Momma hen fends off attack

[Wildforklady]

I need help, I have a momma hen. two nights ago she defended her new 12 babies from a oppossum. our farm pup attacked killed the oposum.

theres no physical injury such as open wounds, but Reba can not stand, her left leg is weak and cant support her. ive given her epsom salt baths, and she is able to stand with my help in the water . she is eating, and drinking. scrambled eggs, tuna, and reg chicken feed. we have made a sling, to exercise her legs, but she walks backwards (when she does move her legs a few steps at a time. ) but only backwards.

im thinking nuerological (spelling) condition?? any insites? whatcam i missing?

 

[SmiYa0126]

@Wyorp Rock @azygous @Eggcessive please help!

 

[Shadrach]

I need help, I have a momma hen. two nights ago she defended her new 12 babies from a oppossum. our farm pup attacked killed the oposum.

theres no physical injury such as open wounds, but Reba can not stand, her left leg is weak and cant support her. ive given her epsom salt baths, and she is able to stand with my help in the water . she is eating, and drinking. scrambled eggs, tuna, and reg chicken feed. we have made a sling, to exercise her legs, but she walks backwards (when she does move her legs a few steps at a time. ) but only backwards.

im thinking nuerological (spelling) condition?? any insites? whatcam i missing?

If there are no skin punctures then one is left with something getting crushed in the attack. We don't have oppossum here in the UK thankfully but my understanding is they are quite strong creatures.
The starting point is to discover if her leg is fractured and that needs a very skillful hand or an X Ray. Without this one is going to be guessing.
She shouldn't fall over standing on one leg. They do it all the time and the one leg is quite capable of supporting the chickens weight without any balance issues, so something is wrong there.

If there are no broken bones and the chicken can balance and hop I probably wouldn't have her in a sling. The probabilty is she will be reliant on one leg for a long time and having her use the leg and try the other might prove to be the better option. Without specialist vet care it's possible she may never regain full use of the injured side.

If she is eating and drinking that's enouraging.
Not much more I can add that's helpfull. I can empathise having nursed two hens who had complete paralysis in their legs to a current hen who strained a muscle or tendon over six months ago and is only just walking in a normal manner.

 

[azygous]

Always treat for shock when a chicken has suffered the stress of a predator attack even though there may not be injuries.

Clinical shock is very poorly understood by most chicken keepers since it can occur without any noticeable injuries. It's an invisible killer and should be considered a medical emergency. It's even less understood by most people that shock in poultry can last well beyond the initial traumatic event, weeks and even months.

Shock is not merely an emotional reaction. Shock upsets the body chemistry of the chicken, and this results in decreased blood flow to the vital organs. This is why I stress to people with an injured or traumatized chicken they must treat for shock as the number one priority. By giving a solution with sugar in it, it treats the drop in blood glucose, and adding salt and baking soda to this solution, it provides the necessary minerals to reset the chemistry needed for proper nerve connection functioning, preventing heart failure among other things.

Everyone should memorize the recipe: one teaspoon sugar in one cup water with a pinch of salt and baking soda given over 24 to 48 hours immediately following a traumatic event.

 

[Wildforklady]

If there are no skin punctures then one is left with something getting crushed in the attack. We don't have oppossum here in the UK thankfully but my understanding is they are quite strong creatures.
The starting point is to discover if her leg is fractured and that needs a very skillful hand or an X Ray. Without this one is going to be guessing.
She shouldn't fall over standing on one leg. They do it all the time and the one leg is quite capable of supporting the chickens weight without any balance issues, so something is wrong there.

If there are no broken bones and the chicken can balance and hop I probably wouldn't have her in a sling. The probabilty is she will be reliant on one leg for a long time and having her use the leg and try the other might prove to be the better option. Without specialist vet care it's possible she may never regain full use of the injured side.

If she is eating and drinking that's enouraging.
Not much more I can add that's helpfull. I can empathise having nursed two hens who had complete paralysis in their legs to a current hen who strained a muscle or tendon over six months ago and is only just walking in a normal manner.

Thank you for your response. There’s no broken bones, she can stretch that leg, and pull it back to her. Unfortunately where we live there isn’t a vet that will see a chicken , hopefully it’s a sprain and she will get stronger. Thanks again

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I need help, I have a momma hen. two nights ago she defended her new 12 babies from a oppossum. our farm pup attacked killed the oposum.

theres no physical injury such as open wounds, but Reba can not stand, her left leg is weak and cant support her. ive given her epsom salt baths, and she is able to stand with my help in the water . she is eating, and drinking. scrambled eggs, tuna, and reg chicken feed. we have made a sling, to exercise her legs, but she walks backwards (when she does move her legs a few steps at a time. ) but only backwards.

im thinking nuerological (spelling) condition?? any insites? whatcam i missing?

but she walks backwards (when she does move her legs a few steps at a time. ) but only backwards.

Welcome To BYC

Good advice from the others. I agree, working her through shock is very important.

What breed is she?

You mention that if she walks, it's only backwards.

In Addition, to getting sugar water/electrolytes into her, I'd also begin giving 400IU Vitamin E and 1/4 tablet B-Complex to address potential neurological symptoms.

Did you see the attack? Even with no obvious signs of external wounds, often a bird can suffer internal injury during an attack or even just injure themself trying to fight or get away - flying or running head first into fencing/walls when in a panic.

Hopefully in time, with TLC she will regain strength in her legs. Chickens can be resilient.

After 48 hours or so, carefully re-examine the legs, wings and body for signs of greenish bruising. It can sometimes be subtle in color, especially on the legs. I had a hen fracture a leg several years ago, saw it happen and could feel the slight dent/fracture in the leg. The bruising color didn't appear until a couple of days later (along with minimal swelling). I did splint/care for the leg myself and it healed very well, she went on to use the leg seemingly with no issues until she died early this year from reproductive cancer.