Caramel’s progress and more new perches

As usual when I went out at first light Caramel was still in the chicken shed. I left her in with me while I poop picked and then bought her in for her meds. I left her in the cat box with her dish of treats and water and she had a good feed.

There are a few positives here. Caramel is really easy to handle and already seems very used to me picking her and giving her the meds and for such a little girl she has quite a big beak. I have become very used to administering meds and water to her beak. She has a tiny head with a big beak in comparison.

I have also become very attached to her while caring for her so closely. I am really pleased she is eating but I wish her eye would show more improvement. It is still closed a lot of the time.

Later I put her back out in the run. It was better weather today and I want to keep her with the flock, especially Pebbles, as much as possible.

I am going to continue giving her a second dose of meds at half past three. This seems to be helping with her pain at the end of the day and also allows her to have two feeds a day instead of one.

Back in the run Caramel and Pebbles spent their time sitting together on the top of the nest box (little coop).

We decided it would be a good idea to give them a perch on the patio area and also to improve on the bedtime perch. The bedtime perch didn’t allow much space between them and the shed wall plus being attached to a wooden block it would give somewhere for mites to hide which is an added problem we don’t need right now.

We went to our local D.I.Y. store and bought some brackets.

The newly modified bedtime perch

I show Pebbles the new bedtime perch

The little girls doze on top of the nest box

Pebbles looks so cute with her head under her wing.

Another new perch on the patio area

I show Pebbles this new perch too

At bedtime Caramel wanted to go in early but Pebbles didn’t and then later seemed confused once more about where to go. Caramel had gone to their usual corner.

Once again I helped them as again the perch has changed. Once we get a proper routine established I think they will get used to it but at the moment while we are fine tuning the perches I think it’s best to help them along so I put them on the new perch.

I put the little girls on the new bedtime perch

I checked back ten minutes later and they were settled.

The little girls are settled on the new perch

I think this routine with Caramel may have to continue for a long time as she is improving very very slowly. She is eating, drinking and pooping and her poops are normal. At this stage in the game I know all about chicken poop and what is healthy and what isn’t from past experience, so this is all good. This afternoon on the top of the nest box she was preening a little so that too is a good sign.

I know from when Amber had a swollen face that these things can take a very long time to get back to normal. I would like to see her eye open more of the time but on the whole she is making progress so I am happy with that and prepared for the long haul back to recovery.