Chicken folks...need help with a wounded bird

[Tree House Academy]

Yesterday, I heard a loud shrill squeal outside. I ran out just in time to see a pile of feathers in the front yard and a little red fox running along my barn side with one of my hens in his mouth! I yelled at him and he dropped my hen and ran off.

 

She hobbled to a "safe" spot and about 30 minutes later, I realized she had survived. I got gloves on and dh and I poured hydrogen peroxide on all of her surface wounds. Only one area on her back looks really bad and I truly think that is from the fox ripping the feathers out of her neck! Today, her comb started to turn purplish, so I brought her in an fed and watered her and moved her to a box in the garage. The water did make her comb turn red again! :) But it was getting purplish again tonight as I don't think she is really drinking unless I am out there holding the waterer to her mouth.

 

I am not sure what else I can do for her. :( Does anyone have any "must do" advice for me in dealing with this. All of her wounds are surface wounds and she will eat and drink some if you put it right in front of her. Hydrogen peroxide doesn't even bubble on her anywhere but her back which is the worst place.

 

I really don't want to lose her! I do, however, want to shoot a little red fox!

[Denisemomof4]

Can you give her some antibiotics? I don't have any but I use this:

 

http://silver-biotics.com/silverBiotics16oz.html I have saved MANY animals using this. A few weeks back I thought my duck was going to die. It had a hole in it's back and a ton of feathers missing. He didn't eat for two days. I have him the silver for a week and after two days he started to eat again. He's doing well now. I also give garlic in water to strengthen the immune system. I never tasted it in eggs when I did it in the past.

 

Poor chicken! I don't know what's going on with the comb! I wonder if she has internal injuries? Are her droppings ok?

[Liz CA]

Sometimes a little vinegar (apple cider) in the drinking water makes them drink more.

Also, you could try to get her to eat more by feeding some yogurt. Odd, I know but it supplies good nutrients to them.

 

Sorry about all your recent chicken tragedies. It seems to come in waves for us too.

[MaryElizabeth]

She'll pull through. If her injuries were fatal, she'd have likely died by now or at least gotten much worse. She's probably just doing what all wounded critters do, ---- fasting. She's still injured and upset so she just knows to do what her instincts tell her -- to fast and rest to promote healing. She'll likely only drink water occasionally. I know they like to be rubbed under their beaks (stroke their wattle). If she's a flighty variety, maybe your very presence bothers her (only you know her temperment), but I'd just do what you've done -- give her a cozy recovery spot and let her rest. (I still don't understand why the water made her wattle turn purple so quickly unless there's a blood flow problem to the wattle secondary to an injury). Good luck with your girl!

[Tree House Academy]

(I still don't understand why the water made her wattle turn purple so quickly unless there's a blood flow problem to the wattle secondary to an injury). Good luck with your girl!

 

I noticed her comb turning purple on the tips. After I gave her some sips of water with a syringe, I held the waterer up to her and she drank a few good gulps. I came back about 30 minutes later and the comb tips were red again. Tonight, her comb tips were a little purple again, though. The water and food is right at the edge of her spot and I have her in a box much like her nesting box filled with pine shavings. She has been happy and settled in there and doesn't seem to want to move.

 

She is very sweet and is happy for me to love on her. She is a buff orpington.

[Tree House Academy]

Sometimes a little vinegar (apple cider) in the drinking water makes them drink more.

Also, you could try to get her to eat more by feeding some yogurt. Odd, I know but it supplies good nutrients to them.

 

Sorry about all your recent chicken tragedies. It seems to come in waves for us too.

 

 

Thank you! We have lost two baby "broilers" too, but that is hardly a tradedy, considering. They are probably the "lucky ones." Sadly, though, we lost my favorite he to a bacteria of some sort (we think it was something she picked up from the soil. She had a very purple comb and absolute water for her eleminations) last week, had to shoot the rooster today, lost one hen to the fox yesterday, and then the one I am nursing was injured by the little red b&%tard. Blech!

[livingnlearning]

IME, don't use the hydrogen peroxide, it destroys tissue as much as it destroys other things. And it hurts!

 

You did good to get water in her-dark comb=dehydrated (and probably stressed at that point)

 

Unless her wounds are deep I would just leave them as is at this point, let them scab and heal up. Keep her in a quiet place where she can feel safe while she gets her feet under her.

 

I saved a hen from a fox under nearly the same circumstances years ago-she lived to be an old old hen! good save!

[elfgivas]

She'll pull through. If her injuries were fatal, she'd have likely died by now or at least gotten much worse. She's probably just doing what all wounded critters do, ---- fasting. She's still injured and upset so she just knows to do what her instincts tell her -- to fast and rest to promote healing. She'll likely only drink water occasionally. I know they like to be rubbed under their beaks (stroke their wattle). If she's a flighty variety, maybe your very presence bothers her (only you know her temperment), but I'd just do what you've done -- give her a cozy recovery spot and let her rest. (I still don't understand why the water made her wattle turn purple so quickly unless there's a blood flow problem to the wattle secondary to an injury). Good luck with your girl!

 

our experience is different than this. when the bobcat got into the chicken coop, some died instantly, but one brave soul held out for almost 6 weeks before succumbing, and others in between. what we do is to hand water them every 2 hours for the first three days, and feed them chick starter, which has more nutrients. then we taper off the hand watering, because if at that point they aren't on the mend, then healing in our experience is much less likely. my dd age 12 says she sometimes mixes chick starter with water and feeds them with an eye dropper. you could also add sugar to the water to add a few calories (we do that with baby chicks, too). we've never tried yoghurt, but i could see how that would help. sometimes we break eggs and feed them that, which they really seem to like. dd just read the post and added in "i know why the wattle changed colour. when they are dehydrated, the colour drains out, and then when they get water, it comes back quickly". maybe she lost a lot of blood?

 

:grouphug: its hard.

 

ann

[Chrystal]

We had a similar incident with a coyote.

I kept her separated from the rest of the flock and added antibiotics and Poly-Vi-Sol to her water and let her rest quietly until she was completely healed. You can purchase medication for your chickens at the same place you buy their food. The vitamins came from Wal-Mart.

It took her several weeks to completely heal.

And no more peroxide. I did pack her wounds with an antibiotic ointment to encourage healing (keeping the wound moist helps).

Good Luck.

[CoastalGal]

We had a fox incident like you're describing...

 

My daughter (the chicken expert in this house) says that you need to check for broken feather shafts. A broken feather shaft will allow germs/infection to go straight into the blood stream. If there are any broken feather shafts, you need to remove them.

 

Then, she recommends treating the wound area with "blu-kote"...an antiseptic aerosal that will promote healing.

 

Keep a shot gun handy in case the "red devil" shows his face again. ;)

[Tree House Academy]

Thank you all for the great advice. I will stop using the peroxide. Everything seems to be scabbed over now. :) This morning she was was sleeping with her head under her wing and I thought sure she was dead...I scared her to death, but she did perk up! :( Bless her heart. (I admit, I have done the same thing to my kids when they were infants and sleeping to soundly! LOL).

 

I am going to look into some of the antibiotic cremes. I am not sure I want to do antibiotics if I don't have to. How will I know if I NEED to use them?

 

Feather shafts...is that like the little pokey thing where the feather itself has been broken off? Does removing those hurt her?

[CoastalGal]

Feather shafts...is that like the little pokey thing where the feather itself has been broken off? Does removing those hurt her?

 

Yes...some refer to them as quills.

 

We didn't have too much trouble removing them. My daughter held and talked to the chicken while I used tweezers to remove the broken shafts. It really wasn't too bad...the chicken still likes us. :tongue_smilie:

[elfgivas]

my dd just came by to ask how your chicken is doing?

 

hope its on the mend,

ann