Bad Luck Bantams

[thecatumbrella]

Alright, I'm finally making a thread to ramble in while I attempt to salvage my bantam flock.

Please don't feel compelled to give advice (unless you really want to, of course); this is more of a place for me to document my efforts and reflect back on what I've gone through in the hopes of doing better. I'm starting to feel like I really suck at chickens. Or I'm cursed. Anyway, from the top:

I was born on a Saturday afternoon in 1983... Kidding. Gotta start with a lame joke, right?

BACKSTORY, PT 1

I ordered 8 female bantams from Meyer Hatchery in March of this year. This was to be our second attempt at a flock. We're not able to free range here without heavy losses, so we wanted a docile bantam breed that would tolerate confinement well. Cochin (aka Pekin) Bantams stood out as a crowd favorite in this regard. We really DIDN'T want a feather-footed broody breed, but were willing to put in the extra work if it meant we could keep chickens here successfully. I also decided to toss in a couple of d'Uccles, just to mix things up.

The problems started right away. Despite ordering ahead of the May rush, our chicks were delayed in the mail. As a result, one of the d'Uccles, who we named Pip, was incredibly weak. I spent the entire day warming her and trying to nurse her back to health. This meant that other than checking for pasty butt and making sure they could eat/drink/warm themselves, I really didn't spend time with the other chicks. At all. I was either tending to Pip or tending to myself. In hindsight, I'm realizing this meant I missed out on the supposed 3-day "bonding window".

My efforts were in vain. Pip passed the first night, and it became apparent on the following day that my bantam chicks were incredibly skittish compared to my first flock. I mean, who could blame them? They spent over 48 hours in a shipping box, only to be removed and put in another box (brooder), then left to their own devices with hardly a friendly face in sight. But I hoped that, with some effort, we could build trust over time. That's when I noticed that one of the Pekin chicks was having trouble at the waterer...

(Dandelion, Hornet, Flora, Willow, Poppy, Wren, and Clover)​

 

[thecatumbrella]

BACKSTORY, PT 2

This Pekin chick, Willow, has her own thread documenting her struggles. Both BYC and the vet believed it to be a neurological problem, possibly because of something that happened at hatch. It was so bad that we almost euthanized her at 11 days-old, but she miraculously recovered once the group was moved to their basement brooder. I assumed the vitamin treatments had worked, and we were hopefully in the clear.

Then I came down one morning to find bloody stools from chicks that had never been outside. We started Corid. Corid depletes the body of Vitamin B1, so Willow needed to resume treatment afterwards. But we got through it. I had 7 healthy chicks, most of whom were still unreasonably skittish for a breed that's described as "easy to handle".

I decided to top off the group with another 3 female bantams: 2 Silkies and 1 Frizzle Pekin. The chicks arrived within 24 hours, and the difference in their demeanor was night and day. They bonded to us immediately. They didn't thrash around in the brooder when I needed to (slowly and carefully) clean under the heat plate. One of the Silkies, Greta, came with curled toes that we were able to patch back up. The other Silkie, Goose, showed clear neurological issues around the 1 week mark. Thankfully, I was already stocked with supplies from Willow. It was still pretty disheartening to keep receiving sickly birds, but we did our best.

The bigger girls were getting ready to start taking field trips outside. We already had a pen from the previous group and only needed to change out the mulch and move a partition wall. Well... it rained almost every day for 2 weeks. Everything got delayed. I ordered a new type of mulch called Kid Kushion, which is meant for playgrounds. We started filling the pen with 4 cubic yards of it. I realized, halfway through, that this mulch felt like razor blades on my bare hands. We shoveled the Kid Kushion back out and ordered new mulch. I was exhausted. My husband was blowing through his vacation time. But we got everything done. The run was ready for occupants. The big girls moved outside. The little girls moved to the basement brooder, only for someone to start pooping blood again. More Corid, more vitamins. We get through that.

Now it's time for integration.

(Dandelion, Clover, Poppy, Wren, and a blob of Pekins in the back)​

 

[ChickenChick46]

I know you're not done with this story because I've been following you for a bit here. And while I knew about Willow, I think it still happened before I joined here. I did not know about Pip. I'm so sorry.

 

[thecatumbrella]

BACKSTORY, PT 3

Given the title of this thread, you're probably expecting that integration was a disaster. In truth, it was going really well! But of course, we had a few curveballs that were beyond our control.

One of my pullets, Flora, decided she did not like those tiny chicks. Her faced reddened like a baboon's behind while she paced the perimeter of their playpen, clawing at the mesh with her feet. "That's odd," I said. "No one else is aggressive, or even really cares about the newbies." This will be relevant later.

Next, my neighbor, a very nice guy with an addiction to heavy machinery, decided to resume deforesting his lot after a 3 year hiatus... 20 feet from my chicken pen. I had to scale back our integration efforts because the noise was just too intense. Everyone was stressed out.

The final straw was one of the new chicks, Tilly the Frizzle. I have never met a chick like Tilly, and I pray I never do again. From the very beginning, her energy level was set to 11 (Spinal Tap, anyone?). I'll admit, it was cute and funny when she was little. Launching at our hands EVERY TIME we reached in the brooder, launching at the waterer, launching at the feeder, rocketing straight up only to land on her back with legs kicking. It was not cute at 3 weeks old when "she" started to attack us. What 3 week-old chick is aggressive?! I'll tell you... a cockerel. I snapped a photo of her drinking water at 2 weeks-old, and the thing had actual droopy wattles.

I didn't feel great about rehoming a 3 week-old chick by itself. I also didn't feel great about integrating just the 2 Silkies, one of which has a bum leg and the other with brain damage, while my neighbor's pumping out 120 dB of noise next to my bantam pen. So the younger chicks were rehomed together. They're all doing great. My remaining flock? Not so much.

(Tilly, the "wattles before wings" Frizzle Pekin)​

 

[BoundlessLove]

Following this thread. I’m sorry about Willow and Pip.

 

[thecatumbrella]

I know you're not done with this story because I've been following you for a bit here. And while I knew about Willow, I think it still happened before I joined here. I did not know about Pip. I'm so sorry.

Following this thread. I’m sorry about Willow and Pip.

Thanks guys. I appreciate you both so much!

 

[ChickenChick46]

Thanks guys. I appreciate you both so much!

We are very glad you're here and sharing your story. I'm learning from you, especially since we've got some of the same breeds.

 

[BoundlessLove]

I’m sorry it has been a rough journey. You have definitely have had an “out of the normal” experience.
Not that it doesn’t happen. Out of ten years keeping chickens, I’ve had one trouble flock and it was rough.
It is good that you are documenting your journey, as it will surely help those who have an “out of the normal” flock.
To be honest, you had me hooked at Dandelion.

 

[ChickenChick46]

I’m sorry it has been a rough journey. You have definitely have had an “out of the normal” experience.
Not that it doesn’t happen. Out of ten years keeping chickens, I’ve had one trouble flock and it was rough.
It is good that you are documenting your journey, as it will surely help those who have an “out of the normal” flock.
To be honest, you had me hooked at Dandelion.

Seconded! I love Dandelion.

 

[DocChicken]

Following this story. I really want to know what is going on with your remaining flock now