Please HELP. I am not sure what to do. DOG ATTACK

[zeroflutes]

A neighbors dog broke under my fence about 30 minutes ago and tore the side of one of my chickens clean open. Luckily i found her and him before she was dead. I snatched her up and put her in a large holding cage with fresh bedding and water. I can see all the way into her insides, she is still moving around but i fear the worst. Please tell me there is something i can do for her. I feel terrible.

 

[tinydancer87]

If it is really bad the best thing you can do for her is put her down. That being said, chickens can heal from some really bad wounds....can you see her organs, or are you seeing muscle/fat/connective tissue?

 

[zeroflutes]

Im gonna go out there right now actually and take a photo, post it, and see if there is anything you think i can do for her. I have yet to kill one of my ladies, and dread the thought of it, but i don't want her in pain over the course of multiple days if she is going to pass regardless. Thank you so much for the response. I will get the photo up on here asap.

 

[Lifetime chicken lover]

A coyote once caught one of my chickens and this is what I did. Control the bleeding with firm pressure, clean the wound thoroughly with antiseptic (rubbing alcohol, iodine, hydrogen peroxide, witch hazel, etc), if it is really torn open try to find something to close the wound (some say super glue will work, but you can also try to stitch it closed with sterilized fishing line), put some gauze over the wound and wrap a bandage around it. Check the wound every day (even multiple times a day) for infection (you can smell infection). Give the chicken some electrolytes in the water if you can (if you don't have electrolyte mix, try diluted apple cider vinegar or molasses) and pray for the best. If you have a heat lamp to keep her warm that would also be good.
Good luck, I hope she recovers. My chicken made a full recovery.

 

[crtrlovr]

Quote:
Reasonably good advice, but I would NOT use rubbing alcohol!! If you have any povidone Iodine (Betadine) or even antibacterial handsoap, you could clean the wound. You can also use regular sewing thread which should eventually dissolve. Keep the wound coated with neosporin (without the pain relief or any ingredient ending in "caine" -- some chickens have had a fatal reaction to ointments or sprays including benzocaine or lidocaine) and try to keep her calm, warm, and quiet. If you MUST put her outside before she is completely healed be VERY diligent about watching for flies / fly eggs on the wound -- the larvae (maggots) will tunnel into the tissue, and can kill. Contrary to popular belief, not all maggots only eat dead tissue. I hope your girl recovers fully, and I hope your neighbor makes sure that situation doesn't happen again.

 

[zeroflutes]

ok, so i didn't feel i had time to get a photo and run to the store for super glue. So i just did the latter. So i have superglued (after i cleaned the wound with hydrogen peroxide) the wound shut. She is fading, or so it seems, in and out of consciousness. I am afraid that she is slipping. Any thoughts? Should i put her out of her misery, or has anyone seen something like this before with positive results?

 

[tinydancer87]

I had a little faverolle hen, only about 3 months old at the time, who got attacked by something (probably raccoon) during the night. I found her the next morning just standing listlessly; when I picked her up I noticed a dead-animal smell, and most of the skin on her back was totally gone. There were punctures and tears in some if the muscle as well. And there were lots of maggots.

I put her in the sink and flushed the wound with warm water, picking out the maggots as best I could. Then I covered her with regular generic neosporin. Gave her some Metacam and some water via syringe, placed her in a pet crate with heating pad and tucked her in.

She died later in the day, but at least she was warm and relatively pain-free. She was VERY shocky when I found her, I feel that was probably the main reason she didn't make it.

 

[hmmcc123]

So sorry to hear about your girl. I hope she pulls through.

 

[heatherscreations1969]

Oh dear! Sure hope your girl pulls through.

*hugs* Heather x

 

[sydney13]

I think one of your main concerns is keeping her from going into shock. If she is in shock she will likely not eat or drink and there is little you can do about that. If she is feeding and acting relitivly normal then I would say you have a good chance. I'm sure she is in a lot of pain so it may be good to mix some aspirin into her water. I'm not sure of the dosage for chicken's but if you do a search it should come right up. I would try to offer her a treat maybe some boiled egg or yogurt. Moistening her feed can also help to get her to eat something.
Good luck with her... I sure hope she can pull through