INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[flyladyrocks]

@Leahs Mom I know you have told me this before but what is the nutrient that is depleted when feeding medicated started feed? I can't remember and want to tell my chicken raising class! Thanks!

 

[JanetMarie]

We had four hatchery BAs as some of our first chickens. At four years of age one started to pull out the rump feathers of one other to eat. I culled her. The other three were wonderful, and the last one died at 9 years old last year.

I would have questions about the breeder also, and would clarify if they are raised locally, and not shipped by mail. They have discounts for large numbers of them, so the quality obviously, is not going to be SOP.

They are selling them as an alternative egg layer instead of large hatchery ISA Browns and others that tend to have blow out problems, and a short productive life.

 

[Leahs Mom]

@Leahs Mom I know you have told me this before but what is the nutrient that is depleted when feeding medicated started feed? I can't remember and want to tell my chicken raising class! Thanks!

Amprollium is a thiamine blocker.

Quote:

Description of symptoms from the Merck Veterinary Manual:


Quote: http://www.merckvetmanual.com/poult...ement-poultry/vitamin-deficiencies-in-poultry

Polyneuritis may be seen in mature birds ~3 wk after they are fed a thiamine-deficient diet. As the deficiency progresses, birds may sit on flexed legs and draw back their heads in a star-gazing position. Retraction of the head is due to paralysis of the anterior neck muscles. Soon after this stage, chickens lose the ability to stand or sit upright and topple to the floor, where they may lie with heads still retracted. Thiamine deficiency may also lead to a decrease in body temperature and respiratory rate. Testicular degeneration may be noted, and the heart may show slight atrophy. Birds consuming a thiamine-deficient diet soon show severe anorexia. They lose all interest in feed and will not resume eating unless given thiamine. If a severe deficiency has developed, thiamine must be force-fed or injected to induce the chickens to resume eating.

Here's a quick blog post that talks about med feed... http://naturalchickenkeeping.blogspot.com/2012/12/natural-from-start-medicated-chick-feed.html


@flyladyrocks

 

[Chickens4lifee]

Anyone know why this chick has the lump/mass and none of the others that hatched so far do?

 

[ellymayRans]

Anyone know why this chick has the lump/mass and none of the others that hatched so far do?

Looks like the chick didn't absorb all the yolk sac or a exposed naval. The best thing to do is leave it alone and watch closely to make sure the others don't pick at it. If you can keep it separate and in less than a week it should dry up and shrink. Keep it on a wire floor to keep feces and food from sticking to it until it starts to heal. Keep us posted and if you're not sure about something ask. One of us will try to help.

 

[Chickens4lifee]

Looks like the chick didn't absorb all the yolk sac or a exposed naval. The best thing to do is leave it alone and watch closely to make sure the others don't pick at it. If you can keep it separate and in less than a week it should dry up and shrink. Keep it on a wire floor to keep feces and food from sticking to it until it starts to heal. Keep us posted and if you're not sure about something ask. One of us will try to help.

it seems to be going down a little i think it just hatched early but that's okay so i left her in the Bator with the rest of the eggs that are hatching hopefully she will be okay by around 12 to come out. It's definitely not as bad as it was in that pic.

 

[Chickens4lifee]

It looks to be right in front of the belly Button so I'm not sure if it's skin just bulges out right there or what but it dose poop lol when i picked it up it decide my hand was the place to do it.

 

[kittydoc]

@flyladyrocks and @Leahs Mom, I have fed medicated feed to all my chicks for 5 years until they go outside or are sold, and I have never, ever seen any neurological problems in any older chicks as mentioned in the Merck Manual. Just FYI and I always recommend it. It's very safe and I have never had a case of coccidiosis except from older chicks in quarantine from a breeder in Tennessee. Not before, not since. No matter how nasty wet the chicken yard has gotten.

 

[tmarsh83]

Feeling pretty impressed with myself, though I'm sure I'm not the first one here to have done it.

I have a large wooden box that used to be a shipping container that works well as a brooder for large batches. The problem is the internal framing makes it tough to clean out and the weight makes it tough to move around. With the plan to do meat birds after the baby arrives, in going to need the larger brooder worked out.

Enter my solution.

Line the interior with a tarp. The bedding all stays on the tarp, and with the removal of a few screws, the tarp lifts out, along with all the bedding, to be placed anywhere I need it. Hose the tarp down. Done.

Pretty impressed with myself...

 

[Finnie]

Feeling pretty impressed with myself, though I'm sure I'm not the first one here to have done it.

I have a large wooden box that used to be a shipping container that works well as a brooder for large batches. The problem is the internal framing makes it tough to clean out and the weight makes it tough to move around. With the plan to do meat birds after the baby arrives, in going to need the larger brooder worked out.

Enter my solution.

Line the interior with a tarp. The bedding all stays on the tarp, and with the removal of a few screws, the tarp lifts out, along with all the bedding, to be placed anywhere I need it. Hose the tarp down. Done.

Pretty impressed with myself...

Yes, pretty impressive!