The Evolution of Atlas: A Breeding (and Chat) Thread

[GingersHuman]

Those quilts are gorgeous!!!

Sorry to hear about Dusty, if it's her time I hope it's quick and painless.

That's very odd about Atlas. If it were me, I'd wait and see before doing antibiotics.

 

[crazyhen]

Sadly it does sound like heart disease. I finally figured out what was causing the death of my flocks in the mtns. Ducks, I think. I have a wild flock of ducks next door and they kept coming to my backyard to rest during the day. They are mallards, thus protected or they would be gone. One man came and got them from the pond owner but they came back. Does anyone have a problem like that?
I am so sorry about your roo. It seems to me roo's and hens do not live long enough.

 

[speckledhen]

Those quilts are gorgeous!!!

Sorry to hear about Dusty, if it's her time I hope it's quick and painless.

That's very odd about Atlas. If it were me, I'd wait and see before doing antibiotics.

Thank you. Yes, it's weird about Atlas. Wasn't expecting that. Made me think of Suede back in July of 2012 when I heard the first weak crow. He never stopped but got weaker and weaker and lost a massive amount of weight, but he was much older. It was just his time.

Sadly it does sound like heart disease. I finally figured out what was causing the death of my flocks in the mtns. Ducks, I think. I have a wild flock of ducks next door and they kept coming to my backyard to rest during the day. They are mallards, thus protected or they would be gone. One man came and got them from the pond owner but they came back. Does anyone have a problem like that?
I am so sorry about your roo. It seems to me roo's and hens do not live long enough.

Ducks, good grief, yeah, you don't want any wild birds setting up house in your yard that way.


Tomorrow, I'm going to take my husband to Golden Corral in Cleveland, TN for breakfast then to Hobby Lobby across the street from the restaurant to see if I can find some fabric to finish the quilt I'm doing and back home, hopefully by noon or 1 p.m. Haven't been there for about a year. I hate to leave the mountain most of the time, but I know my DH is antsy. It is supposed to rain so the birds won't be getting outside in the a.m. anyway.

 

[GabrielBane]

We're forecast to have major rains here-all through this weekend, how's it lookin' up there?

 

[speckledhen]

We're forecast to have major rains here-all through this weekend, how's it lookin' up there?

All weekend rain, yes.

Not sure if we're going anywhere. I didn't feel well all night, then DH woke me up about 6:30 a.m., said, "I hate to wake you, but I think Atlas has pneumonia". So, up I go, open a new Tylan bottle and we tromp out to the coop to give him the first shot. He is beginning that gurgle breathing deep in his chest. Dusty was already in the hospital cage so he can't go in there. Since it's just him, seems best to leave him with his hens and turn on the little reptile bulb over him, especially with the dampness in the air. Not sure we'll be going anywhere today if I don't feel better after a cup of coffee or two. I have no idea how he would get pneumonia unless he aspirated something. Everyone else is fine. It's been very weird weather, down to 5* and snow, and back up to the high 60's, low 70's for highs, so a weather rollercoaster, for sure.

I did something I just don't usually do. When super cold weather hit, I got hay and mixed a lot of hay in the shavings for warmth, especially for the old hens who can't get off the floor to roost. I don't really like to do that, but I hope it didn't have an adverse effect on him. I hope it isn't fungal something or other because I'm out of Oxine that I would mist them with in a vaporizer for that condition, only have Virkon. Most of the hay other than in nests is gone now due to regular morning raking out of poop.

 

[1muttsfan]

You know I'm not a fan of the casting antibiotics at everything approach, but he certainly qualifies for a course. Leaving him with his girls sounds good too, probably less stressful than separating them anyway. This type of rollercoaster weather is the worst for leaving animals susceptable to infections.

You might consider using Hollywood brand safflower oil instead of olive oil. It is made with high-oleic safflowers, and has very high levels of essential fatty acids and added vitamin C. Helps support the immune system and modify inflammation. It does have to be that particular brand though, and it's not always easy to find. Dose is 2 ml per kg per week, so (body weight in pounds) divided by 2.2, times 2, divided by 7 for the daily dose. Probably good for you and Tom too.

Hope he gets over whatever this is!

 

[GingersHuman]

Yes! Antibiotics are definitely called for now!! Hugs and prayers!

 

[speckledhen]

You know I'm not a fan of the casting antibiotics at everything approach, but he certainly qualifies for a course. Leaving him with his girls sounds good too, probably less stressful than separating them anyway. This type of rollercoaster weather is the worst for leaving animals susceptable to infections.

You might consider using Hollywood brand safflower oil instead of olive oil. It is made with high-oleic safflowers, and has very high levels of essential fatty acids and added vitamin C. Helps support the immune system and modify inflammation. It does have to be that particular brand though, and it's not always easy to find. Dose is 2 ml per kg per week, so (body weight in pounds) divided by 2.2, times 2, divided by 7 for the daily dose. Probably good for you and Tom too.

Hope he gets over whatever this is!

Thank you for the recommendation, Mary. I have no idea why only Atlas was affected, but it seems so. It's a miserable, rainy day. And I've been in bed ever since doing the barn chores myself, not feeling right at all.

I've treated maybe three or four cases of pneumonia over the last 12 years, aside from Atlas, and Zane, my crippled rooster, once when he had dampened the shavings and I was unaware of it, so he was laying with his chest in damp bedding around the waterer. I was always on the spot to keep his shavings bone dry, but missed them once and he began breathing funny so I treated him that time. Once a chick, one of the D'Anvers, at 2 weeks old out in the big coop, began breathing gurgly. The weather literally went from the high 50's to the teens overnight and they were so tiny, he got pneumonia. Later on, I lost him early on, maybe he was weaker to begin with-he had heart failure. No others had any issues with the weather in that group.

Yes! Antibiotics are definitely called for now!! Hugs and prayers!

Thank you. He's a good guy, still trying to crow with that weak voice.

My DH remembered a huge water container he had treated with Oxine in the basement, so we replaced about half of the 5 gallon waterer in Atlas's area with that. At least he'll get it down his throat and around his nares when he drinks. Can't hurt the situation.

 

[speckledhen]

Hey, a daughter of Atlas and Dottie won for Andrew in the show this weekend! She got BV and BB for both shows! And one of the pullets I gave him from Jill's bunch took Junior American class!

ETA: still having modem issues. Have a new one coming that we bought ourselves.

 

[crazyhen]

Remember also that a heart condition can cause fluid in the lungs. it can also cause a type of pneumonia. Hope he is better this evening.