I did not mean to belittle the disease thing. It is just in my particular circumstance, knowledge of the source of the new chickens, etc., that is not a big worry for me right now. My grand plan was to have 4-6 chickens - then introduce a new one or two every year and "trim the herd" as...
Thanks for replies so far - even if not encouraging.
My issue is "pecking to death" more than "disease".
If the new ones are pretty big - say, 6-12 mo old - would that make much difference?
I have 4 3-year olds in a 4'x8' chicken tractor with an upstairs loft. I got them all at once as started pullets and they get along fine. They are Red Star. I would like to add two more. Yes, I have read the threads and know the "right way" to do it. But I don't have the wherewithal to do...
OK - I have NEWS - - -
First, a disclaimer - I'm a scientist and will readily admit this is not a scientifically valid study or conclusion - but it SURE is interesting anecdotal data.
I used just several drops of grocery store red or blue food coloring per gallon of water. My 4 chickens who...
I have a couple of these 1 gal containers. I am very happy with them except they are not 'transparent', but 'translucent white'.
http://www.farmandfleet.com/products/556440-plastic_waterer_poultry_fountain_complete.html
The water level is hard to see with clear water. A few drops of food...
I put a few drops of red food coloring (human food grade, purchased at supermarket) in my Chickens' water dispensers so I can see the water level easier. For the 4 chickens, the egg production has gone down from 3-4 per day to 1-2 per day. Is this a coincidence or could the food coloring be...
Basically 'sunburn' to skin and eyes. Black lights are similar to the lights in tanning beds. Normal BLs emit UV radiation but in small amounts. Children playing with them for halloween, museum exhibits, disco, etc. are limited and fleeting exposure. But just shining on somebody for extended...
I am a scientist, not a chicken. But I am very concerned about your use of a "black light". It might be harmful for them. In any case, I'm sure it doesn't do them any good. You should only use regular incadescent lights or carefully monitored "heat lamps".
Wow - thanks for the extensive reply. One conception (misconception?) I had is that rather than, say, every 25 hours, that they lay an egg every 14 hours of sunlight. Hence my extreme surprise that I'm getting an egg per day in winter. I had calculated (ha!, yes, I'm an engineer) that I would...
Now, everybody, don't ridicule me - remember these are my first chickens - so I am learning as I go. You may recall that I have been marvelling at these 4 maniac egg layers I got in Vista. They have been consistently laying 3 eggs each and every day. From my reading and discussions with other...
What do YOUR chickens like to eat? I read a lot about "kitchen scraps" that chickens go GaGa over. Mine, not so much.
Mine eat Purina Layeena Crumbles and like that a lot. But they go totally nuts over Scratch. The feel 'entitled' to that and stomp around and bawk until they get some.
I...
One of the eggs I got today was 2.5+ oz. The largest prior to that was 2.3 oz.
This is our first official 'Jumbo' egg. This dude is HUGE! 2 3/4" long. An omelette-in-one!!
5 or 6 months. They had just begun laying. FYI, several days now, all eggs are back to 'normal'. Very strange. Regardless of what caused it, I still don't understand the mechanics of how this could happen. (I'm an engineer, so things like that 'worry' me.)
Also - it is most likely that these are calcium speckles - and I'm not concerned - just curious. As you can tell, I'm a 'newbie' - but in my study of chickens, I learned that the egg is built up in stages as it moves along through the chicken. After the yoke and white is made, the white...
I posted pictures of them earlier in the thread - so you can guess for yourself. Meaning, I don't really know. They are notionally RIR, but seem to be mixed with something else. Leghorn? In any case, they are maniac layers. I religiously get 3 eggs every day from the 4 of them. For the...
Wow, great - thanks for that. I had seen that book, but didn't want to buy it. I did not know there were extracts on the Internet. Alas, on the other hand, I looked through all the pages and did not see my situation. Weird.