Splayed leg problem

[KsKingBee]

DW and I were talking just yesterday about all the things that we as humans will do to help the weak and genetically challenged to live, both in the animal world and with humans. I know it is an emotionally charged issue, but are we really doing ourselves as a species a favor by helping the genetically challenged survive and pass on those weak genes?

Sorry, I should have started another thread.

 

[bluebirdnanny]

For the first time this morning I saw it (after I helped it stand) actually dip its beak into the feed I poured more water on to make it a bit soupy. Don't know if it was eating or just drinking the fluid but it aught to have some nutrition leached out of the FF.

The other chick is somewhat protective of it now. If I hear it screaming I look in on them. If it gets the legs straight out behind it can not move. But if on the side it tries to right itself. The other actually pushed it up one time by bracing it.

They are the only two from that incubator set so it is the only friend the robust one has. I made a tweak to this incubator and am going to complain to the maker. Also going to try someone else's incubator and see what happens.

 

[bluebirdnanny]

Normally I would have culled but I wanted to test the theory of the "bracing" myself and I only had one from that hatch otherwise. And I think I did the damage by helping it hatch because I thought I had another failed batch but upon emptying the incubator I noticed the pip and toe and heard it peep.

 

[DylansMom]

DW and I were talking just yesterday about all the things that we as humans will do to help the weak and genetically challenged to live, both in the animal world and with humans. I know it is an emotionally charged issue, but are we really doing ourselves as a species a favor by helping the genetically challenged survive and pass on those weak genes?

Sorry, I should have started another thread.

In a situation like this how can we know if the chick is genetically challenged, or if the incubator is functionally challenged? If it is the incubator, the chick will not be passing on any inferior genes.

 

[zazouse]

In a situation like this how can we know if the chick is genetically challenged, or if the incubator is functionally challenged? If it is the incubator, the chick will not be passing on any inferior genes.

If you see it over and over it is genetic, i had a hen with a kinked toe, she gave me eggs a few time her first season and each time 1 or 2 hatched out with a kinked toe and toes so sense i will not sell these or bred them i cull them and here because KS mentioned we want strong genetics in our flocks if we are going to sell babies.

would you sell a babies that had been sick with a contagious illness that it may carry it's entire life and could infect some one elses flock? i sure would not .

May folks that start out with peas from a backyard breeder with very few birds end up selling brother and sister that are bred by another back yard breeder and their bother and sister off spring are sold and bred and so on and so forth, while birds are not as susceptible to defects say like a dog or cat generations of crossing brother and sister will surly cause a problem some where down the line.

 

[DylansMom]

If you see it over and over it is genetic, i ha a hen with a kinked toe, she gave me eggs a few time her first season and each time 1 or 2 hatched out with a kinked toe and toes so sense i will not sell these or bred them i cull them and here because KS mentioned we want strong genetics in our flocks if we are going to sell babies.

would you sell a babies that had been sick with a contagious illness that it may carry it's entire life and could infect some one elses flock? i sure would not .

May folks that start out with peas from a backyard breeder with very few birds end up selling brother and sister that are bred by another back yard breeder and their bother and sister off spring are sold and bred and so on and so forth, while birds are not as susceptible to defects say like a dog or cat generations of crossing brother and sister will surly cause a problem some where down the line.

Of course I would never sell a chick with a known contagious disease, but we are referring to a chick with splayed legs and curled toes, or at least I thought we were. And last time I checked neither of these are contagious or known to be genetically passed on, I do not remember reading anything about this occurring more than once for this poster either. Most often I see it posited that both conditions are a result of problems with humidity at hatch, which causes the chick to take too long to unzip and therefore they end up weak and their toes have started to harden in the curled position. All I am saying is that I would not cull a chick with these problems, as I do not believe they are genetic. I have culled chicks with problems that I was unsure about, so I am not against it, just don't feel like doing it anymore than is necessary.

 

[zazouse]

Your question was how would we know, so i gave you an example..

you said you have been raising peafowl for what 20 years if there was something undesirable in your older flock you would know it right?

 

[DylansMom]

Your question was how would we know, so i gave you an example..

you said you have been raising peafowl for what 20 years if there was something undesirable in your older flock you would know it right?

Yes, I have been raising Peas for 20 years and so far none of my hen hatched chicks have had splayed legs, curled toes or twisted tibias, but my incubator hatched chicks have had all 3 problems. This tells me they are problems caused by either my incubator or myself, so I would not cull chicks with any of these issues, but would instead try to correct them, with no fear that they would pass the problems along to their offspring.

 

[KsKingBee]

I knew I should have started another thread, sorry. My comment was not a reflection of the OP or really for this case in particular but more of a broad thought about how we as humans tend to help things, ourselves included, to live when nature would have weeded us out. Please accept my apology for taking this thread off topic, if you want to continue this thought we should have a new thread.

 

[zazouse]

Yes, I have been raising Peas for 20 years and so far none of my hen hatched chicks have had splayed legs, curled toes or twisted tibias, but my incubator hatched chicks have had all 3 problems. This tells me they are problems caused by either my incubator or myself, so I would not cull chicks with any of these issues, but would instead try to correct them, with no fear that they would pass the problems along to their offspring.

I would not cull them either only what i know to be genetic.

I also apologize for railroading the OP Thread, i got a pea brain