Poultry Talk Ontario (pto.ca)

Last night I put a pullet down. This young hen had been sick about two months ago, she was a sack of bones and I figured something like Marek's but then she seemed to get better and started gaining weight. The last two weeks she was off again, losing weight, getting weak etc, no mites or anything like that. At night she had trouble getting on the perch and would sit in the stupidest places. I had enough so to protect the rest of the flock I put her down. She had meat on the breast bone but not much on her hips. She wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed, I'm pretty sure something was wrong, I hope I didn't just put a hen down for being stupid!

You did the right thing to protect the rest of the flock. One of my young pullets will go along with the roosters because there is something "off" about her mentally. Not a trait I would wish to breed in. SHe's been odd since hatching and although physically OK since hatch, not keeping up with Mum and being whiny.

Killerbunny wrote: ↑

Wed Nov 22, 2017 11:23 am

You did the right thing to protect the rest of the flock. One of my young pullets will go along with the roosters because there is something "off" about her mentally. Not a trait I would wish to breed in. SHe's been odd since hatching and although physically OK since hatch, not keeping up with Mum and being whiny.

Thanks for the support KB, it also made my next step easier, one of the mother ee's (my favorite) has been sick for a while now, I was hoping something would change but I was just putting off what I knew I really had to do, so I put her down as well. I was processing some roosters yesterday so after I finished I did it.

I agree with killerbunny. Odd birds never get over being odd, and birds that have ever been sick are usually never quite the same.

windwalkingwolf wrote: ↑

Fri Nov 24, 2017 4:11 pm

I agree with killerbunny. Odd birds never get over being odd, and birds that have ever been sick are usually never quite the same.

I second that agreement, I find the same thing, sometimes I hold out for hope but in the end I usually end up doing what I knew I should have done long ago.

Anyway I still have twelve little hens, four or five of them started laying, probably going to keep two, maybe three roosters, everybody is happy with lots of space so it's not like I don't have enough of them to look at lol.

Survival of the fittest sustains and improves the species.
Hhmmm Humans just patch fix the virus/blemish. Hopefully science stays ahead of evolutionary progression.

Some days one has to wonder.

Yup !!!

LongCrow wrote: ↑

Sat Nov 25, 2017 5:38 pm

Survival of the fittest sustains and improves the species.
Hhmmm Humans just patch fix the virus/blemish. Hopefully science stays ahead of evolutionary progression.

Some days one has to wonder.

I agree and that suddenly changed the choice in some of the roosters I kept. The pullets off my Ameraucanas crossed with Easter eggers seem weaker and two of them I have actually put down, the pullets off the Easter eggers are really strong and some started laying before five months. I was going to keep one or two of the Ameraucanas cross Easter egger roosters but then I thought why keep potential trouble, so I butchered all of them last week and will only keep Easter egger roosters.