Recent content by HeidiGretchen

Our hens hatched chicks which resulted in too many roosters. I'm looking for homes for several, and have someone interested in taking one, but her flock is all so young. She says she has sex linked chicks that are almost 7 weeks old. My roosters are 5 months old, and are already mating with our...

So just an update... The chicks have done well, separated in a brooder in my garage. I just moved them into the coop today, and they will stay in a dog crate I have covered in hardware cloth inside the coop for a while until I feel comfortable letting them out with the other chickens. The crazy...

I will definitely keep an eye on her, but to be honest, she was the only broody who did actually leave her nest regularly to eat and drink and just take a break. Our white bantam tends to leave the nest when I open the coop each morning, and probably once more during the day. She looks terrible...

@nuthatched @Yardmom Thank you both so much for your advice. I'm going to just keep the chicks in the brooder until they're bigger. I don't love doing the whole re-integration thing later, but I'd rather deal with that than have the babies hurt. The babies squawked all afternoon, and were...

I have 3 hens who've hatched chicks in the last 2 weeks. One of the mommas has started attacking her own chicks. I had noticed her behavior was off within a couple days of hatching - her chicks are just over a week old. I told me husband that she acts like she has post-partum psychosis. But...

Thank you. The 2nd broody has moved herself 2 boxes over, which is great. I moved 1 egg earlier, and will move a couple at a time to her. This is her 1st time being broody, so I'm a little nervous she'll quit, but she's really protective of her eggs so far. If/when I need to move the remaining...

Right before an out of town trip, one of my hens went broody. We marked the eggs - she started sitting on a day where 6 eggs were laid, so we let her keep those 6. Those eggs should hatch around 6/23. My husband was supposed to be getting eggs while I was away for 10 days. Long story short, he...

*He's mean, so best for a flock that aren't pets. Hoping to find a new flock for our Polish Crested Rooster. He'll be 2 years old in May. He's excellent with the hens - he makes sure all the girls stay fertile and doesn't tear up their feathers. The exception is out Barred bantam, and she...

I haven't noticed any symptoms at all, but I am definitely going to watch closely. I steeped oregano and basil in water overnight and put that in one of their waterers. I also put the dewormer (cayenne mix) on their feed this morning, and I'll add some Kickin Chicken to their feed later today. I...

When I gathered eggs this afternoon, I had 1 white egg that had a hard but wrinkled shell. When I cracked the egg, the white was very watery but the yolk was normal. The shell was maybe a little thinner than normal, but still hard and firm. I haven't noticed any of my hens acting sick or...

Thanks! I'm attaching some pics so you can see her feathers, comb and legs. Her comb had been very pale, but looks much better now that she's not trying to sit on a nest in this heat and we're finally down into the 90s. Her legs are still not as yellow as her "sister," but have improved.

I'm fairly certain this is just molting, but figured I'd ask my favorite more experienced chicken people. :) My 14ish month old bantam hen had ALL of her tail feathers fall out. Not picking pr plucking. Just fell out. One of my kids was holding her and gently petting her and the last 5...

My 11 year old saw the snake 2 days ago - its tail was on top of the roosting boxes, it's head was on the ground, and it raised up and hissed at her. She ran in to get me, but it was gone when I got outside. It must have been 4 1/2 to 5 feet long based on the height from the ground to the top of...

Unfortunately, when I just went to check on her, she had died. I'd checked on her about 2 hours prior, and she seemed no better no worse. Thank you for all of your help. ❤️

Thank you for all of this. I will pick up some calcium citrate pills to make it easier - I've been crushing egg shells into scrambled or boiled egg for her (and all the hens), but I can't guarantee she'll eat enough of it. I have not dewormed any of the flock. I can pick that up tonight or...