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Good for you, for taking them back. I learned a lesson the hard way: I answered an ad in the paper, the guy had chickens for sale. I had 2 Rhode Island Reds and one rooster, and wanted to increase my flock. I brought home 4 hens, 1 Barred Plymouth Rock, 1 Silver Laced Wyandotte, and 2 Ameracaunas. I noticed the BPR was panting and wheezing. One week later she was dead. I called the guy several times before she died, and he kept giving excuses as to why I could not replace her. After she died, I let him know, and he said I should come by and get a refund. But not then, to call in a couple of days. This went on, and he finally said he was in the car and asked me to email my address and he would send a check. After I emailed my address to him, he sent me a very accusatory and nasty email, stating all his chickens were healthy, and none of them died of diseases. He then said I should come and pick out 3 chickens. When I got to his house, he was not even there, his brother was, and they sent me back home with 4 chickens, for my trouble. I came home with 2 BPR, 1 Ameracauna, and 1 (I think) Marans. It was not too long after that 1 of the BPR got sick, she got these warty growths all over her comb, and swollen face. I treated her, and she seemed like she was doing wonderfully, I put her back with the girls, and one morning when I went out to open the coop, she was dead on the floor of the coop, dropped under the roost. Shortly after that, one of the original Ameracaunas I got from him started getting sick. She got weaker and weaker, and I finally, tearfully, had to put her down. That was the single most difficult thing I had to do, to take the life of one of my dear chickens, but I felt I was not doing her any favors by prolonging the inevitable. As if that were not enough, the 2nd original Ameracauna I got from him started getting sick, bubble in the corner of her eye, lots of water coming out of her eye, stiffened up her neck feathers from all the slinging, trying to clear her eye, I think. Anyway, along with this, the area around her eye swelled up. I started her on antibiotic regimen. Seemed to help at first, but then not so much. I then put her on sulfa based liquid I added to her water. She is still with me, seems very happy, spunky, and loves to run around outside her isolated existence. I do not dare put her in with the other girls for fear of them maybe catching something from her. I have read all the chicken books I can get me hands on, and still could not decide on a specific diagnosis, so many of the symptoms are alike, it seems. I love her enough to put up with the extra hassle of keeping her separated, but as I stated, it was a very difficult lesson to me, never ever to buy chickens from an individual again...
PS Love your stoogettes names!!
They are sneezing and have that gurgling sound when they breath, and on top of that they have bloody poo sometimes. Anyone have any suggestions on how to get rid of this cold?
