Quick advice needed, please.... cull or coddle?

[JNorth]

One of our Cornish Rocks has either broken a leg or injured a leg, either way it's not bearing any weight on it's leg (but otherwise alert and looks healthy). It's been separated from the rest and has it's own food/water right with in reach.

What do I do, cull or coddle? If we cull, can we keep the meat since it's injured and not sick?

 

[donrae]

How old is it?
I lean toward cull, I don't have time or space to manage special needs animals. Or, frankly, the inclination!
I guess I'd keep it separated for a few days and see how things go. If it looks to be better and could rejoin the flock, I'd do that. If not, I'd cull.

And yep, I'd eat the meat if no signs of infection. Injured animals are fair game in my book.

 

[redsoxs]

I'd isolate it for a day or two and really try to limit it's movement - give it food and water - if it isn't better I'd go for culling as well.

 

[JNorth]

It's about 6 weeks old. We are hoping to process all of them during the first week of May. It's isolated right now and is just laying on it's side, feet outstretched. On one foot there is a toe that's twitching. It doesn't really react to me touching or moving him. He's definitely not sickly.

 

[JNorth]

My husband just told me he thinks he may have steeped on it's foot when they rushed his feet at feeding time yesterday.

 

[ajetrask]

WELL... since you now know what happened, maybe a few days will heal it up so it can grow a little more before culling....

 

[BCMaraniac]

One of our Cornish Rocks has either broken a leg or injured a leg, either way it's not bearing any weight on it's leg (but otherwise alert and looks healthy). It's been separated from the rest and has it's own food/water right with in reach.

What do I do, cull or coddle? If we cull, can we keep the meat since it's injured and not sick?

I bought 15 Cornish Rocks 5 weeks ago. I noticed about 2-3 days in that I had one with a bad leg. She was eating, but was getting run over by the others. I separated her, put her in a box so that she would be protected and could use the sides of the box to move herself about(I even brought her into the house to keep her warm.. I continued this, and she continued to grow. This past weekend I was processing some 9-week-old CX, and we processed her as well. She dressed out at 2pounds, 2 oz, so a little more than a cornish hen. In fact I prepared her for dinner this evening.

I know some will say I should have culled her when she was little, but I chose to coddle.. It is a difficult decision to make, and if she had not been eating and growing, I would have. Sounds like yours is old enough to process now if you choose to do so.

 

[donrae]

At six weeks you could go either way. It's big enough to butcher out now, or try to limp it along for another few weeks.