Injured chick

[chickpack2024]

I had a few 4-5 week old chicks in their own run outside. It’s not as secure as I’d like but the dogs are out and it’s near the house. I heard a chicken scream and ran out.

I found one lying in the food bowl bleeding. She is still breathing and her injuries don’t look terrible but I’m worried. She’s barely moving. I’m attaching a video. The eye you cannot see is open and blinking and generally fine.

I sent my husband to buy the blue stuff. What else do I need to do?

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

I would clean the wound with saline and apply antibiotic ointment (NOT the kind with pain reliever) then treat her for shock with some electrolytes and a bit of sugar in water. Gatorade will do in a pinch.

 

[Eggcessive]

Is her neck stuck to her left or can she move it normally? The wound care instructions above are good to follow. Keep her quiet and offer some water (with sugar 1 tsp per cup) or electrolytes up to her beak. She is probably in shock. If her neck is off to the side, she may have wry neck. Let us know about that and I will give some vitamins to try.

 

[chickpack2024]

Is her neck stuck to her left or can she move it normally? The wound care instructions above are good to follow. Keep her quiet and offer some water (with sugar 1 tsp per cup) or electrolytes up to her beak. She is probably in shock. If her neck is off to the side, she may have wry neck. Let us know about that and I will give some vitamins to try.

Her neck is not moving well and she’s not holding up her head.

 

[chickpack2024]

Ok in the last 10 min her neck seems better. She’s very still but in a more normal position. Now I’m wondering if she just got pecked by another chicken. There are big ones out there- maybe she stuck her head out through the cage or another chick.

 

[chickpack2024]

I would clean the wound with saline and apply antibiotic ointment (NOT the kind with pain reliever) then treat her for shock with some electrolytes and a bit of sugar in water. Gatorade will do in a pinch.

Hi- this is the next morning, and she is awake but barely moving (basically she responds if I move her in some way but that’s it). She will drink little bits of water or Gatorade only if I manually dip her beak in it. Not eating. She had a couple runny poops. Is this a normal part of shock after trauma?

We are really suspecting she got pecked by another chicken. One eye has not opened since yesterday.

 

[Eggcessive]

Eye injuries can be common with chicks. Irrigating an eye with saline and using either Terramycin eye ointment, Vetricyn, or plain triple antibiotic ointment into the eye twice a day might help. Hold a small scoop up to her beak, and dip her beak into it to drink and eat some. Let us know how she does.