Neighbor dog got into my run...

[Kneiley1]

I will skip the more gruesome details. Neighbor dog dug out of his yard and into mine Tuesday. 3 out of 12 injured. One I had to kill as it innerds were not inside any more. One, Susie, that got her back chewed up real bad but no internal injuries. Called a friend who suggested trying to save her. She is isolated, we play chicken sounds for her, she seems to be in and out of consciousness. I have gotten her to drink water and once drank on her own. She hasn't eaten anything since Tuesday... I know it will be a long haul for healing but my real question is how long can she last if she doesn't eat? I've got two kids watching this whole thing...

 

[azygous]

Don't worry about food at this stage. But it's crucial to get fluids with electrolytes into her.

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but it's a very bad sign she's slipping in and out of consciousness. But she may revive with electrolytes. You are treating for shock.

Meanwhile, if you have sterile saline, give her wounds a good flush. In the absence of saline, use boiled water cooled down to tepid and wash the wounds with ordinary soap and rinse well. Then spray with Vetericyn if you have it.

Try to locate an antibiotic. She will need it if she revives with the water and electrolytes. If she doesn't revive with the electrolytes, I'm afraid you will need to be prepared for her to slip away before morning.

 

[dunnmom]

She won't last much longer without food and I'm surprised she's lasted this long. Sounds like she's in shock. Have you tried feeding her by hand? If not, you may want to try a last ditch effort with a feeding syringe or a turkey baster. Frequent small amounts at first since her digestion might be sort of shut down at the moment. Poor chickens! I hope you had words with the neighbor about their jerk of a dog. Hopefully, they will be willing to help fix the fencing issue.

 

[Kneiley1]

We have used betadyne and she has drank water. Wife said she drank on her own yesterday, day 4. Tried chopping up cukes and maters but no luck. Heard scrambled eggs and liver a good option. Neighbors very sorry but I'm worried because now he has had a taste of my chickens. Just said. I'm also mad at mYself because I wasn't prepared for an issue. Also had nightmares honestly. Just a horrible situation.

 

[azygous]

Is the skin red surrounding the wounds? I'm talking about the normal uninjured skin. If it's bright red, she's suffering from infection. Her slipping into unconsciousness may be the infection overwhelming her system.

Any dog bite injects bacteria into the flesh beneath the surface. No amount of Betadine and cleansing will touch it. The bacteria is multiplying inside where you can't see it. Only an antibiotic can kill this bacteria.

But I fear it's too late. Bacteria kills very quickly. If you have penicillin or amoxicillin on hand, you can try it, though.

 

[sdm111]

If you have any starter make a slurry with starter and water preferably with vitamins and electrolytes. About the consistency of apple cause little on the wet side but not watery. She should like that I have done that before and they always ate. Put in on your counter or something and hold her almost eye level and dip her beak in it she should eat. I keep a small food processor just for that and sometimes to grind up starter for newly hatched chicks