# Help....dog attacked my birds!



## ColoradoBelle (Jun 27, 2012)

All got away but my young tom turkey. He is still alive and in our bathtub.
He is not making any noise, breathing pretty heavy and we can see bruising and broken skin on his back. He is NOT bleeding out anywhere. 

Any suggestions that we can do for him?


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## ColoradoBelle (Jun 27, 2012)

Sorry about my bad sentencse...this happened about 10minutes ago and I am still shaking and upset. This same dog attacked my cat last year and broke his pelvis. He was in their yard so I could not do anything about it but this time it was on my property and I told her I am within my legal rights to shoot her dog when it attacks livestock so keep her HOME!! Now would I shoot her dog, NO! But at this point, if I catch her over here again, she WILL disappear.


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## ThreeJ (Jun 28, 2012)

Sorry to hear about your turkey. I would make sure he has water and put some antiseptic on his wound. How did the dog get in your yard?


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## ColoradoBelle (Jun 27, 2012)

She slipped thru their fence into our pasture and came up to the barn. My birds are usually in their pen which is a 8x 12 tuff shed with 4 sets of dog run panels hooked together and covered. Today I let them out to eat some grass since my dogs and my husband were out there. I have seen her prowling around their pen, she is pit rescue that is very fearful so I thought she would stay away due to the dogs and my husband. I feel sick, she attacked my cat and broke his pelvis, now my turkey....my mare will be foaling next spring and now I am paniced. Don't want to borrow trouble or dwell on bad thoughts but, I have a foal coming and a neighbor dog that attacks livestock. If she were to harass this foal that I have waited my whole life to have the right mare and the money to breed to stallion of this quality....I do believe I would lose my mind and my common sense.


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## ThreeJ (Jun 28, 2012)

I would check into your vicious dog laws for your area. They may not be able to keep their dog. I would hate for the dog to move up to attacking children.


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## Apyl (Jun 20, 2012)

Sorry to hear about the attack. Sadly, that dog is now a dangerous predator to your birds. He knows they are there and know how to get in. I would deffinitly be talking to the neighbors and if they refuse to do something with the dog i.e chain it up ect. I would not hesitate to shoot the next time it attack my flock. As for your turkey, just try to keep him calm, give water or electrlytes and keep any wounds clean. Good luck.


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## 7chicks (Jun 29, 2012)

I'd be hot on the phone with the animal control dept! These birds are as much of a pet if not more so as a dog or any other animal is to someone else. Paint gun around or one you can borrow? Pump bb gun? Seriously. One way to get the point across that will give the dog a wake up. I would be absolutely sick too. So very very sorry for what you are going through right now. Just try to keep your tom calm as you can. Sips of water at the most. No food for a little bit until you can be sure there are no internal injuries. He's shocky right now. Do you have a farm vet around?


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## Energyvet (Jul 25, 2012)

Maybe a bird vet will see your turkey.


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## Shalva (Jun 21, 2012)

you definitely want to add heat to your turkey that is routine when treating birds.... 

as for the dog moving up to children... really?? a bird that runs, flaps and squaws is very different than a child...I really don't see a dog who chases chickens as a danger to other creatures and I honestly wouldn't worry much about the foal but I would have a nice calm conversation with the neighbor about how the dog escaped from the fence and what can be done to prevent that from happening again. If this is the first time this has happened and the dog is usually contained on their property then a nice calm conversation with the neighbor will get you further than an angry conversation. 

Then I would call animal control and let them be aware that you are going to have a conversation with the neighbor and what has happened. I would not shoot the dog. It is not the dogs fault the owners are idiots... it is not the dogs fault that it wasn't trained or doesn't have a secure fence so to cause the dog pain and suffering because it has idiot owners is just not something that I would do but you can betcha depending on how the conversation wtih the neighbor went, I would definitely involve animal control. I agree that this dog is now a danger to your birds. 

definitely add heat to your turkey and see if you can contact an avian vet, they are going to want to get him on an antibiotic... but if you have a brooder light that will help


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## Sundancers (Jun 20, 2012)

I would call animal control, put it on record then, 

Send a bill to the neighbors ... Going rate for a bird that age and size ... It worked for me. I did get a check and (knock on wood) the dogs have not been back.


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## ColoradoBelle (Jun 27, 2012)

I did NOT have a calm conversation with her. This dog cost me over $500 in vet bills for my cat and thankfully, so far, looks like Winston is doing ok. I put a towel over the window and the bathroom is quite dark and about 80 degrees in there...very hot here. He has water available and I gave him a half a strawberry (I was making jam when this all went down!) cuz he likes them alot. He ate it but just wants to rest. Last time I went in I startled him and he stood up but we definately have a leg issue. We have a large towel in the bottom of the tub so he won't slip around. She went after the group of birds that were eatting corn I had pitched to them. She put Tom on the run and was chasing him into the pasture when I first saw it. I am so angry that I have to worry about the safety of my pets on my own property now. I am going to notify animal control so something is on record....


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## Shalva (Jun 21, 2012)

I do not mean that you do not have the right to be upset and angry... I would be livid... but its that old get more with sugar than you do with vinegar.... I do think that you need to contact animal control so it is on record... I am glad ot hear that your winston is doing better... the warmth is really important... good luck


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## Sundancers (Jun 20, 2012)

Energyvet said:


> Maybe a bird vet will see your turkey.


If I have a dog or cat problem, I can call 20 ~ ta 25 different vets but when you go talking chickens, goat or any large animal ... nope ...

The vet we use for our horses is over an hour and a half away...

The homestead vet is a hard thing to find now a days.


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## Energyvet (Jul 25, 2012)

Well I used to see chickens in Nebraska. I'm on the east coast now - NJ. If I can help I will. There are some smart people with good first aid on the sight already that have lots of first hand chicken experience. That being said, let me think on this. Maybe we can be proactive.


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## Shalva (Jun 21, 2012)

I know that the avian vet here will see chickens.... you can't go to a farm vet/large animal vet you have to find an avian vet...


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## hollyosborn (Jul 8, 2012)

aweeee get better soon tom turkey, im so sorry, and im glad your cat is healing.. poor things.. im sorry but any dog that attacks another animal WILL attack a human, specially a child.. we dont have animal control here.. its called a gun! i would SOOO be in the neighbors worse nightmare if someones dog got into my animals... when the neighbor in town trapped and shot one of our cats... the whole town heard me!


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## ItsieBitsieFarm (Jul 12, 2012)

Sooo sorry. ((HUGS))


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## Energyvet (Jul 25, 2012)

How is Tom doing? Any progress on the dangerous dog front?


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## ColoradoBelle (Jun 27, 2012)

Sadly he is no longer with us. He would eat and talk to his girls but he was just "shrinking" and the leg and toes were not improving. I took him up the road to have the neighbor look at him, he judges birds at fair and he is the local butcher as well. I feel bad now for letting this poor bird go as long as I did hoping he would heal. His toes were broken but, his leg was indeed broken or rather torn from its socket and when Spence was feeling Tom, he handed him to his wife who felt and looked at me and said you need to put him down Roberta he is not going to heal. Poor bird. So he put Tom out of his misery and Spence butchered him and while much smaller sadly, he took him to a older couple up the road, he is fighting cancer and they could use him. I could not bring myself to eat him. Spence knew a nice young 4H poultry enthusiast who was thrilled to have my turkey hens and they are going to go on...not "breed specific" but they will continue to lay and be put in with another tom. I am just going to keep my 8 layers and my rooster and I kept two of my older turkey hens....I could not part with my Clara and Emma. Sadly until the dog is gone (and everyone is waiting for her) I can't risk having any more birds.


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## jjwilson72000 (Jun 21, 2012)

Where I live if a pet kills someone elses livestock it is county ordinance that they have to pay for damages. You might consider calling the sheriff and seeing what your options are.
Personally if I caught that dog on my property again I would just shoot it. You are within your rights to do so and that is a common country solution.


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## 2rain (Jun 2, 2013)

Aww how sad I'm so sorry :,(


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## hennypenny68 (Apr 30, 2013)

I'm so sorry you had to go through that and I have to say please call the authorities I have a neighbour who has a pity cross and he likes to let the dog run beside his truck down the publis road and I have had a few run in with the dog coming at me and my dogs while passing and I just let it go. Then on Saturday I was heading out for a horseback ride when I ran into them again this time the dog attempted to attack my horse and while all this was happening the owner drove by waving at me like it was a joke. Thank god not only is my horse well trained I'm a experienced rider things could of turned ugly. Well this time I had enough and I phoned the SPCA and told them what had happened and they paid the man a visit and now when I see him driving today the dog is in the back of his truck you see it's on file now and if it happens again he will have to have the dog put down were we live we don't take chances I have worked with dogs since I was 14 as a kennel tech a trainer and a groomer and in my exp and knowledge giving a second chance can be fatal and you said you have children PLEASE don't take that chance it only takes a second for for little one to be outside alone and then its to late.


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