Am I a bad chicken mom for this.

[Belovedturkey]

I recently needed to cull an old hen because her water belly was really bad, but Ive never been able to cull my babies even though I know they’re suffering, so I asked my dad to do it. I’m glad that he’s willing to drive to my house to help me out with it but I just don’t like the way he did it. He crushed her neck with a hammer. It didn’t take her more than a minute to die but I’m just really worried that she died painfully even though I know she’s in a better place now anyways. Can anyone let me know how quick that kind of death is, it’s wierd but I just want to know, I’ve been worrying about it for a while. I wasn’t really sure what thread topic to put this under so so I hope it’s not tmi.

 

[Evadig]

I recently needed to cull an old hen because her water belly was really bad, but Ive never been able to cull my babies even though I know they’re suffering, so I asked my dad to do it. I’m glad that he’s willing to drive to my house to help me out with it but I just don’t like the way he did it. He crushed her neck with a hammer. It didn’t take her more than a minute to die but I’m just really worried that she died painfully even though I know she’s in a better place now anyways. Can anyone let me know how quick that kind of death is, it’s wierd but I just want to know, I’ve been worrying about it for a while. I wasn’t really sure what thread topic to put this under so so I hope it’s not tmi.

I’m so sorry about your hen. You’re definitely not a bad chicken mom!
I also have had to put down a hen due to water belly. It’s hard!

I’ll ask the moderators to move this to a forum more likely to give you an answer .

 

[Belovedturkey]

I’m so sorry about your hen. You’re definitely not a bad chicken mom!
I also have had to put down a hen due to water belly. It’s hard!

I’ll ask the moderators to move this to a forum more likely to give you an answer .

Thank you, I really wasn’t sure where to put it.

 

[PrettyCoolChicks]

Hey, sorry about your hen.

The way he did it probably wasn't ideal. How quick or painful it was likely depends if the spine was damaged or severed and how quickly blood stopped flowing to the brain, and if it took more than one try.

If you have to cull a bird again (hopefully not any time soon), you could ask him to try cervical dislocation (the broomstick method) which I think is the most practical among humane ways to cull a bird, and probably easier both to do and to watch. Hitting the head rather than the neck, if it renders the bird unconscious in one blow is considered humane too - I've never done this, I read it damages the brain and stops the breathing, or you combine it with another method once it is unconscious and won't feel the pain.

I've tried a few methods. I like none of them. And there's a learning curve to all of them, so the first time may never be ideal. I also guess what's hardest is the culling itself, even the one I had put to sleep at the vet was hard (They used Co2, it took a while to work).

But keep in mind: 1 minute is better than 5 minutes, and definitely better than however many more days/weeks she might have suffered if you hadn't put her down. It's hard, and you still made the decision that helped her suffer less. That makes you a good chicken mom to me.

 

[rosemarythyme]

x2 on cervical dislocation, and your dad can probably learn how to do it by watching videos explaining the process. It's extremely fast once you learn how to do it - I can set up for it and have it all done in about 20 seconds.

I agree that if the only option is something like a hammer (or gun) then a headshot is preferable as that should also end things quickly.