Picked up an abandoned Roo on the side of the road today

[Gizabelle]

In the middle of a miles long stretch of hwy through a national forest, what should we spot on the side of the road but a lone rooster. Turned around and went back, and he came towards me immediately. He happily took some crackers from me, but we ended up having to get a net to catch him.

Just wondering where to start with this guy.
Currently, I have him in dog-crate quarantine. He all but plunged into a tray of flock crumble and scratch grains. (really hope I didn't let him over-do it, but he stopped before eating all of it and appears calm and relaxed) Added vitamin/electrolyte supps to his water.

He appears healthy, for the most part. No obvious wounds, but I haven't given him a truly thorough once-over yet. (Intend to do this in the morning and treat for lice etc then.) His comb looks kind of beat-up... I'll post pics for opinions on the possibility of fowl pox.
The drive from where we found him was about 45 mins from our house and he rode in my lap loosely wrapped in a t-shirt. He was alert, but several times I noticed him do the neck stretch/gape thing followed by a head shake. I haven't noted this since he's been settled in the crate.
His poops are very dark, almost black. Not sure how much to worry about that at this point as there is no telling how long he was out there or what he was eating, but opinions on all of these points are most welcome.

I was planning on starting with a lice spray tomorrow and a first dose of safeguard (10% goat suspension - .23ml/lb for 5 days)
I have Corid on hand also, if a "just in case" round of that might be recommended.

Please let me know your thoughts and suggestions!

Thanks!

PS: WHAT IN THE WORLD WAS THIS POOR FELLA DOING ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD IN A NATIONAL FOREST MILES FROM ANY HUMAN HABITATION?!?!

 

[RoostersAreAwesome]

Good job rescuing him!
He was very likely dumped. Unfortunately, rooster being dumped is much more common than you would think.
I don’t believe he has fowl pox, it looks more like comb injuries, but I’m not certain. I’ve never personally dealt with fowl pox.

 

[Lucy Brown]

In the middle of a miles long stretch of hwy through a national forest, what should we spot on the side of the road but a lone rooster. Turned around and went back, and he came towards me immediately. He happily took some crackers from me, but we ended up having to get a net to catch him.

Just wondering where to start with this guy.
Currently, I have him in dog-crate quarantine. He all but plunged into a tray of flock crumble and scratch grains. (really hope I didn't let him over-do it, but he stopped before eating all of it and appears calm and relaxed) Added vitamin/electrolyte supps to his water.

He appears healthy, for the most part. No obvious wounds, but I haven't given him a truly thorough once-over yet. (Intend to do this in the morning and treat for lice etc then.) His comb looks kind of beat-up... I'll post pics for opinions on the possibility of fowl pox.
The drive from where we found him was about 45 mins from our house and he rode in my lap loosely wrapped in a t-shirt. He was alert, but several times I noticed him do the neck stretch/gape thing followed by a head shake. I haven't noted this since he's been settled in the crate.
His poops are very dark, almost black. Not sure how much to worry about that at this point as there is no telling how long he was out there or what he was eating, but opinions on all of these points are most welcome.

I was planning on starting with a lice spray tomorrow and a first dose of safeguard (10% goat suspension - .23ml/lb for 5 days)
I have Corid on hand also, if a "just in case" round of that might be recommended.

Please let me know your thoughts and suggestions!

Thanks!

PS: WHAT IN THE WORLD WAS THIS POOR FELLA DOING ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD IN A NATIONAL FOREST MILES FROM ANY HUMAN HABITATION?!?!

we need more people like you in the world <3

 

[JadeFarms]

Good job with the rescue. I agree that he was probably dumped. Those are injuries, not fowl pox, they are small so it’s nothing to worry about.
Do you have any other chickens? If not then you may wanna get him a couple girls. If you do have chickens then quarantine him.

 

[benevolent_leonela]

He's a beauty! What a shame somebody would dump him rather than give him a chance at a new home somewhere. Good on you

 

[Byrd gal]

I think its just rough looking . vetericyn or vet rx should help his comb. He is lucky you found him. I hate to think of what would have happened to him .Who would dump a domesticated animal in a forest like that?

 

[Gizabelle]

Thanks for the kind words everyone. People just suck sometimes... makes me so angry.
He might have lucked out though. Once he's gone through quarantine, he'll have a harem waiting for him. My husband was absolutely anti-rooster for the 5 years we've kept chickens right up to the point that we saw this guy in need, then "well, maybe it'll work... the girls would love it... as long as he doesn't start crowing before 5..."

Do you have any other chickens? If not then you may wanna get him a couple girls. If you do have chickens then quarantine him.

We have 4 hens and a wild turkey hen (rehab that just never left). We have acreage, and the ladies FR everyday until bedtime and follow us around when we go outside.
Just want to make sure he's not carrying anything infectious, then as long as he can get along with everyone, he's got it made.

 

[SurferchickinSB]

Thanks for the kind words everyone. People just suck sometimes... makes me so angry.
He might have lucked out though. Once he's gone through quarantine, he'll have a harem waiting for him. My husband was absolutely anti-rooster for the 5 years we've kept chickens right up to the point that we saw this guy in need, then "well, maybe it'll work... the girls would love it... as long as he doesn't start crowing before 5..."

We have 4 hens and a wild turkey hen (rehab that just never left). We have acreage, and the ladies FR everyday until bedtime and follow us around when we go outside.
Just want to make sure he's not carrying anything infectious, then as long as he can get along with everyone, he's got it made.

What a lucky guy! Let us know how it goes!

 

[Gizabelle]

From a medical standpoint though... does anyone see any red flags in the original post?

Could the gaping thing have been stress induced, or should I be on the look out for respiratory disease? I haven't seen any other respiratory-type symptoms.

Should I worry about the black poop yet? Was hoping that that it would go away with a few days of good nutrition, but its not something I've encountered before.

A round of "just in case" safegaurd is a good idea, right? We live in the deep south, and I usually just assume that anything living outdoors around here as some kind of intestinal parasite.

 

[Bigtom Turkey]

The poop is most likely from poor diet, nothing good food won't fix.