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Today while cleaning the coop, I realized how many thoughts relating to chickens and the experience with them that I've had. For example, today I thought, "You guys had better know how much I love you since I'm out here cleaning your coop instead of being warm and cozy inside." What thoughts...

Today I went out and noticed that one of my 5 year old hen's ankles are a little swollen, and her abdomen is also slightly puffy. I don't know if there is any liquid or puss in either and we don't have a syringe to check if there is. She is acting normal and her comb and wattles are a healthy...

This evening, a chick passed away. She was shipped just a couple days ago, and seemed to be acting fine until tonight. She was acting very slow and not seeming to want to move much. She had eaten food and drank water, but when I tried to put a cap with some water near her beak, she started...

I just got a batch of chicks that are maybe 3 days old. They're in a big brooder, with a heat lamp in one side of the brooder and the other side to serve as a place to go if they get too hot. By the heat lamp, it's reading about 90 degrees, slightly higher at times. I understand that a chick...

We have an 11 year old Dachshund who I just noticed tonight has something up with his foot. Right at the ankle, it's limp and I can feel something sliding. I am with this dog quite often, and this is the first night I've noticed anything like this. The foot is not swollen, and he appears to only...

We're thinking about finally getting some meat birds. My question is, what advice would you have liked to know when you were first starting? We want to get about 6-8 Cornish Cross or Cornish Rocks, and be able to breed AND slaughter the birds. Is this possible? All advice is welcome!

I recently started giving my hens oyster shell as a choice. They seem to love it, though now I'm noticing more egg abnormalities than ever before. The shells are wrinkly in appearance and hard to crack. I have had my chickens for nearly 5 years and they never appeared to need oyster shell...

I have a 3 year-old Barred Plymouth Rock who has only recently begun to show odd symptoms. When I went out to visit them this morning, she appeared normal. When I went out again tonight, I found her unable to stand up, heavily breathing, tired, and her comb had a purple tinge to it. She has been...

I went out to the coop this morning to find my hens with a torn up partially developed chick! The chick was not developed enough to hatch yet, but they had it! Our coop doesn't have many hiding spots and is relatively a simple design, so how did this happen? I have not seen any hen except 1 (who...

This thread was not the idea of mine, so I won't take credit for it. Recently I had a hen go broody (I hope I don't jinx myself and cause her to not sit anymore). I wanted to feel how many eggs she was sitting on, so I gently stuck my hand beneath her. There was 1 egg, and a can of Blu-Kote! I...

I'm hoping to build a chicken tractor coop that can hold about 5 hens. I would like some input on how big to make it and keep the chickens safe from predators. I plan on putting the chickens in the tractor coop during the day and putting them back into the permanent coop at night. Our main...

One of my RSLs has a bump about the size of a small marble on her chest bone right at the tip. I checked my other hens and they're all fine and don't have a bump. The bump is hard and under the skin. She's acting normal- laying eggs, eating, drinking, and pooping fine. Is this anything to be...

It's not an emergency, but I want to have some common chicken meds on hand just in case. I searched our local farm store's website for Safeguard and only found it in cattle, equine, dog, and goat versions. Which is best/safe for chickens? Also, where would a medication like Gallimycin be found...

I have a 3 week old chick that still has spraddle leg. Ever since she developed symptoms I've been doing physical therapy multiple times daily and tried to put string around her legs (which she gets out of every time) but there are no signs of improvement. I love this chick and want it to be...

I'm looking for the breed(s) of only the black chickens. In the pictures, I don't know if they're Australorps or not because their eyes are more of a yellow/haze color instead of a dark brown, which is what makes me wonder. They lay a cream-light brown large sized egg.

I have a 3 day old chick who is walking a little wobbly. His/her right leg's toes are curled up a little and the way s/he walks is more of a waddle. Is this alright for a young chick?

2 eggs are on day 22 with no signs of any movement, peeping, or pips. What should I do? I also have 3 eggs on day 21 that are moving a little and I could've sworn I heard one peep just once. They have not pipped yet either. Should I help them hatch or leave them be?

It's day 21 for 2 of the eggs in the incubator, and so far there is no pips and only minuscule movement. Am I just worrying too much or is this normal?

One egg that is on day 16 seems to have the development of a day 11-ish egg. Should I discard it or wait? I really don't want it exploding.

Day 1- I bought a still air incubator. For a trial, I've put three eggs in it, although it can hold much more. The temp is set to 101 degrees since it is a still air, and it is holding constant at that. Humidity is around 45%. The eggs are a Wyandotte rooster x Amber Star, Australorp, and a...