Interesting! There were 16 chicks total, all from the same rooster and 3 hens which I bought from the local Menonnites. They claimed that they were Rhode Islands. Is there any other way to tell if if they are production reds or rhode island reds? How do you know personally that they're...
This is from last year's batch of chicks. One of them is half white. Any ideas why?
Album: http://imgur.com/a/FrGWo
As long as she lays eggs (which she does, I think), I don't really care, but I'm just wondering why/how this happened.
If he sees any chicken, no matter how young, he'll chase it down and mate with it. I'm not even sure if he knows it's a male or not. I'm in a very tough position here. Here are the facts, the story, and the situation.
I have a horrible hawk problem that steals my free range chickens (esp. my...
Just found some posts saying something called Respite is a good remedy. It's a mixture of garlic, herbs, and fruit acids, made especially for respiratory and cold symptoms. Does anyone know who carries it?
It first started with just a few, which I separated, but I guess it was too late, as it started spreading in the main coop. Some of them do have a discharge from the nose. The chickens that have it have a smell that's not too strong. I read that coryza has a horrible smell, but I can't say this...
Will one tablespoon per gallon of water really affect the chickens that much? I've heard nothing but good things about using vinegar and water, and you're the first to offer a counter-point. It's also a preventative for a number of problems. Do the pros outweigh the cons?
Thanks for the tips! I like the idea of putting a piece of lumber mid-slope.
Rustywreck: isn't it a bad thing that the chickens can't dig at all in the run? I feel like my chickens will be bored like crazy all day if they couldn't dig outside. I may just try layering a ton of leaves and other...
I've got an uncovered run that is sloped a bit too much--from past experience, putting any kind of material on a sloped area where there are chickens, they end up kicking it all down the slope, leaving the top exposed. There's bare earth there, and I'm not sure if there's anything I can do to...
Chances are much lower than with banties, I hope. I'm currently building a secondary coop to give it a test run. I've read from others that having one or two huge roosters around deters the hawks, too, since they attack them. I'll let you know how it goes.
I have a flock of 20 banties, but unfortunately I can't free range them since hawks always pick them up. I want to experiment with some full sized chickens and let them free range all day, and see if they won't be picked up. Here are the characteristics I'm looking for:
Main priority is a...
I have lost 8 chickens to hawks in my rural area in less then 6 months, with 3 of them only in the last couple weeks. I can't let my bantams out anymore, unfortunately. Some neighbors said they just let the chickens out only in the last afternoon, since hawks like to eat early in the day, so...
Ok, good to have that confirmed. So I'm guessing I'm going the right way with the oil, then. Why does it create such huge outgrowths and scales like that? Also, what are preventative measures against mites?
And lastly, any thoughts on that cracked leg?
Thanks a lot.
I've got myself a problem, it seems, with my roosters' legs. I have 4 roosters and 17 hens as of now (and a bunch of chicks), but it looks like most of the problems are in the roosters' legs only, especially one of them. There seems to be outgrowths on their legs--scaly and large. This seems to...
I first got the idea from this post. I'm afraid that the whole idea that it needs cooking first is just something that has been rehashed a thousand times from person to person without any real proof behind it. Fermenting it seems to be the way to go, as the Japanese have been doing it that way...