This is simply an observation based on my 3 experiences brooding chicks.
-My first brood was from Tractor Supply. They were all about a week old when I got them so they spent their first week in the big metal bins under infrared heat lamps. When I got them home I put them in my garage where...
I have 8 babies arriving on the 11th of June and plan to brood (almost entirely) outdoors. We have a massive run that has chambers and the ability to close off sections, so the new babies will live separate (see don't touch) from the very beginning. I do plan to keep them for a few days in the...
This hen always has a split like this to some degree. Any idea what causes this? She’s perfectly healthy otherwise and none of my other girls have this issue. She’s lowest in the pecking order and definitely gets picked on, but not sure if that would be a cause for her beak to look this way.
I Like having a very mixed flock and have an order in for June with a variety of new-to-me breeds. Im considering adding a speckled Sussex as they're available on the same ship date as the rest of my order. Id have to swap out one of the birds I already have in my order since my space is...
Hello BYC Friends!
So we had a feather picker In the flock. She was really targeting my RIR (poor thing was completely bald and at the base of her tail and the skin was so irritated for a while) but also started going for my Easter Egger at the side of her tail base and my BR right below her...
I have a bully in my flock and Ive narrowed it down to 2. Some of my birds have very obvious plucking on their backs right at their tail feather base. The photo here is one of the chickens I thought was the culprit, but now she has a bald spot on her butt below her vent. She did have a very...
I just placed an order for 6 new chicks to arrive in August (I have no self control. I swore I wouldn't buy more).
August here is very hot, even at night. The average says 87 degrees during the day but most days the heat index is well above that. Evenings are also close to 80-85. I would...
I’m putting together an order for this summer and I like to add 1 or 2 prolific layers since I’m getting some breeds that don’t lay as often. I’ve had my eye on black australorps for a while. To those who keep this breed, how do they lay? how early do they come into lay? How is their behavior...
I’m having trouble finding videos or photos comparing Jersey giants to other large breeds like buffs or RIRs. My husband really wants one in the flock but I think he’s overestimating how large they actually are. I read they aren’t the best layers and if there isn’t anything particular special...
Oh she is so so sweet. But she’s not very intelligent at all.
My Polish is 14 weeks old and I’m concerned about her behavior. She’s the only Polish in the flock and I of course expected some goofy behavior from everything I’ve read, but this is beyond what I imagined. Her 3 brood mates don’t...
My polish pullet is 12 weeks. She’s the only polish in the flock but doesn’t seem to be singled out because of her hairdo. I know the breed is well known for some goofy behavior, and I definitely see personality differences, however the past 3 days she’s been acting super bizarre. She spends...
I just made myself 3 eggs for breakfast and one of them had an overwhelming fishy flavor when I took a bite. So bad that I spit it out. The egg itself is very fresh, not more than a week old. What’s going on? Has anyone experienced this? Before this my eggs were pretty bland, no different than...
This weekend we built a new coop and put our 11week old pullets outdoors full time. We currently have 5 other laying pullets and have been integrating the 4 new ones for weeks, But up until this weekend we had been bringing the younger ones into the garage at night because the old coop was just...
I have been using two five gallon buckets with horizontal nipples for my flock. Recently we integrated some new pullets and I wanted to make sure there was extra feed a water for them to be able to grab what they need while being chased around, so I put some bowls of water out. I noticed...
I posted about this yesterday in the behaviors section, but I need to know how to treat the wounds my larger hens caused to my almost 10 week old pullet. There wasn't any broken skin but as you can see in my photos the feathers were plucked out at the root and it was pretty bloody. I washed her...
Im pretty upset right now. Not sure where to post this because its behavior and injury issues.
I have 4 pullets who are almost 10 weeks old. I did the whole integration process and have had them roaming free in the very large run with my 5 older pullets (7 months) for almost a week now...
As the title says…
Noticed my BR has a huge clump of poop stuck to her. Tried cleaning it with baby wipes, wet towels, and could barely get any off. It feels like matted hair almost. I didnt want to be too rough and potentially injure her so I snapped a photo to bring to the experts here. How...
My RIR laid a very speckled egg yesterday. It’s beautiful but definitely was a surprise. Her eggs do often have tiny little pinhole speckles but this one was very pronounced. What causes this?
(I just washed these in the photo so some are still wet) The egg next to the speckled one is also...
looking for opinions on nesting box pads. I currently just use pine shavings in my boxes but they tend to kick it out or scratch so much they lay directly on the hard box surface. I keep seeing These pads pop up on my Amazon and im intrigued:
Eaton Pet and Pasture, Premium Laying Hen Nesting...