I took a chicken to the vet and it cost me almost $100!!! Of course I paid it, but they told me over the phone it would be $35. I never told DH how much it REALLY cost.
SHOULD I JUST KILL IT??
- Thread starter Southern Chickens
- Start date
Quote:
IMO, if someone is going to home an animal under their care then they have a responsibility to that animal's health and safety regardless of what the animal is being used for.
When acquiring animals, one should always consider veterinary needs.
IMO, if someone is going to home an animal under their care then they have a responsibility to that animal's health and safety regardless of what the animal is being used for.
When acquiring animals, one should always consider veterinary needs.
i'm going to have to disagree.
i love my chickens. they comfort me, they give me eggs, i enjoy them. i'm definitely not getting rich off of them. as a matter of fact, they're putting me definitely in the red. it's become an expensive hobby.
but i'm able to have this expensive hobby because i know i can trade them, sell them, kill them if i need to. i have favorites that i probably would take to the vet if i had to. and culling them is definitely NOT easy. i had to put two chicks down the other day since they weren't thriving. (which made me neglect the other 13 that were thriving) three days later, i'm still teary eyed about it when i think of what i had to do. but i need strong chickens that can survive with minimal care, that i won't feel bad selling to people cuz i know they'll do well under stress.
if i have 50 chickens and one of them is not doing well, i'll do the best i can to try to get it well again, but unless there's something very very special about him or her, i'll have to let nature take its course and do what i have to do.
i understand the responsibility of taking care of all animals that come to us. believe me, my dogs will tell you since two of them have metal plates and screws in their hips. and i've fostered many a dogs, which some were found in unthinkable situations, nursed them back and found homes for each and every one of those kiddos doing people background checks and such. but i digress.
i just think that part of that responsibility can also lay in the form of culling, as opposed to taking it to the vet. i mean, that's how nature does it in the wild to keep the species alive. JMHO.
i love my chickens. they comfort me, they give me eggs, i enjoy them. i'm definitely not getting rich off of them. as a matter of fact, they're putting me definitely in the red. it's become an expensive hobby.
but i'm able to have this expensive hobby because i know i can trade them, sell them, kill them if i need to. i have favorites that i probably would take to the vet if i had to. and culling them is definitely NOT easy. i had to put two chicks down the other day since they weren't thriving. (which made me neglect the other 13 that were thriving) three days later, i'm still teary eyed about it when i think of what i had to do. but i need strong chickens that can survive with minimal care, that i won't feel bad selling to people cuz i know they'll do well under stress.
if i have 50 chickens and one of them is not doing well, i'll do the best i can to try to get it well again, but unless there's something very very special about him or her, i'll have to let nature take its course and do what i have to do.
i understand the responsibility of taking care of all animals that come to us. believe me, my dogs will tell you since two of them have metal plates and screws in their hips. and i've fostered many a dogs, which some were found in unthinkable situations, nursed them back and found homes for each and every one of those kiddos doing people background checks and such. but i digress.
i just think that part of that responsibility can also lay in the form of culling, as opposed to taking it to the vet. i mean, that's how nature does it in the wild to keep the species alive. JMHO.
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I think the vet bill thing is a really valid question. I have a number of friends with dogs that have had thousands of dollars of surgery done to them- including an ACL repair. On a dog. But I can't throw stones. My dog is very precious to me and I cannot say whether or not I'd fork out that kind of money because he's never gotten hurt that badly.
Why would a chicken be different? Just like some people take their dogs out back and shoot them when they are getting old, other people buy their dogs wheelchairs, diapers, and steroid shots.
It is a personal decision, and one that noone should take lightly. Once one of my chickens has a health problem that I cannot fix with a $4 water additive and some molasses, I'll have to make the vet or no vet, treat or wait or cull, choice. Until then... I can't judge.
-MTchick
Why would a chicken be different? Just like some people take their dogs out back and shoot them when they are getting old, other people buy their dogs wheelchairs, diapers, and steroid shots.
It is a personal decision, and one that noone should take lightly. Once one of my chickens has a health problem that I cannot fix with a $4 water additive and some molasses, I'll have to make the vet or no vet, treat or wait or cull, choice. Until then... I can't judge.
-MTchick
I had 12 hens and 2 roosters, so I decided I only wanted 1 rooster, as 1 was rough with the hens. So I took 1 to the vet to be caponized. He was over 16 weeks old and I knew the risks. He died during surgery. I buried him out back. The cost was over $300.00 I know I should have given him away, but I couldn't bear the thought of not knowing how he would end up. Now I do know. Anyway, I wouldn't do this again, but I understand how people feel about their beloved chickens. I also know that if a chicken is sick it is humane to "do away with it". I think it is a personal decision, of how much you want to spend and what the problem is. Merry
Blue...
If animals in a group...large or small...become injured/sick, they get isolated. Those with life threatening injuries and incurable illnesses get culled. The others get treated so they can continue providing their services, whatever that might be. The healthy are given prevention measures to make sure they don't come down later with the same thing. Somewhere down the line, you will come to a point when veterinary care is needed when it comes to caring for animals whether it is one animal or a million.
I've managed 4,000 gallons of aquarium fish both fresh and marine for many years, so I do know first hand the need to cull for medical reasons, however, never for things that are reasonably treatable. We all owe it to these animals to at least try rather than..."oops...it's injured...kill it" and we should always make sure we can handle the population load.
Most people generally have small numbers of animals for personal use rather than commercial. Commercial care demands the population be tended to rather than the individual, so the 'rules' are sort of different, but veterinary care is still a needed consideration on the commercial level of livestock to protect that population.
So say you have 25 out of 50 chickens get sick. Would you consider veterinary care or would you just kill the 25 and hope for the best on the other half? Lets say even one out of 50 is sick, but the illness is unidentified. Would you chance losing the other 49 by not consulting a veterinarian?
The culling of the sick and injured in commercial populations is something that's been described and is a fundamentally different matter than whether its feasible to bring a chicken to a vet when in poor health. You should want to for the sake of protecting the rest of the flock and to help decide the ill or injured animal's fate.
If animals in a group...large or small...become injured/sick, they get isolated. Those with life threatening injuries and incurable illnesses get culled. The others get treated so they can continue providing their services, whatever that might be. The healthy are given prevention measures to make sure they don't come down later with the same thing. Somewhere down the line, you will come to a point when veterinary care is needed when it comes to caring for animals whether it is one animal or a million.
I've managed 4,000 gallons of aquarium fish both fresh and marine for many years, so I do know first hand the need to cull for medical reasons, however, never for things that are reasonably treatable. We all owe it to these animals to at least try rather than..."oops...it's injured...kill it" and we should always make sure we can handle the population load.
Most people generally have small numbers of animals for personal use rather than commercial. Commercial care demands the population be tended to rather than the individual, so the 'rules' are sort of different, but veterinary care is still a needed consideration on the commercial level of livestock to protect that population.
So say you have 25 out of 50 chickens get sick. Would you consider veterinary care or would you just kill the 25 and hope for the best on the other half? Lets say even one out of 50 is sick, but the illness is unidentified. Would you chance losing the other 49 by not consulting a veterinarian?
The culling of the sick and injured in commercial populations is something that's been described and is a fundamentally different matter than whether its feasible to bring a chicken to a vet when in poor health. You should want to for the sake of protecting the rest of the flock and to help decide the ill or injured animal's fate.
- Mar 17, 2007
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- 4
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Quote:
IMO, if someone is going to home an animal under their care then they have a responsibility to that animal's health and safety regardless of what the animal is being used for.
When acquiring animals, one should always consider veterinary needs.
I'll be 100% honest and say that I did not consider vet needs when I got my 4 chicks.
I agree with you about pets like dogs and cats who live to 15 yrs or so and are part of the family. I am one of those people who would do as much as I could for my dog or cat. I have to say that I would not take my chicken to the vet, unless it was a show bird or produced valuable offspring. I guess to some they can be part of the family, but for most of us, I don't think that's the case.
They're cool and all, but they're chickens that most people raise for hens or meat! You're telling me that if you had 25 of them and 10 got sick (not something that could endanger the others in the flock, for the sake of the argument), you would spend $200 on each of them if that's what it took? For a total of $2000?
Hope this doesn't come across as me being rude... I'm just surprised, and wondering if this is commonplace.
IMO, if someone is going to home an animal under their care then they have a responsibility to that animal's health and safety regardless of what the animal is being used for.
When acquiring animals, one should always consider veterinary needs.
I'll be 100% honest and say that I did not consider vet needs when I got my 4 chicks.
I agree with you about pets like dogs and cats who live to 15 yrs or so and are part of the family. I am one of those people who would do as much as I could for my dog or cat. I have to say that I would not take my chicken to the vet, unless it was a show bird or produced valuable offspring. I guess to some they can be part of the family, but for most of us, I don't think that's the case.
They're cool and all, but they're chickens that most people raise for hens or meat! You're telling me that if you had 25 of them and 10 got sick (not something that could endanger the others in the flock, for the sake of the argument), you would spend $200 on each of them if that's what it took? For a total of $2000?
Hope this doesn't come across as me being rude... I'm just surprised, and wondering if this is commonplace.
- Mar 11, 2007
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I just don't think most of us have that kind of money. I'd do my utmost for a bird, including taking it to the vet, of course... if possible. It's the same thing I'd do for my cats. Our cat Spider is 10 years old and the lovey-est, sweetest boy you could ever imagine. But if he got ill and I couldn't afford to pay for surgery or expensive treatment, just like me, he'd have to do without it with the best care I could give him. I'd be heartbroken, but I don't think it would serve the other cats, the goats, the chickens, the fish and the budgies (not to mention the wild birds that I feed) if I went into such debt I couldn't afford to care for everyone else.
This is not to say I didn't consider the care I'd need to provide for my animals when I got them; I most certainly did. However, there's a limit to what most of us can do, realistically. If we all waited until we had $2000 in our back pockets "just in case," doubtless very few of us would be able to keep chickens or any other kind of pet. And I have to say that for the most part, chickens belonging to the people on this board are probably some of the happiest, healthiest in the country... whether we can all afford $200 vet bills or not.
This is not to say I didn't consider the care I'd need to provide for my animals when I got them; I most certainly did. However, there's a limit to what most of us can do, realistically. If we all waited until we had $2000 in our back pockets "just in case," doubtless very few of us would be able to keep chickens or any other kind of pet. And I have to say that for the most part, chickens belonging to the people on this board are probably some of the happiest, healthiest in the country... whether we can all afford $200 vet bills or not.
I have to say I'm on board with blue90292 and shandea here. When it comes to our dogs, cats, parrots, and small animals vet costs are naturally figured into their care. One of our parrots is valued well over $3000, so an investment of $200 or more to save her life would be worth it IMO. Plus, she is a part of the family.
I look at the chickens for what they are. Chickens. I do love the little boogers, but they are just chickens. I can not rationalize taking a chicken to the vet when the chicken cost barely $2, just as I wouldnt take my son's hermit crab to the vet for the same reason.
I understand I am about to be booed here for saying this, but we all need to keep in mind WHY we raise chickens. We shouldn't be raising them as PETS. Chickens are meant for two things (unless you show them) eggs, or meat. Just the same as a cow, or pig. I consider myself a farmer. If you asked a farmer to take his sick cow to the vet he would laugh you out of town and tell you his sick cow is tomorrow's hamburgers. UNLESS he thought it may be something seriously contagious that could infect his herd, and thus his livelihood.
I understand that some of you dearly love your pet chickens. But in my eyes, chickens are chickens. I have some now that I am quite fond of, but if something was seriously wrong with one and there was nothing I could do, rather than let it suffer I would end its pain. Would it bother me? Of course it would.
But we AS FARMERS, which we ALL are once we take upon raising LIVESTOCK, need to remember why we chose to raise these critters in the first place. If you raise them simply to look at and talk to and do not benefit from eating the eggs they give you, then you could technically consider them a "pet" and care for them like any other pet you might have. However, IMO if you are eating their eggs (or their meat) then you are raising them for THAT purpose, and they should be looked at as such.
Of course, this will be one of those topics that will get 100 posts because each of us will feel differently. Thats alright too. Everyone also has their strong emotioned opinions about things like politics and abortion. Its normal. Personally (and strike me down for saying it if you must) no matter how attached I become to these critters, in our home and eyes they will always be seen for what they are.....just chickens. Thats just MY 2 cents.
I look at the chickens for what they are. Chickens. I do love the little boogers, but they are just chickens. I can not rationalize taking a chicken to the vet when the chicken cost barely $2, just as I wouldnt take my son's hermit crab to the vet for the same reason.
I understand I am about to be booed here for saying this, but we all need to keep in mind WHY we raise chickens. We shouldn't be raising them as PETS. Chickens are meant for two things (unless you show them) eggs, or meat. Just the same as a cow, or pig. I consider myself a farmer. If you asked a farmer to take his sick cow to the vet he would laugh you out of town and tell you his sick cow is tomorrow's hamburgers. UNLESS he thought it may be something seriously contagious that could infect his herd, and thus his livelihood.
I understand that some of you dearly love your pet chickens. But in my eyes, chickens are chickens. I have some now that I am quite fond of, but if something was seriously wrong with one and there was nothing I could do, rather than let it suffer I would end its pain. Would it bother me? Of course it would.
But we AS FARMERS, which we ALL are once we take upon raising LIVESTOCK, need to remember why we chose to raise these critters in the first place. If you raise them simply to look at and talk to and do not benefit from eating the eggs they give you, then you could technically consider them a "pet" and care for them like any other pet you might have. However, IMO if you are eating their eggs (or their meat) then you are raising them for THAT purpose, and they should be looked at as such.
Of course, this will be one of those topics that will get 100 posts because each of us will feel differently. Thats alright too. Everyone also has their strong emotioned opinions about things like politics and abortion. Its normal. Personally (and strike me down for saying it if you must) no matter how attached I become to these critters, in our home and eyes they will always be seen for what they are.....just chickens. Thats just MY 2 cents.
- Feb 6, 2007
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OK, I'm going to jump back in here.
There is more to consider than just can you afford the cost. First you have to have a vet that is willing to treat, that is a subject I've seen come up very frequently. Second, does the vet have any knowledge when it comes to the treatment of birds? Again a frequent subject. If you're vet isn't knowledgable, are you? Can you suggest to your vet the course of treatment from experience or information gleaned from other poultry fanciers?
Often because of the the above questions it is kinder to put the bird down, not because the owner can't afford it but because there is not the medical support available. Yes, I've taken a favorite bird to the vet. But I was armed with information to help guide him in the care of this particular bird, my vet is a farm vet and willing to give it a go.
There is more to consider than just can you afford the cost. First you have to have a vet that is willing to treat, that is a subject I've seen come up very frequently. Second, does the vet have any knowledge when it comes to the treatment of birds? Again a frequent subject. If you're vet isn't knowledgable, are you? Can you suggest to your vet the course of treatment from experience or information gleaned from other poultry fanciers?
Often because of the the above questions it is kinder to put the bird down, not because the owner can't afford it but because there is not the medical support available. Yes, I've taken a favorite bird to the vet. But I was armed with information to help guide him in the care of this particular bird, my vet is a farm vet and willing to give it a go.
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