Hi everyone! My flock was attacked by a fox one week ago. Three of my Silkies were killed and taken. My 1 year-old Orpington rooster, Bruno, was still alive but badly injured. He was just flopping around on the ground when I arrived. He had puncture wounds all over his back and neck and a large gash on his thigh. I took him inside, flushed all of the wounds with Vetericyn and covered them with antibiotic ointment. I made him warm and comfortable for the night and really expected him to be dead the next day. To my surprise, he was still alive. Mostly laying there with his eyes closed but he would open them on occasion and watch me. I cleaned his wounds again for several more nights and used BluKote to seal them up.
Fast forward to today. His wounds are much improved. He is eating voraciously and drinking really well but I have to support his neck to facilitate eating/drinking. He is pooping just fine. The biggest issue he's still having is that he is unable to lift his head/neck. He can stand but just can't get that head up. I tried making the head/neck sling I found on the internet with scrunchie/t-shirt and even tried a piece of foam pipe insulation cut in half to prevent the scrunchie from hurting him. It's like his neck is just too heavy and his tail doesn't hold his head up. Or the whole contraption is just too flimsy. He is a big boy.
I have a few questions for the group. 1) Does anyone have any ideas for a robust neck brace that goes around his body to provide more support? 2) I started giving him 400 UI Vitamin E 2 days ago. Is it ok to give him Vitamin E even if wry neck isn't the issue? 3) Should I be giving him any other kind of medication or supplement to aid in healing or pain? He doesn't seem to be in distress at all but I've heard chickens hide pain really well.
I'm open to any other suggestions you guys/gals may have. I want to give Bruno the best possible chance of rejoining his girls in the coop. Thank you so much!! <3
Fast forward to today. His wounds are much improved. He is eating voraciously and drinking really well but I have to support his neck to facilitate eating/drinking. He is pooping just fine. The biggest issue he's still having is that he is unable to lift his head/neck. He can stand but just can't get that head up. I tried making the head/neck sling I found on the internet with scrunchie/t-shirt and even tried a piece of foam pipe insulation cut in half to prevent the scrunchie from hurting him. It's like his neck is just too heavy and his tail doesn't hold his head up. Or the whole contraption is just too flimsy. He is a big boy.
I have a few questions for the group. 1) Does anyone have any ideas for a robust neck brace that goes around his body to provide more support? 2) I started giving him 400 UI Vitamin E 2 days ago. Is it ok to give him Vitamin E even if wry neck isn't the issue? 3) Should I be giving him any other kind of medication or supplement to aid in healing or pain? He doesn't seem to be in distress at all but I've heard chickens hide pain really well.
I'm open to any other suggestions you guys/gals may have. I want to give Bruno the best possible chance of rejoining his girls in the coop. Thank you so much!! <3
