I said in the comments this morning that I may have been wrong about Shadow having her next egg stuck as mid morning she was so enthusiastic when I hand fed her some spinach.
I added another comment when I next checked on her and she had gone downhill again. I think that she had just had her last hurrah. I took a couple of photos as I wasn’t sure if her face was paler.
Closer up I think her face is still as red but a little later she was back in the position with her back up and her tail down and her eyes were closing. I know that when their eyes are closing this is not good.
Shadow looked miserable and uncomfortable. I knew I couldn’t let her suffer and that it was time to ring the vet. I got an appointment for quarter to three.
The vet was so kind. I explained everything from five weeks ago until now. She felt Shadow’s abdomen and said that she had a large egg stuck and she thought there was a smaller one behind it. I was surprised because Shadow had always laid tiny eggs.
The vet said that she was surprised that Shadow had managed to poop at all. She lifted Shadow’s wings and said that she thought straining had given Shadow some nerve damage.
I can only assume that the last egg, five weeks ago, was also large and had caused the problem and also resulted in Shadow being unable to expel her poop properly.
The vet agreed that the kindest thing for her was to put her to sleep. I asked if I could hold her and she was so kind. She said she would squirt the anesthetic up her vent and then I could hold her.
It would take five to ten minutes for her to gently go to sleep. She pulled up a chair and put Shadow on a towel on my lap and dimmed the light and left the room saying she would return in five minutes to check on us.
The vet came back and lifted Shadow’s eyelid to check her and said that she would leave us a few minutes more. I was of course in tears but the vet was so kind.
I feel so upset that this has happened to such a young girl and can’t understand why after laying tiny eggs Shadow should produce a larger egg.
I have grown so close to Shadow over the last five weeks of caring for her and picking her up every day but I know that it was time to let her go. I will do a tribute to her in a few days time but it is too raw at the moment.
Click here to see the history of my flock.
So very sorry, Carol – it is an emotional wrench, but a decision that had to be taken: we can’t ever leave them to suffer, once we know that they are. She was a lovely bird and will be a loss. My thoughts are with you. X
Thank you. I knew I couldn’t let her suffer but it is so hard. She was so lovely and it seems so unfair when she was only young. I will so miss her. X
I’m so so sorry Carol – so sad! xx
I know. I haven’t been able to stop crying all evening. xx
So sad, but it was for the best for her, We are thinking of you, we know how hard it is when we loose our beloved pets. xxx
Thank you. I know that you know how hard it is. xxx
Carol I’m so, so sorry to hear this. I know exactly what you mean about getting close to her over the last few weeks – I’ve had that with a few girls and it does make it even harder when you lose them. I think maybe for the girls it is perhaps better because they get more comfortable being handled so hopefully it is a comfort for them when you’re there with them.
Well done for putting Shadow first – it would have been easier to just leave her – you did the right thing x
I think you are right that it made it better for Shadow that she was so used to being handled. When the vet examined her and then gave her the anesthetic she said how good Shadow was and I said that she was very used to being handled. Then I held her on my lap and gently talked to her. I felt that she would have felt safe with me. She never at any time in the vets tried to struggle. It would have been so much more awful if she had been scared. It was very peaceful and gentle but the tears were streaming from me. I really miss her and the run seems sort of empty without her x