2009 Omlet cube and run for sale

[tixy]

I feel very sad as iv lost henrietta my favorite hen. I had her from omlette two and a half years ago. I didnt realise how ill she was she had just gone quiet and they i picked her up and realised she had gone to skin and bone, her comb and wattles had faded i think she must have had diarrhoea for some time .I have lost one to sour crop about 12 months ago and an ex battery that didnt live very long.

 

I love keeping my hens but now im not sure whether i can anymore as this one has upset me greatly, my delema is really if you have several hens you cant be taking them to the vets all the time. Most peoples opinion is they are just chickens you eat chicken why would you pay a fortune for a vet.therefor if i cant offord to do that should i keep them at all.i have had to deal with this 3 times in two and a half years am i just unlucky or doing something wrong.can i resign myself to the fact that they will die even if it is before time.

Just wonder how other people feel about it as i hope to gain some comfort from you imput and opinions.

Edited October 2, 2011 by Guest

[Snowy]

Sorry to hear about Henrietta, it is always upsetting when you lose one.

Hens don't live very long sadly, and some also succumb to disease before their time. Most hen keepers lose one or two a year, sometimes more. Bearing that in mind, you do need to make a decision how you will deal with it. Learning as much as you can about hen health will help you to detect early signs of illness and treat it correctly. If there is no more that you can do yourself, you have to be clear how you will manage it - either accept that vet help is needed or learn to despatch them yourself (or have someone reliable on standby who is willing to do the job for you). I hope this helps.

PS I changed your post to lowercase - it can be difficult to read if it is all in capital letters.

[Plum]

Henrietta would have been 3 that's a good age for a hybrid, so well done. They do hide it when they are ill so don't be too hard on yourself. The pleasure you get through keeping them makes up for the hard times, try and remember the number of times she's made you laugh.

 

You don't have to spend a lot on vets as long as you don't let them knowingly suffer through not being prepared to pay for treatment. This may mean taking the decision to despatch rather than treat and wait and see, but you can either learn first line remedies. As Olly says you either have to take to vet to despatch or learn yourself, not something I've ever done.

 

I've sort of set myself limits on how much vet treatment or amount of illness for my girls, I think you have to decide that for yourself. Some vets/owners will carry on treating and grasping onto threads of hope and spend a fortune.

[tixy]

Thank you so much ladies for the replies, you have helped me already, I didnt know who to turn to because no one understands unless they have hens.I have to go to work later and feel so upset its going to be hard.

I did have to make a decision with gertie with the sour crop as I knew in my heart she could never get totally better, my son did it for me.I didnt realise how often this would crop up with keeping hens,no one tells you. I do feel more able to deal with the situation now and in the future now have had some imput from youselves.Once again thank you x

[jennym]

Hi Tixy, so sorry for your loss.

 

OH and I have only had our hens for 5 months and they've been fine so far. Before we got them we agreed that we would not spend large amounts of money on vet bills for them. I wouldn't mind a quick visit to the vet & some antibiotics, for example, but we will not have any expensive surgery done or long stays at the vet's. Now that we have them it will be very hard to stick to this but we must.

 

It's a difficult thing to think about and I'm sure it will be more difficult when the time comes that we have to stick to our plans.

 

I hope you don't let this put you off keeping hens. Maybe you could think about getting a purebred hen or two as they should live longer, and maybe that would help you through the loss of any shorter-lived hybrids or ex-batts. Also remember that giving even one happy day to roam around to an ex-batt is a very nice thing to do - good on you, be proud of yourself for that.

[tixy]

Thats great jennym your perspecive on what and when to give treatment makes good sense.I was thinking of getting a light sussex, do purebreeds live longer then.

 

Ive had a thought if you take a hen to the vets and he says there is nothing to be done, would he not charge for a consultation putting to sleep plus a disposal, probably about 100 pounds in total, does anyone know.

[Alis girls]

Sorry to hear about your Henrietta. I lost 2 this year both Omlet girls and despite health checks Del had cancer which I could never have diagnosed. She was moulting but her feathery bits were fluffy and she was still eating. She had a horrid dirty bum and the vet said we would never have seen the fact she had cancer. The other hen had peritonitis and despite our best efforts died. I dread moulting time as this is when my girls seem to get ill despite extra vitamins meal worms and greens. However many other hens come thro the moult well. Hope it doesnt put you off. Unless they are doing something very unusual a lay person may not notice a problem so dont blame yourself. Ali x

[Mrs Webmuppet]

My lovely Vet ( a chicken keeper himself) charged me £30 for a consultation and antibiotics ( including an injection) I think a consultation plus PTS and disposal was about £20-25 ( I can't remember exactly it was last year). Hope this helps.

[C&T]

re Vets fees - ask around before the time comes. The first Hen we had to have PTS, the Vet stung us £110. Ouch! The second only £20. This included "disposal" (horrid word - but can't think what else to put...)

 

We do as others have said, we would spend a small amount, but not a fortune. They are lovely scatty things, but they hide their ailments so well, and by the time we spot it to do anything about it, it is often too late, hence our decision.

 

I wouldn't be without them in the garden now - and losing them is so hard - but choosing new ones brings great joy too!

[coco]

Sorry about Henrietta. I have been keeping hens for two years and have had two PTS in that time. One to a respiratory infection and one to peritonitis. I have never paid more than £30.00 for treatment at the vet. I have learnt as much as I can about keeping hens and hope I can recognize a sick hen although they are very good at hiding illness. Don't let your experience put you off keeping hens, I think the pleasure they give us far outweigh the bad things.

[Olly]

I made a policy decision before I got my hens, they would receive veterinary treatment if needed e.g. for an injury or antibiotics, but I would not be prepared to spend a lot of money on them/put them through any lengthy course of treatment. I have had one PTS by the vet and it was not more than £20 - worth checking around, but some vets have different rates for 'small animals' or treat them as 'farm animals' and it shouldn't cost as much as £100 or even £50 in my view. I wouldn't let one suffer, but hens are not robust creatures and I would not want to keep a hen alive with an uncertain outcome or a lot of veterinary intervention.

 

As Snowy says above, learn as much as you can about hen health and be prepared to despatch - or know someone else who can despatch - if needed. You've obviously enjoyed your hens, so don't be put off having more, most of them live 2-3 years without problems and if you get pure breeds, although they will lay fewer eggs, they are likely to live longer.

[Alis girls]

I paid £32 for Del to be PTS and despatched - that also included a beak trim for another hen. And this is London.