Rehabbing my Easter Egger

[LynneMarsh]

I lost 1 EE about a month ago and then 2.5 weeks ago, I had my other attacked by a raccoon. It left teeth marks on her scalp, took her left eye. I dropper fed her egg yolk and water with Flock Fixer in it twice a day. It was a long and tedious process and I wondered if she was getting enough.
About a week ago I learned about "push" feeding. I was successful on the second try and it has been going well since.
I grind in a magic bullet some Grubterra larvae & crumbles. I add an egg yolk and enough fortified water to flow through the syringe and tubing easily. I give her 60ml both morning and evening.
During the day she is seperate from my other 4 girls in a 4x8 juvenile pen. In the evening, when I can sit with then, they all free range together.
My questions are: 1 how long must I push feed her before she will eat on her own? I have not noticed evidence that she is eating the crumbles in her bowl. Also, she will drink water by plunging her whole head in the water bowl before stretching her neck up to swallow.
She has spent the last 2 nights in the coop with the others...successfully.
Thank you all for any help you may offer.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I lost 1 EE about a month ago and then 2.5 weeks ago, I had my other attacked by a raccoon. It left teeth marks on her scalp, took her left eye. I dropper fed her egg yolk and water with Flock Fixer in it twice a day. It was a long and tedious process and I wondered if she was getting enough.
About a week ago I learned about "push" feeding. I was successful on the second try and it has been going well since.
I grind in a magic bullet some Grubterra larvae & crumbles. I add an egg yolk and enough fortified water to flow through the syringe and tubing easily. I give her 60ml both morning and evening.
During the day she is seperate from my other 4 girls in a 4x8 juvenile pen. In the evening, when I can sit with then, they all free range together.
My questions are: 1 how long must I push feed her before she will eat on her own? I have not noticed evidence that she is eating the crumbles in her bowl. Also, she will drink water by plunging her whole head in the water bowl before stretching her neck up to swallow.
She has spent the last 2 nights in the coop with the others...successfully.
Thank you all for any help you may offer.

Welcome To BYC

I'm sorry for your loss.

The hen that was attacked and is now recovering, do you have photos of her and her eye?
Are the wounds healing o.k.?

With a head injury and the loss of an eye, she may still be very sore.
Try offering her a little wet food in a bowl set up on a block of wood or something so she doesn't have to bend her neck/head to the ground. Same with her water bowl.

Which eye is lost? This may play a part on how she now views the world. A chicken's eyes basically act independently. The right eye is near sighted, while the left is far sighted. So you may have to adjust heights of her food/water for now until she is able to adapt to limited vision. Most hens adapt very well; it just takes time.

It can be difficult to know the timeline of when one will not have to be tube fed. Encourage her to try to eat on her own. Bits of egg may be of interest to her. Sometimes something red like watermelon or tomato also will entice them to pick/peck at food too.

Since she suffered head injury, she may also benefit from some extra vitamins for several weeks. I'd give 400UI Vitamin E and 1/4tablet B-Complex daily.

 

[LynneMarsh]

Here are several photos of my little EEgirl. As you can see, she lost her left eye. Can you make out the indentation on her scalp? The crusting scabs are coming loose at the edges.
Another thing I forgot to mention, she has clear mucus draining fron her left nostril. It is a yellowish booger but when I dislodge it with a q tip, the mucus is somewhat clear and thin. I don't want this to turn into a respiratory issue.
oh, I did try to give her some scrambled egg and watermelon. I think we are onto something here.
Thank you for taking the time to help us.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Poor Girl!

It's good that she's hanging in there and it looks like her head wounds are healing up.

I'd keep the nostril cleared. She may benefit from an antibiotic, do you have anything on hand like Amoxicillin or Tylosin?

 

[LynneMarsh]

Poor Girl!

It's good that she's hanging in there and it looks like her head wounds are healing up.

I'd keep the nostril cleared. She may benefit from an antibiotic, do you have anything on hand like Amoxicillin or Tylosin?

I just wanted to give you an update on my EE Freckles. She's now integrated with the rest of the flock. She is keeping herself above the others (on the coop or the sawhorse) because they still startle her when they come up on her blind side. She's eating and drinking on her own and yesterday she was "caught" dustbathing. I think she is on the mend.

 

[LynneMarsh]

Poor Girl!

It's good that she's hanging in there and it looks like her head wounds are healing up.

I'd keep the nostril cleared. She may benefit from an antibiotic, do you have anything on hand like Amoxicillin or Tylosin?

OMG!! Freckles laid her first egg since the attack. It's small but it's an egg!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

OMG!! Freckles laid her first egg since the attack. It's small but it's an egg!
View attachment 4177614

This is good news!