Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[Pastel the Rooster]

I do think that they have made it very tough for farmers, small holdings persons, and the like to treat their animals. Most know how to treat all the usual ailments without getting a veterinarian out to look at their animals.

Here the large animal vets want a yearly herd health check done which farmers do no want to spend money on. The vets are making it very difficult and I can see most either leaving the profession or moving to other places as farmers increasingly just kill off any animals that will cost them money - small animal vets charge an arm and a leg to treat your pets and in the end they don’t live any longer than they did 40 yrs ago!

I told my small animal vet she might as well euthanize my cat I was not willing to spend all the money on all the tests she wanted to do.

I took Henny Penny to my Vet to have her look at her twisty toes and she charged me $50 for trimming her nails which I had already trimmed!

All I wanted was her to look at the toes to see if one on each side could be removed to prevent the curling and twisting - of course that was on the tail end of Covid and she was still not seeing clients.

Easier to charge people a fortune if you’re not there to question treatments! I will NEVER EVER bring my pet to a vet if there is ever a lock down again. It will need to take its chances I can’t afford another $1700 vet bill for gastric upset in my cat ( do not get me started - I already sent them a nasty-gram an exceedingly rotten review).

I am extremely lucky my horse vet knows me and that I can diagnose and treat just about most things on my own. Having said that - I will never get another horse it’s just to darn expensive for vet care.

See, that's why I don't want to bring BBQ into a vet. There goes all of my parents money.

 

[Pastel the Rooster]

Baytril/enrofloxacin does indeed still seem to be available.
Bib is an expert and I believe has connected with @Pastel The Rooster already.
My guess is yes it would be useful in Bumblefoot.
I would still say you need to get the focus of infection in the foot out by soaking and maybe surgery.

Yeah, By Bob said that it would work

 

[Pastel the Rooster]

So at last visit, Sheba was out in the run. Eenie was still on the nest. It's very warm in my henhouse and she gets no air in there! It has me concerned. I gave her a cherry tomato, which she jumped up and devoured, while I picked up the two eggs under her. It appears she isn't laying, which is another sign she's broody, right? I didn't stick these in the fridge... maybe I'll mark them and put them back.

If I just wait a couple days and she has 4 or 6 eggs under her, then pick up any newly laid ones, that'll work, right?

Still unsure how I'll block her off or get the others to go to the other boxes though. If I create a little pen around her, and give her her own little water and food source...will that work? Maybe penning off the area under the "ladder"?
View attachment 3548673
Still worried about how warm she'll get in there...

From what I see, yes, broody hens don't lay. Willow is not laying, and she plucked all of her belly feathers, which is another sign. Look for a bare belly in your girl.

 

[Pastel the Rooster]

I have some Willow news.
I pulled all of the eggs out from under her. I accidentally broke one, but I found another that was marked. I didn't know that was under her!
I got all of her eggs out from under her, and put them in her new nest. I grabbed Willow, somewhat successfully. She didn't peck me, but she was screaming bloody murder the whole way to her new nest.
I put her down on her eggs, and she stayed there... until I got Mac n cheese and gave it to the others. I ended up needing to give most of it to her because she got off the nest and was screaming for it.
I put her on the nest once she was done, and she just kept getting up. Dang it!
Eventually I ended up grabbing her, hugging her, and scolding her. "Willow, please take to these eggs. Please. I want you to have chicks."
Hey, it worked. She sat on the six eggs, and than I found another egg in the nest. It was a Willow egg. I got very eggcited and took it in and candled it.
I think that it is good(?)
Well, I'm going to go talk to my dad about taking BBQ to the vet.

 

[Ponypoor]

I wasn't able to talk to him. I asked if he wanted to talk about BBQ, and he said no. Maybe at dinner.

My suggestion is to soak that foot and then use some polysporrin ointment on the foot and bandage daily. Keep it dry, and don’t let her be jumping down from any roosts.

If you can get antibiotics great, but you will still need to daily soak and clean that foot.

 

[Ponypoor]

So at last visit, Sheba was out in the run. Eenie was still on the nest. It's very warm in my henhouse and she gets no air in there! It has me concerned. I gave her a cherry tomato, which she jumped up and devoured, while I picked up the two eggs under her. It appears she isn't laying, which is another sign she's broody, right? I didn't stick these in the fridge... maybe I'll mark them and put them back.

If I just wait a couple days and she has 4 or 6 eggs under her, then pick up any newly laid ones, that'll work, right?

Still unsure how I'll block her off or get the others to go to the other boxes though. If I create a little pen around her, and give her her own little water and food source...will that work? Maybe penning off the area under the "ladder"?
View attachment 3548673
Still worried about how warm she'll get in there...

Remove the eggs. Keep the eggs stockpiled, out of the fridge on your counter, and when you get the 6 eggs (a good number for first timer) you want, put them all under her on the same day. This way they will hatch on the same day.

Make sure to mark them and remove any unmarked eggs daily.

 

[MaryJanet]

@Ponypoor had a succes co-broody situation and @MaryJanet had a tragic one. I would say it depends but you won't see me trying it.

Although I'm sure the tragic co-brood at my house had a lot to do with the personality of one of the broodies, I'm not game to try it again. And that hen is no longer allowed near hatching eggs or chicks.

 

[Ponypoor]

My suggestion is to soak that foot and then use some polysporrin ointment on the foot and bandage daily. Keep it dry, and don’t let her be jumping down from any roosts.

If you can get antibiotics great, but you will still need to daily soak and clean that foot.

RC do I owe a SHRA tax on this ??

 

[RoyalChick]

RC do I owe a SHRA tax on this ??

No. It is a good post giving specific guidance to @Pastel The Rooster on treating her hen.
That said, I don’t think anyone would complain if you had some nice pictures to post!


Tax talk tax: little Sylvie has no business exploring over there.

 

[Ponypoor]

Although I'm sure the tragic co-brood at my house had a lot to do with the personality of one of the broodies, I'm not game to try it again. And that hen is no longer allowed near hatching eggs or chicks.

So sorry to hear this. How sad, when it should be a fun thing. I would never have with any other hens. Those two though are such sweetie pies and dote on each other all the time.

But would I do it again? Likely not.