Hurt/sick chicken

[errinjoy]

Hi,
I have a speckled Sussex hen who this morning had both eyes swollen shut, black spots on her comb and waddles and a big open/raw spot on the top of her head( with broken/missing feathers). She was in an enclosed chicken run, accidentally got left out of the coop last night. No way anything got in to attack her, could only reach in through the one inch square openings in wire. How to know if it is a wound or something else like fowl pox.

Thanks for any

 

[Matzwd]

It does sound like something tried to grab her. When one if mine accidentally has been left in the run at night, it hunkered down right next to the fence, in a corner. They cannot see at night, but predators can certainly see them. Raccoons could get enough claw through 1" to do what you are describing.

 

[Matzwd]

And with feathers missing, predator is probable. Is it possible she was already injured outside the run before bedtime and just felt too poorly to put herself to bed? Not sure if you free range at all.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Hi,
I have a speckled Sussex hen who this morning had both eyes swollen shut, black spots on her comb and waddles and a big open/raw spot on the top of her head( with broken/missing feathers). She was in an enclosed chicken run, accidentally got left out of the coop last night. No way anything got in to attack her, could only reach in through the one inch square openings in wire. How to know if it is a wound or something else like fowl pox.

Thanks for any

Hi @errinjoy Please post some photos of your hen. A lot of times photos tell the story better than a description.

 

[errinjoy]

Here are a couple of pictures of her head. Hope you can see them ok. They were locked up all day yesterday because we were gone. Never noticed anything wrong yesterday morning or evening just noticed this morning when I went to let them outside for the day and she was hunched back in a barrel we have in the chicken run for them to lay in. Both eyes were shut when I first went out then she gradually got one open, put neosporin on the other and it opened right up.

 

[Sea Wolf]

A raccoon can easily get it's paw through 1 inch square mesh. Would say that one tried to grab her.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

this morning had both eyes swollen shut, black spots on her comb and waddles and a big open/raw spot on the top of her head( with broken/missing feathers). She was in an enclosed chicken run, accidentally got left out of the coop last night. No way anything got in to attack her,

They were locked up all day yesterday because we were gone. Never noticed anything wrong yesterday morning or evening just noticed this morning

Do you have a rooster?
Looks like she's been beat up, probably from the other chickens and/or rooster.

If you are leaving her with the flock, then I would put some BluKote or PineTar on the back of the head. The swelling of the eyes should go down in a few days barring infection.
Watch your flock's interactions with her to see if there's any more bullying/attacking.

 

[MrsNorthie]

If you are leaving her with the flock, then I would put some BluKote or PineTar on the back of the head.

Hi, I was wondering where are you getting the pine tar? Is this the same pine tar as for baseball bats or the kind that they spread on horse hooves? I have Buff Orpingtons and I have a little hen that looks like she got attacked by one of our randy roosters. I have gotten the wound healed up pretty well, but they are all pecking at her. We are relatively new with chickens, any help is greatly appreciated.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Hi, I was wondering where are you getting the pine tar? Is this the same pine tar as for baseball bats or the kind that they spread on horse hooves? I have Buff Orpingtons and I have a little hen that looks like she got attacked by one of our randy roosters. I have gotten the wound healed up pretty well, but they are all pecking at her. We are relatively new with chickens, any help is greatly appreciated.

Welcome To BYC

The kind you put on horses hooves, you can find it at stores like TSC.

Do you need help with treating her wounds? Sounds like you have more roosters than you need with the girls?

 

[MrsNorthie]

Sounds like you have more roosters than you need with the girls?

Thank you! I really appreciate the clarification. I was reading the tin for the pine tar for horses and it says "Harmful or fatal if ingested" which had me a bit nervy. I want the pine tar as a bit of a preventative, until we get the flock balanced and for wound care, just in case. I have seen mixed opinions on the BluKote. One forum said it was toxic and gave a recipe to make your own, but the hens seem to want to peck at anything 'different' and the blue colour seemed to attract them.

We had an abundance of rooster peeps, we got them at about 18 hours old so it took some growing up to identify the sex. Once they started exhibiting male behaviour, it became clear that we had to do something. We are down to 3 roosters and they are settling in with very little squabbling, except for the one hen they managed to draw blood on and she is pretty much fully healed.

We kept the 3 boys that came to the rescue of the hens when another rooster pounced. Our 8 hens gravitate towards the new dominant male and the other 2 roosters give them a wide birth. We spend a lot of time with them, and are going to triple the size of the coop and run as we have 30 more hens coming, so they will each have their little flock.

I grew up on a 500 acre dairy and we did a lot of our own veterinary care, but chickens are totally different. There is a learning curve and I just want to make sure that I am positioned to handle anything that crops up.