Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[Ponypoor]

Oh my gosh, she's so pretty! What breed is she. (She's such a pretty gray- or is she a gray roan?)

Where do you keep her? It looks like a place I know, but most horse enclosures do.

That is Truly, she is a 22yr old grey Arabian mare. This is my place I am in Ontario Canada.

 

[RoyalChick]

Story seems much much better today. Perhaps it was a pulled muscle also some huge rooster feet for you @featherhead007

That is good to see.

 

[Ponypoor]

It’s my time to play the game ‘oh no is that a pullet? Or is it a cockerel?’ I was just checking out the Hoover Hatchery Sophia chicks.

This is 15 week old Cash - she’s a pullet - right? Her wattles and comb seem very red to me, maybe an early layer?

And her sister Babe, and Cash together for comparison

 

[Ponypoor]

Story seems much much better today. Perhaps it was a pulled muscle also some huge rooster feet for you @featherhead007

Yes he seems to be moving ok, did you give him pain meds?

 

[knoturavggrl]

Yes he seems to be moving ok, did you give him pain meds?

I did but only a small dose last evening because he seemed better when we went to bring him in last evening. So mostly just time and peaceful rest at work in the improvement.

I will likely bring him in again tonight. I really don’t want any roosting drama to cause a set back.

 

[BY Bob]

So the vet I saw immediately went into a scold / rant about my use of Baytril, kind of as I expected because it wasn't a plan agreed to with them, but because it is illegal, as she kept emphasizing, and asked where I got it, if it's from a foreign company it might not be what it's supposed to be, and the danger of resistance is really bad, and getting resistant campylobacter is really bad....She also said since there's no known withdrawal time and I should never eat any of the eggs from any of them (I think she thought I treated them all and I said only Anna's been treated).

She said if it is/was mycoplasma that it is a problem in my flock management. I said I don't know how they got it; I didn't get a chance to give a history - maybe Queenie had it? - but it could be wild songbirds in the run, or even the UPS guy (who has told me he routinely delivers where there are chickens strolling in the driveway); she said that the truck tires wouldn't transfer it after a few miles on the road, and I said what about his shoes? And she said nothing. I wasn't sure where this talk was going.

I think she made some valid points but was lacking in the empathy department, or if it's not empathy exactly, a sympathetic understanding of backyard chickens as pets and what that means, and how sick Anna appeared to me, her not getting better for more than a week, and the symptoms of swollen sinuses and her scratching her head and eyes and drawing blood. She did say she thought she did see red in the conjunctiva of Anna's eyes from the pictures but it's hard with pictures.

She suggested that she would have wanted to test Anna and then treat for specific diseases found, and for mycoplasma the treatment would have been sulfa_______, not Baytril, and I agreed that would be good, but that I didn't want her tested, and she asked why and I said b/c of the possibility of avian flu.

Here I'm paraphrasing because I only vaguely remember her speech, I couldn't bear to hear it I guess, so clinically, sternly and coldly, though I know I did hear her points I just don't remember how she said it exactly, because I was crawling under a rock. She said something like Wouldn't you want to know, and It would be good to know, and You should know, and how It's important to know to eliminate it (I remember I was slowly shaking my head No here), and If [she] suspected the flock had it [she] would have to report me as a certified vet or she couldn't practice.

Then later she said she didn't think this was actually a case of avian flu because I would be losing birds, (Peanut and Butters they believe were victims of genetics, Hazel and Popcorn doing apparently well) and she said she could just test strictly for mycoplasma, but we agreed since Anna has been taking antibiotics, since everyone is eating, drinking and acting well enough, the best thing is to wait and see how it goes, and to test if someone acts poorly again. But I see in her notes she didn't rule out a broad avian panel, so who's to know once a sample is given over what test is done on it, on whose authority?

She did listen to all the Spuds' lungs and hearts, and found everyone to be fine. Anna is not fine yet, you can see it in her eyes not open wide a lot, but she thought she needs more time to gain her strength back.

A kind thing she said was how tame the Spuds are. But - hah! - none of them would be still for her when she held them to listen. So after she tried them, I helped and easily lifted each one with one hand under them and then held them gently against me, lifting a wing on each side for her to listen.

Then I waited a long time while she went back into the office (the exams are outside at the car unless the weather is terrible) and did her notes. Never waited that long before! (hah - were the Ag authorities going to come for me and my little ones? I envisioned a line of police cars coming along the road between the corn fields and turning in on the road ).

Clinical Summary --

Anna - smaller than sisters, tires more easily, recently treated for coccidiosis with Corid in the water. She had no improvement as of this past weekend, and treatment with baytril according to directions found online was instituted due to presumption of Mycoplasma
infection.
Ida - sneezes occasionally, otherwise good appetite and growing well
Tedi - doing well

At this time, all 3 pullets have clear eyes and nares. Lung sounds clear. Heart sounds normal with regular rhythm. All currently have a good appetite. No treatment necessary at this time. If respiratory illness recurs, recommend performing Mycoplasma PCR test or Avian
Respiratory Panel to determine exact cause and targeted treatment plan.

Baytril antibiotic is prohibited for use in poultry by the FDA. Online stores selling baytril directly to consumers are suspect, as this is a prescription only product, and product integrity is questionable. Use of enrofloxacin (baytril) in poultry is documented to cause
development of antibiotic resistant campylobacter. Campylobacter is one of the most common causes of foodborne illness in people. If immunosuppressed individuals are infected with antibiotic resistant campylobacter, consequences can be dire. There is no established egg withhold for enrofloxacin - recommended to never consume eggs from a chicken/duck that has been treated with enrofloxacin. As part of a flock, poultry often will share populations of commensal bacteria, and as such antibiotic resistant campylobacter could be present in all members of the flock after one member has received treatment with enrofloxacin.

I'm very sorry this was your experience but sadly it was what I suspected. You have to be careful what you share these days.

 

[knoturavggrl]

It’s my time to play the game ‘oh no is that a pullet? Or is it a cockerel?’ I was just checking out the Hoover Hatchery Sophia chicks.

This is 15 week old Cash - she’s a pullet - right? Her wattles and comb seem very red to me, maybe an early layer?
View attachment 3654855
View attachment 3654858View attachment 3654856


And her sister Babe, and Cash together for comparison
View attachment 3654857

I see a pullet, her hackle feathers do appear pointy till I zoomed in and then I can see its just the feather pattern they are all nice and rounded nothing about her says Rooster to me. She may well lay early or I have noticed among my older mixed breed hens (all the exact same age) that their level redness varies greatly. So perhaps Cash will just have a super bright red comb and wattles when she does finish maturing. For example:

Medium red:

Dark red:

Super bright red:

 

[BY Bob]

I am sorry you went through this. I understand she has to say what she said but there were kinder ways to go about doing so. Her perspective and ours as byc keepers are unfortunately at odds (to some degree) with one another.

There was a time when vets felt pretty much the same way about dogs and cats. We can hope that someday the same understanding and empathy will emerge for those of us who keep chickens and other “livestock” as pets.

For what it’s worth, I think you did the right thing for Anna and for your flock. I would also like to thank you for sharing your story as I think it is a reminder to be grateful for the help and knowledge a professional can offer us but also to use caution when choosing our words or what tests we consent to with our pets.

 

[BY Bob]

Was this the same vet that didn’t call you back?

@ChicoryBlue This is where I get mad. You did what you could because they did not feel the need to return your phone call. They created a situation where you were forced to act without them. This is their fault.

 

[BY Bob]

Oh, and this suspect foreigners selling dodgy drugs is BS as it was legally available for our use up until 4 months ago.

This is also correct.