How to treat chicken in severe shock after possum attack

[azygous]

No, It was a mink or weasel that they said "they" I have no idea, sucked their blood

Now that you mention that, I do recall reading these varmints do that sometimes. Makes 'em even more easy to loathe.

 

[Granny Hatchet]

It sure does. The way OP described the 2 marks and the puddle of blood just made me wonder. Thanks for clearing that up for me.

 

[BarredRockMom]

And people wonder why I kill opossums roaming my property.

Hope your little hen feels better soon. For whatever it's worth, I agree with starting the antibiotic asap. I'm hopeful that you will see improvement shortly.

 

[KellyGWillikers]

Update ~2 days after the attack:

9am today: She was more alert this morning and was able to drink water (10 ml) and nutri-drench (1 ml) on her own when we placed it in her beak while she held her head more upright (!), but we still had to support her body entirely. We were happy to see she had more energy but her mobility is still limited to beak movement and slight jerking of her neck and legs/body when we place her back on her side to rest. She has remained lying on her left side (we wanted the wound side up, hoping it would heal better).

5pm today: She was about the same in terms of alertness/mobility and attempts to lift her head periodically but without much progress. We were able to feed her 1 ml of egg yolk and 10 ml water and she defecated some green/white diarrhea while she was lifted up to feed.

We also attempted to support her in normal standing position to test her legs and very gently massage her legs/feet. Her feet seemed to engage a little but she was unable to support her body or head weight.

Her left eye has remained closed since the incident, and it appears her left foot also has less movement than the right. We're starting to worry that she's suffering from more than just shock and the puncture... perhaps nerve damage in the neck? (When we found her, there were two small (quarter-sized) pools of blood about 6 feet from each other, making us think she was bitten then dragged to the second spot, which I imagine could be damaging to her neck/spine.)

Antibiotics-wise: we opted to stick with external only ("Hen Healer") on the visible wounds after being unable to find an oral option in local stores and receiving additional advice to not start any injections unless we saw/smelled infection at the site (or she appeared stronger). The wound is swollen and bruised but not red, so we're not planning to start yet. I would like to order oral antibiotics to be safe - anyone have recommendations on what to get that's best for chickens and to have on-hand?

We're happy to continue treatment for as long as we need: getting her to drink water and nutrients and allowing her to rest, but fear she is far more injured (and potentially with permanent damage?) than the surface wounds show.

Does anyone have thoughts on how to tell the difference between shock vs. nerve damage and how much time to allow her to recuperate in order to tell?

Anything else we can try?

Many thanks for all of your help.

 

[azygous]

If you've given her electrolytes and sugar water, you've treated for shock. She would have revived by down. That's a bridge crossed.

There's a chance she has neurological injuries. The treatment is vitamin E, selenium, and B-complex. Started soon enough, a chicken can often recover from these spinal injuries.

This is where many of us order out antibiotics. Amoxicillin is a good choice to have on hand. 250mg oral. https://pet-healthcare.revivalanimal.com/search?p=Q&ts=custom&w=fish antibiotics

 

[KellyGWillikers]

Ah ok, thank you, how do I administer those? (Would I purchase as separate supplements and include in the water I get into her beak?)

And how long can that type of recovery take?

Thank you so much.

 

[azygous]

You can cut the 250mg amoxcillin tablet in half and give her one-half in the morning directly into her beak. (Chickens easily swallow pills) Give the other half in the afternoon or evening. Or just give one 250mg tablet once a day. Treatment is usually at least seven days, ideally ten. If a chicken is sick from an infected injury, they usually start getting better with 24 to 48 hours.

 

[BarredRockMom]

We all hope that your hen recovers. I've been reading this thread & agree so far, including the part about her being attacked & found a short distance away.

 

[KellyGWillikers]

Hi everyone, I'm posting a final (and very sad) update.

We made the incredibly difficult decision to euthanize her on Thursday night, three days after the attack. Ultimately, we were concerned she would never regain full mobility (particularly the ability to support her head and/or body on her own) and that she was suffering in her current condition and in isolation. It was difficult for me to not continue treatment a bit longer just to see... but the pace and extremely limited improvement over the three days made us deeply concerned we were prolonging her suffering and she'd never fully regain a good quality of life.

The treatment of administering 1ml nutri-drench and egg yolk (alternating each time) via dropper + 10 ml water 3x a day definitely had a positive impact on her strength and alertness... and it was apparent she was no longer in shock by the second day. Her mobility remained mostly limited to the one side of her body... I had become more hopeful when her left eye started to open, but we realized it had likely been sealed shut from blood/fluids.. and she still could only move her neck in one direction and was not supporting her head or body at all. I even took her out by the other girls to see if hearing them would help "re-awaken" any nerves, but there was no improvement.

We decided to perform the cervical dislocation method to euthanize her after reading a number of articles on the web that suggested it was the most humane method. Emotionally tough, but very quick and effective as the articles described. And to be honest, seeing her at peace after three very hard days of struggle (and limited improvement... fearing she would never fully recover) made us feel like we made a good decision.

While there's no turning back from this decision, I would be very open to hearing thoughts on other treatments to try/euthanizing methods if we ever find ourselves in a position like this again. Our biggest lesson learned is to confirm that they've roosted ASAP, particularly on a windy day! But I know attacks/accidents/injuries can happen from many other things.

Thank you all for your words of encouragement, support, and helpful advice. While we are extremely sad for this loss and miss her dearly already, I'm always grateful to learn from these tough times.

Thanks again.

 

[rooted in harmony]

always a good idea to have Bach rescue remedy on hand for all emergencies. its a great flower essence that really works wonders with animals and human.