Australia - Six states..and that funny little island.

[Anniebee]

Unfortunately chickens are ground feeders and yep, they eat poop too. Seemingly healthy birds can carry salmonella , so it's best to treat all poultry with caution. Wash hands and eggs before eating, keep nest boxes clean and routinely clean feeders and water dishes. We have a strict ' shoes off ' policy here in the house and special coop shoes . I cringe when I see pics of chickens living inside, pooping everywhere . Hygiene is essential to health.

Yes - definitely do not introduce boots / shoes with chicken poop on them, into the interior of your home.

Is why most ( all ? ) farmers keep their boots at the door, to put on and take off when roaming paddocks of woopsies from heaven knows what ( including known stock ).

I always lightly wash my eggs before putting into the refridgerator for keeping ( even though there is advice that it removes the 'bloom' on the outer of the shell ) and then before using, I wash where I will crack the eggs with a knife to open them .... never ever crack an egg on the edge of a bowl .... one mistake with a bad egg, and the whole recipe goes down the toilet. ....... Not that my girls have ever laid a bad egg, but have had one or two from a supermarket in the past.

I have 'coop shoes' and should buy another pair - they are so comfortable. Called ' butt ugly', available at Rivers and other outlets. Kept outside, and despite being 'holy' are warm in fact, and super to trudge through the woopsies with.

If I had to have a chicken inside ( which in the past I did have - Moppitt Silkie when she was so sick ) she was confined in the bathroom, which was ultimately doused in bleach solution to clean everything after the poor wee soul passed away.

Best to keep everything as clean as possible. Even though I believe totally in deep litter for my chicken coops. So far, so good.

Cheers ......

 

[LuckysMum]

I’ve been a bit busy and haven’t kept up with what’s going on.
Fancy Loved the pick of your silkies. They are really gorgeous. What a beautiful horse. I love horses but know nothing about them, but I think they are majestic creatures. Thanks for the link for bird health I found it helpful.
Chicken Freak 1 Hi I have silkies too and love em.
appps How’s everything going out your way, looks like you weren’t having much fun with your chooks.
MyHaven I loved the idea of the black crates. I have a white silkie and its been very muddy here the last few days but she is lovely and white still.
Teila I hope all goes well for Braxton. Poor dog they are the ones who suffer. I glad he has your neighbour and you to look out for him I hope the RSPCA do keep an eye on him too.
Fizzybelle The photo of Esme is great she is a beauty.
I have a chicken pipping at the moment but it’s from the wrong end. So hopefully all will be good. Looking forward to them all hatching soon. I am like an expectant mum and I worry that something might be wrong. When they’ve all hatched and healthy I relax a bit.

 

[Anniebee]

Caling ((( Teila ))) ....

Here ya go ....... https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1102453/byc-article-writing-contest-8-write-and-win

You no doubt have received that notification yourself .... just doing a little push of the envelope here - because your writing is so very good and so much fun.

Think about it - eh ?

Cheers ..........

 

[Fizzybelle]

Fizzybelle .... of my 3 girls, only one has a seriously hard crop at night ( most times ) .... and it is gone by the morning. That's Mindy Araucana, who is feisty and full on - so it doesn't surprise me that she gormandises before bed, poops like there is no tomorrow overnight, and is empty the next day. .... at which time she starts all over again. Very regulated is Mindy.

On the other hand, Mandy Welsummer never has a full crop - if anything it is ultra soft before bed-time. But she is large,and I know she eats her fair share. Very difficult to catch her with a full crop. ??

Molly RIR - is somewhere in between. ???

I think they have their own little metabolisms, and to each her own. Mindy never eats straw that I know of, the other two big girls do peck at it from time to time.

Cheers ...... ( and don't worry about large full crops, unless it remains that way for a long time - is my advice ).

The straw I saw her eat had been on the grass and was softened from condensation over night and my hosing. So that wasn't too bad I guess, she doesn't eat her bedding as far as I know. Interesting that your Mindy has had the same sort of thing, hard crop but gone by morning, but reassuring too, as Mabel's the same breed as Mindy. Grass got mowed today to the best of our ability, as there is still lots of stuff in the yard that needs shifting due to construction and moving. I empathize with the poop thing though, sometimes it seems like Mabel poops like its going out of style. Thanks for the advice and reassurance

Cluckerfeet thank you!

And Luckysmum, thank you too and fingers crossed for a safe hatch for all your new little ones on the way!I can't blame you for being nervous, but it's also exciting. I'd love to hatch some eggs down the track. Looking forward to pics of your babies when they arrive in the world

 

[MyHaven]

Caling    ((( Teila )))  .... 

Here ya go ....... https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1102453/byc-article-writing-contest-8-write-and-win

You no doubt have received that notification yourself .... just doing a little push of the envelope  here - because your writing is so very good and so much fun. 

Think about it - eh ?

Cheers .......... 

Oh Teila you should so do it.

 

[Teila]

Good morning folks

CluckerFeet your suggestion to let chickens run the country is not as silly as it sounds; I have some dopey chookies running around my back yard that are smarter than some people in authority

Fizzybelle good news about Mabel’s crop. Esme is beautiful and yep, hopefully soon to lay her first egg.

I hope your little bub makes it out of it’s shell OK LuckysMum and looking forward to some chick pics.

Anniebee and MyHaven I thank you for the belief in my writing skills but rather than the random ramblings of a wannabe comedian I believe they are looking for intellectual content, something I may struggle with

 

[Hayleyandbrit]

Hi Duck lovers!!! Is anyone in Perth region able to ducks it for me? Britney is very emotionally needy. She's fine around other animals, even dogs but she really doesn't associate with any except humans. Obviously like all ducks she's a massive poop machine too. It would be for 2 weeks in June, I'm happy to drive a fair way to drop her and pick her up. She has a coop which she sleeps in a night. If you think you can please message me. Thank you!!

 

[Hayleyandbrit]

Please PM me I might lose your reply in this huge thread, thank you!

 

[LuckysMum]

URGENT Please
Good morning. I have a dilemma all my eggs are pippin now, but the one that started last night on the wrong end is still chirping but it hasn't managed to chip away any more of the egg.
It's a long egg and so I think I probably should have tilted on something to make sure it chick positioned properly but I though because the air cell was in the right place it would be fine.
Anyway my dilemma is should I help it out now its been like this for about 13 hours. its poking its beak through the hole and cheaping, but I'm wondering if it too big to move around and get the rest of the shell open. I know they push with their feet and they need to do this to give them muscle tone. But should I just break some more of the shell to help it.

Thanks if you can help

 

[LuckysMum]

I have read assisted hatching and I'm going to try and help according to the advise in that thread.