Feeling incredibly defeated

[Grousesandgooses]

My husband and I purchased 7 chicks last April for our first flock.

We lost our first in February, had to cull her after a month of trying to nurse her back to health. Vet suspected reproductive cancer so not much we could have done. Since then, we’ve had 3 separate incidents of tape worms with 3 separate chickens and I feel like the battle will only continue, despite successful treatment and trying to stay on top of wormy poop pick up. Now this morning, I picked up my favorite hen because she seemed like she was uncomfortable. I’m 90% sure she has ascites, she started breathing hard while I held her (not normal) and her belly definitely feels full.

I’m so sad, and can’t help feeling like we’re bad chicken owners. We did so much research, continue to do research, have successfully kept them safe from predators, and keep up on cleaning and making sure they’re thriving. Just can’t seem to keep them healthy.

 

[nuthatched]

Sorry to hear that, sometimes things like that is genetic, some breeds are more prone to reproductive issues.

 

[CoopBoots]

*hugs* I lost four of my original nine to fatty liver rupture or something else very sudden, but sporadic, with no symptoms of illness. Birb, Martini, Artsie, and Brumbo. Right before or a bit after their first birthday. It was very disheartening.

I pushed through, accepting that I'm trying my best and perfection is not possible, and the flock (with some hybrid additions) has grown in size (and apparently, gained some vigor). I think I'm over 30 birds now. But it was a really tough season. If your hens all came from one source, they could genetically be predisposed to a weaker immune system or a specific problem. We simply cannot control that part of their health. You are doing everything you can!

 

[thecatumbrella]

We had a really rough first year of chicken keeping as well (though more behavioral than health). It feels awful, especially when you're doing everything you can but the end result is outside of your control. It sounds like you at least have a local vet?

 

[Grousesandgooses]

*hugs* I lost four of my original nine to fatty liver rupture or something else very sudden, but sporadic, with no symptoms of illness. Birb, Martini, Artsie, and Brumbo. Right before or a bit after their first birthday. It was very disheartening.

I pushed through, accepting that I'm trying my best and perfection is not possible, and the flock (with some hybrid additions) has grown in size (and apparently, gained some vigor). I think I'm over 30 birds now. But it was a really tough season. If your hens all came from one source, they could genetically be predisposed to a weaker immune system or a specific problem. We simply cannot control that part of their health. You are doing everything you can!

Thank you for sharing this. The one we culled and the one that is now likely dying are two different breeds and I *think* from two different hatcheries, but I’m not sure. Either way, I’m trying to find comfort in the likelihood that both were completely out of our control. I guess I really see the benefits now of breeding your own flock from strong individuals!

So many people warned us to not get attached because of all the things that go wrong, and I don’t regret it, but man is it hard! I keep going back and forth on whether this lifestyle is for me but ultimately I love having them SO MUCH.

 

[Grousesandgooses]

We had a really rough first year of chicken keeping as well (though more behavioral than health). It feels awful, especially when you're doing everything you can but the end result is outside of your control. It sounds like you at least have a local vet?

It does feel awful, thanks for sharing that. Really hard to not blame ourselves. We are really fortunate to have an exotic vet about a mile down the road. They couldn’t do much for our first girl and I’m debating taking Puff now, but I think we may try to drain her belly ourselves first. It’s just hard when you take them and spend the money only for them to say there’s nothing to be done.

 

[thecatumbrella]

So many people warned us to not get attached because of all the things that go wrong, and I don’t regret it, but man is it hard! I keep going back and forth on whether this lifestyle is for me but ultimately I love having them SO MUCH.

I feel this.

 

[sillyduckz]

you are not alone. this is the way of life when it comes to raising poultry, and there will always be things that you can't really account for. it is easy to feel like you've failed your birds but many of these things are beyond our control. the modern chicken has been bred for maximum production with little attention to overall health and longevity, which obviously in a standard battery chicken operation setting has no impact, but hugely does for hobbyist chicken owners like us.. not to mention other hazards like animal predation and such. you are clearly not a negligent owner as you've demonstrated by posting here so don't blame yourself for the situation you're finding yourself in. my flock has weathered some bad times too, especially during the first few years, but with time you will find the swing of things; just hold to it and dont be discouraged. rearing chickens is an amazingly rewarding hobby, and even hard times like these will give you a lot of knowledge and wisdom for you to take forwards into the future. just continue to do your best, i promise things will get better.