Found injured hen in yard need advice

[LuciferRoo]

Evening update. The afternoon did not go well, and Dumplin passed away peacefully. My husband buried her under the trees in our backyard where she liked to play and look for snacks. We feel good knowing she was cared for and is peacefully at rest. I'm glad the neighbors didn't come for her last night. She was well cared for and loved until the very end. Several of the flock came around for a last round of snacks after she was buried. I am grateful to have found this board. You helped us through a tough 24 hours.

Sad.
She must had internal injuries that were not evident. At least her last moments were with someone who carried about her well being

 

[theoldchick]

 

[TaylorGlade]

I'm so sorry. Thank you for your kindness. When we moved into our home, there were "wild" chickens I assume someone abandoned. We ended having to humanely put one down that was beyond saving. I'd also like to say - yes, the owner was careless, but the driver that hit the animal and didn't stop - shame on them too

 

[mumzee1432]

Sad.
She must had internal injuries that were not evident. At least her last moments were with someone who carried about her well being

We will never know for sure, but I started wondering if she was trying to lay an egg this morning. Her balance was so bad

I'm so sorry. Thank you for your kindness. When we moved into our home, there were "wild" chickens I assume someone abandoned. We ended having to humanely put one down that was beyond saving. I'd also like to say - yes, the owner was careless, but the driver that hit the animal and didn't stop - shame on them too

Oh yes ... the driver situation is another layer to this. People are legally supposed to try to contact an animal's owners if there's an accident. Mulling over what our neighbors saw and where Dumplin was in the yard, I feel like it's likely the person hit her on purpose. The road where it happened is near a stop sign -- where cars in any direction should have been slow or slowing down. It was mid day and sunny and the yard space is wide open -- no trees or brush. It would be hard to overlook a little flock of chickens strolling around near the road. I'll never know for sure about that, but I don't feel great the driver either. Sad state of affairs when people don't act responsibly or care.

 

[Dragon Slayer Trinket]

@mumzee1432

Bless you. Those photos you shared were not of a distressed chicken. She was a beautiful bird.

You should definitely get a flock of your own. The care you gave Dumplin was just above and beyond.

 

[mumzee1432]

@mumzee1432

Bless you. Those photos you shared were not of a distressed chicken. She was a beautiful bird.

You should definitely get a flock of your own. The care you gave Dumplin was just above and beyond.

Thank you so much. My husband caught me looking at Eglu coops today. He gave me a look. lol I don't think I'm ready to get a coop now with all these chick-or-treaters (they are down to 8 -- and the flock has been here 7 times today), but I do think it's interesting and smart for me to research before plunging in with a flock of my own. I'm so grateful to have found this group. It helps to have a place to research and people who get it! <3

 

[mumzee1432]

Happier update ... I should have a big bag of real chicken feed arriving before 10 pm tonight. That's my next step in supporting the chick-or-treaters. We will have real food available daily and maybe they won't be compelled to drift so far. I'm concerned that it will get increasingly difficult to find enough bugs and worms, etc. during winter and the wandering will just get worse.

My daughter will be home for a month, so she's here to help me cope. Dumplin was one of her favorites, so this has been tough. She's enjoying developing strategies to support the flock when they stroll to our house. She's also enjoying researching coops for a flock of our own down the road. The Eglu is intriguing. Just getting started with that but it's fun to see some of the products available. If these neighbors were to just up and move and leave the flock behind (maybe I'm dreaming -- but sadly that's probably not the worst outcome), we would adopt them. So on some level, I want to have an idea of what we could put in place to care for them if that type of situation arises.

Thanks to you all. Super grateful!

 

[Dragon Slayer Trinket]

Thank you so much. My husband caught me looking at Eglu coops today. He gave me a look. lol I don't think I'm ready to get a coop now with all these chick-or-treaters (they are down to 8 -- and the flock has been here 7 times today), but I do think it's interesting and smart for me to research before plunging in with a flock of my own. I'm so grateful to have found this group. It helps to have a place to research and people who get it! <3

We definitely have a helpful community here. Someone will always help with any questions or concerns.

Happier update ... I should have a big bag of real chicken feed arriving before 10 pm tonight. That's my next step in supporting the chick-or-treaters. We will have real food available daily and maybe they won't be compelled to drift so far. I'm concerned that it will get increasingly difficult to find enough bugs and worms, etc. during winter and the wandering will just get worse.

My daughter will be home for a month, so she's here to help me cope. Dumplin was one of her favorites, so this has been tough. She's enjoying developing strategies to support the flock when they stroll to our house. She's also enjoying researching coops for a flock of our own down the road. The Eglu is intriguing. Just getting started with that but it's fun to see some of the products available. If these neighbors were to just up and move and leave the flock behind (maybe I'm dreaming -- but sadly that's probably not the worst outcome), we would adopt them. So on some level, I want to have an idea of what we could put in place to care for them if that type of situation arises.

Thanks to you all. Super grateful!

You're completely correct. My birds go through so much more feed in the winter than they do in any other season.

I haven't seen an eglu - I'll have to look into it. A gal can dream, right?

 

[BobStuart]

I agree that you're doing the right thing, but be prepared to do the hard part if needed.

Not without the neighbours consent

 

[BobStuart]

Evening update. The afternoon did not go well, and Dumplin passed away peacefully. My husband buried her under the trees in our backyard where she liked to play and look for snacks. We feel good knowing she was cared for and is peacefully at rest. I'm glad the neighbors didn't come for her last night. She was well cared for and loved until the very end. Several of the flock came around for a last round of snacks after she was buried. I am grateful to have found this board. You helped us through a tough 24 hours.

I’m terribly sorry