Neglected animals. I need advice!

[Zanily]

This is a genuine emergency, please help!

I received a phone call from an old friend yesterday saying his cat had dragged some chicks into his house through a cat flap! I don't live far from my friend and I wasn't busy so I walked down the road to his house. On the way I saw several dead chicks on the side walk and in the road.

When I got to my friends house I saw the two chicks his cat had dragged in. Both chicks look approx a week old. They were very cold, wet and had puncture wounds on them from where the cat had picked them up. My friend has handling them poorly, he was shaking them around in his hand and their heads were dangling. They were being kept in a cardboard box in the cold garage with a bowl of water and a some crumbled up weetabix. (According to my friend he'd kept the chicks in this box for 3-4 hours before calling me)

I was sure my friend had done his best to help them but I told him the chicks needed a heat lamp, a drinker and chick crumbs to live. I go to take the chicks out of the box and run them over to my house where I have all three of these things (I've hand raised chickens, ducks, quail and pheasants before) but my friend stopped me from taking them and said "I found them. I want to keep them. You're not having them!" I suddenly feel like a child in a playground playing finders keepers!!! I've been a vegetarian for 18 years and I was extremely concerned about the two limp, almost lifeless chicks. My only concern was their welfare. I told my friend the two chicks would die without my help. After a while of talking about it, my friend agreed to borrow my equipment rather than hand the chicks over. I was fine with this, even though it would've been much more convenient and less time consuming for him to take the chicks to my house so they could be helped right away.

My friend went to put his shoes on to help me carry all the equipment from my house to his. As we stood by his front door he said to me "I just need to pop to tescos to buy a new mobile phone before we get the equipment from your house". At this point I feel like screaming! My friend either didn't seem to understand or care at all about these chicks dieing.

Luckily my friend's Mom pulled onto the front drive in her car. She'd come to visit. She asked us both what was going on. After seeing the chicks she immediately asked me to take them to my house and help them. Thank God for Moms! If she hadn't showed up the chicks would be dead by now.

The chicks are now safe and sound under a nice, warm heat lamp with a clean dish of chick crumb and a drinker of fresh water. I've cleaned up their wounds and surprisingly there doesn't seem to be any serious damage. One of the chicks wouldn't eat drink, stand up or even open its eyes, It was totally limp but its now walking around, eating and drinking on its own.

The only problem is, I don't know what to do with the chicks...My friend has started to call and hassle me because he wants the chicks back. I'm extremely concerned because my friend has a terrible history with animals. A few years ago my friend had a pet rabbit that he no longer wanted. Rather than giving the rabbit to one of our mutual friends who really wanted a rabbit, he tried to kill it by locking it in a shed with no food or water, I know this happened because he showed me the rabbit and told me about what he was trying to do (thankfully the rabbit didn't die and it was re homed.) My friend has also killed a hamster by swinging it around and has had a malnourished, neglected lizard taken off him. My friend has been banned from our local pet store and has kept several other pets including hamsters, another lizard, fish and a tortoise...all of which he got bored of and got rid of in a very short space of time. The second lizard he kept (the one that wasn't taken off him) was kept in a very dirty enclosure, it smelt absolutely awful...It was filled with dead, rotting meal worms, lettuce and lizard waste. The lizard escaped and ran away.

What should I do? I can't possibly give him the chicks back, I'll never forgive myself. I really don't want anymore chickens, but I would defiantly keep them if I had his permission because I know I'd give them a good home. Should I lie and tell my friend the chicks died and then give them to someone who will look after them? Do you think I can talk my friend out of wanting them by showing him they're not so cute when they grow up and they take a lot of time and care? He doesn't even have a chicken coop, should I show him how much they cost?

I know all of that was a lot to read and it probably sounds really childish, like I'm arguing over something most people eat on a daily basis, but I'm so worried about what to do. I just want what's best for the chicks. I will really appreciate any advice I'm given.

 

[leadwolf1]

I don't think it sounds childish at all! I think you are concerned for the welfare of the chicks and that is commendable. Even those that eat their chickens do not want them to be abused. The treat them with kindness and take incredibly good care of them.

Where did these chicks come from? They didn't just appear. Can you find out who they belong to and offer them back? It is probably preferable to giving them over to your friend. As a matter of fact, I wouldn't give them back. Let him get mad. With his track record, he will probably forget about them in a day or two. How old is this guy?

Good luck, sounds like you are gonna need it. Can you get in touch with his mom? Maybe she can talk some sense into him.

You could also tell him that you will give them back once he has all the necessary equipment in place to properly take care of them..including a coop! Once he sees the work involved, he will probably slink back over to his own place and not mention them again.

 

[Zanily]

Thank you so much leadwolf1.

I'm glad you don't think I'm being silly!

I saw several dead chicks around the area. It looks like the original owner of these chicks isn't too bothered about them either, which is sad. I'll try and find out who the owner is and see what they say...If the chicks going missing was a genuine mistake, I'd happily give them back

My friend is 23...(Gosh, I feel so embarrassed to call him a friend now!) You're right about him forgetting about them in a day or two, that's him all over. He usually gets bored of his new pet within a short time of having it but the pleasure is in wanting. If he had these chicks I know he'd get bored of them very quickly, but because he doesn't have them he's going to spend as much time, money and nagging until he gets what he wants before he gets bored and moves on to his next "want".

My friend sent me a text message earlier saying his mom had changed her mind about the chicks and she's now happy for him to keep them. I don't believe his mom has said that. She knows what he's like and I'm certain she hasn't agreed to it.

If he did have the chicks there are problems he doesn't understand. What if one or both of the chicks are male? Then he needs to buy hens and he'll need a bigger coop...More chickens, more mess (mess that he's too lazy to clean up!) I don't think he understands that chickens have a pecking order either...They're just not going to be what he's expecting.

 

[TeamChaos]

You are absolutely right that the pleasure is in wanting and it seems like your 'friend' has a weird bend on the control issue of life/death with animals. That really sets off alarm bells for me. I think you should tell him the chickens have taken a turn for the worse, you have bought very expensive medicine to treat them with and you do not plan on giving them back until they've had a chance to heal and he can pay you back for the medicine, if that doesn't get him off your tail then I think you should try to find someone w/ a tender heart locally who can take in the chicks and you can tell him they simply didn't make it.

(hey, as for it all feeling so childish- I am a grown up (well, I am old enough to be one anyway) and I'm going through a very similar situation with an also grown family member, only with cats instead of chickens. )

 

[leadwolf1]

That's a great idea Just tell him that they died He will never know the difference! At 23, it's time to start growing up and understanding that life is more about the long haul and not the short term pleasure!

 

[leadwolf1]

As for finding chicks everywhere..someone may have had a hen go broody on a 'hidden' nest. A predator could have raided the nest after the chicks hatched...sounds like that predator is your friend's cat. We all deal with predators and someone may be hunting for their chicks...

 

[locke2121]

The solution is simple...send his mom a text back saying that you simply couldn't save them...their injuries were too severe and they were so small that they gave out. Then simply find a decent home for them. Telling a lie to save a life..or in this case two, is a good thing.

 

[Zanily]

Thank you everyone,

You're all right...My 'friend' doesn't deserve these chicks and they really don't deserve him!

I got in touch with him yesterday. I lied about taking the chicks to the nearest avian vets. I told him their injuries were pretty bad and they might not make it so the vet has kept them overnight. My friend didn't seem bothered by this at all, He replied with "Well, when you get them back I'm going to have them back off you". Silly boy.

I've told him the vet will give me a call to let me know when they're better..I plan to tell him they've died.

I'm quite worried encase I've influenced my friend to want pets...I'm a real animal lover and often foster unwanted birds, so as you can imagine I often have plenty of animals around! I currently have a little dog and fancy chickens amongst various other birds outside in my aviary. All of my birds are like part of the family and are totally spoiled. They each have names and are all very tame and friendly. I spend lots of time with them and often bring them inside the house. To my friend, who doesn't see all the hard work I put into keeping my birds clean, happy and healthy must think caring for birds is easier than it looks. The amount of times my friend has said "I want one" after seeing my pekin rooster strut into the house through the back door, or after seeing my golden pheasant display his beautiful feathers is unbelievable! I really hope after I lie about the chicks dying he doesn't go elsewhere to purchase more. Perhaps I should hide my pets away if he ever comes over again...After all, my dog does growl at him and several of my birds hiss at him! (The birds and my dog have never done this to anyone else.)

TeamChaos, you're right about my friend having a weird bend on the control issue of life and death with animals. It just isn't right. I can't understand why someone would rather kill an unwanted pet rabbit than give it away to a friend who would love and care for it. Not only does it seem the pleasure is in wanting with him, but he seems to also have the attitude if I can't have it, no on can. Like I said before, my Friend has been banned from our local pet store but I'd like to see him banned from keeping animals altogether because I'm concerned he has some serious issues.

Ps: I'm sorry to hear you're going through something similar. It can be really frustrating when dealing with someone keeping animals for selfish reasons, especially when your only concern is the welfare of the animals. I really hope the cats you're talking about get what they deserve.

Thank you to everyone who has replied to my post, I know it's not the most normal thing to be asking advice about! I'll keep you all updated and let you know what the future holds for these poor little chickens...

 

[leadwolf1]

You are welcome.

As hard as it may be, if your friend does treat another animal in a poor fashion, you could call the humane society and they will go about making sure that he never owns another animal or face fines and other terms of prosecution. No animal deserves to be locked away and starved.

 

[EggieRowe]

Not to be alarmist, but you might want to look up the criteria for a sociopath and take an honest inventory of your friend. Not just for the sake of the chicks, but for yourself. People like that in your life can be toxic, even dangerous.