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  1. HSMomma3

    Hen’s middle toe curling in! Please help!

    Hi! Thanks for asking this question! I'm posting in this thread so I can follow the responses... because I have the same question! Our girls are also about 10 weeks old, we're also still on chick starter, and I've just recently noticed 4 of our black Australorp's with this issue, 2 of them...
  2. HSMomma3

    Curled Toes

    Hi everybody! We have a new batch of girls this spring, 25 hens from 3 different breeds, and they are about 9 weeks old now. I've just recently noticed several that have curled toes, and it seems to be getting worse by the day... they seem to walk with no trouble or pain, but I feel sure they...
  3. HSMomma3

    Hens not laying consistently

    Thanks for all this!! Yes, Hubby is planning for us to check pelvics this weekend again, and cull the ones who don't measure up. We will be getting some new chicks. But our previous flocks were also BO and BA exclusively. One thing that just occurred to me, our birds since moving to this new...
  4. HSMomma3

    Hens not laying consistently

    Thanks for this advice! Any recommendations of a better brand?
  5. HSMomma3

    Hens not laying consistently

    So do you think it was just a fluke that we got so many eggs from our first flock? That flock was exclusively BO and BA, and we got between 10-12 eggs daily from 13 hens (living with 1 roo). Like I said, "basically" an egg a day, and obviously not near that much during the winter months. I'm...
  6. HSMomma3

    Hens not laying consistently

    Yes, we're considering culling the oldest girls (3 year-olds) and getting new chicks. But our struggle is that, even when the first girls were just one year old, we have never been able to achieve and egg a day -or even close- from this flock. I'm worried that maybe they just don't lay...
  7. HSMomma3

    Hens not laying consistently

    As far as laying in a hidden nest, I have thought about that too, but I don't think it's our main problem. I say that because, we did have them mostly "penned up" for the first year or so - we had a dog that had a taste for chicken, so we could only let them out in the afternoons for a few...
  8. HSMomma3

    Hens not laying consistently

    Hey BYC'ers! I'm certainly not an expert, but not a total newbie either... we have been raising backyard chickens for around 7-8 years now. I will try to include all the details that might help... Here goes. We have 27 laying hens and one rooster, a few different breeds - BO, BA, RIR, NHR...
  9. HSMomma3

    Hatching eggs in November

    So much great help! Thanks Ridgerunner! I'll take the cage up today and let them integrate. They have already been socializing "a little" each day, when I go in and open up the broody pen to change water and feed for Momma and babies... and I have seen that Momma does protect them if another...
  10. HSMomma3

    Hatching eggs in November

    Hi Ridgerunner, You have described just what we did with our broody Momma. She is also less than a year, and she did great with setting and hatching. Just before hatch time, we moved her to a small caged area below the (elevated) nest boxes, separated from the flock by a "wall" of hardware...
  11. HSMomma3

    Topic of the Week - Broody hens

    This looks great crealbilly! I love the remove and reuse approach, that is perfect for us. My husband is a great DIY'er ... I know what I'm asking for at Christmas! Ha! Our Momma did fine when I moved her to the floor, she didn't seem bothered by it. I candled all 19 eggs and found only...
  12. HSMomma3

    Topic of the Week - Broody hens

    Thank you for this, Ren2014! So I will be moving her down to the floor this evening, made a little pen for her in the corner under the other nest boxes. I can candle the eggs while I'm moving them, BUT I'm a bit of a newbie still, and I don't think I know how to tell where they are in...
  13. HSMomma3

    Topic of the Week - Broody hens

    Hi BYC friends! Thank you so much for all this great info, it is so helpful for those of us still learning! I have a question about my Buff Orpington Momma who has been broody for at least 16 days (she began setting while we were out of town so we're not sure exactly when she started) --...
  14. HSMomma3

    Ok to hatch eggs fertilized by sibling rooster?

    Thanks for all this helpful information! This will be our second flock, so I have had a little experience but not with hatching my own... I knew that they would definitely mate, just didn't know if the chicks would be healthy in the long run. This is great news for us, no separate coops or...
  15. HSMomma3

    How to prevent breeding between two different flocks of birds

    Thanks to you both! I knew that they would definitely mate, just didn't know if the hatched chicks would be healthy in the long run. Thanks so much for the helpful info… no separate coops for us! Yay :)
  16. HSMomma3

    How to prevent breeding between two different flocks of birds

    If I'm not concerned about "keeping my breed pure", if I'm simply trying to become self-sustaining with my flock (as in, not having to buy new chicks in future years)… can I safely breed my rooster with my hens that are of a different breed? Will the chicks be healthy? Will they be able to...
  17. HSMomma3

    Ok to hatch eggs fertilized by sibling rooster?

    Can I tag along to your conversation with a related question? I'm wondering about how it works with breeding my own chickens, if I have a rooster that is a different breed than the hen... We will have 6 hens and 1 rooster each, of two different breeds (Buff Orp, and SLW). We would like to be...
  18. HSMomma3

    Comment by 'HSMomma3' in article 'Hilltop Hens'

    This looks great! Thanks for so much detail, I will definitely use several of your ideas in our new (larger) coop. My husband will love your layout drawings too, so helpful! This site is the best, so full of great people who are willing to share their knowledge with others... Thank you...
  19. HSMomma3

    Can roosters live separate until breeding time?

    Thanks for this! I guess I knew that already, just wasn't keeping it in mind. You're so right, that we shouldn't breed him anyway if he's aggressive. Our first flock was a terrible experience with roosters, largely because we purchased from a local farm who "told us" that he could sex the...
  20. HSMomma3

    Can roosters live separate until breeding time?

    At our last farm we had a nice variety of breeds, but this time we are sticking with just two - Buff Orpingtons and Silver-laced Wyandottes. Those are the two breeds that were the best out of our last flock - affectionate, calm, good layers - so we'll have 6 hens and one rooster of each. I will...
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