Hello all
Want to send a huge thanks to Casa for the Wheaten and Blue Wheaten boys.... they are beautiful and didn't waste anytime getting a drink of water and starting in on the food. They know they're home!!!
Another huge thanks to Sphinx for making the chicken train work to get them to me.
So nice to see you again!!!
By the time we arrived home tonight I ended up with more than just the two roos from Casa.
Stopped in at the Riverton IFA to buy some additional chicken supplies and some DE. Of course I have to go look at the chicks
, even though DH tries to steer me away...lol. I see that two babies have horribly caked butts plus the heat lamp is off
, or burnt out on 2 breeds. I immediately start looking for an employee and DH gives me that look like, 'Oh great, here we go'. I found a young man and explained the heat lights were out on two breeds.... he mentions he knows and shrugs it off. I loudly tell my husband that is why nobody should buy their chicks there, because they don't care about the poor helpless little things
. DH looks at the young man like 'you better do something, or this won't be the end'. The young man fiddles with the brooders and finds someone has turned off the lights, which he turns on. I thank him and then mention they have babies who have severely poopy butts that are dried hard. He claims again that he knows, but does nothing.
I mention they will very likely be dead by morning and again he agrees and does nothing.
(DH knows I'm on a mission and wanders off). At this point I tell the young man I don't have time to clean them myself but will take them if they're FREE. He looks at me and hesitates and says they can't do that. My comeback is.... then you clean their butts. He told me that they have someone who does that and I ask where they are. He says they will be in in the morning. I say, yea, when the babies are dead. At this point I ask to talk to the manager. When she shows up she is obviously not very happy with my attitude. I mention the chicks need immediate care and that since I don't have time to clean their butts, I can take them for FREE and they won't die there. She agrees but is not happy about it. The young man grabs a box and plastic gloves which I also grabbed a pair, and I grab the first bad butt chick, then another.... at this time the manager comes back and I tell her there is more than two. She looks at their butts and mentions they're not really that bad
. I ask if she wants to clean them cause they need to be done immediately. She then agrees to let the chicks that are bad, go
. The young man is to keep track of how many of which kind are given to me. The manager comes back and upon seeing how bad some of them are, thanked me for being so conscientious
. It became very apparent these chicks had NOT been cared for, for days!! Their butts and toes were encased in poop and hardened chick starter.
.
Anyway, the slip they gave me showed I took 3 Black Australorp pullets, 3 Buff Brahma pullets, 2 Cuckoo Maran pullets, 1 Rhode Island Red pullet, and 3 Sicillian Buttercup pullets for a total of
12 chicks.
I just spent the last 3 hours soaking their little butts and toes, working away the 'mess' and doctoring their poor little toes and butts with ointment (tomorrow I'll be better able to judge who needs the prep H). There was supposed to be only 12 chicks.... but while cleaning I lost count at 19. Looks to be 2 Silkies in there, and a Lakenvelder, and maybe some BSL, since some babies look so much alike (at least to me), I may have to wait on what they turn out to be. Tomorrow I'll count them.
Poor babies... they had that weight on their butts for so long they couldn't even walk without falling forward after I cleaned them up.
I just checked them and they are flitting around... :cd happy!!!
Going to bed..... finally
.
