Sad, sad day.....

[Petej]

I had to cull one of my Quail chicks.

One of my three day old's hasn't been doing well. I would flip it over and it would flip back over on it's back. Not eating, not drinking, even when forced too.

For the last two days it's always been flat on it's back, feet pedaling away... I was going to Cull it yesterday but I decided to wait because I thought I saw some improvement. This morning it was much worse than before. It's head was arched all the way against it's back and was getting weaker. Again, I decided to wait since the brooder temp had dropped, thinking it might just need to warm up. No dice. (Even at 91 in the brooder, it was still suffering three hours later) So tonight after an hour of holding it, petting it, talking to it and apologizing for what I had to do, I did the deed.

This was not an easy thing to do, but I couldn't watch him suffer anymore.

I have gotten up and found dead birds, which is saddening, but not as bad as having to do the deed....

So now I'm battling my own guilt for culling an animal, and wondering if it was ever going to improve (even though it was visibly worsening). Which I guess is better than feeling guilty for making something suffer unnecessarily.

I know that it's been said that if you can't handle having to Cull an animal, than you shouldn't raise them. I can handle the deed, it's just not easy on the emotional end.

My daughter asked me what was going on (she didn't see the actual Culling, I made darn sure of that), so I explained in as many little kid words as I could (seeming as she's only 7) that he was dying and finally did die. She amazed me with a hug and saying, it happens daddy.

Tears of joy this time. My baby girl understands the cycle of life!! She has witnessed all of life's turns now with the incubation and hatching of the eggs.

/End blubbering....

 

[Robo]

You did the right thing. I just had a chick fall out of the neighbor's kids hands. He was NOT supposed to be in my garage in the first place, but when I found him the chick was on the floor trying to get up. I set him back in the brooder and thought well it looks like I'm gonna have to cull. II decided to give him 2 hours and if he was still limping and squinting his eyes like he was in pain I would cull. I came out an hour later and he is eating and drinking. He can move fine now, but I don't think he is 100%. You did the right thing by giving him time to recover instead of doing it quickly and wondering well how bad is he. Now to deal with that kid and my now broken door knob.

 

[Petej]

Thank you.

My dad's got a bachelors in Animal Husbandry (masters in Divinity) and he says Culling is always hard, but it is the right thing too do.

I did the "flick" method. I figured the bird might be too old (skull hardened), but it worked. The first flick I missed and clipped his neck/thumped myself.

The second flick did it. Instant. Done.

It had NO reaction to the neck thump, so I figured at that point it was pretty much gone, but needed some help to reach the goal.

OTH, I have six of eight Chicken eggs that are rocking and rolling in the 'Bator. Three of which have pipped!

One of those three is forging ahead at warp speed and zipping away. In a half hour it's chewed away about an half inch of shell.

Mother Nature always has something else in store doesn't she!

 

[Robo]

Thats great I hope the others do good too.

 

[FenDruadin]

Well done. That is a very hard thing to do, and it only gets a little bit easier--it's never really easy. You did the right thing, now cut yourself some slack and accept that tears are okay.

By the way, 7 is definitely not too young to understand and handle death. I have a theory that children who are closer to birth (i.e., younger) have a stronger sense of their own immortality not because they're naive but because they're closer in time to before they entered this corporal existence. They understand that death is really not the end any more than birth was the end of whatever came before, and so it doesn't stress them like it does grown-ups who have forgotten that they are more than a physical body.

Anyway, philosophy aside, my children have all had an intimate acquaintance with death since they were very young. We've never tried to shield them. They are all (including the 2-year-old) allowed to participate in meat harvesting time, as well as told plainly when someone (pet or family or friend) dies, and they are given an opportunity to view the empty shell left behind. I think most folks in western civilization are too far removed from death, and the fear of the unknown vastly increases our anxiety surrounding dying.

So, you've done your daughter a huge favor by letting her stay in touch with the cycle of life before she can lose her connection with it.

And it is SO sweet that she was ready and able to comfort *you* about it.

 

[Petej]

Thank you.

I have experienced death first hand when my 80 year old Grandfather passed away 10 years ago. I was holding his hand when he passed on.

In the years since his death, my other grandfather passed on as well.

Those events alone had re-acquainted me with my mortality.

I'm OK with death and even witnessing it. In fact my living will states that I DO NOT want resuscitation when I die. Nor do I want life support. When it's my time, it's my time.

We try not to shield our children from death as well. As we don't believe that shielding them helps. It's part of life, so they need to understand it.

I didn't think my daughter was old enough to understand it, but she in turn surprised me!

In my childhood I have witnessed our own pets passing on, so I think that helped as well.