Chick hatched with no eyes!!!!!

[Cetawin]

Okay first let me say that I am so so sorry about the chick and that you are faced with this decision. Then I will say this to you...

1: having no eyes and being blind can be very different. Often blindness comes with seeing shadows or seeing in one eye etc etc and it is not total blindness...having no eyes gives the baby absolutely NO chance at all for any type of normal life. It cannot see its fellows, it cannot see food and water and it does not "smell" like a puppy to find it's way to food. Chickens are NOT solitary animals and the risks that come to a chick with no eyes are grave compared to its fellows. It cannot see what it is walking into or towards, where anything is, whether it is alone or not, whether a dog is charging it etc etc. A chick with no eyes needs you 24/7 care and monitoring...can you give 24/7 to a chick?

It comes down to quality of life...this chick has no chance for any quality of life as a chicken. Your obligation as an animal owner is to put the best interest of the animal above your personal attachments, desires and wants. It is all about what is best for that chick not what you can and cannot do. Make your decision from there. I personally would cull a chick with no eyes and cry the entire time I was doing it and after. The shears are the fastest mose humane way to dispatch a chick.

I am so sorry you must make this decision and I do not envy your having to make it.




Now on a separate note....I have just read three pages of replies/posts that are filled with the most ridiculous statements, selfish comments and irresponsible thinking I have read here in a very long time.

While you are screaming DO NOT CULL DO NOT CULL you have failed to take one flippin second to think the situation through and consider that innocent chick that did not ask to be here in the first place. So before you jump on your high horse of do not cull ONLY because it is blind, take a second and think about what you are saying, why you are saying it and exactly who you are saying it for.

Good grief, this is an animal that MUST be capable of seeing enough to move around safely on its own, feed itself in some way and not drown itself in a waterer it cannot see.

If you want to state your opinion of do not cull, then do it without the CAPS and have a valid reason other than to say "give it a chance" or "why cull it because it is blind". Unless you are willing to carry this chick around and feed it, give it water, walk for it, live for it then do not recommend someone else do it just because you cannot cull a chick that needs to be culled to avoid it suffering or dying a worse death.

At some point common sense must override the squeamish anti-kill mentality.

 

[Jeeper1540]

^exactly what i was thinking^

 

[Alaska animal lover]

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[sian]

cetawin, that was a great post. thank you.

 

[MotherJean]

A friend of mine was recently faced with the task of having to cull one her beloved hens. Her 19 year old daughter threw a hissy fit like you wouldn't believe about her mother "murdering" that chicken. I was there and couldn't believe what I was hearing out of that girl's mouth. Purely irrational considering the fact that that girl has had TWO abortions (that I know of).

You make valid points, Cetawin, but you might as well save your breath. There's just no reasoning with some people.

 

[Jeeper1540]

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Hypocrite.
If my chicken was so sick that that was the last resort, then thats that. its sad but would you rather let it suffer? we had to put our horse down a few years ago. was it sad? Yes, but she was sick, blind, and had an incurable infection, it had to be done. it was very sad thing to do, but like i said, would you rather let it suffer?

--You need to use common sense on this one. do you have time to take care of this chick all the time? does it have the ability to get food on its own or is it completely helpless? are the other chicks beating it up? use common sense and do what you think is right

 

[speckledhen]

I must say I agree with Cetawin. And I speak from experience of caring for a handicapped rooster for two years now. He isn't blind, just has one bum leg from an injury and cannot walk. Had I to do it over again, I would let him go, much as I love him, but he enjoys life (with some effort on our part to be sure). He can see, however. And he can get to food and water on his own, can watch the skies and see danger, can flirt with his special girlfriend, crows when he's excited or happy, etc. He cannot however file his beak or his nails naturally, dustbathe, always stay out of his own poop, though he tries, etc. We must do all those things for him on a daily basis.

I have a sight impaired Ameraucana pullet right now. She is not blind, just has some depth perception issues, but for the first four days, we did think she was blind. We had to teach her to eat and drink and now she is thriving, but she does have problems finding her group and cannot see well enough to peck at small objects on the ground. If she had been blind, we would have culled her, no ifs, ands or buts. We did hatch a blind Orpington once and as soon as it was apparent it was blind, we humanely euthanized it, already having Zane and knowing the commitment it took.

Having a bird who is severely handicapped, especially a blind one, involves a major commitment on your part, major. Think it through. It's your decision, but I know what I would do.

I will tell you something I know to be a fact. The longer you wait, the harder it will be. Make your decision quickly.


This is one of the sad responsibilities of chicken keeping. It's not easy, I know. Trust me, I really do know. But, the animal's welfare over the long haul is what is important, not our feelings. And to the ones who are yelling so adamantly DON'T CULL, it isn't you who will have to care for this bird its entire life, so let's not be so adamant here.

 

[Chickenmaven]

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Ditto. My only regrets as a poultry keeper have been in perservering with birds that were not going to recover. At a point, playing hospice is just cruel.

 

[fourfeathers]

Jenn,
I have a small farm for chicks (do not take adults, too hard to quarantine) who have special needs. You may live somewhat close to me (I am in KY). If you would like to email me we can talk about either my taking the chick or different ways for you to modify your environment to give it a good life. It really wouldn't be that hard. She/he would do best with a buddy that it can start bonding to, need to be kept in a small coop/run where food and water is always in the same spot, protect areas in the coop so that when she does bump into things-she won't be hurt. She will learn her environment. No, she will not be able to free-range safely, but can live a good life all the same. It will take more care and attention than the average chicken, however, but can be very rewarding. It deserves a chance to see what type of life it could have.
Quality of life has all sorts of definitions. And, yes, I have had to make a couple of hard decisions to euthanize was the quality/health began to decline. Are you sure there are no eyes and they aren't fused? Take a warm washcloth and hold gently on the eyes, I have been surprised on one occasion when they actually had smaller than average eyes in there, but they were there! Other times, the chick will have eyes in there, but they are not formed. These will sometimes need attention as they get older....warm washcloth for occasional drainage, terramyocin for occasional infection. Just email me. I would need to know the health of your existing birds however and whether you have ever had any MG, Corzya or any other illnesses in your flock. Above all, I try to protect mine, but will try to help if I can. Kat

 

[MuranoFarms]

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The only thing I could possibly add is before you choose a method of culling, think how you would feel. Would you rather have it over in a second like the shears, or would you rather get tossed into a fire and feel your skin being scorched away...blinding pain before death? Or some heartless humans prefer the freezer method. Shivering and shaking, painful frostbite setting in on toes skin slowly freezing solid before death. I have had to cull. I had days to think this through. I chose a decapitation method. I believe I did the right thing.

I know you'll do the right thing for you and the chick. Whatever it may be.