Recent content by Dokdream

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    Do I need a heat lamp for my 3 week old chicks?

    Do you have any trouble catching the chicks again when "recess" is over and time to go back into the brooder or "nursery" coop?
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    Comment by 'Dokdream' in article 'Top 10 Chicken Predators'

    Rats are indeed a problem. I read about using a trash can with a swinging lid. The lid is baited. When the rodent hops on it to grab the bait, is weight causes the lid to tilt, making the rat slip into the trash can. Anyone try this method? If so, what were the results?
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    Review by 'Dokdream' in article 'Rat - Chicken Pests - How To Protect Your Chickens From Rats'

    Terrific article! I have tree-rats. They live underground, coming up at night to eat the citrus fruit in our trees. Several eggs being incubated disappeared on successive nights. The weather was warm so I left the coop hatch open. When I closed the hatch, no more eggs disappeared. Of...
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    Comment by 'Dokdream' in article 'Chicken Behavior The Ignorant Gal's Guide To Things No Sane Person Would Tell You About Chickens'

    Maybe I can get some advice about Matilda. She tended to brood and I was hesitant to remove eggs from her lest I hamper her psyche. (Yes, I DO know what I am writing.). A few days ago I bought a dozen fertile eggs at Trader Joe's. I put six in a small, auxillary hutch and the other six in the...
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    Comment by 'Dokdream' in article 'Owl - Chicken Predators - How To Protect Your Chickens From Owls'

    Valuable information. I wanted more information on owls, and this article provided it. Our coop is secure, but we do have predators in the vicinity. We have a family of skunks, generations of racoons, opossums, and perigrine falcons in the front tree. We also have fruit (roof?) rats. Yes...
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    Review by 'Dokdream' in article 'Factors that Influence & Affect Egg Laying'

    Yes, good article. Our girls have the run of the yard during the day; placed in the hutch at night. NO ARTIFICIAL LIGHT!! Still have access to the run below. I recycle the egg shells for calcium. I've discussed protocol elsewhere. I hang ears of corn for them to play "tether corn," which...
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    Anyone have any homemade chicken feed recipes?

    I agree with you. I buy grains and things from Azure Standard. It comes to a local delivery point and I go after it. Even in bulk, it is more expensive than what I get at either "Big Al's" pet supply, or Tractor Supply and, like you pointed out, it is not as nutritionally balanced as...
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    Homemade feed for my hens?? Better than commercial feed? More affordable? I need the truth!

    I use Dumore and Kelly's feed mostly. I treat them daily with dried meal worms or scratch grain -- a small part of their diet. I regularly string up ears of corn from Walmart. I run a skewer through the cob so it dangles and my girls play a rousing game of "teather corn." They also get sweet...
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    Comment by 'Dokdream' in article 'Do Chickens Have Teeth? A Close Look at the Anatomy and Physiology of Chickens'

    Ah-hah! Now I know why dinosaur drumsticks taste like chicken!
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    Hen died in my arms

    Taking photos of Flora's foot was not even in my mind. It was a small, dark patch on her foot-pad and a little discoloration on the top of one toe. I wondered how long this had been going on. Thursday, she gave no indication of a problem. Friday, she was limping. No sound, no significant...
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    Hen died in my arms

    Two days ago, Friday, I saw my Wyandotte hen, Flora, favoring her foot; not putting weight on it and hobbling. I picked her up, saw a dark spot on her pad and a darkening on one toe. She was just at one year old. As a day-old chick, before I even got her, she had injured a toe on that foot...
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    Comment by 'Dokdream' in article 'How to Correctly Wrap a Chicken's Foot!'

    Grateful for your article. I put it to use this evening. Flora developed a twisted toe when she was just a day or two after hatching. Now she is an adult. The twist didn't seem to bother her but today I saw that she was too quiet. And she favored one foot. I managed to collect her, calm her...
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    Can a peregrine falcon carry off a chicken??

    I watched the video of falcon / goose match. The prey had no chance against raptor claws and sharp beak. That means, in our case, that the best protection is the shade; not the size. The hens may weigh in at 5 lbs.
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    Can a peregrine falcon carry off a chicken??

    We have a Peregrine falcon family nesting in our front yard. I have a bird feeder and when the falcons are in the area, none of the seed-eaters come near it. In the back yard garden area, we also have chickens. I covered it with sun screening. It actually helps the plants grow more...
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    Comment by 'Dokdream' in article 'Pelletized Bedding / Shavings'

    I've been using straw bedding for about a year now. Hens like it and when it is fouled, it goes around the plants. The straw decomposes and the organic waste nourishes the trees and bushes. Not a big deal to rake it out and clean the areas the girls use at night.
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