Hen caught by dog...back defeathered

[629864]

I'm reposting here what I posted in another forum. Plus additional photos:

Probably lost one of my favorite hens this morning.

For the past 2 weeks, Goldie has been hopping the fence relentlessly into the area where the goats/sheep/LGDs stay. To the dogs' credit, they've seen her and ignored her every single time. Poppy even allowed Goldie to eat from her food bowl once. I've scolded Goldie and shooed her back to the other side of the fence every time, but she's stubborn and keeps doing it. Today the temptation proved too much for Finn. When I saw her, she was between the two dogs. I didn't actually witness him with her, but he looked guilty and Poppy didn't at all. She doesn't have any open wounds, but she was used as a toy, all of the feathers on her back ripped out, skin missing...muscle exposed.

I don't see how she could survive this, but I have 3 reds who proved me wrong.

One of those reds today:

Same situation and doing well several months later. So I treated her as I did them.....iodine solution on the exposed area and isolated in the giant crate with food, water, nest.

This is Goldie right after, with iodine applied:

When I first saw her, my sweatshirt was stuffed with eggs I'd collected, plus I needed to go get iodine for her. In the 2 minutes it took me to go get the iodine, the other hens had already started pecking at her. I'm amazed at what jerks chickens can be to each other.

This is Goldie a few minutes ago:

She has been eating and drinking a bit, but obviously doesnt look great.

 

[pennyJo1960]

Clean it she should be fine really not as horrible looks bad bring here in. Do you have neosporin without pain killer ?
Dollar store out here is the only one that carries it . Most have a pankiller.

 

[MilesFluffybutt]

If you are able to, please bring her inside. It'll go along way towards keeping the wound clean and dry. I would rinse with a saline solution - no peroxide 'cause that'll hurt - and apply a tropical antibiotic daily. Unsure if you need an oral antibiotic at this point, but see what you can find for penicillin or amoxicillin at your local feed store.

 

[629864]

Clean it she should be fine really not as horrible looks bad bring here in. Do you have neosporin without pain killer ?
Dollar store out here is the only one that carries it . Most have a pankiller.

Thanks for your thoughts PennyJo. It means a lot!

I do have non-painreliever neosporin, but scared of hurting her further by rubbing on her poor wounded back. But I'll go out now and apply some.

The thing I'm mostly concerned about (other than her simply surviving) is that strip of loose skin. It's about 2-3 inches long and 1/2 inch wide...just flapped there. I'm concerned it'll get snagged in future if she's ever mated.

 

[pennyJo1960]

Okay glob on the neo sporin fold the loose skin over the wound . Tear up plain paper to make a soft spot in crate.
Is she alert still ?

 

[629864]

Okay glob on the neo sporin fold the loose skin over the wound . Tear up plain paper to make a soft spot in crate.
Is she alert still ?

I slathered it on thick and folded the loose skin over. I gently lifted up her wing to make sure I got the neosporin on everything exposed. She's very alert. She even bit me when I picked her up. I take that as a good sign. Now she's locked up tight in the giant (covered with a tarp) dog crate with food, water, and clean bedding in the eggcrate nest. She was really ticked off when I wouldn't let her out of the dog crate. There's also a roost in there in case she wants to sleep roosting. Praying she is ticked off tomorrow morning as well.

 

[pennyJo1960]

Think maybe your roughly 2 hours ahead of me right 20 to 4 here. Offer in about an hour scrambled egg with water mixed in . Could add rooster booster or save a chick just drop. She is in shock still from the attack.

 

[Shadrach]

I've used Chlorhexedine in the past with good results for wounds like this. You can buy it as a spray. Spray the area well and don't attempt to wipe any excess off.
There is also an ointment called triple anti biotic ointment I believe you can buy in the USA. Apply some of this after the Chlorhexedine spray.
The ideal painkiller would be Metacam. I don't know if you need a prescription for this in the USA.
If you can't get Metacam then half a junior asprin can be given twice a day for three days.
Shock and stress need to be addressed and the wound needs to be kept clean.
I would clean the wound daily with warm water and reapply the antibiotic ointment after each cleaning.
If you can, then a poultry vitamin supplement may be a good idea. Give it with water to help keep the hen hydrated.
You may need to keep her seperated from the group especially if you have a rooster while her back heals over.
Wounds like this tend to terrible but as long as she didn't receive any internal injuries she should recover well.

 

[McChooky]

Think maybe your roughly 2 hours ahead of me right 20 to 4 here. Offer in about an hour scrambled egg with water mixed in . Could add rooster booster or save a chick just drop. She is in shock still from the attack.

Maybe you can extend the fence with pvc pipe and attach netting to it? That would prevent anymore of your chickens from flying over there in the future.Chickens can fly good when they want to escape! Best wishes on her a speedy recovery!

 

[kerbotx]

You might be interested in Vetericyn Hydrogel - it's like liquid Neosporin in a spray bottle. Have you thought about clipping her flight feathers on one wing?