Recent content by AutumnFall

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    need help identifying mites

    I was down near the coop for longer today (first warm days we've had) and there is definitely more squabbling going than usual. There are two hens that seem in almost perfect feather--can two hens cause such damage on 28 others? But it also seems like some of the worst looking hens are bullying...
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    Fox Predator Problem, Any tips out to get rid of the fox?

    I've had some success with a scarecrow that I move each day to a different place in the yard (most foxes will scope out a place before they attack and if they see any changes that makes them more wary and less likely to attack), and if there seems to be a more daring fox hanging around, then I...
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    need help identifying mites

    Thanks for your help. It would be great if it weren't mites at all! And I sure wouldn't want to go to a lot of expense and hassle if it isn't mites. I don't know. It is pretty much everyone--but with varying degrees of badness. three are very bad, about 8 are pretty bad, 12 moderately bad, and...
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    need help identifying mites

    I have had chickens for almost 20 years without a single problem with mites (or lice), and now my hens are really struggling with them. I have about 30 layers. I think it is mites, but I have never seen them, though I have looked. Since I don’t see anything on them, I’ve been figuring the...
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    broken beak

    I have 25 eight-week old pullets. This morning I noticed that one of the barred rocks has a broken beak. The top half of her beak is broken off quite far back. The underlying tissue is completely intact with no bleeding. It looks painful, but she is acting normally and seems perky enough. I...
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    Using sand in chicken yard -- does it get too hot?

    Thank you for the input, and for the link to the thread on muddy runs -- all very helpful. We have very dense clay soil, and I'm starting to think that maybe putting some sand in to lighten the soil, but doing pine needles and leaves and things on top might be a good combo . . . But I think the...
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    Using sand in chicken yard -- does it get too hot?

    I've seen so many people talking about how great sand is on this site. I was really hoping someone could answer my question. Sigh.
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    Using sand in chicken yard -- does it get too hot?

    I've been thinking of putting down sand in my chicken yard, but I'm wondering how it works when it gets very hot. Does the sand hold the heat (like on a beach on a really hot sunny day) making the chickens hotter? We live in Iowa, so we don't have blistering Arizona type hot, but it gets...
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    Chicken run- best material for floor that's proven????

    I've been thinking of putting down a layer of sand in my chicken yard, but I'm wondering how it works when it gets very hot. Does the sand hold the heat (like on a beach on a really hot sunny day) making the chickens hotter? We live in Iowa, so we don't have blistering Arizona type hot, but...
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    listless chicks

    Thank you for your interest. All the rest of the girls seem well. The reds do seem to be the smallest of my chicks (along with the black sex links), so it occurred to me that it could also be that any sort of stress on the flock (even just the shipping) could have simply hit them the hardest...
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    anyone use America's choice mini flake bedding for baby chicks?

    I've always used America's Choice brand "Eco-flake" for my brooder pen, but I didn't see any when I was at the farm store last week. There were bags of America's Choice "Mini-Flake," and I figured that sounded like it would do. When I opened it up, however I failed to see the "flake." "Mini"...
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    listless chicks

    Thank you so much for replying to my post. My third sick chick hung on for a day and a half with hand feeding and watering, but eventually died. A real heartbreaker as I'd gotten hopeful when she made it through the first night -- and of course I had gotten especially attached to her taking...
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    listless chicks

    Help! I had chickens in the past, but have been without a flock for a few years. I just bought 30 chicks, a variety of layers, to start a new flock. They arrived four days ago, and all was well until this morning when I found one dead and one looking listless. The listless one perked up with...
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