Our 1-year old Buff Orps were enjoying a typical free-range day at the woods edge, when a huge fox grabbed one and ran up the hill into the woods with her in his mouth. I ran behind them, making lots of noise, and the fox got scared and dropped her. She went flying down the hillside towards the coop.
She is traumatized. Scared, breathing heavy...but walking fine (no leg or wing or head injuries.) However, there is a single gash about two inches long on her saddle. It's about 3/8 inch deep, through the outer skin and fat layer. There is a little blood, but nothing flowing.
Of course, my bossy hen immediately took an interest in the open wound...
She (The Traumatized One) let me pick her up (she always does), and we doused the saddle area with hydrogen peroxide. Fortunately, our coop is divided, with the back third being a 'nursery' for younger chicks. It has its own door, roost, food, and watering equipment, and is divided from the rest of the flock by a floor-to-ceiling, wall-to-wall screen, so they are together, but apart.
My plan is to peroxide her daily, but her keep her separated from the older hens until she heals. I suspect that we could let her hang out with the younger chicks during the day (they're 10 weeks old and half her size), as I don't expect they will notice the wound or be aggressive with her.
I'm really just writing this up to get confirmation that this all makes sense, and wondering if there's anything else I should do that I've forgotten.
She is traumatized. Scared, breathing heavy...but walking fine (no leg or wing or head injuries.) However, there is a single gash about two inches long on her saddle. It's about 3/8 inch deep, through the outer skin and fat layer. There is a little blood, but nothing flowing.
Of course, my bossy hen immediately took an interest in the open wound...
She (The Traumatized One) let me pick her up (she always does), and we doused the saddle area with hydrogen peroxide. Fortunately, our coop is divided, with the back third being a 'nursery' for younger chicks. It has its own door, roost, food, and watering equipment, and is divided from the rest of the flock by a floor-to-ceiling, wall-to-wall screen, so they are together, but apart.
My plan is to peroxide her daily, but her keep her separated from the older hens until she heals. I suspect that we could let her hang out with the younger chicks during the day (they're 10 weeks old and half her size), as I don't expect they will notice the wound or be aggressive with her.
I'm really just writing this up to get confirmation that this all makes sense, and wondering if there's anything else I should do that I've forgotten.
