Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Raccoon in the chicken yard


Today I found our three Banti chickens that we brought home in April dead. A raccoon got into the enclosure early this morning after John let them out and went to work. I looked out the window around 2pm to check on every one and there was feathers everywhere! I didn't see anyone but Titan (our big rooster) standing beside Prince Charming dead on the ground. I ran out as fast as I could to make sure I couldn't save him. But when I turned the corner I seen Snow white dead beside Prince Charming. I thought Titan had killed the babies.... Then I looked everywhere for Splash and finally found her dead on the other side of the enclosure. And when I seen how her body had been mangled I knew it wasn't Titan. It had been a raccoon. Everyone else looked fine at first sight. Then Big Red came over and ruffled her wings. She has a big gash in the fat under her wing in two places. Two big spots. Plus her neck is also messed up. Mabon her a gash in her fat around her wing area too. Mabon how ever seems stronger right now. Big Red has been showing some shock symptoms. (These are the last pics I have of Splash, Snow White, and Prince Charming)
The only vet I could get a hold of normally treats exotic birds. She told e not to bring them in. If they were not in shock already the car ride might send them there. She told me to get some antibiotics and put into her water. Get an injectable if they will not drink it. Not sure how an injectable is going to work... don't know how to give a chicken a shot. She also told me to keep a compress on it to keep it open so it will heel from the inside out. If it heal from the outside it will cause a nasty abscess.

Big red and Mabon are resting in the Hen house right now and will have to be moved soon. The rest of the chickens and even the roosters are pretty stirred up today. I normally can't go into the enclosure without a rooster attacking me but today they totally stayed away from me. The whole chicken yard is so quite without the three Babies. Without Prince Charming doing his half cracked crow. He was learning and had a pretty good crow ever so often. But he still hadn't totally got it. I can't believe they are gone. I can't believe as careful as we are that something got in and killed them after daylight came. And the dogs didn't even alert me. I don't know how this happened... I feel so bad. They lost their lives because I wasn't prepared good enough.

I am praying that Mabon and Big Red make it. Right now Mabon is still doing good and eating and drinking. Big Red is moving around very slowly and not eating very well. Please pray for them.

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