California - Northern

[HighNDryFarm]

Awe, I'm so sorry you lost your Lucy. I'm glad she called you in to be with her when she left.

 

[lawatt]

I am so sorry

I know it is hard, but the best thing is to send her in for a Necropsy. I have done this twice now and it make me feel like I am being very responsible.

UC DAVIS

http://www.cahfs.ucdavis.edu/index.cfm

You can send dead birds here for necropsy testing. I hope you don't need it, but Debi/PetRock suggested this addition and it's a good one. Thanks Debi and Ron, for the link.

UC DAVIS FEDEX INFO: Their account # is 364343981. If you use their account number you will get to use UC Davis's discount which is up to 70% off. They said that they will bill you for the shipment after you get the report (or at the same time.) Also, FedEx and UPS both ship to the actual lab every day... the Postal Service doesn't.



CAHFS - Davis Laboratory
University of California
West Health Sciences Drive
Davis, CA 95616
Phone: 530-752-8700
Fax: 530-752-6253
[email protected]

Ron

thanks for the info, Ron -- unfortunately i've got a zillion meetings today, starting early this morning, & just didn't have time to figure out how to package her up & send. i'm afraid it will have to remain a mystery... thankfully all the other birds are still bouncing around with their usual craziness, so whatever caused Lucy's troubles, doesn't seem to have spread?

and thanks all for the condolences, everyone -- it's been a tough 24 hours, but this group has really helped.
best,
laura

 

[HighNDryFarm]

Quote:

Pam, hope you wake to lots of chicks this morning!

Kim

Well, the Polish has another one. One solid black and one that looks chocolate, which I'm

will stay chocolate!

Now the yucky part.....so with all this heat, the EE broody has some eggs that were rotten. I mentioned a couple of days ago she pushed one out and it was stepped on and stinky. I threw that one and two others she had moved out of the nest and tossed them.....in a bag in the trash can in the barn and they staaaainnnk! I'm hoping my husband will deal with it....anyway, so she still has a stink in her nest and last night I heard a loud peeping chick but I didn't push her to get a look! This morning I wanted to see it so I fight mom's biting me and pick her up to look and no chick but a MESS from a broken egg. So I move mom over, get a roll of papers towels, wet one and start trying to clean up the mess. That's when I saw the maggots

so I make a new nest a couple feet away, using fresh pine shavings (she had an alfalfa nest). I wipe her off as best I can, move the eggs and lay mom on them. I found the one chirping, it's still in the egg! Just a hole so far, no zipping. I'm kind of concerned since it hasn't made progress since last night and it was chirping this loud then too but I'm sure it'll be OK, it has some healthy lungs. I'll look at it closer if it's not out tonight.

Boy, it's sure hard to get that rotten egg stink off your hands!

 

[ronott1]

Quote:

Sorry about the mess!

Rotten eggs are terrible!

Ron

 

[HighNDryFarm]

Quote:
Sorry about the mess!

Rotten eggs are terrible!

Ron
That emo is EXACTLY how I felt cleaning it up!

 

[chiqita]

I'm sorry about Lucy, that sucks.
and EWWW on the eggs and maggots. I don't do well with maggots, id freak out.

 

[debs_flock]

I found the one chirping, it's still in the egg! Just a hole so far, no zipping. I'm kind of concerned since it hasn't made progress since last night and it was chirping this loud then too but I'm sure it'll be OK, it has some healthy lungs. I'll look at it closer if it's not out tonight.

If it's had a large hole this long, with no progress, it's almost certainly shrink wrapped inside the shell and will never make it out on it's own. I'd help it for sure and the sooner the better with the heat we've been having.

Just chip back a little at a time to enlarge the hole. If you see any sign of bleeding, put it back under the hen, that means the blood vessels haven't fully receded and it's not ready. Otherwise, if you find a place it has dried into the shell. I dip my finger or a q-tip into water and gently dampen and ease away the stuck spot. If you leave the chick dried in the shell too long, it will die for sure. Or it can end up with permanently curled feet, slipped tendon, etc. You'd end up having to euthanize it.

Good luck,
Deb

 

[Wishing4Wings]

well, it's 3am -- woke up from Lucy making some distressed-sounding calls from her brooder-box in the bathroom, went in to find her with labored gaspy breathing and it looked like her leg wasn't working again, and her heady was very droopy -- and a few minutes later she had a seizure of sorts and died. no sign of any bloody stool, and she'd eaten some of the yogurt i'd put in with her -- and i'd given her some Corid in her water last night, although not sure how much she drank. very sad, she was unquestionably my favorite chicken of the six.

and now i'm wide awake at 3am with a dead chicken on my hands, and two cats going completely bonkers from the ruckus.

here's a couple of polaroids from sunday afternoon, before she started going quiet:

So sad about Lucy. Long ago in my SRJC years, I worked with a wildlife rescue group. Saw time after time how a critter suddenly seemed to be getting better, more energy, more alert, eating, standing, etc and then died soon after. It's like they mustered up all their energy for one last attempt at life and then had nothing left.

You did your best for her. I'm a big fan of quality over quantity when comes to life span. Lucy had a quality life with you.

 

[lawatt]

So sad about Lucy. Long ago in my SRJC years, I worked with a wildlife rescue group. Saw time after time how a critter suddenly seemed to be getting better, more energy, more alert, eating, standing, etc and then died soon after. It's like they mustered up all their energy for one last attempt at life and then had nothing left.

You did your best for her. I'm a big fan of quality over quantity when comes to life span. Lucy had a quality life with you.

thank you for saying that -- we DID have a good time together, and the others would have horribly harassed little Daisy if Lucy hadn't been looking after her... and funny timing, that i just got the two white-with-black-trim sussexes yesterday, just as Lucy departed -- half-considering naming one of them Lucy Two (or Too?)

 

[HighNDryFarm]

Quote:
Well shoot, it's my late night in my wine bar.....the hole is about the size of a straw. I helped a chick when I incubated so I'm comfortable with that. Hopefully I won't be too late when I get home tonight....hopefully it's hatched and I don't have to worry.

The one I helped before I waited too long and ended up with a crippled chicken that lived for 1 1/2 years! Geez, I wish I could leave my employee alone but she's new....<sigh>