Chicken is Bored!

I'm feeling much better thanks...

Just over a week with the bandages and my little inside chicken is a bored and noisy chicken. Sorry darling, but you need isolation and rest and can't be trusted! After several hours of noise there was sudden silence. I checked on her and found her on top of her box wondering how to get down again. Well you got up there so you can get down!

The bandage lasted a week before she managed to rip off a section that secures under her belly to hold the wing in the right position. We've patched it with clothtape which she is not happy about. She has started to walk sideways and backwards in an attempt to get the yucky bandage off.

The new dog cage is excellent for her and it folds up so we can store it easily. She has a little nest box and room to stand and walk while being completely enclosed and safe while we're at work. Her favourite time is when I open the door to clean and feed her for the day and out she pops to have a walk around the kitchen. I've moved her so that she can't see as much open space during the day to make her feel more secure but she still gets plenty of light.

To stave off boredom I bought her a mirror and some little balls (cat toys) to play with, but she hasn't been very interested in them when I've watched her. She also has a variety of food, shell grit and some grass from outside as well as mash with ground up cuttlefish for calcium at night. I also sprinkle sunflower seeds (her favourite) in her cage so she has to look for them.

She has started to enjoy having a cuddle and a scratch in the last 2-3 days. I think she is getting very itchy and frustrated at not being able to dust bath. The feathers are starting to get a bit messy.

Three more weeks till she can get the bandage off and be reintroduced to the others. The pecking order will have changed and she will have to reassert herself, but I think we're all looking forward to it.