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I am working on it... Today i had them all out again in the yard together and there was less of what i would call "violent" behavior and more "normal" pecking order stuff.... still Lucy ran for me every time. I moved my seat and she got ALL confused, so I had to move back... then they all heard a noise and booked it to their run/coop for cover... of course Lucy stayed with me, then started to walk over to where the run is, so I walked along with her asking her if she wanted to try to be in the run again.... I stayed scootched down by the door with her there watching and being the REF. The chickens listen to me, which is helpful... If Olivia (my namesake) started to lash out, I'd say in a deeper tone, "LIVIA! BE nice!" and she'd stop... I also put my hand inbetween them a few times....thank the Lord i didn't get pecked! After an hour in there, they were doing pretty well... Livia was motioning toward Lucy like she was going to peck her back, but didn't and Lucy avoided Livia when she could. I'm just going to try it for a while... I won't put Lucy in the coop at night until i feel she is safe.... that may take some time, and it may not happen, but i am really hopeful...
You mentioned special needs chicken.. that is SO Lucy! She walks funny also... her feet are a tiny bit turned, nothing alarming to put a cast on her or anything or splint, and she compensates with a funny walk... She wants so badly to be with the others... She cries if we are out in the yard and she has lost sight of me. I squat down and keep saying her name and then she zeros in and walks over to me... She is so thin! I really hope she can do this... she is a hard one not to love
I'm just pulling for her every step of the way.... She almost died on day 3 of having her home.... Sometimes I think i shouldn't have pulled her through... I am not sure i'd do it again... Nature knows best and this is a good example... but here we are! And we go forward and do our best
Thanks for the encouragement! It was a tiring afternoon... I have severe fibromyalgia and it is hard to stand, squat and do all this stuff.... Today i really had to push myself......
wow, what a lot of thoughts all thrown in here....
I can so relate to the severe Fibro. I have gotten to the point I rarely ever cry anymore. I have to go off of the "Would it be more fun to vomit scale?" I made that up when I realized that I just can't always tell if I am being a big baby and just do it anyway, or if I shouldn't be doing it at all.
I thought back to my daughter who was born different. So many babies just aren't born, and others live a full lifetime. And in between are all the other babies, so I understand that sometimes it is a lot to deal with, and other times when if you could change it you wouldn't for all the tea in China.