Thanks to both of you This is my first chicken adventure, but sadly, my third batch of chicks, and even more sad: this is the farthest I've gotten so far with them being a month old.
I'm REALLY hoping that I can do everything right
Question Numero Uno:
How old should chicks be until I allow them to sleep outside in the coop without the heat lamp?
Right now they are about a month old, and they've been sleeping in the coop with a heat lamp on one side of it for about a week and a half now...(Three girls and one boy)...
I can't be sure, but I'm going to guess the red and blacks re RSL and BSL chicks, and the fawn chick would be the EE. But I can't see the puffy cheeks or the color of the feet. EE chicks (commonly sold as araucana) usually have greenish, olive or slate colored feet.
NO idea whatsoever as to...
I did everything I could think of to help them...but they still died. I classify that as a failure Hopefully they didn't die because they were sick...I'd be awfully worried about my chicks then.
So...I have good news and bad news. The chicks I had before that you wonderful people helped me figure out what they were...were killed. By a neighbors dog. I almost killed the dog. I contemplated sueing the owner...The dog escaped and went on a killing spree of my chicks, another neighbors cat...
I just still feel so bad...I used to volunteer at a wildlife sanctuary, and have nursed back otters, hawks, foxes, even the odd bald eagle. never done anything with ducks, but I thought I would be able to help a duck if I could save an eagle!
So it's just a blow to my ego and maternal instincts x.x
No idea. My hubby checked on them late last night when he got up to get a bottle for our 5 month old, and one of them was dead. He didn't tell me this morning because I was in such a good mood. But then I went in to check on them, and the other one was already gone. We don't know what...
No idea. My hubby checked on them late last night when he got up to get a bottle for our 5 month old, and one of them was dead. He didn't tell me this morning because I was in such a good mood. But then I went in to check on them, and the other one was already gone. We don't know what...
They're probably curious about the new arrivals. If they are the Top Hens then they're probably waiting to put the new chicks in their pecking order to maintain their status. Sounds like highschool, doesn't it? That's kinda how it is XD
I think they do it by reaching their arms through the wire and grabbing the feathers.
I had a rather gruesome attack on a rabbit years ago...I had made a hutch from wood and thick wire, and I had the rabbit for about 6 months in there...well, I woke up one morning to find the rabbit pulled...
Ah ok. I'll do that
And they must be wood ducks....is there anything special I should know about them? I mean...not to sound mean, but what's so great about them? I'm very ignorant when it comes to ducks XD
I have a 5 month old, so I can't really employ her, but I did force my hubby to go into the bushes to look for it. I also crawled around through the blackberry bushes/cobwebs/dense trees looking for it. I brought out the other ducklings to peep for it, but we just couldn't hear it anymore. It...
PICTURE UPDATE!!!
These are my Chicks.
The white one is a roo(no idea what he is), i've got a brown one(no idea what she is), the black and silver one I know is an Aracouna Or however you spell it. And I think the gold girl is A Red Star.
Here's one of the ducks.
Here's the two of them...
PICTURE UPDATE!!!
These are my Chicks.
The white one is a roo(no idea what he is), i've got a brown one(no idea what she is), the black and silver one I know is an Aracouna Or however you spell it. And I think the gold girl is A Red Star.
Here's one of the ducks.
Here's the two of them...
UPDATE:
Third duck still not found...so he was left overnight, and I don't have much hope. Other two are doing fantastic, getting along great with the chicks. I've only got one heat lamp so I put small wire mesh in the middle of the box to seperate them, but they will snuggle each other through...
Well right now they are with the chicks under the lamp sleeping...they did not like being put in the water dish I gave them XD they ran out quacking at me. They did eat a few of the peas, but mainly just pushed them around.
I'll be sure to put more updates up, and once I get my stupid computer...
Thanks....I'm just so worried about them. Right now I've got them in a cat carrier with fabric over the door because they squeezed themselves through the wire and I spent 10 minutes under the bed trying to get them
So these two little ducklings were left abandoned on my front lawn. No mother in sight, and the third little guy ran off, and I think my cats or some fox got to it before I could...*sniffle*
But I have never had any poultry before, I've had my 4 chicks for about 4 days now. I have no idea what...