Tail feathers vs. dog

[Smarcebird]

Hey all -
Just a quick question. We had a friend bring a dog over this weekend - "It would never hurt one of your birds." Yeah, right. Went right after our 9 week old hen - luckily she is very fast. But lost some tail feathers in the process. Her bottom was a little red - I put some stuff on it - she's fine - MAYBE a little more wary. Will these feathers grow back, or will we have to wait till after a molt?

Thanks!

 

[columbiacritter]

Sorry, you'll have to wait until she molts.

 

[Smarcebird]

That's what I figured. Thanks for the reply.

 

[PekinBantam]

I'm no expert on turkey feathers but I think you have to wait untill a molt...

 

[jak2002003]

No, you don't have to wait till after the moult! They will grow back very quickly.

If a birds feathers are pulled out completely then the body is stimulated to replace them.

But if the feathers are just snapped or cut off - leaving the ends still in the birds body - then you will have to wait until the moult for them to be replaced.

 

[chicken pickin]

Glad your poult is ok. I have 2 9 week old poults also. I bought 4 and gave 2 to my friends to raise. Just yesterday my friend called me because her dogs killed both her 9 week old poults so sad. I also dont know for sure about feathers but i think I agree with Jak.

 

[KristinMarie]

I'm new to turkeys, but if they are anything like chickens, the feathers should start growing back immediately. My rooster, Lola (he was supposed to be a she) was attacked by something three different times. I never found out what was doing it, and lost hens over it, but Lola always managed to get away alive. He always ended up missing a bunch of feathers because of the ordeal. One of the times he was almost completely bald, poor guy, missing all of the feathers on his back, neck, and his wing tips were missing along with those feathers. Last time, he lost almost all of his tail feathers. He was a trooper, though, and the feathers always started growing back immediately, although it took a while to fill back in completely. Usually a month or two depending on how many were missing. It takes a lot of energy to grow feathers so I always increased the protein content of his food while he was recuperating. Sadly, he is no longer with us. After all the trouble we went through trying to nurse him back to health all of those times, and him becoming my best buddy, we had to end up sending him to the stew pot anyway because he was attacking our momma hen, ripping her feathers out, and causing her to lose her chicks. Anyway, I digress LOL. I don't trust other people and their dogs for just that reason. My own 14 year old, sweet, loyal dog, who would steal baby kittens and bath them and would never harm ANYTHING(!!!) killed one of my chickens. If she would do it, anyone else's dog would do it. It is instinct and sometimes animals can surprise us. Even those wonderful pets that we feel we know everything about. I'm glad your turkey made it through the ordeal. Hope her feathers grow back in soon!

 

[PekinBantam]

I know...
One of my dogs Roxy is becoming quite a pest with the birds... She attacked one of our ducks a few days ago and she's currently tied... The duck is OK but hes missing some backfeathers now...