Fowl NOT Foul - January 1999

On 2nd January I recieved the results from Roadkill's fecal test. No parasites had been found, which was excellent news, so I could rule out the possibilities that Roadkill's condition was caused by worms or coccidia. This left Vitamin Deficiency (B-Vitamins, especially Riboflavin) as the most probable cause. I started a vitamin supplement treatment immediately, giving Roadkill one quarter of a Vitamin B-50 complex tablet dissolved in warm water with a little honey for an energy boost. I also seperated Roadkill from Michael Caine Alan Partridge Brahma and Biscuit, so that they would not step on and injure Roadkill, who would be unable to avoid them. Roadkill was allocated a cage in the living room.

On 3rd and 4th of January, I was a little concerned about Ernie. Her face was pale and yellowish, and she was being extra-careful to stay out of the way of all the Battery Hens, who would victimise her whenever possible. On 4th January I decided that Energiser was well enough to be taken outside, as the weather was mild, she had put on a little weight and her breathing had improved considerably. I took her out when I let the shed-living birds out - Energiser was wary of the other hens, who would chase her if she went anywhere near them. I stayed in the garden for a while, to keep an eye on Ernie and Energiser, who were both being bullied. By the end of the day, Energiser had integrated into the flock more, and Ernie was successfully keeping out of everyone's way. Energiser now sleeps in the shed with the other hens.

The 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th of January saw Roadkill's condition deteriorate. S/He became less able to balance around on his/her hocks, and would frequently slip over. On 4th January Roadkill could not walk at all, finding it easier to simply sit still with his/her head next to the food and water bowls. Apart from the leg problem, Roadkill seemed perfectly OK, continuing preening activities where possible, chirping to his/herself while preening, and eating well. Whenever it defecated, Roadkill would attempt to move away from the mess, sometimes overbalancing. Whenever Roadkill did overbalance, I would right him or her, remove any droppings, and place the bird back next to it's food and water. 5th January was a distressing day. Whenever Roadkill slipped over, it would cry out, straighten it's legs and was unable to take its' legs back into a bent position. The hocks would lock, causing Roadkill to panic and cry out in distress. I then had to gently lift the little bird up and very carefully and slowly move it's thighs backwards, which would unlock the hocks, enabling the legs to bend so that I could sit Roadkill on the floor of the cage again. We decided that if poor Roadkill was not any better by 7th January, I would take it to the Vet for euthanasia. Until then I would continue giving the Vitamin B treatment.

On 5th January I opened the shed door to find a large pile of grey feathers, about two handfuls, on the shed floor immediately under the perch Ernie had been sleeping on. I was shocked, and caught her. On inspection, I found that she was rapidly growing many new feathers under her old coat, which was falling out suddenly as the Brahma's had during November 1998. Her face was redder too, and she was happier about being in the flock, feeling more confident than yesterday.

On the morning of 6th January, Roadkill stood up by his/herself - not fully upright, but standing nonetheless ! I was amazed and overjoyed to see this.....perhaps Roadkill would recover, and not have to be put to sleep at the Vet's after all. As the morning continued, Roadkill was able to hobble from one end of the cage to the other, and was just about able to reach to preen feathers near it's tail.

However, 6th January saw Ernie's face look pale and yellowish again, and her earlobes were an un-natural-looking lurid bright yellow. I was shocked, and brought Ernie indoors for an inspection. She was still acting nervous and flighty, and was difficult to catch. She hated being held for the inspection, especially when I turned her onto her back so that I could check her vent area thoroughly. About one to two inches from her vent, on the breastbone side, I discovered what looked like a small hernia - a little bulge of skin (normally coloured) about one centimetre across, and protuding out for one centimetre at the most. Ernie did not express pain when I gently pressed it - it retracted back into her abdomen, and then came out again when I released the pressure. Ernie and the other hens had not been pecking at it, and did not even seem aware that it was there. Its prescence was much less worrying than the bright yellow earlobes, which concerned me. Could Ernie have developed liver disease, which would cause Jaundice?

I asked for advice about Ernie on the Bulletin Boards, and found that all hens with white earlobes experience this colour change when they are not laying. The yellow earlobe colour is caused by a build-up of pigment which would otherwise be used up in yolk when the hen lays. I recieved no answer about the hernia, and thus decided to wait and see if it caused any problems when Ernie begins laying eggs again.

On 11th January we had an extremely hard frost again, which did not thaw for the whole day. During the night it rained, and the rain froze onto the frost, causing 'black ice' all over the garden. So when I let the birds out on the morning of 12th January they had a brand new environment to experience ! The geese had no trouble with the ice, as they are sensible creatures. They slowly and carefully picked their way up the garden, skilfully avoiding the most slippery patches. Their large webbed feet spread out, the large surface area able to produce enough friction to allow them to walk. The hens, on the other hand, were not so sensible or equipped for slippery surfaces ! They all came bursting through the shed door as usual, in a flurry of feathers. Those who ran would blunder onto the icy ground, losing their footing with each step they took, and having to flap their wings manically to regain control. Those who flew slid spectacularly as soon as they tried to land, bumping into others and sending them sliding once again ! But soon the chickens realised that they could walk if they went slowly and cautiously, and soon got used to the 'black ice'.

By 12th January, Roadkill continued to recover, and was able to stand a little more effectively. S/He could straighten out one leg fully without it locking, place the foot on the ground properly and put weight on it. The toes of this foot now resist more if I push them, and the toes are starting to grip my finger a little, too. The other leg is also recovering, but much more slowly and Roadkill does not have as much control over it - the toes will not grip, and hardly resist when pushed forward lightly. However, Roadkill can now prop itself up to preen, and can now reach every feather easily. Soon Roadkill will be able to stand independantly on one leg, but it needs to build up some more muscle tone and practice balancing skills before this will be achieved.

Roadkill also made its first ever adult-sounding cluck on 12th January 1999. On inspection of Roadkill's tail feathers, it appears that they have stopped growing - indicating that Roadkill is probably a pullet. I then inspected Biscuit as well, and found the same result. However, this is not conclusive evidence that both birds are pullets - cockerel tail feathers may be yet to appear, in the next moult. It is interesting to see the difference in behavioural maturity of the two young birds. Roadkill has now learnt how to cluck, and will make an 'alarm call' sound if 'she' is disturbed suddenly. Biscuit, however, still chirps like a tiny chick and hides behind 'her' mother if 'she' feels vulnerable. Biscuit has made no sound resembling a cluck yet.

When I checked the birds' crops before I put them to bed, I found that Ernie's was almost empty. She had moulted out more feathers, had bare patches of skin with feathers forming and no insulation, and was shivering. I felt sorry for her, and brought her into the house where she could fill her crop and warm up. I let her loose on the living room floor, with a drink and some grain to pick up. Energiser, caged in the same room, clucked softly at Ernie but did nothing else. Roadkill was a different matter - she propped herself up on her hocks, stretched her neck and stared at Ernie, and made aggressive noises which sounded very adult considering her age. Ernie took a few steps toward Roadkill's cage, looked at her inquisitively and clucked a small greeting at her, then resumed exploring the living room floor. Roadkill continued to make aggressive noises.

Watching all this was from the top of the librenza was Clovis, the three-legged White Chipmunk. The chicken loose in the room was obviously intriguing him, and after a few minutes curiosity got the better of him. He climbed down from his vantage point and cautiously approached the hen, taking each tense nervous step with his eyes fixed on Ernie's, trying to read her every move so that he could retreat quickly if nescessary. As soon as she saw Clovis, Ernie stood stock still with one leg lifted, the foot poised for action if need be, her neck stretched upward and her head cocked to one side and angled down toward Clovis, keeping a very close eye on him. Clovis cautiously inched his way closer to Ernie, his tail waving, hind feet stamping and his head pointed up at Ernie. The hen did not react (she did't know how to !!), and stayed still. Clovis continued, and when he was half a foot away, Ernie moved her head position slightly, so that she could get a better look at the fascinating little creature in front of her. This move un-nerved Clovis, who scampered away and continued to watch from a safer vantage point. The two creatures, belonging to completely different Phyla, had just completed an encounter which had lasted for three to four minutes.

When Ernie had decided that she had explored the living room enough, she stood by the fire to warm up. She stood parallel with it, to warm the largest possible surface area of her body. She opened out all her feathers, standing them on end so that the fire's heat could reach her skin directly. She stayed like this for a while and closed her eyes, basking in the warmth, and then turned around to heat the other side of her body.

The Battery Hens' personalities continuing to develop. When the birds were first rescued on 31st October, they were almost indistinguishable, so I had issued them with colour coded rings so that I could identify them more easily. Now the hens have nearly recovered - most of their feathers have grown back, and the colour has returned to their combs and wattles - and I can now recognise each induvidual bird without looking at their leg rings. Uniross has become a very friendly little hen, and often comes to visit me while I work in the garden. She follows me and crouches at my feet, asking to be picked up and stroked. Varta, Ever-ready, Nicad and 9-Volt prefer to keep themselves to themselves wherever they can, and don't like to be picked up

Above: Uniross	Above: Duracell
Above: back - Prunella and Nicad. Centre: Duracell and Greencell. Front: Varta	Above; from left to right: Alkacell, Ever-ready and Nicad, now completely recovered. Their combs look pale because they have pale-coloured dried clay mud on them.
Above: Energiser	Above. Front to back: Ever-ready, Greencell, Lithium and Prunella. White Tara the Light Sussex hen is on the left of the picture.
Above: Greencell	Above: Lithium, the scruffiest Ex-Battery Hen. She has been slower than the other birds at replacing her feathers.
Above: Nicad	Above: 9-Volt

Above: Biscuit chick, now three months old (left), and Michael Caine Alan Partridge Brahma (right).

Above: Michael Caine Alan Partridge Brahma and Biscuit.

Above: Biscuit

Above: Roadkill

Right: Roadkill, now three months old. Roadie is continuing to recover, slowly but surely. I still suspect that it is female, as the tail feathers have not grown any longer. She has become a very calm and friendly little bird, who appears to enjoy human company.

This and all above pictures of Biscuit, Roadkill and Michael Caine Alan Partridge Brahma were taken on 15th January 1999.

Biscuit is progressing well, but is still very psychologically dependant on the Brahma. If I take the Brahma away for more than twenty seconds, little Biscuit gets anxious and calls for her. Soon, Michael Caine Alan Partridge Brahma and Biscuit will be moved into the Poultry Ark to live outside permanently. I am currently in the process of felting the Ark roof, to make it waterproof and habitable once again.

Above: Ernie, 21st January 1999, still in mid-moult, still scraggy-looking. Notice her yellow earlobes - these are usually white while she is laying.

At the present moment the Ex-Battery hens are looking almost as though they have always been 'normal' hens, and have never had to endure the commercial intensive farming conditions they were rescued from. On 21st January 1999 I inspected each bird closely, and gave her a small progress report:

Hen Name:	Feather Replacement Progress:
Duracell	Many feathers growing on the back and front of her neck, and some on her belly and under wings. Wing primaries and tail feathers have not been replaced yet.
Varta	All feathers replaced apart from the tail.
Uniross	All feather replacement nearly complete, only a few feathers to replace on wing tip primaries and tail.
Alkacell	All feathers replaced. A few are still growing on her neck, and her tail is in the process of being replaced.
Greencell	First four primaries on her wings still need to be replaced, tail in process of replacement. All other feathers replaced.
Energiser	All feathers replaced except her wing primaries and tail.
Ever-Ready	Still growing feathers on the leading edges of her wings, a few in her tail, and some on the back and front of her neck. All other feathers have been replaced except the first primary of each wing.
Nicad	A smattering of feathers growing all over her body. She still needs to replace the first wing primary and her tail.
9-Volt	All feathers replaced apart from tail and wing tip primaries.
Lithium	Feathers are still growing all over her body. Only her back feathers have been completely replaced.

The new long feathers which the hens have just grown on their wings show an interesting phenomenon. There are horizontal lines across the feathers. These lines consist of thinner, weaker-looking feather structure. Lines like this are caused when a bird is slightly stressed while the feather grows, the times of stress exactly corresponding with the position of the lines. This is similar to the ridges we sometimes see on our fingernails, or on horses' hooves. The ex-Battery Hens have these stress lines as a result of the rescue from the Battery Unit, and the hens having to adjust to a totally different environment. The feathers they produce at their next moult should be perfect. I suspect that Duracell and some of the other birds may be just beginning another moulting or partial moulting session.

Above: the second lot of new feathers Duracell is
growing on the back of her neck.

Above: Duracell. Her twisted beak can clearly be seen in this close-up,
as can her beautiful orange eye. The discoloured patches all over
her face and beak are simply dried mud.

All the hens have pretty-coloured eyes, ranging from a pale
greenish shade to a clear, deep, vibrant orange. A few birds have dark
orange rays extending radially from the pupil, and/or a dark
ring around the perimeter of the iris.

Above: Greencell (left), enjoying a dust bath in an area she has
hollowed out herself, while Lithium forages around her.

Above (from left to right): Alkacell, Uniross and 9-Volt

Also on 21st January I did some digging work in the front garden. I brought Ernie with me, so that she could catch and eat any worms or grubs I unearthed. Ernie is usually a trusting and trustworthy hen, but while she has been moulting she has been much more sensitive and vigilant than usual. She was happy to stay and forage for insects for a while, but then began to feel uncomfortable and decided to make her way back around to the back garden where she felt more secure. I followed her, to make sure there were no loose dogs or cats around to frighten her, and opened the back garden gate for her.

When I returned to the front garden, I brought Energiser with me, to take advantage of the insects my digging unearthed. Energiser is a trustworthy chicken, and reliable enough to allow me to leave her in the front garden on her own while I make a quick cup of tea in the house. It is vital that I only let trustworthy birds loose in the front garden, and at one at a time only. This is because the front garden is not properly fenced, and there is a major road nearby. The garden is raised six feet higher than the road, which is accessible via a flight of stone steps. If a chicken were to wander down these steps and onto the busy road, a bad accident would probably be caused, especially as a hen is not the usual type of animal to be loose on a road, and this would surprise and distract the vehicle drivers even more. However, I doubt that a chicken would have the courage to wander onto the unfamiliar tarmac surface, and would definitely be terrified by the large, noisy, fast-moving traffic.

Energiser was thoroughly enjoying herself with the grass in the front garden, pecking at it enthusiastically. I decided to collect the lighter birds from the back garden and put them in an enclosure on the lush grass, so that they could benefit from the extra nutrients in the foliage, and hopefully put on some more weight.

On 21st January I put Michael Caine Alan Partridge Brahma and little Biscuit in the back garden. I kept the rest of the flock occupied by giving them some grain to find in the brambly area at the top of the garden, while I placed Biscuit in a large cage, and the Brahma next to the cage. They did not mind being apart, as long as they could see each other. I had decided to place Biscuit in the cage for her own protection (if the rest of the flock attacked her, they would kill her because she is still so small and vulnerable, and has not yet learnt to defend herself against such an onslaught), and left the Brahma out so that she could forage freely and protect her chick effectively. I gave them both some grain and left them to it.

The rest of the flock were occupied for some time, and slowly some birds filtered down the garden to investigate the newcomers. These were White Tara, Varta and Nicad. I did not see any fighting, the Brahma stood concernedly nearby while Varta and White Tara went right up to the wire and stared fascinatedly at the young bird in the cage. Biscuit stared amazedly back, probably taken aback by the sight of a white hen and the gingery red hens, because the only large hen she had seen until now was the brown-and-gold partridge Brahma. The adult birds did not intimidate Biscuit at all, but White Tara clearly displayed her position in the pecking order by asserting authority over the other birds - raising her hackles at them, causing them to stand stock still submissively, or move out of her way. Interestingly, she did not attack the Brahma.

The geese sensed that something was happening at the bottom of the garden, too, and slowly made their way down. Sian hung back to observe from a safe distance, while Pseudo-Swan approached Biscuit's cage curiously. Biscuit stared back, wide eyed, and Michael Caine Alan Partridge Brahma bravely stood next to the cage flapping her wings to try to put off the approaching gander. Pseudo-Swan ignored the Brahma, stretched his neck cautiously toward the cage and continued to move forward slowly and silently. When his beak was within two inches of the cage, Biscuit suddenly jumped away from the gander, flapping her wings and crying out in alarm. This shocked Pseudo-Swan, who jumped with surprise, immediately withdrew his neck, turned around and ran back up the garden as fast as he possibly could on his short goose legs, closely followed by Sian !!

Above: Michael Caine Alan Partridge Brahma and Biscuit foraging in the garden.

When all the birds had seen Biscuit, and got used to her prescence in the cage, they all made their way back up the garden, where I fenced them in. I then let Biscuit out of the cage, and she quickly scampered away. At first little Biscuit was taken aback by the sheer size of the outside world, and ran about randomly, losing contact with her mother and chirping loudly and concernedly. She flew up onto the fence with the ease of a sparrow, and continued chirping. Immediately I caught her and clipped her wing, so that she would not be able to escape from the safe confines of the garden in future.

After Biscuit had taken stock of her surroundings and calmed down a little, Michael Caine Alan Partridge Brahma taught her to forage for the tastiest morsels by digging into the mud to find worms and grubs, and scraping through foliage to disturb the insects hiding there.

For the next three days Biscuit and Brahma spent their days in the garden, coming into the house again at night. The Brahma uses tact when protecting her chick from the other fowl. Instead of fluffing up and aggressively confronting an approaching bird, the Brahma makes herself look as small and inconspicuous as possible. She quickly and quietly leads Biscuit away to a safe place out of sight of the others, who then ignore her. Occaisionally Biscuit has been pecked on the head by a curious Battery Hen - interestingly, the Brahma has made no attempt to protect or defend her chick, she simply observes and calls to Biscuit, who finds it easy to escape the larger hens as she is smaller, quicker and more agile.

Hen Name:	Feather Replacement Progress:
Ernie	In full heavy moult all over her body.
Prunella	Just starting a new moult.
White Tara	No evidence of moulting.
Michael Caine Alan Partridge Brahma	No evidence of moulting.
Duracell	In full heavy moult all over her body.
Varta	All feathers replaced. No new moult starting.
Uniross	All feather replacement nearly complete, only two feathers to replace on wing tip primaries.
Alkacell	All feathers replaced.
Greencell	First three primaries on her wings still need to be replaced. All other feathers replaced.
Energiser	All feathers replaced except her wing primaries and tail.
Ever-Ready	All feathers have been replaced. New moult has started - growing feathers on the leading edges of her wings, a few in her tail, and some on the back and front of her neck.
Nicad	All feathers replaced. A smattering of feathers growing all over her body - new moult has commenced.
9-Volt	All feathers replaced apart from first wing primary.
Lithium	Feathers are still growing all over her body. Only her back feathers have been completely replaced.

I also discovered that a few birds (Lithium, Varta, Energiser and Uniross) had mites, so I treated the whole flock again with Derris Dust, and built them a brand new dustbath, filling it with sand and Derris Dust. I also removed all straw and hay (which mites can hide in) from the birds' roosting and laying quarters, replacing it with shredded paper.

Left and below: Ernie hen, still in mid-moult. Currently she only has one tail feather left. She is in the process of replacing her head feathers first, and has nearly finished her new crest, which is looking very smart.

The newly-sprouted back and body feathers are a soft slaty blue with a hint of lavender, and are darker than her old feathers. The old feathers have faded due to exposure to sunlight and the elements for the past year. They are browner than the brand new feathers. Ernie's new breast feathers are coming through as a delicate salmon colour - the majority of the old breast feathers have now been shed.

Above: Duracell. Currently Duracell is moulting extremely heavily. She has lost most of her wing primaries, a good proportion of her body feathers, and all of her tail feathers. While in this state she has the nickname of 'Scraggy-no-tail'.

Left: the hens and geese foraging at the top of the garden. The hen in the foreground is Ever-Ready.

Michael Caine Alan Partridge Brahma and Biscuit have been living permanently in the Poultry Ark in the front garden for the last three days of January. The build-up to this was gradual; I would leave the birds in the Ark for longer periods, bringing them back into the house progressively later as the days went by. They spent their first night in the Ark when the weather was frost-free, so that they could adjust slowly to the changes in temperature. These first few nights were quite stressful and confusing for them, and both birds needed to be encouraged to perch, instead of trying to roost on the Ark floor. Each time I closed the door of the Ark, Biscuit would cry out for the Brahma, anxious because she couldn't see her in the dark, and jump off the perch in an attempt to locate her - so I kept reassuring Biscuit by placing her back on the perch, and under the Brahma's wing. On the first morning, when I opened the Ark's pop-hole, the little family were too confused to emerge at first, but soon realised that they could when I put some food down for them ! By the following morning, the hen and pullet were behaving normally.

Little Roadkill is still undergoing vitamin treatment, and is still progressing, slowly but surely. She now lives in the upstairs cage which the Brahma and Biscuit had occupied, and this gives her more room to exercise and strengthen her weak leg muscles. Roadkill's left leg is now fully usable and the foot works properly - the right leg is also usable, but the foot needs to strengthen, straighten and recover more. I am now confident that little Roadkill will survive to adulthood, but I am not sure whether the recovery will be perfect. If not, then Roadkill will not be able to live with the rest of the flock without being bullied..