- Apr 6, 2013
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This is the story of Dusky whom I would like to help.
He was standing underneath my livingroom window one morning almost three weeks ago.
First I thought I must be hallucinating because the only "chickens" around here are turkeys.
Dusky is a small, black, feather-footed rooster. And he was at great risk out there all alone and looking lost, to get killed by one of two neighbor dogs who like to play around my place. So my first impulse was to pick him up.
He didn`t seem afraid of me but had no intentions of letting me grab him.
And it took me about an hour - I won`t get into the hilarious details of how I finally outsmarted him.
I set Dusky up inside in a large birdcage.
He looked quite beaten up. His tailfeathers are all pulled out, his wing primaries are all broken off, he had bare spots on his neck and cheeks and a large superficial wound [feathers and skin gone] on his back.
But he was in good weight and has no ectoparasites.
He has a delightful personality, crows enthusiasically [yes, inside!] and displays a surprising variety of sounds, including squeeks, whistles and kind of a growl.
I never knew chickens vocalize in this way.
A few days ago Dusky began eating only about half as much as he did for over two weeks. His weight dropped some in just two days.
He developed some sort of tic, jerking his head. And sometimes he stretches his neck, opens his beak and shakes his head, all simultaneously - as if he tries to throw up, yet he doesn`t.
For the last several days I have taken Dusky outside in a bottomless cage, so he can get some sun, scratch some dirt and pick some newly emerging grass.
When outside, he doesn`t do that head tic-jerking at all, so I think maybe he is getting bored inside and that`s why he is doing that.
After all, a chicken is not an inside bird, nor a solitary bird/needs other chickens/a chicken community, if I understand it correctly.
Besides the few odd behaviors which might indicate an early illness, he does normal bird behavior.
But I used to work almost exclusively with severely ill and injured passerine birds during my years with a wildlife rehabilitation organization. And I might be overreacting to Dusky`s odd behavior because it reminds me of many severely ill birds I cared for. The slightest "off" behavior has me worried about diseases/infections I used to deal with. Wild birds generally get picked up with late stage illness.
Some of my worst nightmare problems with sick birds I had to confront were candidiasis, coccidiosis, aspergilliosis and trichomoniasis.
That`s why I am wondering if Dusky might be coming down with one of those. Except for the aspergilliosis - his breathing is normal.
But so are his droppings.
His back wound is fully healed and his feathers, except for the broken wing primaries, are all growing back.
His weightloss and reduced appetite, however, is not my overreaction or imagination.
I try to tempt him with choice tidbits several times daily.
He likes oatmeal, millet, crumbs from organic wholewheat bread, baked sweetpotato, cheddar cheese..........
A friend has located a nearby couple who keep a flock of chickens, small ones like Dusky [she said they are Bantams - I am unfamiliar with chicken breeds], who would take in Dusky and add him to their flock.
However, I am hesitant to give him to them right now. What if he is sick and he infects their chickens?
On the other hand, I do know that many birds harbor organisms such as protozoans and intestinal parasites. And that an otherwise healthy bird`s immune system keeps their population under control and limited. Only when an illness, injury or stress complicates the situation, that population often explodes with serious or lethal results.
Sorry this is so long, I am kind of a windbag.
Any insight and input and advice is greatly appreciated!
birdfreak
He was standing underneath my livingroom window one morning almost three weeks ago.
First I thought I must be hallucinating because the only "chickens" around here are turkeys.
Dusky is a small, black, feather-footed rooster. And he was at great risk out there all alone and looking lost, to get killed by one of two neighbor dogs who like to play around my place. So my first impulse was to pick him up.
He didn`t seem afraid of me but had no intentions of letting me grab him.
And it took me about an hour - I won`t get into the hilarious details of how I finally outsmarted him.
I set Dusky up inside in a large birdcage.
He looked quite beaten up. His tailfeathers are all pulled out, his wing primaries are all broken off, he had bare spots on his neck and cheeks and a large superficial wound [feathers and skin gone] on his back.
But he was in good weight and has no ectoparasites.
He has a delightful personality, crows enthusiasically [yes, inside!] and displays a surprising variety of sounds, including squeeks, whistles and kind of a growl.
I never knew chickens vocalize in this way.
A few days ago Dusky began eating only about half as much as he did for over two weeks. His weight dropped some in just two days.
He developed some sort of tic, jerking his head. And sometimes he stretches his neck, opens his beak and shakes his head, all simultaneously - as if he tries to throw up, yet he doesn`t.
For the last several days I have taken Dusky outside in a bottomless cage, so he can get some sun, scratch some dirt and pick some newly emerging grass.
When outside, he doesn`t do that head tic-jerking at all, so I think maybe he is getting bored inside and that`s why he is doing that.
After all, a chicken is not an inside bird, nor a solitary bird/needs other chickens/a chicken community, if I understand it correctly.
Besides the few odd behaviors which might indicate an early illness, he does normal bird behavior.
But I used to work almost exclusively with severely ill and injured passerine birds during my years with a wildlife rehabilitation organization. And I might be overreacting to Dusky`s odd behavior because it reminds me of many severely ill birds I cared for. The slightest "off" behavior has me worried about diseases/infections I used to deal with. Wild birds generally get picked up with late stage illness.
Some of my worst nightmare problems with sick birds I had to confront were candidiasis, coccidiosis, aspergilliosis and trichomoniasis.
That`s why I am wondering if Dusky might be coming down with one of those. Except for the aspergilliosis - his breathing is normal.
But so are his droppings.
His back wound is fully healed and his feathers, except for the broken wing primaries, are all growing back.
His weightloss and reduced appetite, however, is not my overreaction or imagination.
I try to tempt him with choice tidbits several times daily.
He likes oatmeal, millet, crumbs from organic wholewheat bread, baked sweetpotato, cheddar cheese..........
A friend has located a nearby couple who keep a flock of chickens, small ones like Dusky [she said they are Bantams - I am unfamiliar with chicken breeds], who would take in Dusky and add him to their flock.
However, I am hesitant to give him to them right now. What if he is sick and he infects their chickens?
On the other hand, I do know that many birds harbor organisms such as protozoans and intestinal parasites. And that an otherwise healthy bird`s immune system keeps their population under control and limited. Only when an illness, injury or stress complicates the situation, that population often explodes with serious or lethal results.
Sorry this is so long, I am kind of a windbag.
Any insight and input and advice is greatly appreciated!
birdfreak
