I am a first time chicken owner/servant.
I have 2 D'Uccle pullets who are 11 weeks old and 2 polish bantam pullets who are 9 weeks old.
My favorite little girl is a WCB polish bantam, her name was Suri but has since been changed to Hope. She is as sweet as the day is long!
Sunday (5/17) night before bed I checked on all the chicks and everyone was happy and goofy as always.
Monday morning when I woke up Hope was laying on her side not moving and the other chicks where walking all over her. I moved her into a separate cage and started to look her over. I could not find anything wrong with her but I immediately began giving her some electrolytes and probiotics with a dropper. She was completely limp and almost lifeless. When I picked her up her head just hung there like a cooked noodle.
Tuesday there was no change, so I was still giving the electrolytes and probiotics every hour. Then Tuesday night there was finally a clue, she has a tiny little pile of poo with some blood present. The next morning I was sitting outside our local chicken store when they opened, I ran in and grab some Corid and then hurried home as fast I as I could. I began an aggressive treatment with the Corid (using 1.5 teaspoons of powder per gallon of water) giving her a dose every hour. I was still keeping up with the electrolytes and probiotics along with the Corid.
Wednesday morning there really wasn't any change but I did talk to a vet that a friend recommended to me. This vet informed me that it wasn't fair to her, she said she was suffering and there was no hope for her. I got off the phone thinking I was a horrible person, but I LOVE this chicken darnit. That night I was really thinking about putting her down. I went to give her some electrolytes and SHE PICKED HER HEAD UP. OMG I just started crying and accidentally woke my husband up at 3:00am when I screamed "YOU DID IT BABY"....LOL. Well, that's when I knew I had to change her name to Hope.
Thursday she was doing better, she was moving around and seemed really alert. She was putting up a little bit of a fight when I was trying to medicate her which I saw as great!
Friday (today) morning she was holding her head up high and trying to stand, she also went from laying on her side to laying on her belly. All day today she has not needed the dropper at all, she has been drinking on her own. I do need to bring any liquids to her but she is drinking all by herself, I was so proud of her. Then I scrambled some eggs for her (she hasn't really eaten since Sunday night) and was very excited and happily ate the eggs. I didn't let her eat too much in one sitting but we are breaking up the feedings. She's still really sleepy but she is excited when we come into the room and interact with her, once we see that she is getting tired we turn off the lights and let her rest.
I know we still have a ways to go but today has been a fabulous day and I just had to share it!
I have 2 D'Uccle pullets who are 11 weeks old and 2 polish bantam pullets who are 9 weeks old.
My favorite little girl is a WCB polish bantam, her name was Suri but has since been changed to Hope. She is as sweet as the day is long!
Sunday (5/17) night before bed I checked on all the chicks and everyone was happy and goofy as always.
Monday morning when I woke up Hope was laying on her side not moving and the other chicks where walking all over her. I moved her into a separate cage and started to look her over. I could not find anything wrong with her but I immediately began giving her some electrolytes and probiotics with a dropper. She was completely limp and almost lifeless. When I picked her up her head just hung there like a cooked noodle.
Tuesday there was no change, so I was still giving the electrolytes and probiotics every hour. Then Tuesday night there was finally a clue, she has a tiny little pile of poo with some blood present. The next morning I was sitting outside our local chicken store when they opened, I ran in and grab some Corid and then hurried home as fast I as I could. I began an aggressive treatment with the Corid (using 1.5 teaspoons of powder per gallon of water) giving her a dose every hour. I was still keeping up with the electrolytes and probiotics along with the Corid.
Wednesday morning there really wasn't any change but I did talk to a vet that a friend recommended to me. This vet informed me that it wasn't fair to her, she said she was suffering and there was no hope for her. I got off the phone thinking I was a horrible person, but I LOVE this chicken darnit. That night I was really thinking about putting her down. I went to give her some electrolytes and SHE PICKED HER HEAD UP. OMG I just started crying and accidentally woke my husband up at 3:00am when I screamed "YOU DID IT BABY"....LOL. Well, that's when I knew I had to change her name to Hope.
Thursday she was doing better, she was moving around and seemed really alert. She was putting up a little bit of a fight when I was trying to medicate her which I saw as great!
Friday (today) morning she was holding her head up high and trying to stand, she also went from laying on her side to laying on her belly. All day today she has not needed the dropper at all, she has been drinking on her own. I do need to bring any liquids to her but she is drinking all by herself, I was so proud of her. Then I scrambled some eggs for her (she hasn't really eaten since Sunday night) and was very excited and happily ate the eggs. I didn't let her eat too much in one sitting but we are breaking up the feedings. She's still really sleepy but she is excited when we come into the room and interact with her, once we see that she is getting tired we turn off the lights and let her rest.
I know we still have a ways to go but today has been a fabulous day and I just had to share it!
