Need Advice on How to Care for An Injured Rooster

[Madi431]

It was 3AM and my dad was getting a drink of water in the kitchen when he noticed our cats looking out the window to our backyard. A dog got into our yard and somehow managed to get into our chicken coop. Our rooster fought for his life and is badly injured (unfortunately, we lost 2 hens and only one survived unharmed). We are all really heartbroken and I don't know how to help my rooster. He was bleeding pretty bad, but with some hydrogen peroxide, I managed to see that the dog only managed to pluck out his feathers and graze him on his back, but no deep wounds. My rooster ran straight into the garage the moment we opened it and hid under some boxes. I had to search for my hens and only found one hiding by the house. It hurts to think of what they just experienced when they were sleeping. Three years of owning our hens and nothing like this has ever happened. It's both angering and heartbreaking. We're going to investigate what might have happened for that dog to appear so late at night and manage to get into the coop. So far we know that thing can jump pretty high fences.

Is there a way to treat my rooster back to good health? All we did was pour peroxide for now, but if there's more we can do, I would love more advice. He is eating and drank some water and we gave him a few raisins to help calm down. We have him locked in a kennel and our hen is sleeping in the garage. He's a great boy and seeing him in this condition just breaks me.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

It is traumatic. You did good with the Hydrogen Peroxide for now but don't use it any more. It will sterilize but also kill any new cells so from now on, use Betadine.
It will do the same sterilizing but without delaying healing.
That's about the best you can do unless there are deep wounds. Then you would want to flush them with saline solution first. After the betadine, you can then apply some triple antibiotic ointment. Use the eye type if the wounds are deep.
He will probably heal quickly.
Keep him calm and well fed with a complete (non-layer) feed and possibly some animal protein like canned fish.

 

[Madi431]

It is traumatic. You did good with the Hydrogen Peroxide for now but don't use it any more. It will sterilize but also kill any new cells so from now on, use Betadine.
It will do the same sterilizing but without delaying healing.
That's about the best you can do unless there are deep wounds. Then you would want to flush them with saline solution first. After the betadine, you can then apply some triple antibiotic ointment. Use the eye type if the wounds are deep.
He will probably heal quickly.
Keep him calm and well fed with a complete (non-layer) feed and possibly some animal protein like canned fish.

Thank you so much for your advice! I’m going to go out first thing in the morning and get him those ointments along with some snacks to help them both out. Also, I’m not sure if you’re experienced with this, but do you think my hen will be fine on her own? I’ve been wanting to get more chicks in the Spring next year, but after this situation, I don’t know if she’ll be fine being the only hen with only a rooster for company. Do you think I should introduce mature hens into our flock ASAP?

 

[Mvan42]

Thank you so much for your advice! I’m going to go out first thing in the morning and get him those ointments along with some snacks to help them both out. Also, I’m not sure if you’re experienced with this, but do you think my hen will be fine on her own? I’ve been wanting to get more chicks in the Spring next year, but after this situation, I don’t know if she’ll be fine being the only hen with only a rooster for company. Do you think I should introduce mature hens into our flock ASAP?

With the two they should be ok together, but give the rooster time to heal first. She will more than likely have some egg laying issues (just no shells or stop laying for a while until the stress level comes back down. ) nothing to worry about though. If you notice her acting strange you may want to at least add one more hen until you get your chicks(if you decide to).
I am sure others will have other ideas.
And yes ointment on that wound, make sure it stays clean. The ointment will help keep flies off it also.

 

[Madi431]

With the two they should be ok together, but give the rooster time to heal first. She will more than likely have some egg laying issues (just no shells or stop laying for a while until the stress level comes back down. ) nothing to worry about though. If you notice her acting strange you may want to at least add one more hen until you get your chicks(if you decide to).
I am sure others will have other ideas.
And yes ointment on that wound, make sure it stays clean. The ointment will help keep flies off it also.

Thank you! I will keep a close eye on the two. They won’t be staying outside until we get the coop fixed up and our rooster heals up. It’s almost 6am here and I haven’t slept yet. I’m still pretty broken over this. It’s just something they didn’t deserve. Thank you again, any advice is welcome!

 

[HollyWoozle]

I'm sorry for your loss and also for your rooster, I hope he recovers. If it's any comfort, we had a fantastic rooster called Pete who fought a fox and survived. All the hens at the time were killed, except for one (who became known as 'Lucky' of course). Pete was nursed back to health and went on to live quite a while longer. He was a real hero!

 

[Madi431]

Hello all! Here’s an update over a month later! I want to thank you all who replied and gave me advice. Luckily and thankfully, stitches weren’t needed and my rooster made it!

I cleaned his wounds daily using saline solution, spraying Betadine and then adding Neosporin once or twice a day for the whole month. He stayed isolated in a kennel in a warm/humid spot. His wounds miraculously healed and his feathers are back. It’s amazing, given that his wounds were really deep bites (which I found after further revision the next day). He and my hen finally went back out to the coop last week. A family friend was generous enough to gift us a Modern Game Bantam pullet who we named Laika and love very much. I’m so thankful for this website and for all of you who helped me save my precious rooster

The loss of my other hens still saddens me when I think about it, but I’m excited to welcome new chicks to our flock in the upcoming year.

 

[Madi431]