Australians - Where are you all????

[MyHaven]

Hi, I know it's distressing seeing how much condition they lose when hatching chicks. But she will come back. Don't be surprised if she moults after this.

Yes, she is taking the food and deliberately dropping it to teach the chicks what they can eat and how to forage. They need to learn all that from her. Poor battery hens never learn it.

I would not give them anything additional that is high in protein unless it's natural like earth worms or grasshoppers. Just the quantity they would find on their own if in the garden. I think cat food has too much protien for babies.

You can't really do much to make Mum eat more or anything else. She is prioritising the babies diets and lessons.

Chick starter is meant for new mums too. We give it to them before the eggs hatch so they get used to it and to keep them going. The laying mash has the calcium and protein she would need if she was producing eggs and she won't be doing that again for weeks when the hormones kick in.

I would just make sure that the mum and bubs have ample chick starter and supplement it with fresh scraps and fruit such as watermelon or anything mum particularly likes. Do you have them on grass? She might like the greens. My mums prefer a forage where they can scratch under mulch and leaf matter but still like a good to at the grass. You can start supplements/treats straight away. The chick starter from Northside Produce is designed for chicks of up to 8 weeks from memory. Laying mash should not be given to them until they are point of lay.

They will grow very quickly and will be more independent each day allowing mum to forage more for herself.

That's my two bobs worth anyway. I hope it helps.

Oops hit submit instead of edit.

I meant to say Too much calcium is bad for chicks. My point on protein is that the chick starter is balanced and if we give them too much then it is bad. As too much of anything causes problems and deficiencies in other things.

Also I think it is 12 weeks not eight that they should be kept chick starter for. I'd check with the produce.

Cheers

 

[Anniebee]

Lovely. Thanks for sharing. I enjoy looking at people's photos. So do you get a blue, a brown and a chocolate coloured egg from them?

Cheers

I get a blue ( but occasionally slightly green or an olive colour - the inside of those eggs is always a nice blue ) .... a pink - REAL pretty pink ( from my Rhodie ) and a paler at present, terra cotta with a few speckles from the Welsummer. 8 months back was getting much darker and speckled eggs from Mandy Welsummer. She is however, still struggling with a long loooong moult and has quite grey colored fluffy pants. ADORE the fluffy pants all chickens have ( or should have ).

Glad you like my girls ...

Cheers ----- AB

 

[MyHaven]

yes theres lots of conflicting info on that forum satay linked a thread neither member returned my email old thread i guess. we  travel to alot of auctions in vic sa and lower nsw never seen these ducks. yes saw egg swap some of the lines we have their breeders charge top dollar for their birds we pay what we have to to improve our gene pool they would be disappointed to say the least if i joined a swap. there was there nothing i could use here . i rarely hatch travelled eggs for myself preferring to bring home live birds i get varied results hatching auction eggs and its hard to blame transport when you dont know what pens are like how old the birds are if the birds are in good health or if the birds have been fed a quality diet. i work with pairs trios and sometimes quads never more although during autumn and winter i dropped 7 hens in with my pekin pauly and got a 100% hatch. i dont have the best luck with cluckys but i still try when they decide they want to i set them and just dont bank on chicks. i found a chick in my sussex pen couple of days ago i took it from mum she didnt bring it out for food and drink cause she still has eggs (it was 48hrs after i found it i took it) i found another clucky sussex in that pen tried to seperate her and her eggs to a private cage she changed her mind wont sit on the eggs anymore spewn too cause i got a nearly a doz now of porcelein araucana and speckled suss eggs i was goin to set. i have had a black silkie and bantam australorp start sitting in the last couple of days but i have had silkies give up on eggs before and the australorps are newest breed i havent had them a year so there no track record. at the moment the muscovies are in full swing every girl has babies or is sitting. they are my free rangers they are super mums of the duck world. they run their own show and dictate when i shut the bator off each year.

Hi, if you have girls someone in Australia must have some. I've never had ducks and know nothing of them.

I'm not familiar with porcelain araucana - what are they like? I wanted speckled sussex for my last hatch. I don't like the idea of having to use brooders. I let the hen do the work - but I'm only playing with it all for interest and hoping the mums I've got at the moment won't go clucky as frequently. Honestly, they have been shocking. Lay 12 eggs and go clucky. Sit in the cage for a few days. Take another few days to start laying again and start over. Now that causes spewen. One is a Silkie and one an Australorp. Both great first time mums - even thought the Australorp lost a few partly developed because she kept sitting on the wrong nest.

I know what you mean about not knowing your egg quality. I haven't had a great hatch rate from purchased eggs and of course- you don't know what you're getting.

Good luck with your search.
Cheers

 

[Anniebee]

My new additions....

These are so very cute tillyita. However, and please don't be upset with me !! .... these look like ducklings to me. Or am I just nuts. Have gone over many chick photographs, and none so far have shown the long broadbill beaks that are showing here. I have not yet looked up your profile or anything, to see what it is you are breeding. Have never seen beaks quite like that before on little chickies. Please let me know - I am more than intrigued. Cheers ........ AB

 

[rachmickmurphy]

i will get a pic tomorrow i have araucanas and duccles in porcelein apparently its a lavender gene which makes sense as the chicks look about the same colour as the corronation sussex i have i was told a long time ago our aussie corrys have the lavender gene. its a light silvery grey colour my roos could be faulted tho they have yellow leakage i am waiting to hear from someone i sent pics to she is going to ask a local poultry judge. none i the hens have this and the roos i saw on this forums duccle thread are the same so maybe it is right i would like them more if they didnt tho. but maybe that because i seen alot of light sussex lately that have the dreaded yellow mine dont i culled what did. it kind of erks me we all in this for better birds closer to what the standard called for but so many breeders dont care and pass these off to unknowing buyers then those people go out breed them its a viscous cycle making our sq stock less attractive. Eg. I have been trying to work out whats wrong with a line i have here i sent pic to american and asked what he thought and why does his bird look so much better my bird has an amazing pedigree the breeder shows on a national level all over oz he saw it straight away too long in the back i went through every pic of this breed i could find in oz they all have this trait its not just my bird its every bird here it sad and going to take many seasons to correct by outcrossing to another breed boo hiss not what you want to do as a purebreed breeder but its the only way to fix it and get the breed back to the standards set by the original brittish breeder. if you plan to breed purebreds your loyality must lie first and foremost to the breed. lower quality examples are culls. we dont have the luxury to import better breeder birds we have what we have here. the rare breed syndicates still have not succeded yet and if our gov has anything to do with it they wont get them in next year as planned. sorry this sounds so harsh i really dont mean it to be but theres no nice way to put there was once a time when americans came here and took our lines back and sold them $600 a pair.

 

[Teila]

Hi, I know it's distressing seeing how much condition they lose when hatching chicks. But she will come back. Don't be surprised if she moults after this.

Yes, she is taking the food and deliberately dropping it to teach the chicks what they can eat and how to forage. They need to learn all that from her. Poor battery hens never learn it.

I would not give them anything additional that is high in protein unless it's natural like earth worms or grasshoppers. Just the quantity they would find on their own if in the garden. I think cat food has too much protien for babies.

You can't really do much to make Mum eat more or anything else. She is prioritising the babies diets and lessons.

Chick starter is meant for new mums too. We give it to them before the eggs hatch so they get used to it and to keep them going. The laying mash has the calcium and protein she would need if she was producing eggs and she won't be doing that again for weeks when the hormones kick in.

I would just make sure that the mum and bubs have ample chick starter and supplement it with fresh scraps and fruit such as watermelon or anything mum particularly likes. Do you have them on grass? She might like the greens. My mums prefer a forage where they can scratch under mulch and leaf matter but still like a good to at the grass. You can start supplements/treats straight away. The chick starter from Northside Produce is designed for chicks of up to 8 weeks from memory. Laying mash should not be given to them until they are point of lay.

They will grow very quickly and will be more independent each day allowing mum to forage more for herself.

That's my two bobs worth anyway. I hope it helps.

Thank you My Haven .. your two bobs worth was worth a lot more to me! Very Helpful, thanks again

 

[tillyita]

These are so very cute tillyita.    However, and please don't be upset with me !! .... these look like ducklings to me.    Or am I just nuts.   Have gone over many chick photographs, and none so far have shown the long broadbill beaks that are showing here.   I have not yet looked up your profile or anything, to see what it is you are breeding.   Have never seen beaks quite like that before on little chickies.    Please let me know - I am more than intrigued.    Cheers ........ AB 

They are goslings actually, Pomeranians. I hatched out a whole heap of light sussex chicks in the middle of winter (because that was when I had the rooster). And I've got a broody hen sitting on 4 eggs at the moment. (Australorp cross chicks/eggs). But those that have already hatched are goslings. - I should have some more in the next week or so.

 

[tillyita]

[COLOR=333333]Cilla & Co are going well.  One of them was in the chick-start today scratching with his/her tiny little feet .. so adorable!  They also rub their tiny little beaks backwards and forwards after eating, just like Mum![/COLOR]

[COLOR=333333]Hubby got home from work and asked "So, have you been chicken stalking?"  "No" I said, "Not me!"  .. Hhhhm, probably should have put back the chair I had strategically positioned at the end of the 'Ranch' .. lol[/COLOR]

[COLOR=333333]I am hoping to get some advice please?  I tried doing some research last evening but didn't really come up with any definite answers.  Cilla is perking up nicely and appears to have settled in the 'Ranch' quite well.  Considering the rush-purchase, it is actually ideal!  Lots of room for everyone and very safe.  I picked Cilla up today and she is so light, which I know is a side effect of not eating much for the last 3 weeks or so.  She is eating the chick-start (purchased from our local produce store) and I wonder if that is enough for her?[/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]Plan A: As a treat I tried to give her a little bit of cheese (she loves that) but she took it from me and promptly and I think deliberately, dropped it in front of the babies, one of them gobbled it up so I wasn't game to try and give her more .. I have read that the chicks should only be eating chick-start.[/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]Plan B: Try and give her some big-bird food (lay mash) but when I held the seed in front (up high so the bubs couldn't get to it; even though they were trying lol) she flicked at it with her beak causing it to fall in with the bubs .. again, I have read that they should not be eating it.[/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]Plan C: Put her and the seed outside of the ranch so that she could eat it but she was not having a bar of that and wanted back in with the bubs.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=333333]Ran out of Plans! lol[/COLOR]

[COLOR=333333]So:[/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]* Is Cilla OK on just chick-start and for how long?[/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]* Is there something I can give her that it is OK for the chicks to eat if they happen to pinch some?[/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]* When is a good time to start the little ones on something besides chick-start and any suggestions of what is a good thing to start them on?[/COLOR]

[COLOR=333333]Thanks in advance  [/COLOR]

The others that have replied are right about the protein and calcium in the chick starter vs the layer pellets. Your hen will only benifit from eating the starter crumble with the babies (and the hens usually love it). The only thing that I will add is that the chicks can eat anything mum can eat provided they have some grit (or plain old dirt from the garden) in their diet so that they can break it down. If they are confined so they don't have access to any then you should only feed the starter crumble (and that goes for mum too).

Generally I start them on the grower pellets when they start to get body feathers. This will change depending on breed and you can do a mix of grower and starter if you need to finish off a bag, or if they are not a good weight for their size.

Eggs are a good protein source for mum if she is not picking up as quick as you would like. They are naturally full of all the vitimins and minerals that she (and the chicks) need.

 

[Teila]

The others that have replied are right about the protein and calcium in the chick starter vs the layer pellets. Your hen will only benifit from eating the starter crumble with the babies (and the hens usually love it). The only thing that I will add is that the chicks can eat anything mum can eat provided they have some grit (or plain old dirt from the garden) in their diet so that they can break it down. If they are confined so they don't have access to any then you should only feed the starter crumble (and that goes for mum too).

Generally I start them on the grower pellets when they start to get body feathers. This will change depending on breed and you can do a mix of grower and starter if you need to finish off a bag, or if they are not a good weight for their size.

Eggs are a good protein source for mum if she is not picking up as quick as you would like. They are naturally full of all the vitimins and minerals that she (and the chicks) need.

Thank you so very much tillyita .. very helpful.
Quote: "The only thing that I will add is that the chicks can eat anything mum can eat provided they have some grit (or plain old dirt from the garden) in their diet so that they can break it down. If they are confined so they don't have access to any then you should only feed the starter crumble (and that goes for mum too)."
I did not know that!

 

[MyHaven]

i will get a pic tomorrow i have araucanas and duccles in porcelein apparently its a lavender gene which makes sense as the chicks look about the same colour as the corronation sussex i have i was told a long time ago our aussie corrys have the lavender gene. its a light silvery grey colour my roos could be faulted tho they have yellow leakage i am waiting to hear from someone i sent pics to she is going to ask a local poultry judge. none i the hens have this and the roos i saw on this forums duccle thread are the same so maybe it is right i would like them more if they didnt tho. but maybe that because i seen alot of light sussex lately that have the dreaded yellow mine dont i culled what did. it kind of erks me we all in this for better birds closer to what the standard called for but so many breeders dont care and pass these off to unknowing buyers then those people go out breed them its a viscous cycle making our sq stock less attractive. Eg. I have been trying to work out whats wrong with a line i have here i sent pic to american and asked what he thought and why does his bird look so much better my bird has an amazing pedigree the breeder shows on a national level all over oz he saw it straight away too long in the back i went through every pic of this breed i could find in oz they all have this trait its not just my bird its every bird here it sad and going to take many seasons to correct by outcrossing to another breed boo hiss not what you want to do as a purebreed breeder but its the only way to fix it and get the breed back to the standards set by the original brittish breeder. if you plan to breed purebreds your loyality must lie first and foremost to the breed. lower quality examples are culls. we dont have the luxury to import better breeder birds we have what we have here. the rare breed syndicates still have not succeded yet and if our gov has anything to do with it they wont get them in next year as planned. sorry this sounds so harsh i really dont mean it to be but theres no nice way to put there was once a time when americans came here and took our lines back and sold them $600 a pair.  

You get bad breeders of every animal. I just wish my circumstances were different and I had a rural block so I could breed. I'm working toward it. That's one reason I am playing with different breeds now to determine which I would get into. Some of the eggs I have hatched have resulted in different looking birds.

Eg. I have two Barnavelders from the same clutch one with bright yellow legs with terrible lacing and another with ok lacing but dull legs. But one started laying at 16weeks. While both are laying now neither look mature yet. Weird.

It's all very interesting. I sometimes go on the CSU thread they have set up to discuss standards and characteristics. It moves too quickly for me and I never had a chance to catch up with them let alone stay up with them. Some very interesting information though.

It is hard/next to impossible to get birds/eggs in to Australia as the syndicate sadly learned last year.

I look forward to your pics.