beach chick Posted February 16, 2011 Share Posted February 16, 2011 hi all, this is something I've been thinking about for the last couple of days and would welcome your views/ thoughts/opinions... Chardonnay, my oldest girl (4 this year, and the last survivor of my original lot) is currently 'not herself' - she's a little bit quiet and a little bit hunched, slightly daggy bottom. still eating and drinking, still scratching around and chasing a treat if one's on offer. not sure whether she's laying or not. Worming is due, so I will Flub them all. No parasites visible. Now, I could take her to the vet, with the stress that that entails for her, nursing indoors, etc etc etc. plus the cost - same for sending off a sample, if I could ensure it was actually hers... OR, I could just let her get on with things, hope the sunshine and hopefully warmer days will help brighten her up, and let her be in peace with her mates in the place where she knows and if it's her time it's her time if you know what I mean? We lost our Buff Orp, Ditto, a few weeks ago in similar circumstances, and I did the whole vet/keeping her in the warm/nutridrops etc etc etc. Vet (good one who knows about chooks) thought she would probably fade away. She perked up a bit so I put her back out, and she had a month I guess of good times - then looked poorly one day and was gone the next. So I suppose the question is, is it better to 'do' something, even if that is stressful, or should we accept that a chicken is a chicken and needs to live a chicken-y life, however long or short? Obviously if it was a major emergency I would take her to the vet, and probably take the decision to have her PTS if it was going to be long-drawn out/painful etc. So it's not a case of cost or potential inconvenience being the deciding factor, just that it doesnt feel right to put her through 'stuff' possibly unnecessarily. What do you all think about the moral/ethical position? I havent made my mind up one way or the other, although I suspect after 4 years of chicken keeping I am slightly moving towards the side of allowing a chicken to be a chicken with all that entails, and not doing the vet/stress thing unless as I said above it is a clear emergency where to take no action would obviously result in suffering. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jools Posted February 16, 2011 Share Posted February 16, 2011 What do you all think about the moral/ethical position? I havent made my mind up one way or the other, although I suspect after 4 years of chicken keeping I am slightly moving towards the side of allowing a chicken to be a chicken with all that entails, and not doing the vet/stress thing unless as I said above it is a clear emergency where to take no action would obviously result in suffering. It is difficult. In the early days I would have been at the vet with anything and everything, including "fading hens" and youngsters with growth problems - to no avail. These days I tend to err on the side you're drifting towards. I keep an eagle eye on things so I usually notice small changes and can act accordingly, for example herban for runny droppings or respite for sniffles or isolation for a closer look. I do use Retfords if I think it will be beneficial to have a droppings sample tested - it's cheaper than a vet's consultation and they'd probably start with the same test anyway. Apart from getting prescription meds, that's probably as far as I'd go now. I wouldn't let anything suffer but feel reasonably experienced with my own little flock to make the decision - and then enlist the husband's help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Egluntyne Posted February 16, 2011 Share Posted February 16, 2011 Same here re the early days. Anything unusual that I can't put my finger on, or if it is clear that the hen has, for example, a chest infection and I take her to the vet ... who generally asks me what I think the treatment should be. I always cull now in the case of an elderly hen who is fading, a prolapse that won't go back or peritonitis, as experience has taught me that you are flogging a dead horse with these conditions. Much less cruel IMHO to act swiftly and compassionately in these cases. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beach chick Posted February 16, 2011 Author Share Posted February 16, 2011 I can feel the need to learn to cull humanely coming on. like you both say, the early days are the worst for the running to the vet syndrome, and I have never really been sure that it is wholly worth it, except in the cases where antibiotics have done the trick, or in one case where I had a silkie with a bad fox wound who clearly would not have made it, so the kindest thing was done... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coco Posted February 16, 2011 Share Posted February 16, 2011 I've only had hens for 18 months but I know that when Coco was suffering if I could have ended her suffering humanly myself I would have done rather than stressing her out with another visit to the vet. I think as long as they are not suffering its probably best to let them fade away in familiar surroundings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goosey Lucy Posted February 16, 2011 Share Posted February 16, 2011 Ditto to what Egluntyne said. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandyhas3chucks Posted February 16, 2011 Share Posted February 16, 2011 My ex bats don't find a trip to the vets stressfull at all, nor the Omlet girls that the lady over the road has Retrds are great, just take her out of the run for a wee while on her own, it isn't usually very long before a poo is obligingly produced I had a poorly girl for a wee while, did the watch and wait 2 days as thought could be a softee. Exray was VERY weird and he felt a lump, I took her home to see as a friend has a girl that has had a large tumour for a year or so and still is going strong happy etc Anyway made an Apt to have her PTS sleep week ago Sqt and then decided against it, vet agreed, Then yesterday for the first time in ages her crop is finally TOTALLY empty in the mornings, she is eating absoloutly normally pooing the lot and seems like nothing is wrong... You just cannot tell.. I thought it was all over.. I was wrong. Just sharing the experience Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
staceychristie Posted February 17, 2011 Share Posted February 17, 2011 Don't forget - we owe it to the girls to look after them properly, and if not confident, then a vet's the only way to go (even if it's just a second opinion) We're off to get davinas abdomen drained, as I hate needles anyway I must say though that we had some stuff from the vet called 'Booster' by heal-x, and the transformation was amazing. It was like rocket fuel for hens! We were glad we'd taken her there, as she'd been moppy and tired for days. It would help though if there were more vets who (even if not knowing much about hens) would read the occasional book on the subject. Good luck Stacey X Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miller30 Posted February 17, 2011 Share Posted February 17, 2011 I dont bother anymore with the vets as i have been to a few different ones in my area and i have to tell them what is wrong with my birds put it this way i took a cockeral to the vets before and they thought it was a girl so if i cant treat them at home they get culled leanne. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chickybaby Posted February 17, 2011 Share Posted February 17, 2011 It's the vets every time for me, I hate to see any of my girls under the weather. There's no way I could cull my own chickens, I just haven't got it in me to do that but I'm lucky in that the vets I go to are excellent with chickens. I had a poorly girl about 2 months ago and I knew she wasn't going to live for much longer so I took her to the vets to be put to sleep, the vet didn't disagree with me that it was the best option. Cost me about £26 but I had peace of mind that I'd done the best I could for her and she hadn't suffered (I hope). I feel I owe it to my girls to give them the best life I can, they're ex-bats so they deserve it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sage Posted February 17, 2011 Share Posted February 17, 2011 Is there anywhere you can learn to cull humanly. I would like to think I could do it if needed but I would want to know I was not causing any suffering. Saying all that I wouldn't hesitate to take a bird to the vet if I thought they could help. Sage Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beach chick Posted February 17, 2011 Author Share Posted February 17, 2011 today, she's happy as anything. so good days, bad days... I dont know. we've been down the vet/intensive nursing at home route in the past and it never actually seems to be that effective, although we do have an experienced chicken vet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
