Re: do chickens ever sleep?

<dh@.> wrote in message news:q8ct23drdbirvkucr0o0dbrf3nm6h36l3c@xxxxxxxxxx

I *am* convinced of that. I've seen situations where I was surprised
the birds could survive on a person's yard at all, much less fight for
their lives and win.

look, i agree with you about neglect.

but for mine the disturbing aspect of animal-fighting is that it's
a warped situation created by people who like watching fights & bloodshed
for their own weird reasons.

Game fowl are unique among fighting animals because of their
gameness, and also for other reasons. For one thing many of them
are beautiful:

http://tinyurl.com/8zn5s
http://tinyurl.com/4ay26
http://tinyurl.com/4kw4r
http://tinyurl.com/2q279u

they certainly are! i have 7 game hens myself (i eventually tracked their
breed down as old english game) and, after a few months looking terribly
ratty after they came to me, i've fixed them all up & they are just
spectacular! 6 are the standard colour, but one is silver and bronze & she's
just so beautiful. they're really, really lovely.

i find the flighty element to their personalities really wearing, though, so
i can honestly say i doubt i'll get any more game hens. :-) but that's just
me. i can certainly understand why people keep pet hens just for how lovely
they are.

they also often have a more natural life than commercially raised
chickens at least to the extent that they are raised by a hen, and
often get to spend some time being free:

i wasn't, & wouldn't want to, compare the lives of commercial meat chooks to
fighting cocks.


http://tinyurl.com/8jcoj
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I raised them because I love the birds themselves. Some people
only care about the gambling. I didn't especially like seeing them
be killed, but do feel it's the only way to keep game fowl as they
are...so close to the wild jungle fowl. They are incredible creatures
who will soon cease to exist because of people who really couldn't
care less about them, imo.

i haven't got a problem with consenting beings
having a fight (e.g. boxing)

As soon as one of them wants to quit the fight is over. I hope
you will keep that in mind, because it's very significant.

i'm just a lover, not a fighter ;-)

i don't know. ***-fighting's not even legal in my country & i support that.
i just don't find it necessary. (i realise the little blighters will fight
on their own - but i can't feel good about people deliberately putting
animals into that situation just to gamble on or to see a bit of blood. i
just don't like it.)


but a ***-fight couldn't be reasonably
compared to what one does to feed oneself (cutting a chook's throat or
whatnot). that's about it.

Sure it can, and in a number of ways. Many game fowl live 10+ years.
No commercial broilers or their parents do. That's one thing. The adult
male game cocks--even though they are unaware of it--go off to fight
for the continued existence of themselves, their mates, and their sons
and daughters, the vast majority of which will never even see a pit. So
for a quick easy comparison we have a flock of thousands who hang
upside down and have their throats cut with the entire flock dying that
way in one day, compared to a flock of game fowl where the adult males
must fight unknowingly for the survival and well-being of their mates and
offspring many of which live many years longer than commercially raised
chickens do.

I did have some bad feelings about giving male game fowl to people
that I knew would fight them btw, but not as bad as I would have had
about just cutting their heads off and eating them.

why? eating's valid :-)

no, although i have a theory or two, all of which would undoubtedly sound
weird :-). it doesn't matter now though - i drove away the crow-things via
concerted effort (involving throwing rocks at them for about 3 hours till
they decided the pickings were easier elsewhere ;-)
kylie

Excellent job! They depend on you, and it's great to see people
who will defend their animals!

why thank you. i must admit, i became enraged on my hen's behalf (and my own
behalf, because these birds dug up half my garden) and i'd have felt better
to have been a bit calmer about the situation, but at any rate it got the
job done. :-) every time i start to think i'm a bit lame & will just let
things slide, i find it's not the case. interesting!!

which isn't to say the crows don't "belong". they do. but i assert my right
to have them go elsewhere where they're not bothering anyone because i can
throw rocks & they can't <g>. not only were they bothering me & my hens,
they were deeply bothering all my little garden birds who live about the
place, who went into hiding for the duration of the invasion. i realised the
invasion was over when all the little birds came out of hiding &
re-commenced their usual warblings, twitterings, & other racket :-)
kylie


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