Hello- newbie here with a probably dumb question that might make me seem terrible, but I only want what's best for the poor girl...
Two days ago, my usually very helpful and gentle chicken-herding dog cornered one of my hens. There was blood coming from under her wing. I quickly scooped her up and tried to get a look and saw that a bit of her skin had been torn up, but she wouldn't let me get a good look. I quarantined her in a large covered dog crate in our garage. I called our vet and they no longer care for birds so we were on our own. We decided to take a few hours and assess her. By the end of the day, she was still eating, drinking and pooping; we tried pouring some saline solution to run down under her wing, with moderate success. To our surprise, the next morning, she'd laid an egg and was still eating, drinking, excreting. This morning, same routine, but she let me look under her wing. The smell was awful and the sight gruesome- her organs are visible and tissue is starting to die. I've seen that chickens can make miraculous recoveries, but I don't see how she will. I don't see how she's not in terrible pain, and I don't think a vet could do anything even if we had one available. Am I right in thinking she should be put down? The only reason I'm questioning is that she's doing all the normal things she did before. I know chickens are stoic but... I do have a photo, but I didn't want to post since it's so graphic. Thank you for your help.
Two days ago, my usually very helpful and gentle chicken-herding dog cornered one of my hens. There was blood coming from under her wing. I quickly scooped her up and tried to get a look and saw that a bit of her skin had been torn up, but she wouldn't let me get a good look. I quarantined her in a large covered dog crate in our garage. I called our vet and they no longer care for birds so we were on our own. We decided to take a few hours and assess her. By the end of the day, she was still eating, drinking and pooping; we tried pouring some saline solution to run down under her wing, with moderate success. To our surprise, the next morning, she'd laid an egg and was still eating, drinking, excreting. This morning, same routine, but she let me look under her wing. The smell was awful and the sight gruesome- her organs are visible and tissue is starting to die. I've seen that chickens can make miraculous recoveries, but I don't see how she will. I don't see how she's not in terrible pain, and I don't think a vet could do anything even if we had one available. Am I right in thinking she should be put down? The only reason I'm questioning is that she's doing all the normal things she did before. I know chickens are stoic but... I do have a photo, but I didn't want to post since it's so graphic. Thank you for your help.
