Now that the surgery was over, "Stubby" was still in very critical condition! After Gerry and Guy briefly celebrated their apparent success, it was time for Guy to get back home with his patient! He carefully loaded "Stubby" into the training basket, and hung the I.V. T.P.N. bag from the top of the basket with a short strand of barbed wire being extremely careful not to puncture the bag of fluid.
When Guy arrived home, he immediately took the entire basket into his bedroom. "Stubby" would spend the next three nights at Guy's bedside, and during the day he went right along with him to the pharmacy. Each morning, "Stubby" was unhooked from the I.V. so that Guy could flush the wound out with sterile Broncho Saline, and after a ten-minute drying period, he packed the cavity with Iodoform Gauze. The I.V. was then restarted, and careful and frequent observations became the standard for "Stubby's" "Post-Op" care.
On the fourth day "Post-Op", Guy made a batch of pigeon milk from the formula that Joan had used when "Peep" was a baby. He slowly began to introduce oral nutrition using a syringe. The going was slow, and it would take a couple of weeks before "Stubby" became comfortable with the feeding process. Of course, Guy kept in constant contact with Gerry, and any supportive advice he offered, Guy was surprisingly willing to follow!
Joan returned from Louisiana a couple of days later, and she immediately stepped in to help administer care. She, like Guy, was touched by the ordeal that "Stubby" had incredibly endured! Guy had spoken to her frequently on the phone over the past week, and frankly, she was amazed that "Stubby" was even alive when she returned home! After Joan's return, she still had some time off before returning to school to teach the fall semester, so she was more than happy to help with the care giving process.
The babies, who were only about two days old when "Stubby" was assaulted, were now half grown, and had been banded with the numbers 65 and 66. The little Huskin Van Riel Hen had raised them pretty much by herself, but a large dark blue cock had taken an interest in feeding her young. Before too long, she was fooling around with him, and poor "Stubby" must have felt jilted!
Approximately two weeks after Guy started feeding "Stubby" orally, he felt that he should transfer him back to the loft. He picked one of the nesting boxes in the breeding room, sterilized the entire surface area with alcohol, and allowed "Stubby to inhabit that protected cubicle. Sterilized watering and feeding devices were placed inside of the cubicles, and "Stubby" was allowed the freedom to feed and water himself. Thorough cleaning of the cubicle took place nightly, and the process seemed to work fairly well.
A week later, Guy stopped the Iodoform Gauze and began a twice-daily routine of cleansing the healing wound and simply applied a thin film of bacitracin and polymyxin ointment. The area began to heal very rapidly, and it was not long before the internal organs were not even visible. Things were going better than expected, and the breast tissue began to cover the cavity. The increased body temperature seemed to hasten the healing process, and in about ten more days "Stubby" began to get restless! He wanted to get back to the ladies, and at thirty days "Post-Op", "Stubby" had the privilege of being the only cock in a room filled with hens!
Even though "Stubby" could not possibly have seen his former bride fooling around, he showed only a brief interest in her attempts to make amends! Instead, he picked a "Blue Check", Janssen with which to start a new family. Twenty-four days after being moved in with the hens, "Stubby" was, again, the father of two new babies. This pair included one white grizzle and one blue check. The birds were banded and assigned the numbers 80 and 81. The babies were hatched on August 6,2001, and once they were raised; "Stubby" was removed from the room and transferred into the room with the other cocks.
The fact that "Stubby" has recovered is remarkable, but to think that he is still capable of reproduction is incredible! He has a slight dent in his chest, but all of the feathers have grown back, and one really must look closely to notice that he is not completely normal! Now when Guy describes "Stubby" as "The Miracle in the Heartland", the description seems to be totally inadequate!
Gerry, uncharacteristically, showed up at fairly regular intervals, and after seeing the new babies, he just shook his head in disbelief! He had outdone his most grandiose dreams, and he still calls Guy at least once a week to relive the experience they shared on that incredible June night in the backwoods of the Ozarks! Who in the entire world, much less in Izard County Arkansas, could have even imagined that such a feat could be accomplished? Perhaps Guy could, but Gerry damned sure could not have! Guy gave one of the babies to Gerry and named the other one after him!
"Stubby" will remain as the top breeder at "lalofts", and he has earned privileged character status there for the rest of his natural life! Not long ago, Guy let all of the old birds out to fly. "Stubby" cautiously went for a short flight, but when he tired, he landed in a pine tree just above the chair in which Guy was sitting. It had been said long ago that "Stubby had good sense," and as Guy watched him perch in the tree, he was reminded of the first time that "Stubby" left the training basket and flew up into a tree! The circumstances were a bit different this time; not only did "Stubby have good sense", but a Very Large Heart beat just beneath the dent in his chest!
It is ironic that as "Stubby" was recovering, the health of both Guy and Gerry was deteriorating, and at this point in time, the future of both men is in doubt!
The "Cooper's Hawk" is an endangered species, but both Guy and Gerry would agree they share a different opinion. As to whether or not retribution was ever even a consideration, Guy refuses to comment on the subject!
Stubby's Story, page 1 | Stubby's Story, page 2 | Stubby's Story, page 3 | Stubby's Story, page 4
