3am Wake Up Call

[akostka1988]

Hey everyone...3am had me outside in my bathrobe cuz one of my chickens was making this god awful dying noise. Found her sitting outside the coop in the snow and both her feet were bleeding! I managed to coax her back inside the coop and when I did all the birds (6 total, I have a teeny flock) were all huddled in the corner like they were scared and she joined the huddle. I can’t for the life of me figure out what happened. I saw no predators, her feathers were all intact, and the other birds physically looked fine. I did an actual exam on the injured bird and her feet have scabbed over (or froze maybe? It’s really freaking cold here!) but I’m wondering if there’s anything I need to worry about or keep an eye on? From what I can tell she isn’t being pecked at by anyone and she is my smallest chicken if that makes a difference.

 

[Ascholten]

How did she get out of the coop do you know?
If her feet have actually frozen, then you have a BIG problem, because that can easily turn into gangrene and dead flesh you need to remove. Id keep an antibiotic on the feet until they heal up a bit. Keep a close eye on them too, make sure they are healing and the flesh is healthy. Frost bite can be a very bad thing.

As for them being spooked, ... you running around in a bathrobe at 3 am would scare anyone Id imagine J/K but yes that, just being out that time disturbing them can spook them, plus the racket the little one is making. I have seen where they can all be out in the open in day time and one of them gets stupid and gets worked up over something, then they all are acting goofy, so w/o seeing any predators, that may not be much, or could be them just huddling to stay warm.

Aaron

 

[mymilliefleur]

Could you maybe post a photo of the injured leg? My guess is, from your description of the scene, is that something might have tried to grab one of her legs. Raccoons, Weasels, and other small predators are known to reach through chicken wire and grab birds by the legs.
But you also mentioned she was out of the coop, could she have gotten locked out somehow, and her feet gotten frozen in the wet snow? Did you happen to notice any tracks in the snow?

 

[akostka1988]

How did she get out of the coop do you know?
If her feet have actually frozen, then you have a BIG problem, because that can easily turn into gangrene and dead flesh you need to remove. Id keep an antibiotic on the feet until they heal up a bit. Keep a close eye on them too, make sure they are healing and the flesh is healthy. Frost bite can be a very bad thing.

As for them being spooked, ... you running around in a bathrobe at 3 am would scare anyone Id imagine J/K but yes that, just being out that time disturbing them can spook them, plus the racket the little one is making. I have seen where they can all be out in the open in day time and one of them gets stupid and gets worked up over something, then they all are acting goofy, so w/o seeing any predators, that may not be much, or could be them just huddling to stay warm.

Aaron

Well I leave the coop door open they are only secured by the run door most of the time. Their water is outside because I’ve bought 3 different waterers and they all leak and water inside the coop is bad especially this time of the year. The weird part is I looked at the foot and there’s a sliver of a cut by her toe nail but nothing else. She was inside when I took the dog out to go to the bathroom...they sometimes come out when the outdoor light is on if they are nosey but this time she was inside. It’s almost like something scared her to run out of the coop.

 

[akostka1988]

Could you maybe post a photo of the injured leg? My guess is, from your description of the scene, is that something might have tried to grab one of her legs. Raccoons, Weasels, and other small predators are known to reach through chicken wire and grab birds by the legs.
But you also mentioned she was out of the coop, could she have gotten locked out somehow, and her feet gotten frozen in the wet snow? Did you happen to notice any tracks in the snow?

The snow is all hard crust right now so there’s not a chance to see tracks...we do have what I assumed was a chipmunk living under the coop but now I’m beginning to think it’s a rat