Gwen, a Survivor!!
Gwen pulled through after the fox attack. She had a bite on her breast and under her wing and some head punctures which were superficial. She lost a ton of feathers and others are broken. She was in an oxygen tank to help get over shock for several hours. Then part of her breast was plucked and stapled. She had some pain medication and she has to do a course of antibiotics.
How do you give antibiotics to a chicken? Well, you can put it in her water, but supposedly it tastes bad, and she doesn't drink enough to guarantee the right dose at the right time. You can put it in food, but she wasn't up to eating and I was concerned that would not yield the right dose either. You can do injections, but I would HATE doing those and the vet didn't offer me the option (it wasn't one I would ask for either!). So, I grind up a pill in the mortar and pestle and put 2ml of water in a tiny syringe, and then get her tot open her beak and send it down. So far, two administrations have gone fine, with a little patience.
Gwen is still clearly a little out of it, a bit ataxic, but also feeling better all the time. Each check up she's doing a bit better. I made her a special chicken run so she can nest in a big nest box area she likes and lived in the first couple weeks she was here, and she also can have access to another very large dog house sized nest box. She has a run where she can visit the other three chickens across the fence, sit in the sun, or lounge on the shade porch. This morning she walked out to check it out and to say hi to her friends. She has a little Parkinson's like shake of her head and neck when she walks but not when she is still.
I'll take a photo of her later today and check on her often. I'm going to get her some vegetables and lettuce to encourage her to eat. She laid an egg overnight, which surprised me, she must have had one in the pipeline. She's made an attempt to eat a teeny bit but not much. She is drinking today though.
I am really happy she made it. I doubt many chickens have survived a fox attack or had a visit to the ER!!
How do you give antibiotics to a chicken? Well, you can put it in her water, but supposedly it tastes bad, and she doesn't drink enough to guarantee the right dose at the right time. You can put it in food, but she wasn't up to eating and I was concerned that would not yield the right dose either. You can do injections, but I would HATE doing those and the vet didn't offer me the option (it wasn't one I would ask for either!). So, I grind up a pill in the mortar and pestle and put 2ml of water in a tiny syringe, and then get her tot open her beak and send it down. So far, two administrations have gone fine, with a little patience.
Gwen is still clearly a little out of it, a bit ataxic, but also feeling better all the time. Each check up she's doing a bit better. I made her a special chicken run so she can nest in a big nest box area she likes and lived in the first couple weeks she was here, and she also can have access to another very large dog house sized nest box. She has a run where she can visit the other three chickens across the fence, sit in the sun, or lounge on the shade porch. This morning she walked out to check it out and to say hi to her friends. She has a little Parkinson's like shake of her head and neck when she walks but not when she is still.
I'll take a photo of her later today and check on her often. I'm going to get her some vegetables and lettuce to encourage her to eat. She laid an egg overnight, which surprised me, she must have had one in the pipeline. She's made an attempt to eat a teeny bit but not much. She is drinking today though.
I am really happy she made it. I doubt many chickens have survived a fox attack or had a visit to the ER!!
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