[melholly]

...to worry about animal wise having just dipped my toe back in the duck waters. My Retriever ahem 'retrieved' a female pheasant off the field yesterday. Unbeknown to me he started playing with her chicks....by the time I found him Mum etc were dead. One chick survived.

I felt pretty awful and in a real conundrum. So I gathered she'd probably die of shock anyway but put her in a cardboard box in the garage food, seed etc and waited till the morning expecting to find her dead. When I opened the door she's there on top of the said box chirping away at me! I'd guess she's 1-2 weeks old, fully feathered, wings developing etc. I've phoned a friend who reared pheasant who made it clear chick crumbs/seed seem the best thing with water and also not to contaminate anything with my ducks as pheasant can carry a harmful disease...

So put her in an old cold frame, lined with straw. She's been eating and drinking. What the blazes my plan is now I have no idea other than I gather they fly after about 45 days so I hope to be able to release her.

So many moral crossovers it's been very difficult already!

Mx

[doganjo]

My ducks get retrieved most days, but always 'to hand' unharmed, due to being bred for soft mouths and trained for working.  But I don't know what I'd do with a pheasant now, as I didn't know they carry a duck disease.  I'd have been keeping the chick in with the rest of my birds and might have had a disaster.  Thanks for that info!

[melholly]

My dopey lab seems to think they are all like his softie toys. He gets them them starts shaking them wagging his tail.....Anyway, having lost my first lot of ducks to DVE as soon as I heard 'disease' being mentioned that was enough to get me to question my sanity. Figured if no ducks equipment is cross contaminated and hands are always washed should be ok. Plus chick is in the garden, ducks on on the land 4 acres away. It was my 'duck man' who told me - he also breed ornamental pheasant and an abundance of things. Not that he could remember which disease it was and I've tried searching google to find out as if it's the dreaded DVE then chick will be straight off to our local wildfowl sanctuary!!

Mx

[jaykay]

Well they both suffer from coccidiosis and gape worm, so it could be either of those I suppose - both treatable. Can't find any reference to pheasants carrying DVE  

My collie once came out of some undergrowth looking suspicious and when i looked closely there were two little legs sticking out of his mouth and kicking wildly. I made him give me it and it was a live pheasant chick  We put it back and hoped mama pheasant came and fetched it once we'd gone.

[doganjo]

Both can contract Necastle disease too, and anumber of other diseases common to all game birds.

[melholly]

ooo she's a fiesty thing - just watched her catching flying ants! Go chick!

Mx