# Rooster attacked



## ESollon (Nov 7, 2021)

We have a 1 yr old free range rooster and 3 hens. They usually keep to the stable yard and their coop area, but have been ranging a little further into the pasture the last few days Yesterday afternoon the rooster went off looking for trouble and found it. I don't really know if that is exactly what happened, but when I saw him from the window in the afternoon he was headed to the edge of our pasture. Later that evening it started to get stormy so I went out to lock everyone in for an early night and he was nowhere to be found. The girls were already back in the run calling for him. I got some scratch and started calling and looking for him too. Just before the sky opened up, here he comes trotting from the fence where it adjoins the neighbors yard. No more tail feathers and most of the feathers on his back plucked off. I couldn't see any blood on him, but it was getting dark and pouring. He managed to make it up onto his roost, but not gracefully. When I went out to check on him this morning he was down off his roost but just stayed in the corner of the coop. He is usually a giant asshole, but today he was docile as a lamb. He didn't protest when I picked him up to look him over. Other than his wing, which he can move but is definitely droopy, I cannot see any serious injuries. He has some scratches and all those missing feathers, but nothing really deep or gory, no punctures that I can find. I'm guessing he got in a scuffle with either the neighbors dog, cat, or possibly rooster. It seems to have really thrown him for a loop and I am wondering how much space and time to mope I should give him before I start to worry. I bandaged his wing to his side with vetwrap, cleaned and treated his wounds and gave him a little egg and water with a syringe. Right now I am letting him hide in the coop, but I'm not sure what else I should do.


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

He might also be in pain now that he's stopped trying to hide he's hurt. You can put a 325 mg aspirin in a gallon of water to see if that helps him be a bit more mobile. 

I would keep everyone in the run for a few days just to make certain whatever tried to get him isn't moving into the home territory for a second round.


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## ESollon (Nov 7, 2021)

robin416 said:


> He might also be in pain now that he's stopped trying to hide he's hurt. You can put a 325 mg aspirin in a gallon of water to see if that helps him be a bit more mobile.
> 
> I would keep everyone in the run for a few days just to make certain whatever tried to get him isn't moving into the home territory for a second round.


Thank you. I'll give him the aspirin. Everyone is in the run now. He perked up a little and is getting up to move to a new spot now and then. He is still not his normal cocky self, but that is to be expected. I am a little less worried now that he is moving around some. I checked the pasture and I was wrong, he had not gone over the fence, something tried to grab him out of the pasture as there were two big piles of his feathers.


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

He truly lucked out. Keeping them up right now will cause whatever tried to take him to move on when there's nothing easy to get at. 

I hope he keeps improving. The stress of an attack alone can make them very sore.


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