yesterday, while i was gone, our chickens were free-ranging in the yard when the neighbors' miniature doberman got under the fence and took most of the feathers off of the back and tail of my mottled houdan hen. right now she's in a rabbit hutch that we also got yesterday and she's in there with a heat lamp because it's cold and she can't hold her own body heat. last night i put my RIR in there to keep her company but now she's free ranging. i tried to let my houdan (flo) free range too but she went into the other coop to stay warm so i just put her back. i'm worried about her getting bored and picking some of her sores from getting feathers yanked out and i was wondering if i could give her something to occupy herself. maybe make something, like cabbage on a string or maybe (my idea) put a pine-cone and cover it with peanut butter with scratch and chicken food sprinkled on it. or is there something i should be able to buy? also, she's pretty muddy and i was wondering what the safest way to wash her is. any ideas are helpful and if this has happened to you before (which i bet it has) PLEASE give me some advice. here is a pic of her last night: (this is the hutch) (as you can see, she needs a bath) now she's not being herself (afraid of everything and hiding) but she's still doing normal chicken things like eating, drinking, preening (all that's left that is), scratching around, and she even layed an egg this morning, but it cracked. when i got home today the shavings in the hutch (from the nest/shoe box)were everywhere and the newspaper was everywhere, so i could tell her and the RIR had some fun. thanks again! any advice is helpful!
Make sure you clean any wounds,apply an antibiotic ointment(nothing ending in "caine/cane"toxic to chickens). Is she eating/drinking? If she has visible wounds,it might be better for her to be kept separate until her wounds heal,as the other chicken might start pecking/picking at wounds. Her acting as if she is afraid and hiding is completely normal given the fact that she was attached,give her some time to come around. If she is stable and eating /drinking then you can give her a warm bath,she will probably enjoy it,blow dry her on "low" setting after bath. Try different things to keep her busy and her mind off wounds.
Thanks for the advice! She's doing fine now. She's already growing some down and feathers. I haven't been able to be on here because it's snowing a lot and I've been busy. I also haven't gotten to clean her up but she seems to be preening a lot since she has nothing else to do and she looks pretty clean and healthy for a hen without a tail.
