"early infection (at 1–2 weeks) with an infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) that can cause hypoplasia of the ovary and oviduct." (in the link I provided...)
that's normal; indeed, they wouldn't be labelled false layers if people suspected/realised they were/had been ill. And the hen often is fine when you notice she's not laying; apparently the timing of when they catch it can make a significant difference to whether or not they become false layers...
yes. Normally the mama hen will look after her chicks and keep them warm and safe in the coop, and the rest of the flock should be fine with them as they interact during the day so are already integrated.
How cold does it get at night where you are?
I was making the same assumption when looking for an explanation as to why my cockerels leave it late to start crowing. Digging a bit deeper, I've now come to the conclusion that our birds are normal and very young cockerels (chicks) aren't really crowing, whatever weird sounds come out of their...
I don't think that will work here either, because when the cockerels do start to find their voice they do it out in the open, in the middle of the lawn for example, when mature roos are in sight as well as sound, and no-one bats an eyelid. If fear of attack kept them quiet before that point, why...
I must point out that I have multiple mature roos as well as the juveniles: Killay, Fforest, Gwynedd, Tintern, Hensol, Nefyn. They don't fight.
eta occasionally they fall out of course, like people do, and may get a bit snappy, and very occasionally blood is drawn. But I think it is misleading...
False layers have always been recognized in poultry handbooks; hens that look fine and act like they are laying, but don't actually lay. The current explanation for it is as a result of infection with a variety of Infectious bronchitis virus...
I don't think any of my mature roos consider themselves vulnerable (except when they're moulting) :lol: Confident, without being pushy, is how I would describe them.
Two are 6 months old (neither crowing yet, both silent in fact), three are just over 5 months (Visby croaks first thing in the morning, the other two have that sort of squeak between a cheep and a bawk, but Lulea's close to crowing I think), and three are one week younger (of them, only...
chickens do eat feathers, and feather shafts can be sharp if broken, so I would be optimistic. Not sure you would recognize what comes out though :lol:
Incidentally, while on the topic, another roo observation only possible because there's so many of them now. My cockerels' relatively late starts to crowing need an explanation. I wonder, may it be related to this (external-facing) defence role, rather than an assumed (internal-facing) desire to...
So sorry for your losses and traumas fluffycrow & Molpet. It brings back painful memories, and prompts me to think further on why we haven't had an attack here since 2020.
Numbers count. I've seen 5 roosters deter a loose dog. I've seen a large bird of prey (not sure which type, only glimpsed...
I only use broody hens.
Shavings in a Nestera coop.
Only natural methods tried here; broody hens offer the chicks the right temperature, and so much more (parental protection, guidance, comfort, instruction etc. etc.).
They are integrated within the flock from hatch when raised by a broody in...
I wouldn't worry about it; the bulk of the poop looks normal, so maybe those were just particularly robust seeds and survived the digestive process (as many have evolved to do). Corn niblets sometimes do the same with me :lol:
My aim is a self-sustaining flock, living as naturally as possible, so I want to let broodies do their thing if they are so inclined, but also I don't want to be overrun with chickens; there is a limit to how many this garden can sustain.
So I typically give 4 to 6, depending on (i) whether or...
I think it's correlation. Sumi's comprehensive article on the topic gives lots of possible reasons for lots of possible egg laying issues; which ones do you think might have exercise as another candidate cause?
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/common-egg-quality-problems.65923/