#the seller sold me birds with a genetic leg defect

[sassyhazelowl]

Annoyed about being given birds with issues. Now that I've gotten the valleys separated out in pairs and they're less flighty, I've noticed that while the 3 roosters are in pretty good shape the 3 hens are less so. One has an overgrown beak, which is nbd, but it means how she was kept before didn't allow her to grind down her beak appropriately (she's been grinding it down since I got her, so thankfully it doesn't look like I have to do it - overgrown beaks get in the way of eating and they can break causing a nasty injury). Another one has a squinty eye, which indicates, most likely, a low grade infection on the eye itself or internally. It isn't too bad yet and appears to be improving already, but I may have to catch her and treat it. The third one is a mess; she has paralysis in her toes, which makes them curled and crooked. The way she walks tells me she has probably been like this since she was a chick. This indicates that either her parents or she or both were not feed appropriate food as this is most often caused by a vitamin deficiency.

I already know the guy wasn't feed them the greatest food because they reeked so bad when I got them I had to move them out of the box and throw it away b/c it was stinking up the room. They also don't seem to know what pellets/crumbles are and prefer to eat seeds/grass only. IDK why people can't be bothered to feed their animals appropriate diets. I see it in my chicken/quail groups all the time. Just stop being stingy and pay a few more bucks to invest in the health of your animals. Gamebird feed is not that much more expensive than chicken feed. Chickens need feed not just free ranging and scraps. Also, this is why you quarantine!!! I almost never take in adult animals for this exact reason. I almost exclusively get eggs from trusted sellers now - any chicks that hatch automatically get a 6 week quarantine via the brooder. New animals can bring in all kinds of nasties, especially if you don't know how they were kept before you got them and what precautions the previous owner took to mitigate risks.