Goodbye Mr Kipling

undautri

i thought we were winning on Weds afternoon when Kips started feeding himself and taking water on his own . He even managed to escape the hospital pen and saunter out the garden , where i left him for a while - he looked much better and was eating normally . But yesaterday morning he was back to being weak again and steadily worsened until he finally passed in Rachels arms this morning. He fought to the very end bless him
Cant stop crying - gonna really miss him
x Kath

sandiesbrahmas

I'm So sorry, Kath. Cocks don't tend to live long, do they? How old was he?

My Old Gordon was about 9, but he was a real exception.

He's had a great life, though, hasn't he? Not many cocks do.

undautri

thanks Sandie
thats the trouble - he was only 2 so no age at all . i can only assume there was something radically wrong inside as there were no obvious symptoms that i could see
x Kath

sandiesbrahmas

Most cocks are often short-lived though, aren't they? All that strutting and crowing seems to age them quickly. It does sound as though Mr K had some nasty internal problems, though.

My A***hole just dropped down dead in front of me aged just over 2.....but a great big Brahma boy, so probably stroke or heart attack. Nasty aggressive thing. He was the one who survived a power outage for 8 hours, overheating and dropping/breaking his egg during incubation. I think the bright pink nail varnish I sealed his egg with must have scarred him for life. Saved OH the job of removing his head after he'd attacked me and just about every other thing that appeared anywhere on site. My old dog was terrified of him.

A***hole left behind a son, named AJ (for A***hole Junior)....all of the looks and, unfortunately, all of the aggro. As I have another (nice temperament) Blue Partridge Brahma boy named Mr Glas, his days are numbered. Now, if you're short of a beautiful big boy......he's yours.....I'm sure he'd make a great chicken soup!

Beyond all the joking, though, if you want a few fertile eggs, just let me know. They are, as you will remember, more than likely to be cockerels!

undautri

thanks for the offer Sandie , very kind but after the problems with Mr Kipling we cant face a new cockerel yet even one of your gorgeous brahmas who incidently wouldnt need to get a leg over with Buffy, just a foot shes so tiny ):. may start looking for some more little hens though .......................
x Kath

solarbats

Sorry to hear about young Kips Kath. He had the best nurse possible, and I like to think they hang on because they love their life with you so much.
Maybe the best remedy for you would be rescued batties?

undautri

thanks Helen . He was a house chicken for his first 7 months so Rachel and i are both missing him still like mad
ive looked at rescue sites lately for bhwt and fsfh but neither have drop off sites anywhere near swansea . i dont drive so going to another county is out of the question
x Kath

solarbats

I'm sad for those hens Kath - what a retirement they would have with you!

It is worth checking with them because in most cases they have a volunteer who relays a few hens to other places, so they might come closer than you think.

undautri

fsfh have just posted that they were offered to rescue 8000 hens but cant do it because theyve got 4 rescues already lined up one after the other , the nearest is in north wales.
bhwt do have swansea listed but theres never any on when i look
x kath

sandiesbrahmas

Now you sure you don't want those eggs?

Sandie

solarbats

fsfh are great, although they mostly rescue ex free rangers, who are underwhelmed when they see a garden! In my experience they take longer to settle in than exbats, who find a new delight every day! Just my opinion of course. Obviously I hope that one day there won't be any battery hens at all.

sandiesbrahmas

Helen, I think they should have been banned many moons ago, but the likes of you turn their 'senior years' into 'golden years'. Poor things think a garden is a universe after they have 'lived...and that word is really misused....in such horrible confinement. That having been said my free rangers are SO lazy....they live between the chicken coop and the sheep shed (about 100 yards between the two) when they have acres to roam. At least they stay pretty safe most of the time due to their 'home bird' behaviour.
I've just ordered 6 Ayam Cemani eggs. If the post doesn't scramble them, then they're likely to be cockerels, but, hey WHAT cockerels.! If they get left out at night, nobody will see them!

undautri

theyre stunning cockerels Sandie . lol wont see them at night ....only their eyes , spooky
helen i second that wish for freedom for hens and all those other poor farm animals kept in cages
x Kath