I know everyone in your family is devastated by the lost.
Illinois...
- Thread starter mothergoose
- Start date
I know everyone in your family is devastated by the lost.
@Faraday40
Oh no!! I'm so sorry to hear this please give the kids hugs from me I'm sorry you lost her hawks are no fun and nature can just be plain awful. I'm so paranoid about our flock since we've lost so many this year. Still the only body we've ever recovered from predator attack was the chick that the suspected that killed.
Our flock hasn't been wanting out due to the weather but I'm glad we got the guineas I wish I could give you some but I know you can't in town. More reason to move out here.
I know you guys loved her tremendously Spitzie was such a beautiful bird and I hope you guys will get the chance to try again this year.
Sending hugs and crying with you guys.
Oh no!! I'm so sorry to hear this please give the kids hugs from me I'm sorry you lost her hawks are no fun and nature can just be plain awful. I'm so paranoid about our flock since we've lost so many this year. Still the only body we've ever recovered from predator attack was the chick that the suspected that killed.
Our flock hasn't been wanting out due to the weather but I'm glad we got the guineas I wish I could give you some but I know you can't in town. More reason to move out here.
I know you guys loved her tremendously Spitzie was such a beautiful bird and I hope you guys will get the chance to try again this year.
Sending hugs and crying with you guys.
Well apparently we're all having a bit of a time. Been one of those days or weeks I guess.
I got a nice second degree burn when the spatula dropped the wrap I was making us for lunch today. The waters have all been freezing in the coop except the quail and the chicks. We discovered much to our shock that the previously abused 15 year old cat we have has been peeing on and destroyed the 7 foot tall cat tree we had and also did quite the number on the floor. Despite having just overhauled the room it was in we didn't move the tree and smelled nothing. No she won't be going to a shelter I am however going to be speaking with the person she actually belongs to about taking her if this continues(not the abuser- no worries there). The goal there being that she wouldn't be with any other cats and therefore might be in aower stress environment. Ugh. Idk what to do. While this is a farm house we're not pigs and the litters are always cleaned. Litter box avoidance hasn't been something that has been a problem with this cat for something like 6 years so a trip to the vet might be in order. By that time it's midnight and we hadn't gone out to do final bed check on the flock because we were cleaning up the mess. Before we could head out to the coop we had a different cat jump in the tub which was full to add humidity to the house. After soothing the poor ashamed sopping kitty and drying her for a while out we went. Chores done. I went to turn around and walk out when something caught my eye. Hanging off the roost was a piece of thread or something. Next to one of my silkie pullets. No idea where it came from or what it was I went to pick it up as my eyes followed it to the silkies leg. I lifted her up and sure enough the thread was wrapped on her foot on her 4th and 5th toes and on her entire foot. We of course rushed her inside to examine and remove it.
I should have taken pictures of it. It was insane I've never seen anything in my wildest dreams like this. It looked as though someone did this intentionally. Which of course we didn't and I can't imagine it ever happening. Most of it was wrapped around the base of her fourth and fifth toes as though that joint was a spool of thread. Very tightly almost to the verge of cutting in wrapped over and over again. Who knows where the thread came from as the flock were out day before yesterday and the day before that. I'm guessing it blew into the yard. Being surrounded by hundreds of acres of fields stuff can blow for miles. Poor baby thank God I saw it. I'm sure it had decreased blood flow but it was not frost bitten and seemed normal after removal. We'll check her tomorrow. I feel awful I missed it at all even if it was only a couple days. Luckily there doesn't appear to be any damage. She was a very good patient. I'm glad she was roosting or I may not have seen it as it was the same color as her skin. There were also two cockel burrs stuck in her same feet feathers so I'm guessing that while being blown the thread got stuck in a cockel burr in the backyard and that she got stuck in the same burr and got the thread there. We have been working for two years now to eradicate the burrs from the barnyard and from our property entirely as they are quite bad here and bother my asthma and allergies plus my skin is very sensitive to them so it's just best of they're not around as they also give me a rash. Although my allergies are mostly seasonal certain things do trigger them. We have made a ton of progress this year but we do have a ways to go and we missed a few all together this year. We'll get them next year.
This is also the first time I've ever found one of my silkies to have something stuck in their foot feathers which is a bit odd. Although their feathers arent ways perfect especially if its been muddy I've never seen them leave burrs in the feathers. Perhaps the foot hurt too much to mess with BC of the string.
Such a crazy night and the thread especially whoa. Okay all passed my bedtime.
@Faraday40
Sorry again for your loss. I know it's not exactly attractive in the yard but hang some CDs and what not to create movement and reflections to deter hawks. It's not a 100% but we did find it helped. For about a month or two after I walked out and there was a hawk sitting above our chickens on the porch railing I hung out Walmart type bags of several colors, poptart wrappers-shiny and light so they danced in the slightest breeze- and CDs on varying length pieces of 550 cord(note
is was not the string on the silkie's foot that was literal double string). I'm sure many passers-by had some odd thoughts about the look of our yard that month but I didn't care. Also I checked on everything every day to be sure nothing blew away and they were then taken down before they could blow away and cause harm when I felt safer. Although I left two up until late fall but still checked them.
Or you could do a more traditional scarecrow dh2b suggested.
I got a nice second degree burn when the spatula dropped the wrap I was making us for lunch today. The waters have all been freezing in the coop except the quail and the chicks. We discovered much to our shock that the previously abused 15 year old cat we have has been peeing on and destroyed the 7 foot tall cat tree we had and also did quite the number on the floor. Despite having just overhauled the room it was in we didn't move the tree and smelled nothing. No she won't be going to a shelter I am however going to be speaking with the person she actually belongs to about taking her if this continues(not the abuser- no worries there). The goal there being that she wouldn't be with any other cats and therefore might be in aower stress environment. Ugh. Idk what to do. While this is a farm house we're not pigs and the litters are always cleaned. Litter box avoidance hasn't been something that has been a problem with this cat for something like 6 years so a trip to the vet might be in order. By that time it's midnight and we hadn't gone out to do final bed check on the flock because we were cleaning up the mess. Before we could head out to the coop we had a different cat jump in the tub which was full to add humidity to the house. After soothing the poor ashamed sopping kitty and drying her for a while out we went. Chores done. I went to turn around and walk out when something caught my eye. Hanging off the roost was a piece of thread or something. Next to one of my silkie pullets. No idea where it came from or what it was I went to pick it up as my eyes followed it to the silkies leg. I lifted her up and sure enough the thread was wrapped on her foot on her 4th and 5th toes and on her entire foot. We of course rushed her inside to examine and remove it.
I should have taken pictures of it. It was insane I've never seen anything in my wildest dreams like this. It looked as though someone did this intentionally. Which of course we didn't and I can't imagine it ever happening. Most of it was wrapped around the base of her fourth and fifth toes as though that joint was a spool of thread. Very tightly almost to the verge of cutting in wrapped over and over again. Who knows where the thread came from as the flock were out day before yesterday and the day before that. I'm guessing it blew into the yard. Being surrounded by hundreds of acres of fields stuff can blow for miles. Poor baby thank God I saw it. I'm sure it had decreased blood flow but it was not frost bitten and seemed normal after removal. We'll check her tomorrow. I feel awful I missed it at all even if it was only a couple days. Luckily there doesn't appear to be any damage. She was a very good patient. I'm glad she was roosting or I may not have seen it as it was the same color as her skin. There were also two cockel burrs stuck in her same feet feathers so I'm guessing that while being blown the thread got stuck in a cockel burr in the backyard and that she got stuck in the same burr and got the thread there. We have been working for two years now to eradicate the burrs from the barnyard and from our property entirely as they are quite bad here and bother my asthma and allergies plus my skin is very sensitive to them so it's just best of they're not around as they also give me a rash. Although my allergies are mostly seasonal certain things do trigger them. We have made a ton of progress this year but we do have a ways to go and we missed a few all together this year. We'll get them next year.
This is also the first time I've ever found one of my silkies to have something stuck in their foot feathers which is a bit odd. Although their feathers arent ways perfect especially if its been muddy I've never seen them leave burrs in the feathers. Perhaps the foot hurt too much to mess with BC of the string.
Such a crazy night and the thread especially whoa. Okay all passed my bedtime.
@Faraday40
Sorry again for your loss. I know it's not exactly attractive in the yard but hang some CDs and what not to create movement and reflections to deter hawks. It's not a 100% but we did find it helped. For about a month or two after I walked out and there was a hawk sitting above our chickens on the porch railing I hung out Walmart type bags of several colors, poptart wrappers-shiny and light so they danced in the slightest breeze- and CDs on varying length pieces of 550 cord(note
is was not the string on the silkie's foot that was literal double string). I'm sure many passers-by had some odd thoughts about the look of our yard that month but I didn't care. Also I checked on everything every day to be sure nothing blew away and they were then taken down before they could blow away and cause harm when I felt safer. Although I left two up until late fall but still checked them.Or you could do a more traditional scarecrow dh2b suggested.
- Oct 24, 2014
- 1,330
- 212
- 176
Well, it was my turn to cry today. I lost my girl, Big Betty, my blue orp. I heard her labored breathing yesterday and started her on tylan 50 thinking respiratory but now, not so sure, since she went so fast and no one else is sick. Went and fed them this am and she was one of the 1st ones off the roost to eat. About an hour later I was getting her meds ready and heard a lot of noise coming from their coop. Ran out and there was Big Betty, must have been doing that last bit of flapping before she died. She was such a beautiful and sweet girl, and she will truly be missed.
@ChicagoClucker I'm so sorry for your loss. She was such a beautiful hen. I hope you have some of her babies. How old was Betty? Could it have been heart failure? So sorry sending hugs and prayers your way.Well, it was my turn to cry today. I lost my girl, Big Betty, my blue orp. I heard her labored breathing yesterday and started her on tylan 50 thinking respiratory but now, not so sure, since she went so fast and no one else is sick. Went and fed them this am and she was one of the 1st ones off the roost to eat. About an hour later I was getting her meds ready and heard a lot of noise coming from their coop. Ran out and there was Big Betty, must have been doing that last bit of flapping before she died. She was such a beautiful and sweet girl, and she will truly be missed.
@ChicagoClucker
I know how you feel... My RIR Mary Jane went in a similar way during the summer. Still have her twin. None of the others were affected. How old was Big Betty ?
- Oct 24, 2014
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- 212
- 176
Big Betty was just over a year old. I was planning on putting her with Mr Wonderful this spring to get some beautiful babies. Oh well. Thanks everyone.
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