Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[pennyJo1960]

This what I have had in sights.. I go the birds do scrape the tables but then back to killing myself removing staples y takeing them apart putting them back together Cat trees BF built them 8 years ago and still standing.
bad tax but maybe I can get bird pictures if my darn phone lets me find the camera again it took it off the main page of the phone.

 

[RoyalChick]

I do have an opinion.

It rather depends on the vet. A livestock vet will tell you to kill her. A pet vet is very unlikely to know or care much about a chicken and may take your money but not tell you the truth..

If one can't see what is wrong (things like water belly and prolapse right down to mites you can see) then it's an internal problems which needs tests and equipment and experience in dealing with chickens. I was extremely lucky in Catalonia to find Gloria (vet) who specialised in birds when she was training. There was one other person she told me, an old man who used to bring his rooster, that had brought chickens to her since she had joined the surgery.
The best thing about Gloria is she told you the truth. She was able to say "I don't know and don't have the equipment to find out whats wrong. I could guess but I could be wrong."
So, there's the first consideration; do you trust the vet?

The probability is that whatever illness she has it's going to be terminal. From the little experience I have of Ex Battery hens they are fine and then within a few days they die. One gets to know when it's just an off day or two and whether they are going to pull through. I think I'm on death 10 or 11 now and most have died quickly.

So then there's can you and should you help them.
Given the life and the damage typical to the battery breeds part of me feels as I think Ribh does that a quiet death somewhere in familiar surroundings, with whatever friends and enemies they may have made while living together, is the more dignified death than what often means isolation and stress involved in trying while the keeper tries to get the chicken well.
We humans haven't embraced our relationship with death well. It effects our view in as much as we are often convinced everything is fixable.

I set out what I was prepared to do and what I wasn't at the beginning. I think it's something important for Ex Battery hen keepers to do once properly informed on life span and likely terminal illnesses. Even if I could find a vet who knew something about chickens, every one of these Ex Battery hens is likely to be dead by this time next year. That's an awful lot of vet visits.

I wouldn't take her to the vet. If you can bear it watch her die and if necessary intervene and help her on her way. Strange though it may seem it's good for you and I believe good for the chicken.

I probably shouldn't weigh in because I am still on the fence on the morality of adopting ex-batts (though I admit following yours and Manue's and some others is influencing my thinking on this). But I will anyway.
I think just because you adopt an animal in full knowledge that it will die just as you get to know its name doesn't mean you shouldn't seek professional advice when it is available.
Of course you can only do what you can afford to do but not all veterinary interventions are massively expensive and you can always refuse the more outlandish/expensive tests.
I fully agree that staying with the tribe is important, but in my mind that applies to those situations where people are isolating their ill chicken for a long time - not for the round trip to the vet.
So, I would say, if it is not something Manue and her partner are confident to handle, and they can afford to consult a vet, then why not?
And yes, of course, never consult a useless vet!
I have experienced the 'sure I can euthanize her for you' vet (that was for Maggie nearly two years ago), but even that vet can do a fecal float test for me if I need one.

 

[Shadrach]

I probably shouldn't weigh in because I am still on the fence on the morality of adopting ex-batts (though I admit following yours and Manue's and some others is influencing my thinking on this). But I will anyway.
I think just because you adopt an animal in full knowledge that it will die just as you get to know its name doesn't mean you shouldn't seek professional advice when it is available.
Of course you can only do what you can afford to do but not all veterinary interventions are massively expensive and you can always refuse the more outlandish/expensive tests.
I fully agree that staying with the tribe is important, but in my mind that applies to those situations where people are isolating their ill chicken for a long time - not for the round trip to the vet.
So, I would say, if it is not something Manue and her partner are confident to handle, and they can afford to consult a vet, then why not?
And yes, of course, never consult a useless vet!
I have experienced the 'sure I can euthanize her for you' vet (that was for Maggie nearly two years ago), but even that vet can do a fecal float test for me if I need one.

I would lean more towards your view if it was easier to find a competent chicken vet. I think what also needs to be born in mind is this is old age for most chickens; it's just that old age happens a lot earlier if you're an Ex Battery hen.

 

[RoyalChick]

I would lean more towards your view if it was easier to find a competent chicken vet. I think what also needs to be born in mind is this is old age for most chickens; it's just that old age happens a lot earlier if you're an Ex Battery hen.

Yes indeed. And as someone who is already in old age (or at least getting there rapidly) I am acutely aware of what I would and would not want done on my behalf medically.
Manue's hen does not sound like she has a reproductive issue which is so common with these breeds and so often the cause of their death. It sounds like either something in her throat or more likely some kind of respiratory infection. That may not be curable either of course but if there is a competent vet they may be able to advise.

 

[GregnLety]

I probably shouldn't weigh in because I am still on the fence on the morality of adopting ex-batts (though I admit following yours and Manue's and some others is influencing my thinking on this). But I will anyway.
I think just because you adopt an animal in full knowledge that it will die just as you get to know its name doesn't mean you shouldn't seek professional advice when it is available.
Of course you can only do what you can afford to do but not all veterinary interventions are massively expensive and you can always refuse the more outlandish/expensive tests.
I fully agree that staying with the tribe is important, but in my mind that applies to those situations where people are isolating their ill chicken for a long time - not for the round trip to the vet.
So, I would say, if it is not something Manue and her partner are confident to handle, and they can afford to consult a vet, then why not?
And yes, of course, never consult a useless vet!
I have experienced the 'sure I can euthanize her for you' vet (that was for Maggie nearly two years ago), but even that vet can do a fecal float test for me if I need one.

Guess I'm fortunate to have vets that treat a variety of animals even though they are slightly expensive they are very honest. Amazingly they know most our dogs by name. Honestly there's been a few hens that I would have given up on but between the docs and my wife's determination most survive. They gave an honest opinion on our last cinnamon queen and didn't mislead us to take our money, they make a fortune from us anyways. They know that we rescue dogs and to a certain extent have mercy on us financially. @ManueB follow your heart. ❤

 

[RoyalChick]

Guess I'm fortunate to have vets that treat a variety of animals even though they are slightly expensive they are very honest. Amazingly they know most our dogs by name. Honestly there's been a few hens that I would have given up on but between the docs and my wife's determination most survive. They gave an honest opinion on our last cinnamon queen and didn't mislead us to take our money, they make a fortune from us anyways. They know that we rescue dogs and to a certain extent have mercy on us financially. @ManueB follow your heart. ❤

 

[MaryJanet]

Seems I missed a vet debate. Probably just as well, my view is biased because I have a skilled avian specialist within a 40 minute drive (an 80 minute round trip). And several others if ever I need their support. And I've never had a bad experience with the vet or been overcharged (on the contrary, sometimes he gives me freebies). He sees the hens regularly for check ups and when they're sick and he even has nicknames for them. He also has his own flock at home.

So, yeh, I'm biased in favour of vet support. Even the bad ones have spent way more time learning biology than I have.

 

[Ribh]

Given the life and the damage typical to the battery breeds part of me feels as I think Ribh does that a quiet death somewhere in familiar surroundings, with whatever friends and enemies they may have made while living together, is the more dignified death than what often means isolation and stress involved in trying while the keeper tries to get the chicken well.

There are a couple of things I will mention as to why I rarely interfer. I have done so, but normally not. One reason is there is a process to dying that intervention disrupts in ways I don't find particulary healthy. Often, as with humans, a hen will be extremely lucid just before she dies. No matter how sick she has been, her eyes will open, she will be aware of her surroundings, she will express something just before she passes. Gloriana, a GLW, called out as if saying goodbye to the tribe, seconds before her death. A number of hens have passed peacefully in my arms, just gradually fading away & in no pain so far as I could tell. They were comforted to have a familiar presence knowing they were safe. I have seen hens gather round a hen as if to comfort her as she dies. Hard as it is, I think animals are far more accepting of their death than we are & face it with more grace & courage. If possible I try to let them go on their terms rather than projecting human ideas about death & dying. They know when to let go. I am also cautious about saying a hen is a gonner. I've seen hens rise from a deathbed & live for months or years. Having said that, I did have a hen with a terrible prolapse eauthanised. She was unfixable & it was no kindness to put her through days of misery but I still feel awful about it because she really wanted to live.

 

[pennyJo1960]

Okay so here I am again but have new photos yes fixed the blasted thing. They all come running in the daylight if I walk in. After dark nope they are roosted.
proper tax x 2

 

[Perris]

One reason is there is a process to dying that intervention disrupts in ways I don't find particulary healthy....

I think animals are far more accepting of their death than we are & face it with more grace & courage. If possible I try to let them go on their terms rather than projecting human ideas about death & dying. They know when to let go.

I second this. It seems to me that often we are just prolonging death, not life. The problem is lack of foresight: to know for sure whether this is the end, or just a bump on the way, and therefore to know whether or not to try to make them better.