Broken? Wing

[CrazyBeets]

Yea, Tiny is gluttonous. Some days when she's digging in the grass I consider making her a bra because it must be painful once she starts swinging! I think my father-in-law (she's one of the ones I stole from him) said she was one of his cornish hens.

It's all my fault, I give them too many treats. Almost always fresh fruit and veg (though today they got an apple pie). I have a rope hanging that I string lettuce and bagels to, to make them work for it.

We lopped off JoJo's wings when we got him/her, but his/her back was bare. He/she has like an 8' vertical jump with the wings and kept running away once he got out. We usually clip wings once every few months. With the exception of the one fence that my run is against, we don't have fences in our neighborhood and the ladies get excited and like to dig in other yards

We may have inadvertently house trained Pineapple; she doesn't poo in her crate anymore and within minutes of us putting her outside she lets loose. Today was a mostly solid poo! I took a picture for you:


We discovered last night that she looooves cooked beets. She probably ate 6 tbsp of beets today, in fact she ate a lot in general. When I picked her up I felt an itty bitty snack pouch! Yey! She has been putting weight on her feet but I have to keep re-positioning them so that they're at the right angle. I might weigh her again tonight, just to see if she gained any weight. I just put her on the kitchen scale on her side, because she doesn't run away.




You never did say, should I throw out eggs while they're on dewormer? Of course, today had to be the most productive day...out of 12 hens/maybe-rooster, I got 10 eggs. Bearded Lady cranks them out--she lays a blue egg almost every day! Which I had more like her

 

[justplainbatty]

The withdrawal on the eggs is two weeks after last does. Withdrawal on meat, none. I am glad she likes beets but be careful not to give for too long or too often. Beets are high in iron and sodium which are both bad for chickens. At the moment though, the other vitamins and minerals in them are super for a chicken! That is probably why she is eating them so well!
For Tiny, a crop bra may be a good idea. Pendulous crop can lead to worse crop problems.
Here is a nutrition link for beets, the list shows a ton of stuff chickens need. http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/vegetables-and-vegetable-products/2353/2
Pineapple's face is still a bit pale to me, maybe right now the iron will help her anemia...
That's a wonderful egg count! Too bad they're all for the trash right now. :/

EDIT: I forgot, the "average" weight for an adult laying hen is 5# so if you can get your bunch up to 4 to 7 depending on breed (like the BR), that's good.
If Jojo had a bare back, I'm gonna guess hen. Roosters generally do not get bare backs, it's very rare.

 

[CrazyBeets]

Thanks! Bummer on the eggs though. I've been keeping track every day since we got chickens and right now we were averaging about 40 a week so that's a lot to throw out! I'll find something to do with them (we have a lake so I might see if the fishes want them, otherwise I'm contemplating the compost heap). What are your thoughts on feeding the 'bad' eggs to the girls? Scrambled/cooked, of course, but I didn't know if that would just keep the wormer in their system longer?

JoJo was sitting on top of another hen this morning (literally) in a nesting box. He/she is a little discriminate, though, because it is always a brown hen. Who knows what it is! I don't think it even knows :\

I figured too much of any one thing is probably bad, but it is just so nice to see her excited to eat. I gave her a tbsp of beets this morning (she eats it until it's gone). I tried some corn (no interest) then switched to tomatoes, which she ate like the beets. I am half wondering if the color has something to do with it? When I put the last little bit of beets in her crumble, she ate the red colored crumble first. Side note--she doesn't seem to like yellow things. I hard boiled some eggs last week and tried to give her some of the yolk, which she wouldn't eat, but she loved the whites. Maybe red kidney beans? Would those be okay for her?

 

[justplainbatty]

I would not feed the eggs to anything myself.

I know it's a lot to throw out It is what is in the food that she is choosing to eat. In this link, you can see what she is after, all kinds of good stuff for her http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/vegetables-and-vegetable-products/2682/2 Same for the eggs and why she is avoiding the yolk http://www.ahealthiermichigan.org/2...-egg-whites-versus-egg-yolks-what-do-you-use/ Here is a good article on what not to feed chickens, beans included.http://www.fresheggsdaily.com/2013/02/toxic-treats-what-not-to-feed-your.html I am glad she is eating better and she is choosing foods that are best for her recovery right now. Healthy birds have no problem eating junk food in excess, but a sick bird will usually gravitate to what helps them feel better.

(they often don't recognize water containing added vitamins or medications, but they know which foods have what they need)

 

[CrazyBeets]

We "free ranged" today...I took a picture for you. It mostly involved Pineapple laying on her side underneath the wild bird feeder and kicking herself in a circle. She ate a lot though, even some grass and sprouts. Also, we are up to 3 poos today!



We are less than a month away from our vacation, so I need some ideas on how to get her started on walking. I've tried leaving her on the ground without the sling but I have had little success. I prop her up against stuff, but she usually kicks herself over (like pictured) and that's the extent of it. We tried leaving her out of the sling in her box at night, but that ended up in a disastrous mess which had to be washed off. I know she's still pretty weak, but she has been eating a lot more lately. I don't have an accurate estimate of how much food (today she kept flicking food out of her cup) but I can feel a little more weight in her chest area. The area between her legs is still grossly skinny. I'm afraid that her sternum (? does it extend all they way between her legs?) between her legs seems to be bending a little towards the right because she is always pushing herself to the left in the sling. When I put her on the scale she was up 2 oz.

I'd like to try to get her out of the sling because I don't want it to affect her underside. I don't know if some sort of harness and swing arm is overkill to get her walking, but I'm open to suggestions. I'm pretty handy and can right up just about anything. Any thoughts?

 

[deacons]

I really wish I had some suggestions for you, but I just have no experience to draw on. Wish more experienced folks from this site would weigh in with their suggestions though. She really seems to be a fighter to continue eating and putting up with the "doctoring"- I'm certainly pulling for her!

Not sure where you're located, but here on this forum, most states have a local/regional thread where maybe you could post her story to try to find other chicken folks nearby. That way, if she's still going in the right direction but requiring special help by the time you go on vacation, maybe someone would be willing to help take care of her while you're gone.

 

[justplainbatty]

We "free ranged" today...I took a picture for you. It mostly involved Pineapple laying on her side underneath the wild bird feeder and kicking herself in a circle. She ate a lot though, even some grass and sprouts. Also, we are up to 3 poos today!



We are less than a month away from our vacation, so I need some ideas on how to get her started on walking. I've tried leaving her on the ground without the sling but I have had little success. I prop her up against stuff, but she usually kicks herself over (like pictured) and that's the extent of it. We tried leaving her out of the sling in her box at night, but that ended up in a disastrous mess which had to be washed off. I know she's still pretty weak, but she has been eating a lot more lately. I don't have an accurate estimate of how much food (today she kept flicking food out of her cup) but I can feel a little more weight in her chest area. The area between her legs is still grossly skinny. I'm afraid that her sternum (? does it extend all they way between her legs?) between her legs seems to be bending a little towards the right because she is always pushing herself to the left in the sling. When I put her on the scale she was up 2 oz.

I'd like to try to get her out of the sling because I don't want it to affect her underside. I don't know if some sort of harness and swing arm is overkill to get her walking, but I'm open to suggestions. I'm pretty handy and can right up just about anything. Any thoughts?

Hi, @deacons idea for a chicken sitter is good, if you cna teach them in advance about what you do. Since you're handy, it wouldn't hurt to make her a few different slings that you can rotate her in. Make them where her weight is distributed differently in each one, especially to guard her keel and sternum. Keep giving her lots of vitamin and protein packed things. Keep letting her kick so her muscles don't atrophy too much. The fact that she has gained two ounces is great! As you can guess, it will take her a while to get to a proper weight. The hope is that as she takes in all the nutrients, eventually it will help her neurological symptoms and she will walk again. Maybe not the best walking, but good enough to live a reasonable life. She really is fighting hard for her life! I'm amazed at how hard she is working and that she wants to go on living! It's wonderful how much love and care you are giving her too! Go Pineapple!!

 

[CrazyBeets]

We're having some issues again She has stopped eating her crumble and will only eat if I let her 'free range' under the bird feeder. I gave her some meal worms yesterday and she ate those, however she hasn't been drinking hardly any water. I try to make her, but she's at maybe a tbsp a day. She's back to 1.5 lbs (I think those 2 oz might have been in her crop). She has been pretty lethargic for the past few days, combined with some panting. She poo three or four times yesterday, and they were chicken poo shaped but they were pretty dry.

On the upside; I wondered if she had some sort of ear infection/mites thing going on, so we put hydrogen peroxide in her ears and let them drain. They didn't foam, but since then she seems to have a little more balance. I got some drops for ear mites, but I haven't put them in yet. I can sit her down properly and she can stay that way...for a while, until she sees something she wants and pushes herself over. Here's her sitting somewhat right.



Sometimes she does try to get up, but I don't think she has enough muscle/maybe they atrophied. What ends up happening is that she fully extends her leg and her head stays on the ground. It looks pretty funny

Her poor little thighs are about as big as my thumbs. She is still waaaaay waaaay too boney. There isn't a part of her where bones don't stick out. I've been trying to up the protein/fat in her food, but since she won't eat it, it doesn't help. We have been going for "walks" to try to get her some exercise. Mainly, I crouch and hold her under her wings and sort of drag her along like a toddler. She moves her legs (slowly and uncoordinated) and puts her feet down, but she doesn't always extend her toes and ends up on her knuckles. The past few days she's been asleep when we do it, or at least her eyes are closed.

Also been alternating between time in the sling. If I leave her on the ground during the day, she sleeps in the sling at night and if she's in the sling during the day, she sleeps on the ground at night.

I think I'll try to get some olive oil down her throat, maybe some of the bird seed got stuck? She shakes her head a lot like she is trying to cough. I'll also try to get some water in there, somehow.

Oh, and if she does make it to the end of May, my mother-in-law (are you as surprised as I am?!) offered to take care of her while we're gone. She's pretty capable; I mean, my husband grew up with a kangaroo in the living room and a bear in the bedroom, so, yea.

 

[justplainbatty]

We're having some issues again She has stopped eating her crumble and will only eat if I let her 'free range' under the bird feeder. I gave her some meal worms yesterday and she ate those, however she hasn't been drinking hardly any water. I try to make her, but she's at maybe a tbsp a day. She's back to 1.5 lbs (I think those 2 oz might have been in her crop). She has been pretty lethargic for the past few days, combined with some panting. She poo three or four times yesterday, and they were chicken poo shaped but they were pretty dry.

On the upside; I wondered if she had some sort of ear infection/mites thing going on, so we put hydrogen peroxide in her ears and let them drain. They didn't foam, but since then she seems to have a little more balance. I got some drops for ear mites, but I haven't put them in yet. I can sit her down properly and she can stay that way...for a while, until she sees something she wants and pushes herself over. Here's her sitting somewhat right.



Sometimes she does try to get up, but I don't think she has enough muscle/maybe they atrophied. What ends up happening is that she fully extends her leg and her head stays on the ground. It looks pretty funny

Her poor little thighs are about as big as my thumbs. She is still waaaaay waaaay too boney. There isn't a part of her where bones don't stick out. I've been trying to up the protein/fat in her food, but since she won't eat it, it doesn't help. We have been going for "walks" to try to get her some exercise. Mainly, I crouch and hold her under her wings and sort of drag her along like a toddler. She moves her legs (slowly and uncoordinated) and puts her feet down, but she doesn't always extend her toes and ends up on her knuckles. The past few days she's been asleep when we do it, or at least her eyes are closed.

Also been alternating between time in the sling. If I leave her on the ground during the day, she sleeps in the sling at night and if she's in the sling during the day, she sleeps on the ground at night.

I think I'll try to get some olive oil down her throat, maybe some of the bird seed got stuck? She shakes her head a lot like she is trying to cough. I'll also try to get some water in there, somehow.

Oh, and if she does make it to the end of May, my mother-in-law (are you as surprised as I am?!) offered to take care of her while we're gone. She's pretty capable; I mean, my husband grew up with a kangaroo in the living room and a bear in the bedroom, so, yea.

Ok, how is her spirit? If she is still happy and fighting, I would tube feed her ASAP. She doesn't have much left to give....go to @casportpony she has videos of tube feeding. Start with 15ml electrolytes per pound (so maybe 19-21mls for her)once then 90 minutes later and then every 6 hrs for 14 hrs. I just was tube feeding a chicken, it's easy. The chicken didn't make it, she had been egg bound, prolapsed and her whole abdomen was hard and swollen. It was most likely EYP and her gizzard was blocked. She weighed 3.75 pounds, way to little for an LF. The people who owned her had tried to get her healthy for a month and then they asked me to take her. It was too late, I got her hydrated but she was starved, rarely pooped and died this morning. I only had her for 5 days.

ETA: Somewhere in Casport's stuff are 4 or 5 recipes for homemade electrolytes. I can give you the one I used, it was #3 on her list I believe.

 

[CrazyBeets]

Well, I think tonight is Pineapple's last night. I got the blockage cleared with some olive oil and massaging and the next day it was empty. But, I think it just moved somewhere else. It has now been 2 days since she pooped. She has eaten a little and drank a little, but most of the water in her I put there, she doesn't even fight it when I pry open her beak. Her face is a little red and her comb is almost purple and she has been panting most of the day. I am pretty sure she gave up. I'll probably give her another hour or so, but if she doesn't get anything out then I can't justify watching her suffer. Not going to lie, I'm pretty bummed.