Texas

[Cockle-Dood]

How do you get the zip ties off of their legs without hurting the bird?  That's what I keep worrying about.

I have some "medical" style scissors...has a really small "snippet" that works perfect. And the zip ties i have are super small. Maybe 1/8 inch wide so they snip off quite easily

 

[barbg1971]

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The lady at Atwood gave this little guy to me and I've been thinking of just having him put down. Any suggestions? I don't want to euthanize him of I don't have to but it doesn't look very good at this point. With the one eye missing he can't get to the feed bowls and then if he does he can't eat unless I drop food and water in his beak, which worries me that he's going to choke. Not sure what to do.

 

[galanie]

Aww that poor little guy needs culled. Hate to say that. With that beak, it likely will always need to be fed by hand if it even lives. I'm with you on worrying about it choking. It happens all too easily, I've killed them this way w/out meaning to. The windpipe is in the front, the food tube is in the back. I've learned now to shove the stuff to the back to keep them from choking.

 

[galanie]

sorry double post. Don't konw why this one forum does that sometimes.

 

[topdycke]

im from the texarkana area just south ..Queen City...i have a trio of wheaten Ameracuaunas ....and have started heritage rhode island reds.. give me a shout..i am a hatch a holic ..love chicks..

Welcome!

 

[yinepu]

How do you get the zip ties off of their legs without hurting the bird? That's what I keep worrying about.

I use a little pair of wire cutters

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The lady at Atwood gave this little guy to me and I've been thinking of just having him put down. Any suggestions? I don't want to euthanize him of I don't have to but it doesn't look very good at this point. With the one eye missing he can't get to the feed bowls and then if he does he can't eat unless I drop food and water in his beak, which worries me that he's going to choke. Not sure what to do.

Personally.. I would cull him.

You have to consider his quality of life if he were to make it to adulthood


We used to get chicks like this all the time when I worked at the hatchery.. considering we hatched out 10's of thousands of chicks every day it became the norm to find a few missing eyes, beaks, with extra legs and so on.
One of the girls I worked with swore she could save them all.. after taking home about a dozen chicks that were missing beaks and eyes she gave up. She just couldn't care for them and have them thrive. Some would last a few days.. some a few weeks.. but in the end she said it was just too time consuming plus she would have to find someone to take care of them when she was sick or away. When she thought of those chicks making it to adulthood and still having to be hand fed or dealing with other health issues she just couldn't do it.

 

[KnobbyOaks]

Oh boy, barbg, you've got a couple of hard decisions but I'm with the others. They're more experienced than I am, so it's easy for me to say, but the eye and the beak are just the problems you can see.

yinepu, that was an interesting story and I guess one we should remember.

 

[chickletteSarge]

How do you get the zip ties off of their legs without hurting the bird? That's what I keep worrying about.

i use the smallest zip ties that way i can use a pair of nail clippers to cut them when they grow out of them... about to go and check them all now!

 

[RachaelS]

Quote:
I do the same, nail clippers work very well, never accidentally cut the leg.

 

[chickletteSarge]

man are we an active state today! love the slow daze!!! makes me wanna take another nap! lol