Really depressed

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They can and should stay on starter or starter/grower until the first egg, or 20 weeks. Glad to hear she's doing so much better! One of ours had a rough beginning at our home as well and acted just like yours did, but she's perfectly fine now!
 
I was reading that medicated chick starter, which is what I have, can block the absorbtion of vitamin B. I may just switch to an organic "grower" or unmedicated "starter." I'm guessing Willow has either an injury or vitamin deficiency, so I'm going to look into switching feeds this weekend. I do know not to give them "layer" until they are actually laying eggs, so no worries there.
 
Please Please Please don't blame yourself, that is just the harsh world of chicken raising. With pets, we get our puppies or kitties from a shelter or another owner and they are proven to be healthy and happy and ready to go. With chickens, however, we get them straight out of the egg and into our brooders before nature has had its chance to do its survival of the fittest run, so we have to witness our weaklings sucombing to their fate. It happens with all animals, usually with mammals while they are still weening so the average joe never has to witness the process. Life and death is the somber reality of the animal world.

My only advice would be to spread your losses, so to speak. Order a dozen chicks, or even half a dozen, and after their 6-8 weeks in the brooder, of the ones that make it, pick three to keep and find some other BYCers in your area to take in your extra girls. It's always easy to find someone to take pullets, heck you could even sell them to pay for costs. But that would be your best way to not put all your eggs in one basket and not feel the disappointment when things don't go exactly as planned.

And chin up, you did a HECK of a lot more than most people to make your weak girl's final moments as comfortable as possible, so take comfort knowing that you did all you could and that she passed feeling cared for.
 
Iridian said:
I've just not been havng very good luck with becoming a chicken owner, and I'm totally wondering if I'm cut out for this. So this is sort of a rant/vent because I feel horrible today and need to get it out. I apologize in advance for the length of this and my epic blabbering here.

As soon as I found out I was allowed to keep 3 hens in my backyard I was so happy. I started reading everything I could on how to care for them, brooding, feeding, coop size and predator protection. I think I read for like 3 weeks straight. I started my small coop and run, collected my brooder supplies and studied breeds that would make great pets with the added bonus of eggs eventually. My 4 kids were thrilled right along with me, they are ages 9,9,7 and 5. Our local feed store was getting a big shipment in of day olds in a week and we were counting down the days.

I decided to try and get a brahma, orpington, easter egger, australorg and or a delaware based on size and temperment I thought any of these breeds would be a good fit for our micro-flock. At the feed store, they did in fact have them all except the delaware and australorp. We brought home 3 pullets excitedly. Within the day/night the buff orpington went downhill. I tried to make sure she was hydrated and stayed up with her all night, crying. She seemed to perk up a bit briefly and I finally went to sleep. When I woke up early the next morning she was dead, alone in a corner of the brooder. I was really sad, but I know from reading that some chicks just don't overcome the stress of traveling. I didn't want to tell the kids, so I raced back to the feed store to see if I could replace her before they woke up that morning.

When I arrived at the feed store they are completey wiped out of pullets. They only chicks they had left were sex links and white leghorns. I'm not happy about it, but decide to get the white leghorn, hoping the kids wont notice, lol. Leghorns tend to be flighty, so I'm just kind of less than thrilled but hope for the best.

The kids did not notice :) We name the girls. Sunny (light brahma) from my son who adores her. I name the E.E. Shae Shae, she is so sweet. I name the white leghorn Willow, who also turns out to be very sweet and calmer than expected.

Fast forward 4 weeks and Sunny, the brahma turns out to be very bossy and kind of a brat. Hmmm I have my suspisions that She is actually a He based on the way she/he is acting. I prepare my one son for this possibility, because we are not allowed to have roos and if it is, sadly he will have to be rehomed. You can imagine his reaction and sadness at this. I'm sad too. Even though she is a bit of a turd, I've grown attached too.

They are being brooded in a downstairs bathroom, yikes what a mess! Even though I'm pretty quick to clean up after them, there is about an inch of dust on everything. I figure I will just cal in a HazMat team once they are finally in their coop. At around this time they dont seem to need the heat lamp very much.

At 5 weeks the coop is ready for them, and they are feathering nicely. Still a little chilly in the evenings here in Northern Cali, so I aim to get them into their new coop at around 6 weeks if the weather isn't too cold at night. They are off the heat lamp totally and are in a temporary pen in the backyard during day time to graze on grass etc..

This past Monday I was watching them in their grazing pen and notice how happy Willow looked, lying in the sun. I decided that over the weekend they will be ready for the coop full time, as they will be over 6 weeks old then. Sadly, Willow is not just lounging in the sun, she can't get up very well and Sunny, the bossy brahma, is occasionally jumping on her head. I grab her out of the pen to check her over. She seems ok, but perhaps her one leg is injured. She is a bit wobbly. I bring her back to the brooder and decided that the two other gals will go in the coop a few days earlier, so Willow can heal.
They are all reall upset by this and much squawking and calling to each other goes on. :(

Sunny and ShaeShae are doing just fine in the new coop, I was pretty nervous about it. Willow on the other hand has gotten much worse and I am just beside myself. After one day alone and some special treatment she seemed ok. Last night she even jumped up on top of the brooder and was walking around occasionally, although she would lay down and rest often. This morning, however, she is bad. She seems paralized. She is eating and drinking fine, as long as she is close to it. Poop seems normal too. I have started her on poly vi sol (no iron) giving her some yogurt too. I'm really worried it may be Mareks or something but I'm hoping its just a vitamin deficiency or leg injuries from a high jump (she is a bit of a spazz normally)

I just dont know. I don't know how long to let it go on, how long it will take to heal if it is an injury or vitamin deficiency. I guess it's good I was able to separate right away if it is Mareks, still no garauntees the other two wont get it.

So here I am. Willow may die, or worse, I may have to cull her. Sunny may be a roo, ad if so, off he goes. Shae will be very lonely and that is no life for her, so I would try and get two more chicks. Not knowing what I'm dealing with in regards to Willow makes me very reluctant to possibly getting more chicks too.

I'm very sad. I was planning on having these very spoiled girls for a lot of years. I feel like a failure and that I failed them. Perhaps I'm not as knowlegable about chicken care as I think and I'm in over my head. Maybe my heart is too soft to own chickens, cause I am really struggling with this and all my decisions now.

If you actually read this far with me, thank you for listening, I feel a littel better having spewed this all out.
-Iri
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I am sorry that you have went through this.

I don't like to think this, but I have had chicks from the hatchery that just don't make it. I don't know if they have been under too much stress, but it does happen, and I can understand where you are coming from.

I am having complications with a certain chick at the moment. It has a broken leg, It's foot isn't connected to it's drumstick. Yeah. I know that sounds stupid, but I am not that knowledgeable about the names of the body parts of a chicken. It is healthy, but gets around poorly. I am stuck in a position where I feel it needs to be culled. I have thought of even getting it euthanized. I really don't know what to do. I couldn't cull a chick that I have tried SO hard to fix. I am not a veterinarian, but am quite knowledgeable about fixing this stuff. I am stumped!
 
Iridian, the problem is that chicks aren't being bred to be pets. Hatcheries have perfected the art of birds who grow quickly, lay lots of eggs, and are processed into food before they get too old. They started this process long before anyone considered the fact that a person might consider a chicken as a pet - even those who had small flocks viewed them as livestock and a cheap food source. Buyers would pad their purchase to include deaths and culls (If I want to add 2-3 pullets to my flock I always buy 4-5 pullets). I keep the kids away from the birds for at least the first week because that is when they are most likely to die for unexplained reasons.

As for the medicated starter, I always feel that it causes more problems than it solves. Yes, if you have a known outbreak in your flock it makes sense to feed a medicated food until they are well. But feeding medicine to healthy animals? Look at all of the drug-resistant bacteria we have today - mostly due to overuse of antibiotics. I think that feeding a medicated food is just going to lead to diseases that we can't treat and cause a huge problem in the long run.

Good luck with the flock you have left. :) It's not your fault that chicks are so fragile!
 
quintinp said:
I am having complications with a certain chick at the moment. It has a broken leg, It's foot isn't connected to it's drumstick. Yeah. I know that sounds stupid, but I am not that knowledgeable about the names of the body parts of a chicken. It is healthy, but gets around poorly. I am stuck in a position where I feel it needs to be culled. I have thought of even getting it euthanized. I really don't know what to do. I couldn't cull a chick that I have tried SO hard to fix. I am not a veterinarian, but am quite knowledgeable about fixing this stuff. I am stumped!
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I'll also PM since I don't know if you will check back here.

PLEASE cull this poor girl. I just went through the same thing with one of my pullets. We had an exam from the vet and he said that it wouldn't hurt to let her try to heal on her own because there was nothing that he could do. After a couple of days, it was obvious how much pain that she was in. After we culled her, I can tell you that there is no way that this type of injury can heal. The joint isn't actually something that can "dislocate" like your shoulder and then go back into place. It's more like your knee or elbow and is actually the joint being pulverized.

She is probably acting like she isn't in pain but that is because birds are hardwired to never show pain. Any sign of weakness draws predators as well as an attack by their own flockmates. If you aren't comfortable culling her yourself, have someone else do it or take her to the vet to be euthanized.

ETA: with my girl, even though it had been only a couple of days, when we culled her we found that gangrene had already set it. The joint was green and the infection was already spreading up into the leg muscle.
 
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I'm kind of feeling the same way right now. I just got my three little pullets yesterday. It has been so hot here in Tennessee that I decided to let them dig around in the cool dirt under our porch. I was checking them every 10 minutes. My husband gets home and runs in the house to tell me that the neighbor's dog has one in his mouth. It was my favorite little barred rock. I feel like such failure. That dog hadn't been outside all day long. I had read not to bother them too much in this heat, but I didn't want them to cook in the tractor either. Well, now I'm down one pullet. I guess you live and learn, but I know that it was all my fault. I wasn't protecting like I should have. Cuss Cuss Cuss! I really love that neighbor dog too!

So, look, at least you didn't give the neighbor dog a quick chicken snack. :(
 
casencourt said:
I'm kind of feeling the same way right now. I just got my three little pullets yesterday. It has been so hot here in Tennessee that I decided to let them dig around in the cool dirt under our porch. I was checking them every 10 minutes. My husband gets home and runs in the house to tell me that the neighbor's dog has one in his mouth. It was my favorite little barred rock. I feel like such failure. That dog hadn't been outside all day long. I had read not to bother them too much in this heat, but I didn't want them to cook in the tractor either. Well, now I'm down one pullet. I guess you live and learn, but I know that it was all my fault. I wasn't protecting like I should have. Cuss Cuss Cuss! I really love that neighbor dog too!

So, look, at least you didn't give the neighbor dog a quick chicken snack. :(
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I'm sorry about your little barred rock
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