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  1. swordgeek

    My first time with a broody - ugh!

    Sometime during this past week, I noticed my 10-month-old black silkie, Julia, spending an inordinate amount of time in one of the nest boxes, making little cooing noises and hunkered down like a little zombie chicken. Hmm, I thought... I could swear she already laid today! Nighttime came, so I...
  2. swordgeek

    DE for bedbugs - really?!?

    So, I was hanging out, chatting at my local Agway today (something I won't admit to everyone I know). The owner and I got to talking about natural methods of worming vs. medication (we don't have worms, as far as I know, but I like natural methods!) and he swears by DE. That got us off on a...
  3. swordgeek

    Garlic *and* ACV in water?

    Now that the cold weather is approaching and they won't be as apt to dust-bathe (with the run usually under a lot of snow in winter!), I'd like to keep parasites to a minimum. I've never given my birds straight garlic before, though they have eaten leftovers with some garlic in it In my house...
  4. swordgeek

    Does molting affect poop consistency?

    My younger girls (about 20 weeks) are losing a few feathers here and there, nothing big. Their poop is lovely. For poop. YOU know. However, my older birds (2.5 years) are molting up a storm. They look so awful! Oddly, their poop has been pretty wet for awhile - one in particular is really...
  5. swordgeek

    Rooster's top beak broken near tip

    Hey there! A few days ago, I noticed that the top of my rooster's beak is broken near the tip. I imagine he pecked something hard - maybe one of the huge rocks in the run? I never saw any blood there, and only noticed when he was pecking some corn in my hand that if felt sharper than usual...
  6. swordgeek

    Meat trimmings - raw or cooked?

    This has probably been posted before, but I'm not coming up with anything definitive. I just trimmed all fat and sinew off a big leg of lamb, and kept a baggie filled with all the trimmings. I figured I could feed my birds a little over time - particularly over the winter, when they might like...
  7. swordgeek

    Classroom project - hatching eggs. Noooooooooooo!!!

    I'm so steamed, I just have to vent. Not even sure if this is the right forum for this, but here it goes. I just got a call from my daughter's best friend, who is 10. She said her new teacher is planning to hatch chicks in class this year as a learning tool. And... would I be interested in...
  8. swordgeek

    Yellow jackets - threats or treats?

    There are soooo many yellow jackets hanging around the ground this time of year, we're all having to watch where we step. Nasty things. And of course, they're hanging around the fruit in the chicken run. The chickens are going crazy chasing them around, and I've seen them pick off a few of them...
  9. swordgeek

    When will my rooster accept new girls? Or won't he?

    Another rooster question... Here's the situation: Prince had 4 hens with him, all the same age (2+ now). One hen died unexpectedly, leaving 3 hens. Then one moved indoors, leaving 2 hens. I would still free-range that one with the other birds - but he would ignore existence when they were out...
  10. swordgeek

    How good is a chickens' sense of smell?

    This may be a strange question, but how acute is a chicken's sense of smell? My rooster HATES my husband. He'll hear his voice or see him from a distance, and RUN until he gets close enough to attack him. Husband usually boots him, which I don't like one bit. This is the only person Prince...
  11. swordgeek

    Egg colors changed - for all my hens?

    I keep thinking I know what's going on, then something else makes me scratch my head (and no, it's not the chickens' lice). I'm looking at three eggs laid today. 3 hens, all the same age - born May 2008. Red cap lays small cream-colored eggs, sort of pointy at one end. Crevecoeur lays...
  12. swordgeek

    I found my second crower - surprise!

    About 6 weeks ago, I brought 5 pullets into my flock, 4 of whom are about 14 or 15 weeks old now. I've never had any of the breeds before, but I was assured that they were all females. Then a few weeks ago, just before dawn, I was horrified to hear a strangled crowing sound coming right on the...
  13. swordgeek

    Silly pullets now sleeping on nest boxes - arrrgh!

    I'm going NUTS! I spent a long time this season putting up new perches in my coop to accommodate the new pullets we were getting. I made sure to build different perch levels, and in different parts of the coop, so the new birds wouldn't be shut out of prime real estate by the big bullies. Once...
  14. swordgeek

    Odd question: substituting egg "parts" in recipes

    I'm not sure this ought to be in this section, but it certainly is egg-related! One of my favorite things to make is creme brulee. Been doing it for years and years, and it always comes out absolutely perfect. Until... A few months ago, I made my favorite recipe (ginger-vanilla bean) using eggs...
  15. swordgeek

    How long before free-ranging new additions?

    I added 5 pullets to my very small flock just over a month ago. Of the new birds, one is 5-6 months old, and the other four are probably 3 months. Once they were allowed to mingle in the run (which is about 20 feet by 12 feet, but don't quote me), they settled right in. But every now and then, I...
  16. swordgeek

    Former house chicken doesn't want to lay anymore - normal?

    Several weeks ago, I had to move my house chicken back outdoors with the rest of the flock. It was a sad day indeed, since we'd had her inside for 6 months and adored her. She has managed to worm her way into the top half of the pecking order - right below the original 3 members (a roo and 2...
  17. swordgeek

    Want to remove roo's spurs... but scared to DEATH

    It's time to remove my WCBP's spur. They things are several inches long, and very sharp. When he walks, it's like watching cogs on a wheel. And now that he has a bunch of hens to play with, I'm concerned for their safety. I've gotten mauled by the suckers several times (flogged?), and want them...
  18. swordgeek

    Something is trying to dig into my run - and now I'm peeved

    Apology in advance for this being kind of long... but... Bah! Something tried digging into my run last night, for the first time in years. I'm not sure what it was - it could be anything, in this neighborhood. We regularly have fishers, coyotes, foxes and coons in this yard (and hawks and owls...
  19. swordgeek

    My black silkie is a bantam (and I didn't know)!

    You know, every time I get to thinking I've got a clue about this chicken-raising thing, I find myself feeling like a total newb. Here we go again. I just found out TODAY that one of my new birds is a bantam. We adopted a group of 5 pullets from a neighbor who was down-sizing her large flock a...
  20. swordgeek

    You got your pullet in my layer feed!

    I've got four adult birds - 3 hens and 1 rooster - who are on layer pellets. And now I have five 8/10-week-old girls who are on pullet crumble. Each age group has its own feeder with the appropriate feed in it. For the most part, they eat what they're supposed to eat, and they share their treats...
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