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| Pirrie upset being away from his own hens |
I isolated the bird immediately and treated it with baytril and eye baths, The rest of the birds were checked and all seemed ok (I make it a point of keeping hens separated into a whole array of small coops so potential infections can be hopefully minimised to one area )....but after discussion with my new vet we decided to treat the flock with prophylactic antibiotics. Which is a decision I am happy I kind of pushed for..
(and no it was not the George Clooney lookalike vet ...mores the pity)
Yesterday, as the Rhode Island was more or less back to her old self, I caught, Pirrie, an old bantam cockerel looking slightly quieter than usual, and so I have isolated and treated him too. Good observation and knowing your animals is vital in keeping them safe. I just hope I have noticed the potential problem early.
I was discussing all this with the vet's nurse this morning. She had just bought four hens and I was trying to flirt with her just a little so that she would take one of my spare frizzle cockerels from me...and although she obviously knows animal care, she was taken aback just a little with the amount of work that is involved if you are to look after a group of animals properly.
"When I started " she said ruefully " I thought you just stuck them in the garden and left them to it!"
........if only........
My 3 point-of-lay girls arrive on the 16th. Can't wait!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad we're not the only people totally fed up with the news.
ReplyDeleteWe don't read newspapers, we don't own a tele (watch odd things on laptop) and we avoid any news on radio if possible.
Briony
There's a lot of that 'just leave them to it' about. Sometimes a shock when folk realise that a chickens can live well over 10 years too.
ReplyDeleteIt's a major commitment.
A chicken is for life (not just for Sunday dinner)
PS
ReplyDeleteWhat riots??!!
Ahh, Any excuse to go to the vets eh John?
ReplyDeleteor was that the new Doc, I cant keep up.
ReplyDeleteWhen I returned from my long weekend, I was upset to see that my worker had neglected to lower the radio antenna in the car wash and broke it off.
ReplyDeleteBut now I get no radio reception and have to listen to my cd's and find that I like it very much. No news, is certainly good news.
I didn't have any idea the amount of work involved in keeping chickens in a healthy condition, it's a daily struggle or so it seems.
ReplyDeleteMy hat's off to you John for all the hard work you put forth, not to mention the smiles you bring in the telling of your stories.
~Jo
Sounds like the rioters could do with a bit of your hen treatment. Isolating in cages, having stuff squirted in their eyes and a visit to the vet...
ReplyDeleteThere is a lot of work with any animal if done properly.
ReplyDeleteGood job catching the illness early, saved more head aches later.
Hope all your chickens are 100 percent soon. So much going on in the world, sometimes we just need to turn the TV off and stop reading the papers for a while and live in hope that one day everything will sort itself out. Unrealistic maybe, oh well.
ReplyDeleteparrot
ReplyDeleteI think the rioters needed some good plain strict parenting, and supervision to realise what it important in life
perhaps looking after chickens would be a start
It's hard to watch. I hear Birmingham is having trouble too. My Gran came from there.
ReplyDeleteOut here in sleepy rural Ontario, the British riots came as a shock. Had a bit of a 'tut tut' with an English friend.
ReplyDeleteHubby and me gave up on TV/newspapers/talk radio a long time ago, and just watch the odd thing on the laptop....if you can call Corrie odd!
Good luck with the flock!
Jane x
You hussey, flirting with a nurse! Hrrrrumph. You KNOW how much nurses hate that [mainly because of how weak we all are]
ReplyDeleteDid it work??? Or were you just trying to make George Clooney jealous? Ever watch Baby Boom? Now that vet makes my skirt fly up a bit and I suspect he would yours too
Thought of you when I heard about the riots and hope you stay out of harms way
I gave up watching news many years ago and well not much TV to boot. News is just to darn depressing. I didn't know you guys were having riots over there. Sorry to hear that.
ReplyDeleteYes animals are a lot of work!
News? Who needs it? Unfortunately our daughter and husband live in Enfield...
ReplyDeleteGlad you caught this in its early stages, John. All animals are work, but that doesn't stop us from having them.
ReplyDeleteAs for the news thing, I'm just the opposite, more interested (and appalled) now than I have been for years.
Oh my, thought she could just stick them in the garden "and leave them to it?" Well, at least she's a vet assistant, so maybe the chickens have a chance at decent care (along with your advice). I've seen naive people like her turn into great caretakers ... and disasters.
ReplyDeleteI took a break from news to escape the fingerpointing after Poor's lowered the U.S. credit rating. Just today caught up with the London riots. Taking another break... As an ex-journalist, it's difficult to stay away completely, but I am finding it easier to distance myself from things I have no control over.
I trust elizabeth is fine john?
ReplyDeleteI gave up on the news a long time ago, John. That's why I love reading blogs. I want real life, so to speak.
ReplyDeleteAnd I thought the same of chickens until I started reading blogs!
Soon after I assumed my present professional position, I proposed to a neighboring farmer that I was considering using goats or sheep to clear my preserve of a horribly invasive vine called porcelain-berry (don't let the name fool you; it's the Kudzu of the North in eastern North America). I proposed setting up a pen and letting the animals have at it. My farmer friend upbraided me (nicely) and reminded me that I was no farmer. "Scott, you don't just put the animals in a pen and forget about them. They get sick, they get pregnant, they get injured, and they need shelter in the winter."
ReplyDeleteI'd still like to try someday. Maybe I'll become an artisan goat cheese producer in my retirement.
I'm a news and information junkie, and always have been, but at times, it's head-bangingly frustrating trying to discern the real news (AKA truth) from all the hype and spin. So you're right; sometimes we simply have to ignore the world's woes for a little while, and enjoy a glass of wine and a bit of good music. That's the only way to remain sane.
ReplyDeleteAs for that nurse's thinking about how to raise chickens, I've known some people who thought pretty much the same about raising their children.
Off to pour a beer. Bums gone numb. Back in five...
ReplyDeleteOkay, I'm back. So's my not so numb bum.
ReplyDeleteMy goodness, that was a gloomy post to read, so full of doom and misery, I think I'll go and slit my own throat for a bit of welcome relief. On second thoughts, I'll turn on the news. Always lifts my spirits does that.