Limp Chick - dog attack

[Smashlee83]

My 8 week old chick got out of her pen and fell victim to our mastiff. He’s prone to carrying around and licking chickens but has never injured one. This little baby can’t seems to stand up now. There’s no blood, no punctured and i can’t find a broken bone but she came seem to support herself and just flops over. I’ve had her inside in a kennel for 6 hours and she’s still alive but no improvement.

 

[Sally PB]

What have you fed her since then? Will she eat/drink on her own? Maybe she's in shock?

@azygous?

 

[azygous]

Any time a chicken of any age has an encounter with a predator, and dogs are very much predators to chickens no matter how gentle you believe they are, the chicken must be treated for shock even if it appears there are no injuries.

Give this chick a cup of warm water with one teaspoon sugar, brown if you have it as it has vitamins, and let the chick drink this or syringe it into the chick for the next 24 to 48 hours.

Chicks this young can sustain internal injuries easily from being caught in the mouth of a dog, even if the dog appears to be gentle. This can happen just as often to a chick when given to a small toddler to handle. Any sort of excess pressure on the chick can crush the lungs, and other internal organs. Pressure on the upper cervical region can result in spinal injuries.

If the sugar water doesn't revive the chick in a few hours, it could indicate permanent internal injuries, especially if the chick continues to decline.

To syringe fluids into a small chick, you can open the beak and squirt a few drops at a time into the right side of the beak. That's the side the esophagus is on and it's less apt to get into the airway.

 

[Smashlee83]

I’ve got some save a chick, I’ve gotten her to take a few sips off.

 

[Smashlee83]

Any time a chicken of any age has an encounter with a predator, and dogs are very much predators to chickens no matter how gentle you believe they are, the chicken must be treated for shock even if it appears there are no injuries.

Give this chick a cup of warm water with one teaspoon sugar, brown if you have it as it has vitamins, and let the chick drink this or syringe it into the chick for the next 24 to 48 hours.

Chicks this young can sustain internal injuries easily from being caught in the mouth of a dog, even if the dog appears to be gentle. This can happen just as often to a chick when given to a small toddler to handle. Any sort of excess pressure on the chick can crush the lungs, and other internal organs. Pressure on the upper cervical region can result in spinal injuries.

If the sugar water doesn't revive the chick in a few hours, it could indicate permanent internal injuries, especially if the chick continues to decline.

To syringe fluids into a small chick, you can open the beak and squirt a few drops at a time into the right side of the beak. That's the side the esophagus is on and it's less apt to get into the airway.

Trust me, i don’t think he’s gentle at all. He’s 150 lbs. I keep them separated at all times when i can, but she’s so little she slipped through the gate and i hadn’t noticed when I let the dog out this morning.

 

[pennyJo1960]

Don't feel too bad stuff like this has happened to allot of us. She is in shock just
keep her safe it will pass.

 

[azygous]

Save-a chick is electrolytes. Add a teaspoon of sugar. Sugar should be in every chicken first aid kit. It's glucose and can save a chicken's life that is on the brink of death.

 

[Smashlee83]

She’s still alive but not showing any improvements in mobility. If i hold her i can spoon feed her liquids, but it’s day 3 and she’s still like a limp noodle when i set her down. She can flap her wings but cant hold herself up.

 

[Smashlee83]

I don’t want to give up on her, but at what point is it better to put her down?

 

[azygous]

As long as a chicken is holding the same, not declining, I continue treatment. Try vitamin B complex and vitamin E given with a bit of egg. These vitamins can repair nerve connections if they are damaged but not severed.