hen hospital

we have two henny girls in the animal hospital..

with the taking on of 1200 ex laying hens last year it is a rare week when there is not a hen in hospital.. i think i have become an expert on hen ailments. sadly.

truth be told i have always rather disliked chickens, they have never been on my list of must have back garden friends. i dislike their legs and the fact that they are pretty unkind to each other. i prefer ducks.

but lately, and no doubt since i have been forced to handle them more, i have grown to appreciate their quirky ways and continue to be amazed at how each little lady is totally different.

each one has its own personality, its own tone of voice, its own likes and dislikes...

the two ladies who are receiving my t.l.c currently are...

madam #one... part of the 1200 crew and found a few days ago looking very quiet and forlorn in the hen shed. upon inspection she looked to have an abscess on one eye. we gave her overnight pain relief and trundled her off to the most marvellous vets the next day. much poking, prodding and squeezing and general removal of pus has resulted in, we hope, a happier hen. as of today she is drinking well but is not keen on my food offerings...

madam #two .... part of the 1200 crew and found tucked against the barn door with her head firmly tucked in to her feathers. i picked her up and was mortified to find her face SO swollen. my first thought was pecking from another less friendly hen but as i walked her to the hospital i noticed how laboured her breathing was.... swollen sinuses :(

pain relief given and then off to the vets for some antibiotics..

both girls *should* be o.k. they have accepted each other as bff and the hope is that along with the three gals that are just out of the hospital and in the recovery pen, they will make a great gang of five.

my thoughts are that they are unlikely to be accepted back in to the 1200 crew and to be honest i just could not do that to them, so i am going to see if our small gang at the top end of the farm will accept them.

if not then we will be searching for the very, very best person to offer them a magnificent new home.

{{ they were joined this morning by a short stay hospital visitor who needed some treatment for a poorly foot who was soon put back in the field for being too noisy! }}