Chicken swallowed a garden tag!!!

[cnnipper76]

Hello all!
Thank you so much for your responses. Sorry it took a while to respond...
Penny is still hanging in there today. She has eaten a little and had some water. She’s moving around, so I’m thinking she’s pretty uncomfortable but ok. I’ve switched her to a mushy diet and I think it’s helping. My husband returns home tomorrow and we will try to get the tag out together. I don’t want to keep pulling at it just to irritate her throat more. She started bleeding yesterday, so I’m worried I’m doing more harm than good. I’ve tried the towel trick but I really need an extra set of hands and don’t have anyone who can help me right now. She’s in my garage and I’m going out and checking on her regularly. I’ll update you all when we work on it tomorrow. You all have given me some good advice and I will definitely use some of the suggestions when we go at it tomorrow. I’m really hoping we have better results with two sets of hands!!!

 

[cnnipper76]

Hello again. In case anyone was curious, we got the tag out! We moved her inside because the temperature dropped in the single digits and she was getting dehydrated. Today she is much better and the temperature is back up. I think we’ll take her back to the coop bc I think she’d do better with some company.

 

[staceyj]

This is great news!

 

[staceyj]

Hello again. In case anyone was curious, we got the tag out! We moved her inside because the temperature dropped in the single digits and she was getting dehydrated. Today she is much better and the temperature is back up. I think we’ll take her back to the coop bc I think she’d do better with some company.

You might want to watch her for a little while so the others don’t pick on her.
Sometimes when a chicken is away from the flock for a few days the others aren’t so welcoming when they come back until they get reacquainted.

 

[cnnipper76]

You might want to watch her for a little while so the others don’t pick on her.
Sometimes when a chicken is away from the flock for a few days the others aren’t so welcoming when they come back until they get reacquainted.

Thank you. I’ve been debating on whether to keep her inside or move her outside. I have a situation...A hawk killed one of my 3 and I’m thinking I should bring her back bc I don’t want my other to be isolated. She seems depressed, so I think she might be more welcoming to company. The one that survived has always been “the protector” of the flock. She actually fought off a hawk before and will peck my dog if she gets too close. She’s a pretty feisty chicken. I thought I had fixed the hawk situation but no. Anyway, idk how much chickens react to trauma like this. I’m also rethinking allowing my chickens to “freerange” since we have a hawk problem . I feel bad keeping them cooped up, but I don’t want predators to kill them. Is this just a part of having chickens? Would a recent death in the flock change your opinion of keeping her separate?

 

[staceyj]

Yes. That does change things because if they aren’t immediately accepting of her and she’s isolated away from the others that makes her a prime target for a hawk.

Maybe I’d invite the other one(s) in for a lunch date and see how it goes.

Do you have a covered run they could eventually access?

 

[cnnipper76]

They do have a covered run but it’s small imo. I want to build a larger one but won’t be able to until this spring. We have a half acre fenced in yard (6’ privacy fence) which keeps the fox and raccoons out, but I’m not sure what to do for the hawks. They weren’t an issue this summer but we had a lot more foliage, so I’m thinking that was the difference.

 

[cnnipper76]

Yes. That does change things because if they aren’t immediately accepting of her and she’s isolated away from the others that makes her a prime target for a hawk.

Maybe I’d invite the other one(s) in for a lunch date and see how it goes.

Do you have a covered run they could eventually access?

Thank you. I’ll try to bring the other one in and see how it goes. I read it’s not good to have a flock smaller than 3 (and that an isolated chicken can become depressed) but I can’t get more chickens until spring.

 

[Trux]

They do have a covered run but it’s small imo. I want to build a larger one but won’t be able to until this spring. We have a half acre fenced in yard (6’ privacy fence) which keeps the fox and raccoons out, but I’m not sure what to do for the hawks. They weren’t an issue this summer but we had a lot more foliage, so I’m thinking that was the difference.

That 6 foot fence may keep out fox but trust me it wont keep out a raccoon. When you build that run make sure it is like Fort Knox! Hardware cloth over wood frame and dig bibs!

 

[cnnipper76]

That 6 foot fence may keep out fox but trust me it wont keep out a raccoon. When you build that run make sure it is like Fort Knox! Hardware cloth over wood frame and dig bibs!

I’ll keep that in mind! I haven’t seen the raccoons but I’ve heard from others in the area that they can be a nuisance. We have two coops right now. One from the summer that has a larger run but not warm enough for our winters and one with a smaller run but more secure coop(?) area to keep them warm at night. I may rig something with the other run just to give some more space in the day... just thinking...