Recent content by Kait27

Wow, I haven't been on here in years and didn't realize people were still discussing this. Please don't feel that anyone has to original the original post- those chicks grew up and have mostly died off by now. The one remaining is 5 years old! Guess it's been helpful to many people along the way...

I have four Buff Orpington hens who will be two on Sunday. For a while, I've been noticing that a couple had some feathers missing below their vent area, but I really didn't give it much thought. The other night while they were roaming the yard, I noticed that three have this, and one of the...

Thanks! I did crack open the egg she laid in August, which was slightly off-color, and it looked fine. I didn't want to eat it, so I scrambled it and fed it back to them. I'll probably do the same with these!

Does anyone else have experience with recovered internal layers? I have four BO hens who are 18 months old, and one of them (we call her Sickie) began laying internally in the spring... she stopped laying in April, and in June, when I realized what was happening, she nearly died- didn't move for...

I'd switch to a grower/finisher at the age of your chicks- I think I switched mine around 8-9 weeks, when i ran out of my first bag of starter. Definitely don't switch to Layer until at least 16 weeks. I think I switched to Layer around 18 weeks, and mine didn't lay until 24 weeks. (Buffs tend...

lol. i worked on a farm for 6 summers during high school and college, and now that I work in a city office people still have a hard time believing that I might actually know a thing or two about chickens. When I told people at work I was getting chicks last year, one guy told me "You know you...

And if this were the case, wouldn't egg-bound-ness be kind of a null issue?

This is just a story, but I had to share it. I went to our local county fair last night (entered a dozen of my eggs, won a blue ribbon yay! but not the point.) At any rate, I was in the poultry tent, and I over heard a man who was behind the table, so he was somehow involved, telling a guest...

Sicky McChicken started laying again! After a 4-month hiatus and a visit to death's doorstep, my internal layer produced a small, but perfectly-formed brown egg yesterday! It's very small for my girls, and probably similar to the size they started laying as pullets. Guess she has to start over...

Well, that answers it. She laid an egg yesterday! She's 14 months old, but laid a tiny pullet-sized egg. Guess she has to start all over and work her way back up to big-girl eggs.

Hi All... A few months ago I posted about a very sick suspected internal layer... you can read about it here if you want the back story: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=362549&p=1 In short, she stopped laying sometime in April or May, got very sick in June to the point...

At 17 weeks, they'd most likely be telling you if they were a rooster. That buff is definitely a hen, looks just like mine did. Barred Rock roosters tend to be lighter in color- more white. They would also have much more developed and redder combs and waddles if they were boys. Do any of them...

More common in some breeds than others, and more common in new layers... willing to bet it will gradually drop off to single-yolks as they become more regular.

Same here! I've taken to calling her Sicky McChicken. (they all have identities, but not real names- Runty, Broody, Big Comb and Little Comb/Sicky) She spent about 4 days just sitting on the coop floor not moving and I thought for sure she was done, and then on then fifth or so day, she got up...

How are things in your coop today, Misti? I had some luck last night getting her to eat- a few bites of yogurt, some grapes, and even some cooked hamburger. She had a little bit of vigor, but still isn't standing for more than a moment or two. This morning she ate a few grapes I cut up but...