Washingtonians

[Ogress]

I have got about 15 over here on my side, nothing falling at the moment, but I am sure it will soon!

Same here 15 to 20 inches on the ground (snow came with wind), nothing new since about 2pm.

 

[OvertheHenHouse]

I just posted this in Emergencies but I know my WA friends are online all the time, have probably gone through this, and will have really good advice.
One of my 5-month-old pullets flew out of the hen house, the dog chased her into a storm drain and we thought she was dead. Got the dog out and discovered the pullet was alive, but injured and in cold water for about 45 minutes until someone small enough could get in to get her.
Her eyes were closed and she was gasping and shivering because she'd been partially submerged and seemed to be hypothermic. Lots of feathers lost on back and neck, skin ripped open and a few shallow punctures on her back. It looks bad but the injuires in and of themselves don't appear at this point to be life threatening.
I put her in warm water and changed the water several times to get the mud off her and warm her up. I made sure not to get the water on the open wounds. I used a blow dryer on her to get most of the moisture out of her feathers and also to warm her up. I put her on towels in a box on a heating pad under low light about an hour ago. She's gone from gasping and shivering and head bobbing to deep breathing and seems to be sleeping. Or is maybe comatose - don't know. At least she's warm.
I know I need to clean out the wounds and I also know I need to keep her hydrated and fed. From what I've read on BYC, it seems the best thing to do initially is let her recover from the shock. I have diluted betadine and triple antibiotic (no pain reliever) standing by as well as a syringe to give her water but am not sure when to start trying to clean her up and hydrate her.
I'd really appreciate your wisdom. Of course it has to be one of my favorites. I'm gratified that she's still with us but realize her chances are slim...

 

[Stumpfarmer]

I have got about 15 over here on my side, nothing falling at the moment, but I am sure it will soon!

Same here 15 to 20 inches on the ground (snow came with wind), nothing new since about 2pm.

Hasn't snowed here since about 2:30- although it looked intent on burying me for about an hour before that- but DH (who has just now gotten home) said it snowed hard all afternoon in Tumwater. We just dragged the critical groceries up the hill- the car is in out of sight of the road and out of the way of feeding the cattle tomorrow (I HOPE) and nobody's going nowhere tomorrow until the weather settles.

Looks as if the low went WAY further south than it looked like it was going to go and is pounding Portland and Vancouver: really glad I'm not in Troutdale, hope CLF is doing OK.

 

[RedReiner]

I just posted this in Emergencies but I know my WA friends are online all the time, have probably gone through this, and will have really good advice.
One of my 5-month-old pullets flew out of the hen house, the dog chased her into a storm drain and we thought she was dead. Got the dog out and discovered the pullet was alive, but injured and in cold water for about 45 minutes until someone small enough could get in to get her.
Her eyes were closed and she was gasping and shivering because she'd been partially submerged and seemed to be hypothermic. Lots of feathers lost on back and neck, skin ripped open and a few shallow punctures on her back. It looks bad but the injuires in and of themselves don't appear at this point to be life threatening.
I put her in warm water and changed the water several times to get the mud off her and warm her up. I made sure not to get the water on the open wounds. I used a blow dryer on her to get most of the moisture out of her feathers and also to warm her up. I put her on towels in a box on a heating pad under low light about an hour ago. She's gone from gasping and shivering and head bobbing to deep breathing and seems to be sleeping.  Or is maybe comatose - don't know.  At least she's warm.
I know I need to clean out the wounds and I also know I need to keep her hydrated and fed. From what I've read on BYC, it seems the best thing to do initially is let her recover from the shock. I have diluted betadine and triple antibiotic (no pain reliever) standing by as well as a syringe to give her water but am not sure when to start trying to clean her up and hydrate her.
I'd really appreciate your wisdom.  Of course it has to be one of my favorites.  I'm gratified that she's still with us but realize her chances are slim...

you would be surprised. put some water and food in front of her. I do try a little bit of something they really like, bread or meat along with regular food. once she warms up and I bet she helps herself.

 

[ReiMiraa]

I just posted this in Emergencies but I know my WA friends are online all the time, have probably gone through this, and will have really good advice.
One of my 5-month-old pullets flew out of the hen house, the dog chased her into a storm drain and we thought she was dead. Got the dog out and discovered the pullet was alive, but injured and in cold water for about 45 minutes until someone small enough could get in to get her.
Her eyes were closed and she was gasping and shivering because she'd been partially submerged and seemed to be hypothermic. Lots of feathers lost on back and neck, skin ripped open and a few shallow punctures on her back. It looks bad but the injuires in and of themselves don't appear at this point to be life threatening.
I put her in warm water and changed the water several times to get the mud off her and warm her up. I made sure not to get the water on the open wounds. I used a blow dryer on her to get most of the moisture out of her feathers and also to warm her up. I put her on towels in a box on a heating pad under low light about an hour ago. She's gone from gasping and shivering and head bobbing to deep breathing and seems to be sleeping. Or is maybe comatose - don't know. At least she's warm.
I know I need to clean out the wounds and I also know I need to keep her hydrated and fed. From what I've read on BYC, it seems the best thing to do initially is let her recover from the shock. I have diluted betadine and triple antibiotic (no pain reliever) standing by as well as a syringe to give her water but am not sure when to start trying to clean her up and hydrate her.
I'd really appreciate your wisdom. Of course it has to be one of my favorites. I'm gratified that she's still with us but realize her chances are slim...

Warmth. simple foods. hypothermia will cause the slow shutdown of organs, she could be internally damaged. If she survives the shock then the chicken should be ok. Some chickens die from the shock (heat failure/attack). warm and hydrated can do wonders.

 

[Chicken Rustler]

I just posted this in Emergencies but I know my WA friends are online all the time, have probably gone through this, and will have really good advice.
One of my 5-month-old pullets flew out of the hen house, the dog chased her into a storm drain and we thought she was dead. Got the dog out and discovered the pullet was alive, but injured and in cold water for about 45 minutes until someone small enough could get in to get her.
Her eyes were closed and she was gasping and shivering because she'd been partially submerged and seemed to be hypothermic. Lots of feathers lost on back and neck, skin ripped open and a few shallow punctures on her back. It looks bad but the injuries in and of themselves don't appear at this point to be life threatening.
I put her in warm water and changed the water several times to get the mud off her and warm her up. I made sure not to get the water on the open wounds. I used a blow dryer on her to get most of the moisture out of her feathers and also to warm her up. I put her on towels in a box on a heating pad under low light about an hour ago. She's gone from gasping and shivering and head bobbing to deep breathing and seems to be sleeping. Or is maybe comatose - don't know. At least she's warm.
I know I need to clean out the wounds and I also know I need to keep her hydrated and fed. From what I've read on BC, it seems the best thing to do initially is let her recover from the shock. I have diluted betadine and triple antibiotic (no pain reliever) standing by as well as a syringe to give her water but am not sure when to start trying to clean her up and hydrate her.
I'd really appreciate your wisdom. Of course it has to be one of my favorites. I'm gratified that she's still with us but realize her chances are slim...

Sorry to hear about your girl. I am probably not much help. Sounds like you are off to a good start. I would also try getting her to take a little honey. I would just put tiny bits on her tongue (not too much so ya don't choke her). While I have never done this with chickens I have with lots of other animals including parrot type birds. See she has been stressed and used LOTS of energy. The honey is HIGH ENERGY.

THIS IS when we need RR, CL, Clover or some of the other "pro's" to jump in here but don't give up on the emergencies thread they are good there too!

 

[TheReidHomestead]

I just posted this in Emergencies but I know my WA friends are online all the time, have probably gone through this, and will have really good advice.
One of my 5-month-old pullets flew out of the hen house, the dog chased her into a storm drain and we thought she was dead. Got the dog out and discovered the pullet was alive, but injured and in cold water for about 45 minutes until someone small enough could get in to get her.
Her eyes were closed and she was gasping and shivering because she'd been partially submerged and seemed to be hypothermic. Lots of feathers lost on back and neck, skin ripped open and a few shallow punctures on her back. It looks bad but the injuires in and of themselves don't appear at this point to be life threatening.
I put her in warm water and changed the water several times to get the mud off her and warm her up. I made sure not to get the water on the open wounds. I used a blow dryer on her to get most of the moisture out of her feathers and also to warm her up. I put her on towels in a box on a heating pad under low light about an hour ago. She's gone from gasping and shivering and head bobbing to deep breathing and seems to be sleeping. Or is maybe comatose - don't know. At least she's warm.
I know I need to clean out the wounds and I also know I need to keep her hydrated and fed. From what I've read on BYC, it seems the best thing to do initially is let her recover from the shock. I have diluted betadine and triple antibiotic (no pain reliever) standing by as well as a syringe to give her water but am not sure when to start trying to clean her up and hydrate her.
I'd really appreciate your wisdom. Of course it has to be one of my favorites. I'm gratified that she's still with us but realize her chances are slim...

I agree, keep her warm and dry and make sure she has food & water. Once you are sure she is going to make it, you see her eating/drinking, that is when I would try and clean her wounds as best you can and put on the antibiotic cream. If they are really deep/hard to get clean, you might want to get an antibiotic for her water, probably Duramycin or Baytril. I'd also tempt her into eating a bit after she warms up and dry's off, by offering her some scrambled eggs/scratch along with her regular feed. CR's idea is good too. I'd just add a little sugar to her water for some extra carbs. Maybe some vitamins/electrolytes in her water too. But not with the antibiotic in her water, only one thing in there at a time. I'd do sugar/honey now until you know if she needs the other. Good luck!

 

[Illia]

A record-breaking, whopping 10 inches of snow sit on the ground over here. By record though I just mean in the 11 years we've been here. For some of you that isn't much, for us it is a lot. Thankfully all that happened (bad) was one of our old trees split in three and the chickens are pretty upset, some of them very thirsty due to not trekking over to adequite water sources.

I'm bracing for tonight though. Seems I'm due for another 4-8 inches of snow PLUS over 20 mph of wind.

 

[Sudsy Chick]

I just posted this in Emergencies but I know my WA friends are online all the time, have probably gone through this, and will have really good advice.
One of my 5-month-old pullets flew out of the hen house, the dog chased her into a storm drain and we thought she was dead. Got the dog out and discovered the pullet was alive, but injured and in cold water for about 45 minutes until someone small enough could get in to get her.
Her eyes were closed and she was gasping and shivering because she'd been partially submerged and seemed to be hypothermic. Lots of feathers lost on back and neck, skin ripped open and a few shallow punctures on her back. It looks bad but the injuires in and of themselves don't appear at this point to be life threatening.
I put her in warm water and changed the water several times to get the mud off her and warm her up. I made sure not to get the water on the open wounds. I used a blow dryer on her to get most of the moisture out of her feathers and also to warm her up. I put her on towels in a box on a heating pad under low light about an hour ago. She's gone from gasping and shivering and head bobbing to deep breathing and seems to be sleeping. Or is maybe comatose - don't know. At least she's warm.
I know I need to clean out the wounds and I also know I need to keep her hydrated and fed. From what I've read on BYC, it seems the best thing to do initially is let her recover from the shock. I have diluted betadine and triple antibiotic (no pain reliever) standing by as well as a syringe to give her water but am not sure when to start trying to clean her up and hydrate her.
I'd really appreciate your wisdom. Of course it has to be one of my favorites. I'm gratified that she's still with us but realize her chances are slim...

Sorry about your girl After cleaning her wounds (you don't want to lose her to infection either) you might try to cook her some scrambled eggs - warm her and get protein in her - something my girls cannot resist (even if they are half asleep.) Good luck!

 

[Chickielady]

I just posted this in Emergencies but I know my WA friends are online all the time, have probably gone through this, and will have really good advice.
One of my 5-month-old pullets flew out of the hen house, the dog chased her into a storm drain and we thought she was dead. Got the dog out and discovered the pullet was alive, but injured and in cold water for about 45 minutes until someone small enough could get in to get her.
Her eyes were closed and she was gasping and shivering because she'd been partially submerged and seemed to be hypothermic. Lots of feathers lost on back and neck, skin ripped open and a few shallow punctures on her back. It looks bad but the injuires in and of themselves don't appear at this point to be life threatening.
I put her in warm water and changed the water several times to get the mud off her and warm her up. I made sure not to get the water on the open wounds. I used a blow dryer on her to get most of the moisture out of her feathers and also to warm her up. I put her on towels in a box on a heating pad under low light about an hour ago. She's gone from gasping and shivering and head bobbing to deep breathing and seems to be sleeping. Or is maybe comatose - don't know. At least she's warm.
I know I need to clean out the wounds and I also know I need to keep her hydrated and fed. From what I've read on BYC, it seems the best thing to do initially is let her recover from the shock. I have diluted betadine and triple antibiotic (no pain reliever) standing by as well as a syringe to give her water but am not sure when to start trying to clean her up and hydrate her.
I'd really appreciate your wisdom. Of course it has to be one of my favorites. I'm gratified that she's still with us but realize her chances are slim...

Just keep her warm. Any open wounds rub triple antibiotic on...if you can sleeve her in a sweatshirt arm (cut off) or keep her in a warm place as she has lost feathers.
Oh, and I would not worry about food, she will eat when she is up to it.
The important part is warming her...just think if it was a you...liquids are good, but food can come afterwards.
Keep her warm !
Hope all turns out well!