When I was collecting all the dead chickens from the coop, there was one that was still twitching. I picked her up, totally limp, eye closed, no response when I blew on her, just her legs occasionally twitched. SHe had a huge bloody hole in the side of her head, so I figured it was just residual nerves and tossed her on the heap.
When I went to bag them about an hour later, she was still twitching, so I put the others in first and her on top. Since there were still some unaccounted for, DH and I started scouring the area and after a couple hours, turned up one dead and 6 live ones. I went to put the last dead one in the bag and she was STILL breathing. Thinking i had seen too much carnage to be in the mood to wring her neck or decapitate her. I put her in the old brooder with a heat lamp, figuring she'd be dead by morning, but she'd be warm on her way out.
SURPRISE...next morning, she was still alive, but unresponsive. So I put a bowl of water and dish of feed in and basically just left her there for the next couple days (just looking to see if she had died yet)
After 3 days, she woke up and had her eyes open and was raising her head. I started feeding her with a syringe and she has steadily improved. At first she couldn't even sit up straight, but now she has graduated to the larger brooder cage and is learning to walk again. She can stand and takes tiny steps with one foot right in front of the other and sometimes loses her balance, but sticks her wing out to catch herself. She has also started to eat a bit on her own, but I am still feeding her mush and vitamins twice a day.
I did not even count her as one of the 6 survivors until now. And I did absolutely nothing for her wound. (I thought, why put her through more pain cleaning it when she's going to die anyway) Now, I think she may actually make it!
This is the wound after 2 weeks (happened 4/24)
Obviously, the dog grabbed her by the head and slung her.
At first I thought she had a broken neck, because her head just flopped around when she tried to raise it
She can open her eye and even see out of it!
When I went to bag them about an hour later, she was still twitching, so I put the others in first and her on top. Since there were still some unaccounted for, DH and I started scouring the area and after a couple hours, turned up one dead and 6 live ones. I went to put the last dead one in the bag and she was STILL breathing. Thinking i had seen too much carnage to be in the mood to wring her neck or decapitate her. I put her in the old brooder with a heat lamp, figuring she'd be dead by morning, but she'd be warm on her way out.
SURPRISE...next morning, she was still alive, but unresponsive. So I put a bowl of water and dish of feed in and basically just left her there for the next couple days (just looking to see if she had died yet)
After 3 days, she woke up and had her eyes open and was raising her head. I started feeding her with a syringe and she has steadily improved. At first she couldn't even sit up straight, but now she has graduated to the larger brooder cage and is learning to walk again. She can stand and takes tiny steps with one foot right in front of the other and sometimes loses her balance, but sticks her wing out to catch herself. She has also started to eat a bit on her own, but I am still feeding her mush and vitamins twice a day.
I did not even count her as one of the 6 survivors until now. And I did absolutely nothing for her wound. (I thought, why put her through more pain cleaning it when she's going to die anyway) Now, I think she may actually make it!
This is the wound after 2 weeks (happened 4/24)
Obviously, the dog grabbed her by the head and slung her.
At first I thought she had a broken neck, because her head just flopped around when she tried to raise it
She can open her eye and even see out of it!
