7RoostersFarm
Hatching
- Dec 5, 2024
- 1
- 0
- 7
Rupaul aka Ru 
is a 9 month old Rooster. Unsure on weight but it's definitely gone down during this process. Ru was always the secure leader of "the bird herd", but we are in the throws of rooberty and about a week and a half ago he was attacked by several of the other roosters (at least 5 of them) who kept chasing him and attacking him. We separated him for a bit but he jumped the fence to be out free ranging with the rest of them...however he would stay on the peripheral and throughout the course of about 2 days these milder version attacks continued to happen (more one on one verses the entire group), each time he didn't fight back and tried to run away and never tried to officially join the group. Finally I removed him to the "infirmary" in our laundry room for two days so that he could decompress and regain nourishment (he was free ranging but don't think he got much feed and likely not as much water). While on his solo retreat he seemed relieved and mostly normal the first day and ate some of his normal feed (organic all-flock) with some organic treats (containing alfalfa, oregano, calendula, and soybean oil) in addition to some organic wild blueberries. The second day I don't think he ate or drank very much and seemed like he was more depressed. He also didn't poop very much. So, we made the decision to integrate him with our flock of young hens (3-4 months old) in addition to the two hens that are the same age in their large coop (while we work on securing the other roosters to a section of the property we unfortunately can't have the hens free ranging but they have half of a carport for their coop). He was a pretty perky boy and seemed to be exhibiting normal behaviors the first day he was out with them. It seems he roosted with one of the hens on the corner of the nesting box that night. He seemed normal when I checked on everyone in the morning but in my efforts to create and secure "rooville" I did not make it back to check on them until later in the afternoon/early evening. This is when I noticed him standing in the back area of the coop and when he went to move he stumbled a little. He then couldn't jump over the cinder block barrier that separates the areas. So, it's likely he was back there for a good part of the day and thus was without food and water since it's in the front part of the coop. We thought his leg might be injured. When we let him and the hens out to free range a little, he chased one of the hens and did some mounting but his leg was definitely compromised. Palpations didn't reveal anything and there weren't any obvious injuries to the foot at that time. We brought him back inside and soaked him in epsom salt and put him in the large dog crate with some towels. There is a chance he was too wet on his bottom half :-( but he was in a heated space with blankets under him and a horse blanket partially covering the outside of the crate. The next morning his let out a really pathetic crow and when I went in there he was face down and couldn't stand on his own. He had (and still has some...although depreciated) a lot of strength in his legs but his balance was extremely off and he would either fall forward or backyards while flailing. So, I created him a space in the corner of the room where he was secured with blankets and towels to keep him from flailing around. He started showing respiratory stress, as he was mouth breathing/gasping. His comb has been increasingly paler with some white on it since the day he was jumped by the others and I figured it was stress related and probably some dehydration.
So, I made him as comfortable as possible and started to prepare for his passing. The methods of culling seem more stressful for him and traumatic for me and we aren't in a financial position for a vet bill. He has been mostly calm and while I know he's in great discomfort, anything else seems worse at this point. I was with him for most of the day and night and because I thought he was passing, didn't force any fluids or feed. His poops were first purely milky white and then watery with some normal green. He continued the mouth breathing but at times this got slower and less gasping.
The next day, while he still couldn't stand he seemed to have better color in his comb and he was relatively perky and alert. When I offered him food (mash of his regular food with nutridrench) and water with electrolytes, he consumed willingly. The mouth breathing has continued and I did notice some nasal dripping. Yesterday he ate more and I added Thyme and some kale to his mash and drank some willingly. I also gave him direct shots of nutridrench. He didn't fight as much when I picked him up and so a few times throughout the day I placed him upright between my legs. He did put some weight on one of the legs (not the one we thought was compromised). I continued to offer food and water throughout the day and at one point he stopped consuming willingly and also hadn't had a bowel movement in over 24 hours. Crop seemed normal but there was a slight belching sound whenever I gave him the drench. I forced the electrolytes and drench in water in the evening and propped him up for the night. He then had a really big poop that was normal (solid, gray/green, with white). This morning he fought me when I picked him up, so he has some strength but no balance at all. So, I placed him back in his makeshift boppy. He is no longer voluntarily eating or drinking but because he's still mouth breathing I have easily been able to get a significant amount of fluids in him. This morning and the rest of the day I will be giving him a tea with thyme, oregano, tumeric, and ginger along with the nutridrench. His comb has definitely more of a blue/purple tone from the respiratory stuff and his eyes have also been bloodshot for a few days. I have also given him some VetRx.
None of the rest of the birds in either flock are showing any abnormal signs. Everyone is standing, eating, pooping normally, and the roosters are running around the farm living their best lives.
I am committed to monitoring the level of his suffering and I understand the stoicism. However, I remain on the fence but mostly feel like this is not the time to euthanize. I have read posts where birds were in pretty bad shape and then bounced back. If he has long term paralysis or struggles, we can work with that as long as he seems to be living a decent life.
So, wondering what experiences others have had with birds that might bounce back and what treatments were offered.
Appreciate y'all!
is a 9 month old Rooster. Unsure on weight but it's definitely gone down during this process. Ru was always the secure leader of "the bird herd", but we are in the throws of rooberty and about a week and a half ago he was attacked by several of the other roosters (at least 5 of them) who kept chasing him and attacking him. We separated him for a bit but he jumped the fence to be out free ranging with the rest of them...however he would stay on the peripheral and throughout the course of about 2 days these milder version attacks continued to happen (more one on one verses the entire group), each time he didn't fight back and tried to run away and never tried to officially join the group. Finally I removed him to the "infirmary" in our laundry room for two days so that he could decompress and regain nourishment (he was free ranging but don't think he got much feed and likely not as much water). While on his solo retreat he seemed relieved and mostly normal the first day and ate some of his normal feed (organic all-flock) with some organic treats (containing alfalfa, oregano, calendula, and soybean oil) in addition to some organic wild blueberries. The second day I don't think he ate or drank very much and seemed like he was more depressed. He also didn't poop very much. So, we made the decision to integrate him with our flock of young hens (3-4 months old) in addition to the two hens that are the same age in their large coop (while we work on securing the other roosters to a section of the property we unfortunately can't have the hens free ranging but they have half of a carport for their coop). He was a pretty perky boy and seemed to be exhibiting normal behaviors the first day he was out with them. It seems he roosted with one of the hens on the corner of the nesting box that night. He seemed normal when I checked on everyone in the morning but in my efforts to create and secure "rooville" I did not make it back to check on them until later in the afternoon/early evening. This is when I noticed him standing in the back area of the coop and when he went to move he stumbled a little. He then couldn't jump over the cinder block barrier that separates the areas. So, it's likely he was back there for a good part of the day and thus was without food and water since it's in the front part of the coop. We thought his leg might be injured. When we let him and the hens out to free range a little, he chased one of the hens and did some mounting but his leg was definitely compromised. Palpations didn't reveal anything and there weren't any obvious injuries to the foot at that time. We brought him back inside and soaked him in epsom salt and put him in the large dog crate with some towels. There is a chance he was too wet on his bottom half :-( but he was in a heated space with blankets under him and a horse blanket partially covering the outside of the crate. The next morning his let out a really pathetic crow and when I went in there he was face down and couldn't stand on his own. He had (and still has some...although depreciated) a lot of strength in his legs but his balance was extremely off and he would either fall forward or backyards while flailing. So, I created him a space in the corner of the room where he was secured with blankets and towels to keep him from flailing around. He started showing respiratory stress, as he was mouth breathing/gasping. His comb has been increasingly paler with some white on it since the day he was jumped by the others and I figured it was stress related and probably some dehydration. So, I made him as comfortable as possible and started to prepare for his passing. The methods of culling seem more stressful for him and traumatic for me and we aren't in a financial position for a vet bill. He has been mostly calm and while I know he's in great discomfort, anything else seems worse at this point. I was with him for most of the day and night and because I thought he was passing, didn't force any fluids or feed. His poops were first purely milky white and then watery with some normal green. He continued the mouth breathing but at times this got slower and less gasping.
The next day, while he still couldn't stand he seemed to have better color in his comb and he was relatively perky and alert. When I offered him food (mash of his regular food with nutridrench) and water with electrolytes, he consumed willingly. The mouth breathing has continued and I did notice some nasal dripping. Yesterday he ate more and I added Thyme and some kale to his mash and drank some willingly. I also gave him direct shots of nutridrench. He didn't fight as much when I picked him up and so a few times throughout the day I placed him upright between my legs. He did put some weight on one of the legs (not the one we thought was compromised). I continued to offer food and water throughout the day and at one point he stopped consuming willingly and also hadn't had a bowel movement in over 24 hours. Crop seemed normal but there was a slight belching sound whenever I gave him the drench. I forced the electrolytes and drench in water in the evening and propped him up for the night. He then had a really big poop that was normal (solid, gray/green, with white). This morning he fought me when I picked him up, so he has some strength but no balance at all. So, I placed him back in his makeshift boppy. He is no longer voluntarily eating or drinking but because he's still mouth breathing I have easily been able to get a significant amount of fluids in him. This morning and the rest of the day I will be giving him a tea with thyme, oregano, tumeric, and ginger along with the nutridrench. His comb has definitely more of a blue/purple tone from the respiratory stuff and his eyes have also been bloodshot for a few days. I have also given him some VetRx.
None of the rest of the birds in either flock are showing any abnormal signs. Everyone is standing, eating, pooping normally, and the roosters are running around the farm living their best lives.
I am committed to monitoring the level of his suffering and I understand the stoicism. However, I remain on the fence but mostly feel like this is not the time to euthanize. I have read posts where birds were in pretty bad shape and then bounced back. If he has long term paralysis or struggles, we can work with that as long as he seems to be living a decent life.
So, wondering what experiences others have had with birds that might bounce back and what treatments were offered.
Appreciate y'all!
