hurt her more to see how far it goes for sure... about a 4x4 flap but all the way to the bone. now i have a lot of medical knowledge and medicate and suture my other animals all the time with my vet telling me i did exactly as she would but with that said i have never done chickens injury .

so this is what i have done so far... saline flush and antibiotic spray adjusted all feathers so they were not inside the wound and did my best to get the flap to lay flat , surprisingly even though i seen fat and muscle on both sides of the flap it layed down pretty nice, i made a nice little area for her in my laundry room and my son sits with her as much as he can,.. she seems happy. she was in shock the first night but we kept her warm and she made it now i cant get her to drink water unless i take her outside to her pen and she drinks out of the chicken water thing. she eats ok, but i honestly have not turned her upside down to look for more spots but i do know anytime i look at her she is standing. like maybe she can't sit down.. i gave her a friend last night, she has a little silkie that likes to crawl under her like a baby so she spent the night with her last night and she let her crawl under but holds one wind down just a bit and didn't open her wind up when the silkie rubbed on her side to get under. i don't know if its good to give her a friend or not. my house is only a year old and i hate the idea that shes in there so to add more chickens is just hard for me. but i did put her back out at in the morning so its just at night. so i guess my question is should i do anything else or just let things go and see what happens?? should she be alone or friend at night? antibiotic ointment ok to use? also its cold outside like 25 to 35 at night and 40s to 50 maybe in the day, would she be better outside during day and in at house at night or maybe in garage at night garage is cold . and if outside will others start to pick on her ?

i think what started the dog to get excited is i have a juvenile rooster that i seen last night that is fighting with one hen and that got the dog excited maybe with all the noise, that will be my next post..lol..

 

[sylviethecochin]

You need to get under the wings and flush and spray the entire wound. Also, defintely check for more. Maybe get your son to hold her while you do, that way you can be more careful not to jostle any wounds.

Is she eating?

She's probably pretty sore and bruised; it might very well hurt her to sit down. Or she could still be a little shocky.

Antibiotic ointment is fine to use and will keep the wound nice and moist while it heals. The stuff with the painkiller is not known to hurt chickens, but there's no research saying it's safe, either, so I'd stick with the normal stuff.

You can crush an aspirin into a gallon of water for her. If she's not drinking much, electrolyte water will help keep her better hydrated. (A tablespoon of corn syrup or honey or sugar with a teaspoon of baking soda and a pinch of salt in two quarts of water. Sweet for energy and taste, baking soda to settle her stomach, salt to help her absorb water.) Have you tried dipping her beak? I can get most of my adult hens to drink by doing that.

Don't put her with the rest of the flock; it could turn nasty very quickly. I wouldn't keep her inside either, though--if she's used to outside temps, bringing her inside for too long could make her overheat. Do you have a small wire cage or something so you could keep her in the coop but semi-isolated? Or maybe close the door to your laundry room and open a window? I'm not sure how your house is set up.

If the feathers are getting into the wound, feel free to cut the ones around it.

If you don't have penicillin, I would get some and a few syringes just to keep on hand.

Good luck. I hope your girl makes it.

 

[Alace]

thank you for your response...
she is eager to eat, and i have been pushing the water by dipping her beak but she wouldn't drink, just the drips that would run as she mouthed it a little. BUT i took her outside with me last nigh while i cleaned the coop and she stood at the water thing and drank and drank and drank... i left her standing at the water for about an hour while i did my choirs.. her 2 silkies friends were by her side the whole time along with her sister, all 4 of them are always near each other from day one. i will stop at the feed store and get some penicillin. and i will make up a spot in my garage tonight and see if that works better for her, she can stay clean and dry and a bit warmer then then outside but not at warm as my house.. and also check her over good tonight (planned on checking last night but didnt have time).