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Today I visited someone near to me to buy some adult chinese painted quail.As I was leaving,I was asked if I would like a hen for free.Being me,I said yes please,wish now that I hadn't :cry: .
The bloke said that it had crook toes,which it has had since hatching,none of my hens have crook toes,but,I understand that they can cope with this disability.
Well,he brought the 'hen' out,and then said that he thinks it is a shamo cockerel.
It is in my lounge now and does have a few other problems.
1) It looks as if this shamo cockerel has ricketts.It's legs are both bent and twisted.
2) It has a large open puss weaping wound on it's wing,at the joint that would be a shoulder(I think) on a human.Looks like the bone has pushed through the flesh and skin/or like a bed sore.Similar wound starting in exactly the same place on the other wing,not broken skin yet though.
3) Top beak is far too long,curved and looks like a bird of prey-it is affecting it's ability to feed properly.
4) It's left eye is bubbly,full of clear watery bubbles.the right eye is clear.
5) It's face looks swollen,both sides.
6) Extremely thin and underweight,it is bald where it's breast bone is,the breast bone is almost poking through the skin.
7) This bird appears very calm and tame-I think because it is too ill.
So,can I trim the top beak,what can I use that will be strong and sharp enough.Is it ok to cut straight accross,or do I have to try and make it pointed?
I think someone told me you can use johnson's baby shampoo on eye infections,do you use it neat?

I am taking this bird to see a poultry vet tomorrow.

I would really appreciate some practical advise.
 
An update on Kaz(his nickname),he is drinking, and I managed to get him to eat some layers mash that I mixed with warm water to a very runny consistancy so he could drink it.He is also trying to preen himself and chatting away to me.
Hopefully the vet will be able to trim his beak for him and help me to sort him out.
 
Hi Lydia
Have sent you a PM, keep him well away from your other birds.

Johnsons shampoo diluted with water for eye, salty warm water on the wound.

Sue
 
Hi Lydia,

Echo of the above from Sue.... Quarantine him and keep him well away from the others, he sounds sick.
I also don't think much of the breeder letting a bird get like this and would quarantine your quail too in case they have something as well.

Bubbling around the eyes could be Myco, IB, eye infection or other nastys - overgrown beak means he has probably not had free range and a chance to wear his beak down, he is slowly starving to death by the sounds of it as he can't eat properly.

The top of the beak can be trimmed to the right shape- you need a sharp pair of dog nail clippers - but as with nails, beware of the quick / blood vessel inside.

Ditto Sue on the wound and eye.

It makes me mad to think someone has let a bird suffer like this. So here goes, my first use of angry smiley...

:evil:

That feels better.
 
P.S.

As for the feet / legs - Crooked toes that bend at a join in the toe are inherited deformities. Bandy legs can be a deformity, damage to the joint or the diet could have been deficient... which way do the legs bend? inwards?

Many skeletal problems are caused by dietary deficiency.
 
Soory Lydia BUT- if he is a boy , deformed legs , deformed beak and an infectious disease I would seriously think of culling him however hard this may be -you will still have done him a favour by removing him from the breeder. You do not want to put your own birds at risk .Even baby shampoo on eyes sounds a bit grim to me- Id try cleaning with gauze and warm water if it needs ,how about some Hibiscrub for wound -be careful as even cleaning this increases risk of infection spreading to your birds via hands/clothes etc.. Good luck Ros
 
Hi everyone,thanks for all your suggestions.I took him to see the vet this am(she was horrified)and she gave him a thorough examination.
His toes were bent at the joints,and,his legs were sort of bent inwards similar to knock knees in a human,but also twisted.She said she had never seen this before with a hen/cockerel,but looked as if his tendons hadn't grown properly,the ones on the outside growing and becoming firm,the ones on the inside staying too soft and pliable.She had come accross it with calves and occasionaly horses.She said that they needed to be put in splints as soon as it had started and this would have helped,possibly curing the problem completely.
His open sores were pressure sores,caused by his bones POKING THROUGH HIS SKIN.Some were badly infected by not being treated.Last night I got gallons of puss out of him,i'm sure he weighed a lot lighter after.
Hie eyes,well,the left eye that had clear watery bubbles had cleared completely.His right eye had extremely bad yellow gunge,so much distorting the shape of his eye,and a lot of swelling above the eye lid and in his cheek.She felt that this was a severe eye infection and blocked sinuses.
Although she didn't rule mycoplasma out.
His only good point was his feathers,she said that his beak was causing him to starve to death,and,that he hadn't been able to free range and wear it down normally.
Her recomendation,was to have him p.t.s(put to sleep)and I left him and his carrying box with her,for this to be performed.She said that they use a gas,to make the bird un-conscious,then found a vein to administer the lethal injection.
She apologised to me,for not suggesting treatment for him,but felt that he had suffered enough,and this was the kindest option for him.
She also gave me information on cleaning and sterilising everywhere he has been,to minimise putting my other hens at risk.
I am still trying to understand why someone would allow this to happen to a bird.Kaz deserved far better in his short life.
 
So sorry Lydia -he had a quick end to his prolonged suffering-you did him a favour-Ros
 
thanks Ros,your suggestion was the right one in this case.I've never dispatched a chook,will have to get someone to show me,so in the future I can do the deed if necesary.
 
--It took me many years to be able to do this myself, started out doing abnormal chicks 'under supervision'-I was scared it would go wrong and I would cause more suffering , once happy with these I progressed to the adults --not nearly as bad as youd think , best for the birds and actually quite rewarding in a funny way that you can help them as soon as you make that decision.I wish I had had the courage to do it years earlier! Ros
 
It would have been better for Kaz to be culled when his legs went wrong,it is kinder sometimes to cull.I will definitely have to learn how to do it correctly.
Would also be cheaper than paying a vet,as well as not putting a bird through the stress of a visit to the vet's.
 
Bless you Lydia - how distressing for you. Definitely the best thing as all are saying - if you hadn't taken him he would be still there suffering. You have a very kind heart xx
 
Thanks Anne,not the nicest experience,at least for him.I hate the thought that he was suffering though.
A non chook person I told today,said that in future I would know to say no to a freebie.It made me bristle and then explain that I would have bought the bird to get it away, so it could recieve treatment.
I also spoke to the secretary of the Asian Hardfeather Club,apparently because they are a slow growing breed,if fed too much protein as youngsters,and unable to ree roam to strengthen muscles their legs deform exactly the same as Kaz's were.
I also passed on the breeders details,so she will know who he is, if he contacts her or other club members for eggs or birds.He isn't a member of the club,shame,he might have had the correct information about raising the breed if he had.
 
That's a really awful story- what is particularly bad is that his condition must have deteriorated quite slowly in the scheme of things- the problems he had didn't occur overnight and the breeder should have done something to help him a long time ago. Any kind of cruelty like this makes my blood boil! - some people just shouldn't keep animals! - As for the freebie issue, many people will give away cockerels (myself included) but most people would not give anyone a bird that they knew was sick.

At least his suffering was ended quickly once he was in your care Lydia- it was lucky for him that you did take him.

Nicky
 
I'm sorry to hear all this, but you did a good thing, although difficult.

May I ask if you saw where this 'breeder' keeps his birds or did he have them all ready for you and brought them out to you? If you didn't see his set up, I'd be concerned that he is possibly keeping other chickens in bad/appalling conditions. From what you said about Kaz it sounds to me like he has been kept penned up and never been outside or anything. I do wonder if this chaps other birds live in similar conditions.

I'd consider (and I know some don't like what they do or some of their policies but in true cases of mistreatment or abuse they do a good job I feel) reporting him to the RSPCA and give a detailed report of Kaz's condition when given him and that the vet had to put him to sleep because his condition was so poor. They can visit the guy and hopefully check out his set up and ensure that others are not suffering like this. You can do this in confidence.
 
Lydia... under the circumstances, you made the right decision. Must admit, when I read your post initially I was thinking 'oh no..this could only happen to Lydia' but didn't think you'd kill him, having taken him in and caring for him like that.

IMO you are a very kind person Lydia and you made the right choice. Sometimes it's kinder to put them to sleep.

I have come across a few bad breeders. Some advertise in Practical Poultry - you have to be so careful. I've walked away but there have been several newbies buying loads of really sick birds. When challenged, one woman even told me she'd lost so much money because of this, she was really annoyed.

Do you know what, I'm so mad about these people, I'm almost tempted to start a name and shame category somewhere on the forum or site so when people look them up in Google, they can see their names and the problems... I'm sure I'd get into trouble though.
 
thanks everyone,I didn't do anything that I believe everyone on here would have done.It is disgusting though,that this cockerel made battery hens look as if they live a luxury life compared to him.
With regards his other birds though Snifter,I didn't see them.All of his quail were indoors,at the back of his house in a small conservatory,so I could see them and they all looked fine.If they weren't,I wouldn't have bought any.I didn't see his garden to see if he had other chooks.
I have been wondering about the R.S.P.C.A.,I would like to know that if he has got other chooks they are well cared for.The other thing I thought of was ringing the local council to see if they could do a check,just not sure if they would know if the conditions were correct for birds.
The saddest part for me was how trusting and calm he was.Apparently it is a breed characteristic, obviously I don't know what he would have been like with other chickens,but with people he was over 100%,and,it was a person who let him down.
You are right Nicky,he didn't get into this state overnight.I suspect,but don't know for sure that this has been happening to him gradually since he hatched.He also was quite young,I suspect not even 6 months old.
I will never understand why someone can watch an animal slowly starve,this should never happen.IMO, ignorance is no excuse,if these horrific injuries were caused through ignorance.
I think your name and shame idea is a good one Tim,and,I think you could do it in a way that wouldn't get you prosecuted.Something similar to a rating system,like ebay have.Especially if it is done for both buyers and sellers.
I noticed this person on ebay,advertising fertile cpq eggs.At that point mine hadn't hatched and I assumed they were dead.I contacted him through Ebay and asked if he had any adult quail he could sell me,as I didn't want to kill more quail eggs by trying to incubate them unsuccessfully.
 
Well, it wouldn't hurt for you to tell us who the breeder was in this post I guess Lydia - just a factual "this is who gave me this cockerel". Then you are not making any accusations about anyone...

:twisted:
(Oh - that's my second ever evil smiley and they are both in the same post!)
 
Hi Lydia
I am glad my telephone conversation was of use to you last night, was lovely to speak to you again, but as I said you really do need to report him or her to the RSPCA, other birds in their hands may also be suffering like the boy you brought home. -
It really does make me sick that people can treat birds in this way. :evil: :twisted: :evil:
 
Oh Lydia, what a sad situation you were in but you did the right thing. Sometimes its hard to do the right thing. At least someone with kindness looked after him in the end.

Reading this post has really made me think about my cockerel. I think he is an Asian Hardfeather breed but not many pictures out there. I've done a bit of research & worked out where the eggs came from (long trail backwards not easy) but came to a stop due to the weather,Christmas, etc & will try again next week.

If he is one of these breeds it would account for a few (odd) things about him & I'm now so worried I've not given him the best start in life. I can't keep him but don't want to cull him either & have been trying to find out exactly what breed he is so that I can possibly re-home him (I do have a possible new home) Despite best efforts to intigrate him my chooks just attack him so he is kept in a small run on his own.

After reading your experience & the info on these birds I just hope he'll not be also adversly affected. Can you give me any more info on Asian Hard Feather breeds? Info not easy to find.
 
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