We came home from town yesterday and 2 chickens were laying in the back of the chicken coop injured

[Snugypope]

We came home to find that only 2 of our chickens were in the coop and they were both laying as if they were killed but they were both breathing. One of them popped up after a few minutes and is now acting normal but the other still can't move its legs so when i stand him up and he just falls over. there is like a hole in his neck that is like half a centimeter in diameter but that's the only wound. i live in northern wisconsin. Please help me figure out what this animal is and how to get ride of it!!???? Also if you can give me any advise on how to save the rooster...

 

[Bigwig]

They could have been shot. Are there any other signs of attack around the run/coop area or on the chickens? Its obvious that they where both badly scared. Not sure what animal would peck (or bite) a hole in the chickens neck and then leave without killing it. The injured rooster could have been injured by one of the other chickens and then was scared by something after she was injured (a low-flying aircraft perhaps). You could put a live trap near the coop and see what you catch. As for taking care of the rooster I would put him in a separate enclosure so the other chickens won't peck at the wound. You need to put some antibiotic ointment on the wound to prevent infection. Also, do you have a dog that is allowed near the coop that could have scared off a predator before it could kill your rooster?

 

[Snugypope]

Our dog is kept inside while we are gone. i just did another closer examination on the rooster and i found 3 small puncture(like a claw or a fang) wounds in different spots around his neck. I think the hole i found earlier was a lot smaller than i said it was, i was not thinking straight. also i think that the attack had just started when we were coming down the driveway because they weren't dead, im thinking it was a weasel. the chicken still cant walk and seems to like throw his head to one side when i try to get him to stand up.

 

[the poppster]

Our dog is kept inside while we are gone. i just did another closer examination on the rooster and i found 3 small puncture(like a claw or a fang) wounds in different spots around his neck. I think the hole i found earlier was a lot smaller than i said it was, i was not thinking straight. also i think that the attack had just started when we were coming down the driveway because they weren't dead, im thinking it was a weasel. the chicken still cant walk and seems to like throw his head to one side when i try to get him to stand up.

Sounds like a weasel to me....I lost 8 chicks to a Mother weasel this spring....she killed them all with a bite to the back of the neck....set a weasel box and caught her the next day....caught Daddy weasel two days later, just outside the coop door....the weasels seem to have run out of chipmunk and mice...decided, to their detriment to start on my chickens.

 

[the poppster]

Sorry about your rooster....if he can eat or at least drink...I would separate him and make him as comfortable as possible...some vitamins....anything that might help him overcome the shock and the injury...he's probably got swelling that is causing the problem...if it doesn't get better in a few days...well...as long as he can drink...and he doesn't seem to be suffering...give him time to heal.

 

[whitg]

I don't think I have the pic anymore (I took it and sent it to my husband because I was shocked at how bad the scab/cut was) but I had the same thing happen. One hen had a really bad gash and another had just it head taken off. This was when my birds were fairly young. Probably 3 months old. My husband had been talking about a hawk circling around the coop and the yard the last few days and told me to watch the birds. Hawks like the smaller/younger birds because they're easier to pick on. I'm about 90 percent sure it was that hawk. Haven't had an issue with it since now that they're older. Might be an idea.

 

[whitg]

Also I put neosporin on the wound. We litteraly had nothing else and I knew we wouldn't be in town for another 3-4 days ( we live out in the middle of nowhere). I didn't even have in a hydrogen peroxide. It's not recommended to use neosporin but its what I had. The neosporin will probably attract dirt and could make it worse I did my best to put bandaids around it haha. She actually left it on for about 2 days. By then it looked much better and I left it alone. I now have stuff for when things like that happen. Betadine or triodine might help keep it clean. My mom used to use it on our horses wounds. I wouldn't recommend any kind of paste like neosporin because like I said it made track dirt and make it worse. I fortunately I was able to cover it and keep it covered for a while. Just try to keep it as clean as you can. It should heal in time. My mom once said that hydrogen peroxide not cleans the dead skin away but it tends to do it to the new skin trying to come in. Iodine is always better if you have it.

 

[Snugypope]

i searched all over his body to see if there were any more cuts or any thing (i was only looking around the head) and i found a large like gash on both sides of him also a couple other small cuts where it looked like it had just taken off like the first layer of skin. He drinks and eats when i put it right in his mouth. He also kicks his feet like he is trying to stand but can't. i put flour on the wounds hat were bleeding and i put antibiotic ointment on everything wounded... thanks for all of the help you all have given me so far...