Hi everyone, we've been going along the last year and a half happily. Until recently when I noticed our hens bums seemed to be more... Messy. What's causing their poopy bums? Also, today we cracked open an egg and it was red/ bloody looking inside. Is that related? Are my girls sick, or is this...
Do roosters crow more when they are bored or lonely? One little chick ended up being a roo. When we tried to integrate him into the flock with the older hens, he was attacked - scalped actually. He nearly died. I nursed him back to health, and he's been alone since. We are desperately trying to...
Hi everyone. Recently our dog and tortoise needed to be wormed. I'm concerned about the chickens now. Should we go ahead and worm them? With what? Should we put them on a schedule? Also, is there a way that worms can get into the eggs? What can we do to prevent the chickens from getting worms...
I'd like a little help with very basic goat set up. We have a open bottomed shed type thing with a raised roof. Do we need to completely predator proof it, like with chickens? Hardware cloth covering all holes? We do occasionally get raccoons and possums. Cats are regulars.
And what kind if...
My chickens started laying one week ago. I was not prepared for how excited we would all be, every single day. It's like Easter. Every day. Who gets to find the egg?! Haha. Anyway, we started with one egg the first day, then two eggs the second day and today we got three eggs! Here's our...
About 2 weeks ago we got a young dutch rabbit to be a companion for our lionhead rabbit. Both are females and they get along wonderfully. The new bunny seems to have more of a belly then I am used to, even more weight in her belly... and she's still so young so I don't think she is just fat. Is...
Hi everyone. Our first family dog is getting older. He is 11, but has outlived all of his family members, including his younger brother. He has a long list of health issues that have overwhelmed us the last two years and now seems to be in pain. We feel like instead of continuing with...
When to introduce chicks to hens? I know this question is asked a lot.
Previously I had answered this question myself really casually "around 8 weeks". I'd like to share a recent experience we had. We have 4 month old pullets and 8 week old chicks. From about 4 weeks old, the chicks were right...
We have some bickering going on in our coop in the early morning, before we get out there. I'd like to free up more space for the chickens and maker our own feeder and waterer... the ones we have now are huge "farm" style ones that take up a lot of space. Ideas? Links? Thanks everyone :)
Hi, we have been trying to find out as much as we can about goats in the last few months to get an idea if they will be right for us. One thing I am concerned about is costs. Our dogs have ended up costing a lot more then we had planned. If we decide to go through with getting two goats, what...
If you breed a polled doe and polled buck, are you guaranteed polled kids? I don't know if disbudding will be for us but I see the importance of not having horned goats. Thanks!
My oldest girls (3 barred rocks) are about 16 weeks now. Is there anything I can do to make sure they are in optimal health to start laying when they are ready? Is there anything that is known to cause a delay? We also have a RIR, BO, and Brown Leghorn that are about 15 weeks. A few of these...
Hi everyone :) I have a PET rabbit. She is very pretty and currently lives in our bedroom. Unfortunately she needs more room and a friend. In order to do those things I need to have her outside. Has anyone built their pet rabbit a nice hutch or tractor so they can graze? It will need to be dog...
Hi there! I currently have two small chicks living together. I'm concerned that one might be a rooster and the other one will be left alone.... well, until she can join the big flock which likely won't be for four more weeks. Eek! So, what's your guess, Roo or Pullet? We have a friend that also...
So, whatcha think? Chocolate and Nuts are about 4 weeks old. I think the one on the left is a roo and the one on the right is a hen. Agree? I am trying to decide whether to keep the hen or just let her go with the roo. They are pretty bonded and I'm feeling like I made a mistake getting...
Just after I posted my other question, I noticed a few teeny tiny bugs in our brand new bag of feed. Ugh. I will be returning it today or tomorrow. Unfortunately I had dumped the new bag in our canister, right on top of our good food. So, these are my questions: in my search to pull out a few...
How much do you spend on feed? And what kind are you buying?
We are spending $31 for a 50 lb bag of organic starter/ grower (organic pride). It seems to last us about 6-8 weeks. Is this about average?
Hi everyone :) We have been on a slow journey to self sustainability, being more "green" and finding ways to save money. This has lead us to all sorts of fun and its been great for the kids. I am interested in getting a pair of dairy goats, but before I get too excited I really need to know if...