Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[BDutch]

I'm not sure how much of the rather tedious drama I should write about. Apparently when I left the Whatsapp group C threw a major hissy fit. A couple of people have shown me on their phones.

It's been suggested that I start another whatsapp group minus C because there are a few who would like to be clear about what the issues are so they can assess what they can do to help. While encouraging in some respects it is likely to be one of those grenades I mentioned earlier.

I have been told a lot of stuff by other members who have spoken to me without any evidence to back it up so the chance for everyone to hear all people have to say in one place where they are not intimidated, or shouted down by C might be a good thing.

I'm begining to feel like the cowboy in those films that rides into some no name town and tries to teach the smallholders how to fight the bully rancher. I'm going to have to watch a few more of these films to assess the chances of survival before I take the job on.

Spaghetti western hero!
You need to go back to Spain for that. Only a few hundreds of km south from Catalonia. But kidnapping the chickens and taking them to the desert will be bad for their health with all the vultures there.

Are the photo’s of today? Are you planning to go there almost everyday as long as possible? I sure hope someone finds a solution for the problems the chickens are in before C goes completely insane.

 

[lightm]

She is acting normal, just has that lump. And hasn't laid an egg in 2 ½ months.

I feel like @micstrachan may have dealt with this before? Can she offer an opinion?

 

[micstrachan]

I feel like @micstrachan may have dealt with this before? Can she offer an opinion?

Sorry I have not followed closely. Where is the lump? I did have a chicken who had a mass that the avian vet could feel. We put her on hormones to make her stop laying, because it seemed like the laying was going to kill her. I am absolutely, 100% certain that the hormone implants extended her life. She definitely seemed to be feeling better on the hormones and occasional anti-inflammatories and antibiotics. However, ultimately she had advanced ovarian cancer that had spread to multiple organs, including thickening her abdominal wall. She definitely seemed to have some good life in there, but I think it took it too far and extended her life too long. Hard leason learned at the expense of a beloved feathered friend.

I still seek Avian veterinary care when I think it is needed, but when the prognosis is looking like they are likely to continue suffering and worsening, I am more likely to opt for euthanasia now. Having said that, I recently had a 5 1/2 year old hen with a very swollen abdomen and slow crop, who I thought was likely dying. Instead of having her euthanized, I drained her coelom myself and helped her with her crop for a couple weeks. As of today, het behavior is almost completely back to normal. Point being, I do not opt for euthanasia unless I feel pretty certain the bird will continue declining and suffer, even with intervention,

Unfortunately, outside of molt and older birds in winter, almost any hen in my care who stopped laying on her own ended up having a serious condition (cancer, egg yolk peritonitis, orfatty liver). Please do note the exception of the alpha hen, Bridge. She will be seven at the end of February. She stopped laying a few years back, and still seems like the one of the most robust, healthy birds. The only time she has ever, ever looked like she wasn’t feeling well was when she had a molt coming on, or she was in molt. In her case, I consider the stop in production a blessing.

Sorry about rambling on and not actually offering much advice nor wisdom. I can really only share my experience and perspective, and I’ve only been at it almost 7 years.

Since I haven’t posted photos in a while, here are some of the birds mentioned in this post:

Bridge, the current alpha and only survivor of the original four

Lucky, who recently responded to being drained and having her crop worked

Margo, the alpha before Bridge, who I euthanized myself when she was unresponsive, but was dying of egg yolk peritonitis gone septic per necropsy at UC Davis

Ruby, whose life I prolong too long and died of cancer per necropsy at UC Davis

Rusty, who died of egg yolk peritonitis at the tender age of 18 months - diagnosed by avian vet

Bagheera, who died of fatty liver per necropsy at UC Davis

Dorothy, who suspectedly died (young) of egg yolk peritonitis gone septic after a year of soft egg shells

Ester, who I had euthanized and was dying (young) of cancer per necropsy at UC Davis

Sunshine, who died (young) of fatty liver per necropsy at UC Davis

Cashew, who I recently had euthanized at about 5 1/2, because the avian vet, who thought cancer was likely, was unable to help her and she was declining

 

[no fly zone]

Sorry I have not followed closely. Where is the lump? I did have a chicken who had a mass that the avian vet could feel. We put her on hormones to make her stop laying, because it seemed like the laying was going to kill her. I am absolutely, 100% certain that the hormone implants extended her life. She definitely seemed to be feeling better on the hormones and occasional anti-inflammatories and antibiotics. However, ultimately she had advanced ovarian cancer that had spread to multiple organs, including thickening her abdominal wall. She definitely seemed to have some good life in there, but I think it took it too far and extended her life too long. Hard leason learned at the expense of a beloved feathered friend.

I still seek Avian veterinary care when I think it is needed, but when the prognosis is looking like they are likely to continue suffering and worsening, I am more likely to opt for euthanasia now. Having said that, I recently had a 5 1/2 year old hen with a very swollen abdomen and slow crop, who I thought was likely dying. Instead of having her euthanized, I drained her coelom myself and helped her with her crop for a couple weeks. As of today, het behavior is almost completely back to normal. Point being, I do not opt for euthanasia unless I feel pretty certain the bird will continue declining and suffer, even with intervention,

Unfortunately, outside of molt and older birds in winter, almost any hen in my care who stopped laying on her own ended up having a serious condition (cancer or egg yolk peritonitis, fatty liver). Please do note the exception of the alpha hen, Bridge. She will be seven at the end of February. She stopped laying a few years back, and still seems like the one of the most robust, healthy birds. The only time she has ever, ever looked like she wasn’t feeling well was when she had a molt coming on, or she was in molt. In her case, I consider the stop in production a blessing.

Sorry about rambling on and not actually offering much advice nor wisdom. I can really only share my experience and perspective, and I’ve only been at it almost 7 years.

Since I haven’t posted photos in a while, here are some of the birds mentioned in this post:

Bridge, the current alpha and only survivor of the original four
View attachment 3349265

Lucky, who recently responded to being drained and having her crop worked
View attachment 3349315


Margo, the alpha before Bridge, who I euthanized myself when she was unresponsive, but was dying of egg yolk peritonitis gone septic per necropsy at UC Davis
View attachment 3349263

Ruby, whose life I prolong too long and died of cancer per necropsy at UC Davis
View attachment 3349239

Rusty, who died of egg yolk peritonitis at the tender age of 18 months - diagnosed by avian vet
View attachment 3349242

Bagheera, who died of fatty liver per necropsy at UC Davis
View attachment 3349277

Dorothy, who suspectedly died (young) of egg yolk peritonitis gone septic after a year of soft egg shells
View attachment 3349268

Ester, who I had euthanized and was dying (young) of cancer per necropsy at UC Davis
View attachment 3349270

Sunshine, who died (young) of fatty liver per necropsy at UC Davis
View attachment 3349276

Cashew, who I recently had euthanized at about 5 1/2, because the avian vet, who thought cancer was likely, was unable to help her and she was declining
View attachment 3349283

The lump is to the left of her crop.

 

[micstrachan]

The lump is to the left of her crop.

To the left of her crop, like at her neck? You know how a dog can get a foxtail in their nose or their throat and it festers? I wonder if it could be something simple like that?

 

[micstrachan]

Sorry about the post that seemed to be all about death. I sincerely hope Skeksis is more like my Bridge and stopped laying for a normal, healthy reason. In my opinion, it would be perfectly reasonable that the cessation in production has nothing to do with the lump. The lump could even just be a feather cyst or or something.

 

[MaryJanet]

I might chime in with Mary's story.

She had a slow crop and stopped laying. I took her to her regular avian vet who put her on antibiotics because bacterial infections are my flock's ongoing concern, and because slow crop is often secondary to some other issue.

That didn't work.

So she had xrays. The xrays showed a v large lump in her abdomen, blocking off her digestive and reproductive systems. Likely cancer.

So the vet did an exploratory surgery and found the lump was fat accumulated around a hernia. Not cancer at all! He cleared away as much of the fat as possible and repaired the hernia.

She had a couple of days in vet care, then came home to live inside until the weather warmed up (because they took off so many of her feathers for her surgery and he was worried her lungs might not cope if she caught a chill).

Now she's back with her flock and has a new energy and joyfulness. She also went broody and sat on eggs, which is a sign she's feeling healthy. (They didn't hatch, which was a shame for her, but a good thing for me.)

So. A lump is not always a death sentence.

Also, extremely skilled avian specialist vets still need to put eyes on the problem through xrays and surgery to be able to make a 100% certain diagnosis and treatment. Without that, they are making best guesses (like all doctors who are working without hard data).

 

[ManueB]

These are pictures from the last few days in no particular order I'm afraid.
This is a modification to the anti bird measures at the pond. No I didn't do it.
View attachment 3348813

View attachment 3348819

In the picture above are frozen pears in a plastic bag with a rip in it.
One of the things that attracts rats is spilled feed.
View attachment 3348818View attachment 3348817
I feed them out of the run and clean up spilt feed when they go to roost exactly to prevent this.
View attachment 3348814View attachment 3348808View attachment 3348811View attachment 3348812View attachment 3348810
Tonight.
View attachment 3348807

Did you get some snow or was that hail on the ground ?

I'm not sure how much of the rather tedious drama I should write about. Apparently when I left the Whatsapp group C threw a major hissy fit. A couple of people have shown me on their phones.

It's been suggested that I start another whatsapp group minus C because there are a few who would like to be clear about what the issues are so they can assess what they can do to help. While encouraging in some respects it is likely to be one of those grenades I mentioned earlier.

I have been told a lot of stuff by other members who have spoken to me without any evidence to back it up so the chance for everyone to hear all people have to say in one place where they are not intimidated, or shouted down by C might be a good thing.

I'm begining to feel like the cowboy in those films that rides into some no name town and tries to teach the smallholders how to fight the bully rancher. I'm going to have to watch a few more of these films to assess the chances of survival before I take the job on.

I don't like this stuff (groups and power dynamics). I wouldn't get involved in it and I don't like hearing about it, but I want to know what happens to the chickens. That said I think you've reached a point where you've got nothing to loose. I don't see how things could get worse, apart maybe from c. deciding to cull the chickens, and you're not going to part on good terms anyway.

Sorry I have not followed closely. Where is the lump? I did have a chicken who had a mass that the avian vet could feel. We put her on hormones to make her stop laying, because it seemed like the laying was going to kill her. I am absolutely, 100% certain that the hormone implants extended her life. She definitely seemed to be feeling better on the hormones and occasional anti-inflammatories and antibiotics. However, ultimately she had advanced ovarian cancer that had spread to multiple organs, including thickening her abdominal wall. She definitely seemed to have some good life in there, but I think it took it too far and extended her life too long. Hard leason learned at the expense of a beloved feathered friend.

I still seek Avian veterinary care when I think it is needed, but when the prognosis is looking like they are likely to continue suffering and worsening, I am more likely to opt for euthanasia now. Having said that, I recently had a 5 1/2 year old hen with a very swollen abdomen and slow crop, who I thought was likely dying. Instead of having her euthanized, I drained her coelom myself and helped her with her crop for a couple weeks. As of today, het behavior is almost completely back to normal. Point being, I do not opt for euthanasia unless I feel pretty certain the bird will continue declining and suffer, even with intervention,

Unfortunately, outside of molt and older birds in winter, almost any hen in my care who stopped laying on her own ended up having a serious condition (cancer, egg yolk peritonitis, orfatty liver). Please do note the exception of the alpha hen, Bridge. She will be seven at the end of February. She stopped laying a few years back, and still seems like the one of the most robust, healthy birds. The only time she has ever, ever looked like she wasn’t feeling well was when she had a molt coming on, or she was in molt. In her case, I consider the stop in production a blessing.

Sorry about rambling on and not actually offering much advice nor wisdom. I can really only share my experience and perspective, and I’ve only been at it almost 7 years.

Since I haven’t posted photos in a while, here are some of the birds mentioned in this post:

Bridge, the current alpha and only survivor of the original four
View attachment 3349265

Lucky, who recently responded to being drained and having her crop worked
View attachment 3349315


Margo, the alpha before Bridge, who I euthanized myself when she was unresponsive, but was dying of egg yolk peritonitis gone septic per necropsy at UC Davis
View attachment 3349263

Ruby, whose life I prolong too long and died of cancer per necropsy at UC Davis
View attachment 3349239

Rusty, who died of egg yolk peritonitis at the tender age of 18 months - diagnosed by avian vet
View attachment 3349242

Bagheera, who died of fatty liver per necropsy at UC Davis
View attachment 3349277

Dorothy, who suspectedly died (young) of egg yolk peritonitis gone septic after a year of soft egg shells
View attachment 3349268

Ester, who I had euthanized and was dying (young) of cancer per necropsy at UC Davis
View attachment 3349270

Sunshine, who died (young) of fatty liver per necropsy at UC Davis
View attachment 3349276

Cashew, who I recently had euthanized at about 5 1/2, because the avian vet, who thought cancer was likely, was unable to help her and she was declining
View attachment 3349283

I understand better now why you have experience with vets and treatments . They were all beautiful birds and I'm sure they enjoyed their lives with you. It is hard that so many chickens die of illness and not of old age.

 

[BDutch]

Sorry I have not followed closely. Where is the lump? I did have a chicken who had a mass that the avian vet could feel. We put her on hormones to make her stop laying, because it seemed like the laying was going to kill her. I am absolutely, 100% certain that the hormone implants extended her life. She definitely seemed to be feeling better on the hormones and occasional anti-inflammatories and antibiotics. However, ultimately she had advanced ovarian cancer that had spread to multiple organs, including thickening her abdominal wall. She definitely seemed to have some good life in there, but I think it took it too far and extended her life too long. Hard leason learned at the expense of a beloved feathered friend.

I still seek Avian veterinary care when I think it is needed, but when the prognosis is looking like they are likely to continue suffering and worsening, I am more likely to opt for euthanasia now. Having said that, I recently had a 5 1/2 year old hen with a very swollen abdomen and slow crop, who I thought was likely dying. Instead of having her euthanized, I drained her coelom myself and helped her with her crop for a couple weeks. As of today, het behavior is almost completely back to normal. Point being, I do not opt for euthanasia unless I feel pretty certain the bird will continue declining and suffer, even with intervention,

Unfortunately, outside of molt and older birds in winter, almost any hen in my care who stopped laying on her own ended up having a serious condition (cancer, egg yolk peritonitis, orfatty liver). Please do note the exception of the alpha hen, Bridge. She will be seven at the end of February. She stopped laying a few years back, and still seems like the one of the most robust, healthy birds. The only time she has ever, ever looked like she wasn’t feeling well was when she had a molt coming on, or she was in molt. In her case, I consider the stop in production a blessing.

Sorry about rambling on and not actually offering much advice nor wisdom. I can really only share my experience and perspective, and I’ve only been at it almost 7 years.

Since I haven’t posted photos in a while, here are some of the birds mentioned in this post:

Bridge, the current alpha and only survivor of the original four
View attachment 3349265

Lucky, who recently responded to being drained and having her crop worked
View attachment 3349315


Margo, the alpha before Bridge, who I euthanized myself when she was unresponsive, but was dying of egg yolk peritonitis gone septic per necropsy at UC Davis
View attachment 3349263

Ruby, whose life I prolong too long and died of cancer per necropsy at UC Davis
View attachment 3349239

Rusty, who died of egg yolk peritonitis at the tender age of 18 months - diagnosed by avian vet
View attachment 3349242

Bagheera, who died of fatty liver per necropsy at UC Davis
View attachment 3349277

Dorothy, who suspectedly died (young) of egg yolk peritonitis gone septic after a year of soft egg shells
View attachment 3349268

Ester, who I had euthanized and was dying (young) of cancer per necropsy at UC Davis
View attachment 3349270

Sunshine, who died (young) of fatty liver per necropsy at UC Davis
View attachment 3349276

Cashew, who I recently had euthanized at about 5 1/2, because the avian vet, who thought cancer was likely, was unable to help her and she was declining
View attachment 3349283

Sorry for all these losses at such a young age over the years.

I wonder why you had so many chickens with internal health problems. Could it be the genes. Overbreeding? Getting chicks from hatcheries?

I have not much experience with chickens , but been reading a lot . First on a Dutch chicken forum, and nowadays mostly here.
In the Netherlands we have these problems mainly with commercial laying hybrids. The heritage breeds with larger gene pools don’t seem to have this problem. My Dutch never had internal problems. I had 6: 1 sold, 2 killed by a predator, and 3 who are 7 and 8 years old.
On the other hand I had 2 Tournaisis that both died young (3-4 years old). One clearly with an internal problem, started with soft shell eggs. The other died overnight withouth any signs of being sick. The eggs hatched from chickens /a person who was participating in in a breeding program to revive this chicken breed who was almost extinct. Lesson learned. For me such a choice will be a no go in the future. I rather buy eggs from a person that has a more common heritage breed. btw: We don’t have large hatcheries here that send chicks by mail.

 

[no fly zone]

I might chime in with Mary's story.

She had a slow crop and stopped laying. I took her to her regular avian vet who put her on antibiotics because bacterial infections are my flock's ongoing concern, and because slow crop is often secondary to some other issue.

That didn't work.

So she had xrays. The xrays showed a v large lump in her abdomen, blocking off her digestive and reproductive systems. Likely cancer.

So the vet did an exploratory surgery and found the lump was fat accumulated around a hernia. Not cancer at all! He cleared away as much of the fat as possible and repaired the hernia.

She had a couple of days in vet care, then came home to live inside until the weather warmed up (because they took off so many of her feathers for her surgery and he was worried her lungs might not cope if she caught a chill).

Now she's back with her flock and has a new energy and joyfulness. She also went broody and sat on eggs, which is a sign she's feeling healthy. (They didn't hatch, which was a shame for her, but a good thing for me.)

So. A lump is not always a death sentence.

Also, extremely skilled avian specialist vets still need to put eyes on the problem through xrays and surgery to be able to make a 100% certain diagnosis and treatment. Without that, they are making best guesses (like all doctors who are working without hard data).

It does feel kind of fatty.