Goslings of 2014 Hatch-a-long

[bibkel]

All these pics are awesome!

 

[onthelabel]

Hey guys! New to the forum and I've got a problem with a goose egg, and got some advice to post over here to see if any one can offer some help. I'd love some advice!

 

[BirdyGirl7198]

Yippee!!! I went to check the Canada Goose eggs this morning and one of them started peeping at me from inside the egg! No external pips yet, but I expect one by time I get home from school. So exciting!

 

[BirdyGirl7198]

Are leg and foot abnormalities usually genetic or something done incorrectly during incubation?? I had a lot of temperature fluctuations during incubation (the highest being 110 and the lowest being 87). Would breeding ducks with abnormalities due to incorrect incubation increase the chances of having deformed ducklings, even if incubation is perfect?? Thanks!

 

[ChickDancer]

I know how some of them happen with chickens, but not with geese or ducks. However, it may be similar, so I'll go ahead and mention it.

Spraddle leg is caused by lack of secure footing in the incubator or brooder when the chick is first learning how to get up and move around. Imagine a dog or cat on linoleum for the first time to get an idea of what happens. They are trying to walk, but their grip just isn't holding. For chicks, this means disaster as their muscles are starting to develop right after they first hatch. If they don't learn to walk within those first few hours, it takes longer to correct the problem, than simply giving them the proper surface to stand on. They start to develop with their legs WAY out to the sides, not underneath them where it would support their body. Wire bottom incubators are good for this reason, because their little claws actually catch on to the wire and they can use that to hold their foot in place. Obviously, plastic incubators are not good, and smooth plastic brooders are a definite no-no. (This particular deformity is one that geese and ducks CAN get for the same exact reason).

Twisted toe or twisted foot (also sometimes called club foot), for chickens, is most commonly linked to a Vitamin-B deficiency in the mother. It can easily be fixed simply by adding more Vitamin-B to her diet right before and during the time she's laying the eggs you plan to incubate. Free range chickens very rarely get this issue, because they have access to such a wide variety of foods already.

Bumblefoot is simply an infection on the bottom of the foot caused by harsh conditions that the chicken walks on. It could be ground that is almost always wet, old rusted, calcified wire, etc. It's treated with antibiotics, and similar to "popping" a zit where you get the "seed" out to stop it from coming back.


That being said, none of these issues are "genetic" in chickens and it wouldn't hurt to breed those chickens later down the road, assuming the problem is corrected. It's mostly just environmental factors that go into the development of these issues, where us humans aren't properly imitating nature, so we're screwing things up. Thankfully, we know how to fix them, and it doesn't get passed down in the chicken's genes.

 

[ChickDancer]

Okay, grabbed a few more photos - mostly because Wonder was being silly...



"Mommy, lookit mee!! I'm a CANADA GOOSE!"



Okay Wonder, maybe you should just be a swan for Halloween this year?



I guess he took offense and went to cleaning the "make-up" off right away.



But clearly he wasn't the only one dabbling in mud... err... make-up. Notice the third duck from the right (in front) did the same thing. Nope, you're not a Welshy. Still a pekin!

 

[Miss Lydia]

Okay, grabbed a few more photos - mostly because Wonder was being silly...



"Mommy, lookit mee!! I'm a CANADA GOOSE!"



Okay Wonder, maybe you should just be a swan for Halloween this year?



I guess he took offense and went to cleaning the "make-up" off right away.



But clearly he wasn't the only one dabbling in mud... err... make-up. Notice the third duck from the right (in front) did the same thing. Nope, you're not a Welshy. Still a pekin!

Nice disguise'es and my goodness have they grown.

 

[Starfire669]

I know how some of them happen with chickens, but not with geese or ducks. However, it may be similar, so I'll go ahead and mention it.


Spraddle leg is caused by lack of secure footing in the incubator or brooder when the chick is first learning how to get up and move around. Imagine a dog or cat on linoleum for the first time to get an idea of what happens. They are trying to walk, but their grip just isn't holding. For chicks, this means disaster as their muscles are starting to develop right after they first hatch. If they don't learn to walk within those first few hours, it takes longer to correct the problem, than simply giving them the proper surface to stand on. They start to develop with their legs WAY out to the sides, not underneath them where it would support their body. Wire bottom incubators are good for this reason, because their little claws actually catch on to the wire and they can use that to hold their foot in place. Obviously, plastic incubators are not good, and smooth plastic brooders are a definite no-no. (This particular deformity is one that geese and ducks CAN get for the same exact reason).

Twisted toe or twisted foot (also sometimes called club foot), for chickens, is most commonly linked to a Vitamin-B deficiency in the mother. It can easily be fixed simply by adding more Vitamin-B to her diet right before and during the time she's laying the eggs you plan to incubate. Free range chickens very rarely get this issue, because they have access to such a wide variety of foods already.

Bumblefoot is simply an infection on the bottom of the foot caused by harsh conditions that the chicken walks on. It could be ground that is almost always wet, old rusted, calcified wire, etc. It's treated with antibiotics, and similar to "popping" a zit where you get the "seed" out to stop it from coming back.

That being said, none of these issues are "genetic" in chickens and it wouldn't hurt to breed those chickens later down the road, assuming the problem is corrected. It's mostly just environmental factors that go into the development of these issues, where us humans aren't properly imitating nature, so we're screwing things up. Thankfully, we know how to fix them, and it doesn't get passed down in the chicken's genes.

Great information, thanks. I have a couple chickens with twisted toes. It looks like 1 toe on their foot is broken, I always wondered what happened to cause that as they were on wood with pine shavings, and I cleaned their brooder often, and then grass since I brought them home. Guess the hatchery has vitamin B deficient hens. One of my first batch of goslings had 2 toes stuck together at the nail one each foot. We performed armature toe separation surgery for her and you wouldn't know she had ever had a foot problem. Wonder if that is a vitamin deficiency in geese? Anyway, great information, thanks for posting.

 

[Starfire669]

Okay, grabbed a few more photos - mostly because Wonder was being silly... "Mommy, lookit mee!! I'm a CANADA GOOSE!" Okay Wonder, maybe you should just be a swan for Halloween this year? I guess he took offense and went to cleaning the "make-up" off right away. But clearly he wasn't the only one dabbling in mud... err... make-up. Notice the third duck from the right (in front) did the same thing. Nope, you're not a Welshy. Still a pekin!

Lol, I love seeing them like that. My geese are now eating fermented feed and they get it all over their faces! I don't have mud puddles for them to use so I guess they figure their food makes great masks.

 

[ChickDancer]

Nice disguise'es and my goodness have they grown.

Indeed they have!

I had to pick Wonder up and bring him inside today to go ahead and bandage up his wing. He's still letting it droop, and because of the way his body hits it all the time as he walks, the feathers actually did start to turn outwards. He just never folded it up on his back anymore, so I wrapped both wings, and the wrapped the bandaging around his body to hold it all. He's mad at me, but he'll get over that part, lol.

Picking him up, however, made me realize how big he's gotten. I don't usually actually pick them up, so he was kinda squirming as I carried him away from the others and inside. With as big as he has gotten, it was a little challenge to keep him under control! But thankfully he's no where NEAR as bad as my top rooster who somehow always gets a wing free and flaps it, hitting my nose EVERY SINGLE TIME. Wonder can't do the damage that rooster does (yet). Thankfully, that rooster is otherwise 100% calm and peaceful. He won't attack anyone. Just don't try to pick him up!