Nacktschnecken omlet Cube

[bennett]

I have had an email from someone today, whom i can only assume got my address through freecycle somehow, asking if i would take her chickens. Because she hadnt realised how demanding a "chore" it would be having them. And, get this, she didnt really want to have to keep getting up before 8 am to let them out!

Seriously do people not actually look into / read about pets before they go out and buy them??????????????? It has made me very angry. I have said that i will take them but am going to have a nightmare as i have had so many sick chooks recently i am going to have to isolate them or let them take thier chances.

SOME PEOPLE!!!!!!!

[Egluntyne]

Good grief.

 

I would report her to the admin of your local freecycle, as her action will likely be in breach of their rules.

[mostin]

I sympathise. Unfortunately Chooks have become a bit of a fashion accessory for some people. Thanks to fantastic forums like this one and all the books out there, there is just no excuse not to have a solid grounding of info before you get your hens.

 

I have rehomed quite a few from fly-by night fanciers, or people who fall out of love with them once winter comes .

 

I'm just glad the girls are finally ending up at a nice home with you.

[jennydavies]

People unfortunately are like that. With all of the publicity over the past couple of years, people are like this with Greyhounds. A few weeks ago we went to an evening market in a village about 20 kms away. We met a woman with a Greyhound that she had rehomed from a rescue centre. Charlie commented on what a beautiful dog she was and with that the woman tried to hand him the lead and kept saying "you can have her if you want her - she is too much for me to cope with - I only have a two-roomed appartment" Charlie backed away and said hold on - I only said I thought she looked lovely. When it was time to go home the woman followed us back to our car still trying to off-load this poor dog onto us. Until that evening we had never met this woman and she had no idea who we were or what we were like. She was prepared to just give that dog away to anybody that showed interest in her. I would like to add that if the woman had been French, I could have understood her attitude, but she was English. It is so sad that some people see animals and birds as a commodity that can be "thrown away" when the novelty wears off. I am sure we have all heard of the remark "Five Minute Wonder" - how it rings true.

[majuka]

Well done you for taking them in, who knows what would happen to them if you didn't. Chicken keeping has really become popular recently hasn't it so there are bound to be the muppets who go straight out to but the latest fad without researching it properly. Before we got our girls we read loads, books and internet but also spoke to a lot of people who kept chickens, to find out exactly what was involved.

 

Yes summer days do mean early starts if you don't have an automatic pop hole. We let ours into the enclosed run and then go back to bed at the weekend if we are still really tired. Once you've got into the habit of waking up at first light it's difficult to break though. A little while ago I went to a hen weekend and staid at a friend's, sure enough 5:45 am I woke up thinking, I hope Dave is up and letting the girls down!

[foreveryoung]

Its people like that, that really wind me up!!! you should look into the animals you want before you have them - yes most of us learn on the go but at least we start off with the idea of whats what and knowing the basics....

 

and yes definitely keep them separated till you know that they are all ok - a friend of mine re homed 2 hens - the previous owner stating that she was really broody, next thing you know she is having to treat them as well as all ehr originals for mite as the two new girls were riddled and rather anemic because of them.

[Henhathnofury]

I researched for months before I got chickens, I read this forum a lot and I anticipated problems/diseases. Hate that chicken-keeping is becoming so trendy that it attracts irresponsible people. Don't like them selling them at garden centres either...not a good idea to 'pick-em-up' with your strawberry plants...

[bennett]

Well i am glad i am not the only one who agrees that this woman should have thought before buying! Anyway they are arriving in the morning, clearly she cant wait to get rid of them. Stupidly i didnt ask what they actually are, assume hybrids, to be honest it doesnt really matter they will be happy here with us.

Totally agree with the whole garden centre thing, i wonder how many go in to buy a new pair of wellies and come out with chickens!

[Plum]

Lucky chickens coming to you. Shallow woman, wonder if she gave her children away when the novelty wore off.

[coco]

It seems to be a growing trend giving your animals away because they are too much responsibilty or don't fit in with your lifestlye. Animals are seen as despensible to some people I bet they wouldn't give their child away because it was inconvenient.

Well done for giving the chickens a new home.

[migsy]

Actually, I think some people would off-load their children. I also know people who have got cats and then feigned allergies when they can't be bothered looking after them anymore. Or people who get rid of them when they have a baby. I've had 3 babies and the cats haven't been a problem. For goodness sake!

 

What sort of idiot gets a greyhound when they live in a flat????

 

Well done Bennet for taking them.

[Heidi-Hi]

Hi Bennet, let us know how your new chooks are this morning - oh, and you know what we all want... piccies

[DebC]

A friend of my SIL had some chooks. She had them rehomed after a while bacause she didn't know that they could make pooping an olympic sport!!!!

[abwsco]

I'm certainly not defending anyone who starts off with chickens and then quickly rehomes them when they find out how much they poo, scratch up your plants etc but a lot of publicity material only concentrates on how easy it is to keep them and shows immaculate gardens. Is it any wonder that people think you bung them in a chicken house and just collect fresh eggs everyday.

[craftyhunnypie]

Hmm I don't think people look into having chickens enough. They buy them, take them home then realise...' oh they actually poo'! Well of course they do, they are animals!

Before we got our original long gone 3 from Omlet, we did lots of research, visited places with chickens, read books - looked into all types of housing, disease etc. You never stop learning with chickens though.

It annoys me how people just assume that because I have chickens & cockerels, that I am a rescue centre. Grrr!

I will never just take any hen or cockerel, as you don't know what they come with. I like to know the breeder, conditions it's lived in & give it a full going over inspection before accepting it.

 

I just wish people would research more before jumping in!

 

Emma.x

[Blue-DiamondChick07]

It does make me angry when people dont research. I spent ages on here before getting my lot I'd never go back personally, I love my trips to the farm (going again in a bit, this could be dangerous, best not put a box in the boot) and if you dont research, you wont know how to take of your animal properly either, which makes me sad case in point, that lady who kept a lone Hen...

[bennett]

Well what a nightmare i am now having! - The new girls arrived, and i was pleasently suprised, 1 aracuna and 1 wyndotte ( i think), gonna add pic at some point today So this woman (anna) obviously either went with "Pretty" birds because she bought them as they looked nice or she actually had given it some thought . The have got lice so have promtly been frontlined! She reckons they are 6 months but she said they haven't laid yet, and to be honest looking at them they can only be about 4 maybe 5 months. The aracuna has a really red comb however the wyndotte if that is indeed what she is has no real comb at all It's all a bit puzzling really.

So was sorting them out when my daughter decided to let my girls out to free range So all hell broke loose. The girls went nuts. I was trying to catch the aracana who is trying to pick a fight with all my girls anyway all my girls backed down , so , so much for keeping them seperate. Now i am not sure what to do, all chickens are out free ranging (wrecking) my garden . The chicks and the broody have camped out one side my exisiting girls close to them and the new girls (Aggy and Darcy) on the other side. Cant quite decide wether just to let them all get on with it or not. I would like to add the the new girls are keeping well away from broody and chicks.

[Falkor]

I would whip the newbies back out and into quarantine. Although you have frontlined them you don't the beasties to get to your other girls. Plus if they came with lice I would be of the opinion perhaps they are carrying something else too.

 

Best off to keep them seperate (as you should any new arrivals) for at least a week so that you can keep an eye and monitor them for signs of illness etc.

 

Might be worth worming them too if the previous owner hasn't done.

[Jewels]

I rather think some TV progammes have not helped, they make keeping chickens, having an allotment etc looked very idyllic. When anyone says to me they thinking of keeping chickens I always tell them to go on Omlet website and book a chicken course.

 

[Jennifer Jane]

I agree that some people don't look into keeping animals of any kind properly. I would hate any animal to suffer because of my ignorance, so it took a good 12 months of reading up and an Omlet course before we took the plunge with chickens. It's still a learning curve though and I've since taken another chicken keeping course. And this forum is invaluable.

 

Good luck with your new girls!

[Jools]

Everyone else has said it all - well done you and good luck!! It's one of my soapbox subjects - chickens are the latest "must have" and relatively cheap which makes it even worse. Mind you, some friends of mine have just re-homed a 12 month old Newfoundland - who is on her FOURTH (and last) home now, so I don't suppose I should be surprised that if people can spend £1000 on a whim to buy a completely unsuitable puppy, they can spend a fraction of that on some pretty chickens.

[Valkyrie]

Lucky chickens coming to you. Shallow woman, wonder if she gave her children away when the novelty wore off.

 

I've tried but "Ooops, word censored!"ody wants an 18 year old or a 20 year old. I'll keep my chickens though - even if one of the orpies is driving me nuts by whingeing today.

 

Seriously it makes me cross when I hear something like that - all the years of research I did beforehand, all the questions to my folks and then on here long before we even bought a cube (and more questions regarding that too!). It also made me quite miffed as HFW and JO were doing their campaign when we eventually had ours and I kept having to say that we were already going to get chickens long before they had their programmes and we were NOT jumping on the bandwagon (like MIL implied), although it's clear that far too many people have. At least the new chickens will be cared for - it's a worrying thought as to how they've been treated up till now.

 

Particularly bad of her to get in touch with you direct. Definitely complain to Freecycle.