Rooster attacked by BIG housecat

[Biloxi1955]

This morning a VERY large tomcat attacked one of our RIR roosters. The cat belongs to the neighbors living about 300 yards from the house. I was going down the driveway to get the newspaper, and saw it just as the fight started. The rooster got a lot of his neck area torn up, baring a pretty large area right down to the skin. I cleaned off the wound, put on some Neosporin, and am keeping him comfortable in a large box inside the house. I know that he went in to shock, as he is very lethargic, and sleeping except when we pick him up. His breathing while sleeping is steady, and he attempts to stand up every now and then, but for the most part he is just sleeping away. If we pick him up and put water up to his beak, he will drink a bit, but as soon as we lay him down it is lights out. This has been going on for about 8 hours.

He's just at 5 months old, and up until the attack a real hoss. Is there anything else we could be doing for him? We also don't know if we should let him sleep as much as possible, or try to keep him awake every now and then. Any suggestions will be welcome. Thanks!

 

[MikasGirl]

Sounds like you are doing the right thing! Depending on how deep it is you COULD spray some BluKote on it, which helps prevent infection. Good luck!

 

[LadyinRed]

The bad thing about cats is they have alot of bacteria in their mouths. Infection is a real danger from scratches or bites from cats. Keep an eye on his wounds. Especially punctures from teeth. Make sure to give him some good food like scrambled egg, yogurt, B.O.S.S, Or better yet some scrambled egg in yogurt, stuff that he will want to eat plenty of. And maybe a little sugar water to pep him up?

 

[drumstick diva]

I hope you will have the neighbor come and see what their cat did to your rooster. If they aren't suitably appalled and remorseful, you could tell them what will happen the next time kitty goes after your stock.

 

[Biloxi1955]

Thanks so far for the replies! I'm going with some sugar water the next time we roust him up a little bit. I'm just curious as to how long that shock lasts. He changes his sleeping position every now and then, but it definitely looks like something rung his bell pretty hard. Any prognosis from anybody that had one of their's with a similar injury?

 

[Cloverleaf Farm]

You need to start him on antibiotics NOW. Don't wait for the infection to start...which WILL happen with cat bite wounds like that. If you wait to see if it gets infected, it may be too late.

 

[Biloxi1955]

What's the kind of antibiotic we need for this? We are at the feed store regularly, but there's about a million choices. Any suggestions? I thank y'all for any help. By the way, he is moving around some more, and almost looks like he's talking in his sleep when he shifts positions. Not for sure right now if that's good or bad, but hoping GOOD!

 

[Gypsi]

Not erthromycin, based on my treating myself with that after a cat bite, which didn't work and my doctor had a real good laugh at my expense, checking my medical files to see what I was treated with. At the time I was in danger of losing a finger, or having the whole infection go systemic, and the doc treated me with samples. Looks like Omnicef, which I am not sure the feed store will have. Good luck.