sick chicken and need info on euthanizing

[hinchbug]

I have a sick buff for over 10 days, Swollen abdomen, lethargic, not laying. Have tried all remedies, antibiotics, olive oil, warm baths etc and need to put her out of her misery soon. I hate to do it as she is the most docile and tolerant with my kids but she seems miserable. I read somewhere about lighter fluid on a towel. I need help.

 

[PunkinPeep]

You are likely to get a lot of answers to a question like this, so you might find it easier to do a search for "humane culling" and read the results on previous (very long) threads.

While it's harder for you, the easiest thing for your chicken is beheading or cervical dislocation.

With cervical dislocation, you can hold your bird under your left arm, possibly with a towel, hold her by the shoulders, and then pull her head quickly out and up with a twist. This breaks her neck. You have to do it pretty hard to get it right the first time with a full grown hen.

Beheading with a hatchet or something is surer for a first-timer.

Some will recommend co2 or freezing. I don't recommend either of these since they are much slower ways to die. They are easier on the human, but i can't believe they're easier on the chicken.

I'm so sorry for your loss. Many many of us have been there, and we know what you're going through.

If you're burying her, i find it's much easier to dig the hole ahead of time, so that after she's gone, you can immediate bury her and not have to deal with her body any longer than necessary.

Again, i'm very sorry.

 

[MotherJean]

A recent thread spoke of using automotive "starter fluid" which is basically ether (a common anesthetic in days gone by). The starter fluid comes in a spray can. Spray it on a cloth pad and hold it over beak and nostrils until the heart stops. I would caution you to be sure you have overdosed your hen with this and not just made her unconscious. You might want to be sure that rigor mortis has set in before you dispose of the body, just to be sure.

 

[AdrienMarie]

Quote:
I agree with this. You will probably want to have experience with a dislocation; it may not work the first time you try, which won't be a good thing for either of you. We have had to make this choice before too, and the beheading with an axe is very quick, and very sure to go right the first time.

I'm sorry for your loss too.