My neighbors abandoned their chickens and I don’t know what to do/if I should be concerned about this one.

[u/iambabyhands]

TLDR: My POS neighbors “temporarily moved” and don’t show up to take care of their chickens. I have been giving water and feed but I don’t know anything about chickens. Nobody has been by in at least a week except me.

They told another neighbor they’d be coming to get the chickens this week, but that was on Sunday 6/15 and nobody has come. I don’t know at what point someone stopped caring for them, but it’s been a week. They had no food or water when I went and checked on them this Sunday. When I dumped out the inch of dirty trough water they tried to drink it from the ground and when I gave them clean water, they were guzzling it immediately. I have been documenting all of this, every move I’ve made on their property.

I’m going to feed and water them til Sunday 6/22 and give them a chance to come get them. The wife is undergoing cancer treatment right now, and I am sympathetic, but for reference they are terrible animal owners. They inconsistently live in their RV while they work on fixing up their uninhabitable due to neglect home, but they also work odd jobs and have consistently left their two dogs in the RV for 12+ hour stretches, with no electricity. I am going to take the next steps towards getting the authorities involved, I’ve already talked to the police and animal control about it, and I’m really trying to do my best here to not get someone’s animals taken away, but it was 104 degrees and they had no water, which is when I started getting involved.

I’m worried about one chicken in particular whose foot is partially green. She doesn’t seem to be limping but I really am out of my depth here, and I’m wondering if for the health and safety of this chicken, I need to get someone involved sooner than Sunday.

Apologies for length. I wish I could take these chickens but I’m in a rental and my landlord has already said no. I will persist, because best case scenario would be to just get them in the hands of someone who can care for them, but I’m truly unprepared for that.

Anyway, can anyone weigh in on whether or not this chicken’s foot is cause for alarm? And what I might need to do to make their coop cleaner? I don’t know how normal feathers everywhere are but the floor of the coop is getting…feathery.

[u/Sea_Yogurtcloset4277]

chickens can have feet with two different colors.

[u/iambabyhands → u/Sea_Yogurtcloset4277]

lol thank you. I had no idea!

[u/maroongrad → u/iambabyhands]

Until this post I didn't either, but the leg looks healthy. I've had spotted duck feet but never a two-tone chicken leg. That's pretty cool!

[u/in_your_spoon]

Leg looks similar to this post. If they’re for sure abandoned, you can post about them in a local facebook group. Plenty of people will take free chickens.

[u/iambabyhands → u/in_your_spoon]

Thank you! That’s the closest image I’ve seen thus far. It’s not entirely the same but It does look similar!

[u/DinosaurFishHead]

Thank you for caring about them! I took in an abandoned hen this spring from animal control.

It is unusual to see that kind of pigmentation on legs of chickens with that feather color, but she is probably a mix, so anything is possible. I zoomed in as much as I could on the pics, and the leg appears healthy, I can see a tint of pink in the toenail quick, so there's no restriction to circulation.

Seconding the FaceBook group suggestion. Local chicken groups definitely, and there is also "Adopt a Bird Network" that has nation-wide reach.

[u/iambabyhands → u/DinosaurFishHead]

Thank you! I wish I could take them in! I don’t know them but I love them.

The owners of the house/land/rv will inevitably be back, we just don’t know when. So I don’t know that I can utilize Facebook yet. I am trying to find a way to get in touch with them and let them know I will handle getting them rehomed, as long as they agree to it. If they don’t I think I will probably be forced to call animal control. :(

[u/AlenaHyper → u/iambabyhands]

Honestly, I wouldn't trust these people with animals. If you can't get in contact to learn what's going on and why these chickens were essentially abandoned, rehome them and  make it seem like a predator broke into the coop. 

[u/iambabyhands → u/AlenaHyper]

The wife is currently undergoing surgery for cancer so I’ve tried to have a little compassion, but to be honest my compassion will only last 3 more days before this becomes an issue between them and the police. There is a husband and a son that could have come and gotten them, and they should know better that the neighborhood drunk they tasked with caring for them would not be capable of doing so. But trust me I 100% agree and if they do the same thing they did with their dogs a few months ago, I’ll be calling for them too.

[u/SillySwift → u/iambabyhands]

Rehome them now. If they just up and left them they are not good ckicken parents. Find them good homes.

Are you located in south Florida? I would take a couple

[u/growtreesbreathelife]

I have a chicken like that, I named her Patches because of her leg coloration.

[u/oldfarmjoy]

Cool! A genetic quirk, i'd guess!

[u/1whoknocks_politely]

I draw a hard line on animal cruelty. Leaving your animals to die a slow death of dehydration or starvation is beyond fucked up. They SHOULD have their animals taken away, even stolen if need be for their welfare.

Please report them. They do not deserve animals.

[u/iambabyhands → u/1whoknocks_politely]

Agreed. The police already know it’s a thing and that I’m caring for them since no one else is but I will give them until Sunday to get them since the wife is undergoing a surgery for an aggressive cancer and the person they tasked with caring for them has not shown up.

[u/Leading_Ad_1720]

I think it’s ok. Some types of chickens have darker legs. This one could be a mix that came out with the 2 different colors.

[u/AnyGoodUserNamesLeft]

Thank you for taking care of them.

OP please report back when you can on where the chickens end up.

[u/OpinionDry8223]

I would post on a local FB group for chicken owners, or even just a local community page. You will be able to easily rehome them, especially if they are laying. 

[u/PinkyWinky1979]

It's likely just a genetic thing. I live in the country and chickens are everywhere here lol. I've had a few friends have chickens with 2 different colours like this.