SHOULD I JUST KILL IT??

[Spydrworks]

Quote:
This is what I would do in a situation such as that described above and is what I'm trying to note...

I would take one or two of the 10 sick birds to the vet after isloating them and get a diagnosis, find out what treatments are available, and what I can do at home. If the illness is reasonably treatable...meaning easy, affordable and can be done at home, then I would do just that. If the illness is not reasonably treatable then they would be culled. Personaly I'd find someone with a large snake that can go for a chicken dinner, so long as the injury isn't infectious or abcessed or the illness malignant...(tumors and cancers).

For those that get better, they'd go back into the flock once they can. Those that weaken during treatment would get culled.

I'd also take preventative measures for the the rest of the flock.

I would find no sense at all to take all 10 sick birds to the vet. Spending $200 on one or two is worth the avoidance of losing the entire flock. If you have that many sick birds, then most likely the problems are the same in all of them.

Veterinary care is still a part of raising animals even when raising several livestock for service rather than companions and not all of us keep that many chickens...and it doesn't have to cost a fortune.

There are ways to get around vet bills and that is by learning how to treat at home with simple, easy to get to resources, but there's still some kind of consultation with a vet. Homeopathic or natural treatments and treating through cleanliness and nutrition are wonders and are very useful. So are forum boards like this one to find that information.

Chicken, dog, cat, parrot, pig, goat, duck, hell...even fish...lol...they are all blood pumping, air breathing critters just like we are. They don't ask really to be with us (though some do find their way over and just never leave

We choose to take them in and use them. Whether they cost $2 or $2000, if there's a problem and I can't figure it out, I will consult a vet whether the animal is a pet, food animal, or study subject. It doesn't mean I'm going to spend thousands of dollars on one problem. If treatments end up costing that much, then most likely treatment is worse than the illness and then euthanizing is the best choice at hand.

But as said in another post, people will have many different views on the subject. I see chickens as birds. Birds, IMO are never pets, but if we choose to keep them whether we have one or a million, we owe them the respect by seeing them for what they REALLY are...birds.

Just to note, the thread is fun so long as everyone gets along

It's all good.

 

[shandea]

I agree that it's nice to have disagreements without ill feelings. Hard to find that on forums.

 

[Wes in Tx]

Folks I want to applaud you all for the way you have handle this subject. Great job everyone.

 

[bantymum]

Back to the original question, I am so glad that you didnt have to euthanise "him" and Im glad his eye is better.

I took my 16 year old hen to vet to have her put down as she has given me years of eggs and chicks.

I didnt want to do it myself but wanted her put down with gas "isoflourine" which is lovely and peaceful, anyway the vet told me she was too good to put down and a "beautiful hen" and only had bad mite infestation which made her very sick, so she cxame back home again !. I have been known to go out late at night and cull young roosters of mine due to noise and lack of finding homes for them.
Its really up to the situation at hand as to what action we take.
Emergencies leave us not much choice when a vet isnt around or if we cant afford one.
Im sure none of us like to euthanise our beloved chickens.

 

[Lunachick]

Wow, everyone was so honest. I appreciate the farmers point of view. You gotta do what you gotta do. Me? I'm gonna fork over the dough to take care of my chicken pets, I'm too emotional with my critters. To me they're not just chickens. My 2 cents.

 

[blue90292]

i had a beloved rooster that i loved very dearly. i would carry him in my arms like a baby, cradeling him and scratch his belly.

one day he got attacked by a dog but i never knew since he walked as if nothing was wrong. the only reason i knew was because i started smelling rotting flesh.

when i examined him, i found that he had a gash on his thigh to where i could see his bone and his fatty tissues. thank goodness this had been in the winter or else, i'm sure he would have been eaten by maggots.

i called 3 vets to get him in so they could clean him up properly and stich up his leg. no one would call me back. i was frantic. i did not want to lose this guy. i guess for them, it was just a rooster. for me, he was sunshine. so i ended up learning how to diagnose injuries/sicknesses and take care of my animals without vets.

i would take that rooster and spray hydrogen peroxide on his gash twice a day. it had to have hurt. it would bubble so huge and get sooo hot. i gave him antibiotics via water but didn't put any on his cut since that attracted more dirt to stick to his leg. as long as he had appetite, i did the best i could with what i knew and with the limited funds i had.

it was neat to see that gash get smaller week after week and finally close itself up after over a month.

sometimes you just cant find a vet, or you've seen the symptom and know how to take care of it this time around, or have friends, like this site, who can help you with the diagnosis since they've been around and seen or had something like that happen to them. you don't have to go running to the vet everytime something happens.

shoot, i had a horse that went lame after his companion of 10 years died. i actually could walk up to him and pet him because he could no longer walk. my vet told me he'd come over to put him down, that that's all that could be done. but my horse had such a great appetite, and so i just couldn't see giving up on him. so i researched on the web and found some products to give him. and after talking to the seller of the product, i decided to try it on my horse. it cost over $100 for 10 days worth of supplements. after 2 days he was up walking again. he's 24 and still doing great.

but i just can't see spending that kind of money on a week old chick unless it has some kind of very sentimental or monetary breeding value. you've only known the chick for a week! i think the smart thing to do was what she did. get on a site with very knowledgeable people who were able to see from the pictures that she had an infection. she didn't WANT to kill it. or else she wouldn't have gotten on this site and asked if she should.

 

[maggiePI]

The strength of this board and others like the-coop.org is being able to draw on the experience of others. No valor in paying a vet big money who may have no idea of what to do anyway. I am a nurse so I have been able to recover a couple of chickens who would have died without forced hand-feeding and dressings applied to dog wounds (gives an all new meaning to chicken and dressing). I don't think I would have hauled them off to a vet, but I don't know. I am so thankful for all the information and exchange of experiences here and at the coop.

 

[justusnak]

Quote:

 

[Djmiller012]

WOW! I'm surprised everyone is getting along, great! But I wouldn't either, in about November, my rat chewed his tail off for no apparent reason and I was so upset about it, and my dad said there was only one way, and that was to kill it, and I was heartbroken...And now that I think about it, it was just a rat, but I wouldn't have asked my parents to go spend $500 to go fix him, so it depends on how much you love your pets and if you have the money to fix him...

Devin