The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[aoxa]

Would a large table very low to the ground help, for feeding chooks underneath? Depends on whether or not you have huge chooks or tiny goats I guess.

Advise against it. Plain petroleum jelly toughens injured skin and by itself impedes the healing. It may soften uninjured skin, I don't know, but I do know it's not good for damaged skin. I have used it on wounds once a preliminary layer of pawpaw ointment has been laid down, but using it as a first layer is counterproductive.

If you want to soften the skin, coconut oil. Yep. That stuff is good for everything.

 

[Eggcessive]

Armorfirelady, I can't see lice in your picture. May be I'm blind. Here is some good info on lice and mites: http://ohioline.osu.edu/vme-fact/0018.html
As far as petrolleum jelly not promoting healing, I would have to disagree because neosporin, polysporin, and just about every ointment including eye ointments are in a petroleum jelly base.

 

[loanwizard]

This little pup is up for adoption. We call him Junior. He is the son of Devil Dog, a Siberian Husky that discovered our farm, our chickens, my office, and our heart. So forgive me when I call this cute little puppy the spawn of the devil. He is half Siberian Husky and half Hound Dog, 100% mischievous and cute.
To get this puppy, you must go through hell to get him. That is, you must interview and contract with Carla Stocker. Please help me.

Shawn

Adoption fee is just to cover shots and worming medication.

 

[loanwizard]

Learning moment. This weekend, Sunday evening to be exact was the day 216 eggs had the opportunity to become chicks.

Miserable hatch. May have 30.....

1.) Candled day 14 or so, tossed 9 eggs, should have tossed 10. One bad, but... hasn't exploded. Leaky, yes, exploded, no.

2.) Did NOT use a hygrometer so have no idea what the humidity was. Inside I know it is dry, these were incubated in the garage.

3.) Day 18, added cake pan half full of water and locked down..... sort of.

4.) Day 19, broke cardinal rule and opened. Water was gone so opened to fill pan completely.

5.) Day 19, pips all over, about 4 hatched.

6.) day 20, a few more made it out of the shell.

7.) day 21, a few more.

8.) I suspect the humidity, due to all the rain and high humidity we've had..... I believe I may have drowned them. Tonight I will transfer to the brooder and start all over. I will look and see if I can tell, drowned or dried.

 

[Gramma Chick]

Quote:
It seems a shame to punish the chickens for the rude goats .

NOTE; Does it count that a few break into the chick pen and eat their feed?

They are probably hungry ..How are egg laying chickens are going to get calcium with no layer ?

 

[Gramma Chick]

Quote:
or honey

 

[aoxa]

It seems a shame to punish the chickens for the rude goats .

NOTE; Does it count that a few break into the chick pen and eat their feed?

They are probably hungry ..How are egg laying chickens are going to get calcium with no layer ?

I'm not punishing them. They are free range birds.

I NEVER feed layer. No matter what.

They have oyster shell available. The goats ignore it.

If they know where food is they will eat it. Does not mean they are hungry or starving.

If there is icecream in my freezer, I will eat it.. even if I'm not starving.

Don't even get me started on the goats. They act like I am killing them by not feeding them grain. I will feed them grain only to get them out of my way or to get them where I want them to go.


For those goat folks.

 

[Gramma Chick]

Quote: I feed layer of course . it is convenient for me . Mine free range with the option of food if they want it
I didnt realize you feed them their calcium separately .
I havent read this thread in a while so I dont know your preferences

Thats a sugar craving LOL..Me too
So the Goats think chicken food is their food too .
Can you manipulate them with something other than grain / chicken food ?
Do your goats free range too ?
I have heard they clear bushy areas well if you tie them up ..I have thought of trying to rent one for that purpose ..
Save me some work ...I have a area that is forest..that foxes can hide in ...that I would like to clear .

 

[wlhtx]

It seems a shame to punish the chickens for the rude goats .

NOTE; Does it count that a few break into the chick pen and eat their feed?

They are probably hungry ..How are egg laying chickens are going to get calcium with no layer ?

My comment was really more of a general sympathetic statement at seeing that someone else's goats also feel the need to be all up in the way when the FF (or any other food for that matter) gets broken out.

I'm not "punishing" the chickens for the goats enthusiasm... This is the first week that I have not fed the FF every day, and is kind of an experiment on my part. On the days they were not provided FF, they still received garden excess, dinner scraps (which included their own broken egg shells for calcium purposes), etc. But I really am trying to actively encourage them to range (most need no encouragement, but several do). My flock has the run of 100 acres if they want it (open pasture, wooded areas, pond banks, you name it they have it), so I see no reason to encourage the slackers to stay inside their run waiting for the food woman to make a delivery every day, at least not right now. It's the season where they have access to all the food they can possibly desire if they leave the run... So if it takes them not having a full food bowl inside the run during the day to encourage them to range, so be it. Believe me - they are not starving. And at least in my case the older ones are not stealing from the youngsters (who get fed FF every day right now). I keep them several acres apart.

And if my egg production drops somewhat because they do not have layer feed available 24/7, then I'm okay with that. I keep my birds for more than just their egg production. Besides, chickens have laid eggs for forever without having constant access to commercial layer feed, so I'm of the opinion that its not going to severely hurt mine for only getting it every other day during this otherwise bountiful season that we are currently in.

 

[chooks4life]

Quote: What you say does not refer to petroleum jelly's stand alone qualities, which is what I was speaking of. An ointment with multiple agents in it that helps heal doesn't pinpoint the base as the healing agent; rather it's more likely it's just used to protect the other more active (healing) agents and keep them from becoming unstable or decaying or exposed to air, or whatever the case may be.

I mentioned plain petroleum jelly, which I have used. I've not found it healing by itself despite the good press it often gets. It can protect which is useful in some cases but overall actively healing ointments etc can do a better job while also protecting, and petroleum jelly in my experience is no use alone for anything more than a few layers of skin having been removed, and other trifling wounds which rarely even need anything applied. It serves more as a superfluous bandaid, which is healthier to not apply because the body can handle superficial abrasions etc without being interfered with. Anything more serious needs something that aids healing applied before the jelly or possibly mixed in with it as a carrying agent, like these products you mentioned. But the jelly itself does not heal.

I have not used these other products which use petroleum jelly as a base, but as I said I believe the healing-promoting factors in them you mentioned are not due to the petroleum jelly... Try using it by itself in a wound, and see whether or not it promotes healing. I've tried.

In my experience, when used in conjunction with healing agents, it helps by protecting them and the wound from drying out too fast, but used by itself it just dries the raw flesh out.