A Kirkby Malzeard woman’s warmth and human kindness has saved the life of a three-day-old chick.
Maisie Clark found the baby bird limp and unresponsive on her henhouse floor.
She told the Stray Ferret:
“The temperature had dropped sharply the night before.
“Somehow, the chick had become separated from its mum and I thought the worst.”
The tiny chick got separated from mother hen Betty the Bantam, pictured above
However, when Maisie picked up the seemingly lifeless body, she felt a small movement.
She tucked the tiny creature inside her top, hoping to replicate the body heat that a mother hen would usually provide.
Maisie, who has a two-year-old son, Brodie, pointed out:
“For newborn babies, skin to skin contact is important. It’s the same in the animal kingdom, especially for small, delicate creatures.”
She set off in her car on some errands, chick and all, and the moment of triumph came a couple of hours later:
“First I felt some movement and then I heard chirping – it was like a little miracle!
“The chick had revived and I was able to reunite it with its mother Betty.”
Now named Lucky, the fluffy brown chick is doing well and back in the henhouse along with its two siblings.
It even has a ‘guard dog’, as nine-year-old chihuahua, Alfie – himself a rescue animal – is very protective of the hens.
Maisie explained:
“He acts as if he’s the dad and it’s his job to look after the baby.”
The Clark family has a history of caring for small creatures. Maisie’s mother Liz has rescued, fostered and adopted scores of animals, including hedgehogs, cats, dogs and birds.
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Maisie said:
COLUMN: Rescued ex-breeding dogs need special love…“I grew up in a house full of all kinds of animals and was always taught to love and care for them.
“No matter how small, all creatures facing difficulty or danger deserve their chance in life.”
This column is written for the Stray Ferret by Kimberley Metcalfe. Kimberley has an MSc in Applied Animal Behaviour and Welfare. Her company Pooches Galore is based in Harrogate and specialises in dog training and resolving canine behavioural problems.
After seeing Gracie on the Stray Pets Rescue Club my heart went out to her. Although I don’t know about Gracie’s situation personally sometimes rehoming ex-breeding bitches can be challenging.
Gracie, if you haven’t read about her, had been used for breeding to make money and was abandoned after reaching the maximum age for reproducing. She’d given birth to around 30 puppies in her lifetime – as a result she has been left with a large caesarean scar. She was featured in the Stray Pets Rescue Club seeking a new owner.
Often dogs who are kept purely for breeding haven’t had the same start in life as other dogs. They haven’t had the same life experiences and so don’t have the same expectations.
Although there is a great divide between bitches who are family pets, loved and treated like queens while they are pregnant and beyond, there is a darker side to breeding where dogs are kept as commodities. Used purely to make money from the puppies, once they have made the owners enough money they are discarded.
This latter group of dogs often struggle in new homes. They often haven’t lived in a family home before, they haven’t even had a comfortable bed to sleep in, so everything is new to them. It does take them some time to settle in to this new, luxurious life.
There are a number of things to consider when you take on an ex breeding bitch, all of which can be overcome with patience and love.
Often these dogs are not housetrained, having never lived in a house before so they have no understanding that there are areas that they can toilet and areas that they cannot.
They may never have been on a walk. Going out on a lead and collar is completely alien to them, as is the big outside world. This can be very overwhelming: the sights, smells and textures that they experience for the first time. I remember working with a standard poodle who had been used as a breeding bitch in a puppy farm who had never walked on grass before, the joy that it brought not only her but me also when she was leaping about was one of the best moments of my career!
Sometimes they are just shut down, they don’t know what to expect, that people can be kind to them, that they are safe as this not been the case in the past.
But I promise it is not all doom and gloom. Bringing home such a dog to live with you is one of the most rewarding experiences. All they need is some time and space to feel safe and to feel loved and they make the most loyal and caring of dogs.
We are delighted that Kimberley is to become a regular monthly columnist for The Stray Ferret. If you have any doggy questions please contact her by email on kim@poochesgalore.co.uk For more information on Pooches Galore click here.
Ripon hedgehog rescue centre forgotten in coronavirus crisisIt is six years since animal lovers Jacqui and Peter Morrell set up the HAPPY hedgehog rescue centre in Ripon.
Since 2014, they have saved the lives of hundreds of the endanger creatures through Hedgehog Appreciation Prickly Pals Yorkshire – an acronym that Jacqui thought up on a day out in Scarborough.
From that trip to the coast, the couple could hardly have expected the demand that there would be for their services, which have seen them involved in the rescue of up to 1,000 hedgehogs.
Jacqui told the Stray Ferret:
“We get calls day and night from people in many parts of the country who have found an injured or poorly hedgehog. If they are calling from somewhere that is a long way from Ripon, we refer them to the hedgehog rescue centre that is closest to them.”
HAPPY is part of a nationwide network of hedgehog rescue and preservation organisations and Jacqui and Peter can also refer callers to centres in Italy and Cyprus if required.
In good hands – a hoglet that is being looked after by HAPPY
The need for these organisations has increased year on year. In July The International Union for the Conservation of Nature put hedgehogs on its Red List for British Mammals classified as being ‘vulnerable to extinction’.
It is ironic that the announcement should come in a summer when rescue centres across the UK have had fears for their own survival, as fundraising and awareness events, including Hedgehog Awareness Week in May, were cancelled because of the coronavirus crisis.
Jacqui, pointed out:
“We feel we are the forgotten victims of the COVID-19 pandemic, despite the fact that the need for our services has increased.”
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HAPPY, which is registered with the British Hedgehog Society, has achieved a 75% success rate in the rehabilitation and return to the wild of creatures that are among the country’s best-loved animals.
Jacqui and Peter, who have become skilled in the care and treatment of the animals in the HAPPY Hogspital Unit and the hedgehog hotel they have created in their garden, are thankful for the support received from Bondgate Pet Supplies, Bishopton Vets practice and the Ripon community.
With fundraising activities such as talks to community groups currently suspended, the need for help in cash and kind continues and anybody who would like to help them in their work can find out more on the HAPPY Facebook page.