predator amputated hen leg!

[oopsydaisy]

Something just got into my coop during the day (I checked on them at 12pm and gave them crickets! All fine) and literally took the leg from one of my hens! She is still perky, seemingly in some shock....can she live with one leg?? The whole yellow unfeathered portion is gone. I have no idea what would have done that without taking her, or even how anything got in! We moved the remaining hens to safer place right now, albeit quite small.

Has anyone had a one-legged chicken with a good outcome? I am so horrified! I was 10 feet from the coop all day.

 

[Enchanted Sunrise Farms]

Hi - So sorry about your chicken. i hope she will be okay. Somebody else posted a link to this story in another thread:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=477018&in_page_id=1770

i guess if this chicken can make it with one leg, your's can, too.

Colleen

 

[jjthink]

If she is in shock (I would be) she'll need a quiet comfy place to be, V&E, antibiotics (I can't picture the wound but could be she needs topical as well as oral) and if at all possible, a vet. Others who have more experience with this will no doubt come along soon............
Sending best wishes - had to be awful for her....
JJ

 

[SpottedCrow]

Sounds like a raccoon. They're notorious for taking pieces...
If she was standing near the fence, it could have stuck it's little fingers through and grabbed her leg.
You'd need to clean the wound well and keep her quiet and warm. I'd also recommend taking her to a vet only for the fact that they could prescribe antibiotics for her.

 

[Carole AM]

I had an OEGB hen that had her leg ripped off by a coon. (I think) She was in shock too, and it took her awhile to get calm. I gave her antibiotics in her water, and gatorade. We kept her in the house till she healed. I kept cleaning the wound, and used a antibiotic ointment on her. She did heal, and got around on one leg for awhile. One day, she came up missing, but we don't think it was because of her leg.

 

[country freedom]

Back in the 70's, when my family lived on my Pappaw's farm, I showed my Mama a turkey hen that had her lower legs off. We had turkey soon afterward. I had always wondered what had gotten to that hen. I don't think anyone in my family would have taken the turkey's legs off on purpose. All of our chickens, turkeys, guineas, ducks, and geese were free range. I'm sorry that you went thru that horrible xperience!

 

[oopsydaisy]

Our coop was a horse stall surrounded by 2x10 wood on 3 sides and on the 4th up 4 ft with iron grilles only 3" apart. The ceiling is chicken wire. Whatever it was was sleath and skinny. I was literally outside the whole time and the coop was in sight. No blood, no feathers, no tracks, and no sign of the leg.

She is inside and quiet (they were quite tame). Poor thing, what kind of life is that?

 

[SpottedCrow]

Once her stump is healed, you could make a prosthetic foot for her...

 

[NewGuineaChooks]

Had one that got caught by new puppy, who thought it was a plaything. After seeing it through the window, and running outside, I rescued it. It was missing its foot, but some of the scaley leg was still there. Couldn't find anything sharp to put it out of its misery, so I doctored it up.

Smothered the wound with antibiotic ointment, wrapped it in surgical gauze, and taped the whole thing up in a piece of plastic shopping bag, to keep dirt out.

I then confined the chicken to a large bin, with its own food and water. it just sat there for a few days. Then it started hobbling a bit. After two weeks the wound stump seemed 'healed' even though the bone was sticking out. So I let it out to range for the day, and it did great! hobbled after the other chickens, and by the end of the month, could even balance on one leg to roost up in the coop with the others.

On the other hand, we had one last year that was chewed on by something up to the 'drumstick'/thigh joint. It lived in the house for over a month, but never got strong, and then died.

So, in my experience, it depends how severe the injury. And slather on that antibiotic ointment!

 

[oopsydaisy]

I named her Una, she is doing wonderfully! I did some fancy shmancy gauze wrap at first to cover the wound, but she houdini'd out of it. Now she runs just as fast as the other chickens to chase crickets. Only thing that truly worries me about her at this point is that she stops and drops when scared. She definitely has changed my opinion though. Still sad for her, but what an inspiration!