Less Than Perfect

Who longs to read a true story with a good ending instead of Coronavirus posts? If you like animal stories, this one is for you.

In the last couple blog posts, I shared the reasons for and against helping a chick hatch. This week I share a story about a Swedish Flower Hen chick that I did not help hatch, but still it presented a deformity.

It pipped in a bad spot and was positioned in the incubator where I did not even see it had pipped.

Over night it hatched on its own despite not pipping in the best spot.

I felt concern for what I found.

What you are looking at: An area of the abdomen that did not close properly allowing a part of the internal organs to protrude. In my mind, opening the chick up for infection.

Day 1

I know that it had a rough chance ahead of it, but I could not bring myself to cull the little thing.

When I lightly pushed on that spot not only did it move, the chick passed a small amount of feces.

I figured I can always cull it later if it becomes as sick as I think it might. I went ahead and moved it to the brooder with the other chicks after it had dried in the incubator.

Day 2

Today the chick seemed to be holding its own. I needed to clean a small amount of poo from its vent that was hardened over it. This is called pasty butt, if you are new to caring for little chicks.

Day 3

Another day of cleaning pasty butt, but the little thing was lively enough, enthusiastic about eating and drinking.

Day 4

My heart ached when I seen all the poop stuck, not only over it’s vent but on its side. Looking at the picture below: All the area that is missing feathers was covered in poop.

Day 5

I felt horrified at the mess I found on day 5. How could this little chick go from a slight pasty 2 days ago to the nasty, gooey, stinky mess I found today? The feces caked all over its rear and the back part of its side.

It smelled bad, like when there is an infection. I debated ending its life right then. Knowing how little chicks peck at everything, I figured the other chicks may injest some of the nasty feces. The potential to make the whole group sick felt like a real possibility.

Yet, that soft heart of mine wanted to give it a chance.

Despite allowing moisture to soak into it, I am sure it hurt a little as I worked to remove the nasty, goopy, crud. The picture below shows how sunk in the chick was. I was thinking it might benefit from antibiotics.

Imagine my joy finding almost no pasty but on Day 6. The little chick wanted to eat and drink as always. It continued to hold its own over the next few days.

Week 1: The chick had not grown a bit during the first week. All the other chicks were 2 times it’s size.

Day 10

Around day 8 or 9 when I seen the protrusion dried up and fell off, I thought, ‘Amazing. Thank you Lord, this little thing may have a chance yet.’

M. Graber

Day 18

Week 2: Over the last week it is obvious the chick is growing, but is about 1/2 the size of the other chicks it hatched with.

These deformities happen occasionally no matter if a chick is helped during hatching process or not. They do seem to present themselves more often when a chick has been helped out, but certainly not every time.

Hatching chicks presents beauty and painful moments as anytime we care for and raise babies. I think we long for all to be perfect, but that is not the way this world operates.

I am excited I spent the extra time investing into the life of this little chick. Those times I spent a few extra minutes, cleaning the stuck on poop and making sure it had access to heat, food and water. While not a huge time or energy draw for me, it made a difference of life an death to that little chick.

Had I decided to let that chick go and not take the time to deal with its pasty butt, it would have died. That day the sticky poop was smeared all over the rear of the chick, not only would the chick died, the others might have picked up something. I took a risk on the little thing.

How can we take a few minutes out of our day to make a difference in the lives others today, this week, this month as our community feels fear and uncertainty that surrounds all we have heard about Covid-19 or the Coronavirus? Maybe we are being ask to take a risk? Maybe not.

I love the way this chick has pulled through and seems to be growing. It is a feisty thing that manages to wiggle in and get to the feed and water.

Christ and our Human Spiritual Deformities

I see a parallel between the life of this chick and my own. I need help to face my days more often than I don’t. My daily time with Christ provides me with the support I need to get through my struggles.

If you need peace that passes understanding, Christ sits on the throne and none of this caught him by surprise. This is where my daily peace comes from. Let me tell you it has taken me a few hours to get there some days. 

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