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Barnyard Buddies:  Help sick-sitter!  |
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AmberNWichita
True Blue Farmgirl
113 Posts
Amber
Wichita
Kansas
USA
113 Posts |
 Posted - Jun 13 2011 : 4:50:47 PM
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It's kind of an unfortunate story.
I found a guy on craigslist selling his flock of 7 because he was downsizing his farm because of his job. Over anxious and excited about getting 7 more to our flock we bought them without even giving them a good look over. It was stupid and irresponsible on our part. We got them home late at night and did the worst thing possible we put them in our coop with the rest of the flock.
The next day I went out early and examined them and found them to be pretty sick with a respiratory problem, and they also had red-mites.
We quickly moved them to secluded chicken hutches in the yard, and called the previous owner and told him that we could not keep them because we did not have the yard space to separate them far enough while they are getting well.
We got them on Friday and the chickens were back home by Sunday morning.
We sterilized and dusted the coops after they left, but I still ended up with 2 sick birds. One of them is sitting on eggs, and when I moved her and her eggs to a secluded coop she panicked and doesn't seem to realize I moved her eggs with her. I am worried that she will let her eggs, that I bought just for her, go bad and she will be right back to sitting on an empty nest not eating or drinking again. I put a sheet on the box to get her to stop freaking out. What next?
I want there to be no peasant in my kingdom so poor that he cannot have a chicken in his pot every Sunday.
Henry IV |
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oldbittyhen
True Blue Farmgirl
1511 Posts
tina
quartz hill
ca
USA
1511 Posts |
Posted - Jun 13 2011 : 5:52:33 PM
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You will probally not get her to go back to sitting on her eggs, and even if she does, and is sick, the hatching chicks now also will be sick, and probally not survive...I'm sorry that you are going thru this, and I'm sure the owner of the sick chickens KNEW he was selling sick chickens, it's really hard to miss respiratory problems in any poultry, I hope the man was good enough to euthanize his sick birds, rather than pass this mess onto yet another person. We live and learn the hard way sometimes, give your birds at least 6 weeks of total wellness, before you try and add to your flock, and I sure hope you don't lose any...
"Knowlege is knowing that a tomato is a fruit, Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad" |
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batznthebelfry
True Blue Farmgirl
1257 Posts
Michele
Athol
Ma
USA
1257 Posts |
Posted - Jun 13 2011 : 5:57:47 PM
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amber you did the right thing putting a sheet over her new box......there was just too much disruption for her & it will take a few days of a nice dark calm place for her to calm herself down...just make sure she knows the eggs are in with her....you may have to pull one out & let her see it then let her see you put it back under her...as for her laying brooding in a empty nest don't worry she won't...unless she can get some one to lay eggs in there for her to sit on.....but this happened to one girl who wrote in here about her broody hen rolling & turning her own poo cause she needed eggs that bad....if that happens...put a kitchen egg under her & get out the poo...that can cause all kinds of lung infections...fly maggets ect....& then she will really get sick,,..I think she will be alright & since you moved the eggs with her she may just need to see one to realize she really is sitting on them in her dark cage.....also since she was so shook up give her a special treat...maybe some raw oatmeal in with her feed or some plain or vanilla yogurt mixed in for a day.....not only will this be a treat for her but it will help settle her insides down a bit...the oatmeal will take longer to go thur her system making it work a bit harder or if using the yogurt that will kill off any bad bacteria she might have gotten from being up set & that will also help settle her insides a bit.....good luck & make sure she is getting a bit of apple cider vinegar in her water.... a few drops in a small chick water-er will be enough each day for her...its good for worms ect in her system....Michele'
Chickens rule!
The Old Batz Farm
Hen #2622 |
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AmberNWichita
True Blue Farmgirl
113 Posts
Amber
Wichita
Kansas
USA
113 Posts |
Posted - Jun 14 2011 : 12:41:33 PM
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Thanks Ladies! That's a good idea I never thought of mixing oatmeal into the yogurt I have been giving them plain yogurt. One of her chicks hatched but she moved off the box into another after that happened so I moved the new baby into a warming box. We ended up giving the 2 girls Tylan and this has greatly improved health and alertness. I know the goal is always to try to raise them organically, but I just couldn't bare the thought of losing my friends. Now that it doesn't seem so scary all 12 girls are on a diet of greens, feed, and yogurt, with some electrolytes in the water just to keep everyone healthy.
Now I am a new mommy of a baby buff orpington.
I want there to be no peasant in my kingdom so poor that he cannot have a chicken in his pot every Sunday.
Henry IV |
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Barnyard Buddies: Help sick-sitter! |
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Help sick-sitter!
