Beaks are covered with a layer of keratin (think fingernail) over bone--it looks like that layer has come off. Maybe trauma, maybe something more unusual. Having the bone exposed like that is going to be really painful and leaves it open to infection. Definitely worth a vet visit in my opinion.
Just FYI, going to put two Narragansett hens on the STL Craigslist tomorrow. They're supersweet ladies and were intended as pets--raised mixed in with chickens, guineas, ducks, geese, and goats. Unfortunately I need to downsize. Posting here in hopes to attract someone who might not want them...
Really impressed with the new construction! Making me really envious...
It's probably not the usual reaction, but I really like the female games you purchased (more than the males)--they are just so pretty!
-cidal means it kills, -stat means it inhibits growth and reproduction. So, a coccidiocidal drug kills coccidia. A coccidiostat, like amprolium, still requires a competent immune system to attack the organism to rid it from the body...but it is held in check until that can be accomplished...
Ask the feed store if it has been treated--pesticides, fungicides, fertilizers. If they don't know, then have them find out (they know where they sourced it from). No you do not want to feed wheat containing any of those to your chickens, it doesn't matter how much you soak it.
Mine pupated last winter like crazy with that temperature range. It wasn't 70F in the house until it was 70F outside. My ancient furnace (it originally was coal-burning) shot craps last winter so I was heating the house with two space heaters.
Exactly. If they find that the overuse of amprolium is causing difficulties in treating humans, then they can just make it "medically important" and it's covered.
Here is a link to find a vet that specializes in birds if you want to treat your chickens like pets instead of production animals: http://www.aav.org/search/custom.asp?id=1803
I seem to remember someone using it for quail. Just might have to push it down further to get it at their backs since they're smaller. I've used MHP for chicks, keats, poults, ducklings, and goslings now. My own quail project is waiting until this spring.
Just to re-emphasize that any of the products that you buy now will be illegal to use after January 1st without you having the paperwork from a veterinarian showing a valid VFD. To USE not just to buy. This applies to any size operation, even if you only have a single chicken. You can, of...
I have a few bantam Cochins and a few Mille Fleur d'Uccles that free range during the day but they have roos with them. The d'Uccles are definitely more predator aware.
You can consider banty EEs or Dominiques if egg-production is important.
The regulation not only covers the sale of the antibiotics, but their use as well. If you USE a feed-based antibiotic or an antibiotic designed to be added to the water after the restriction becomes active and you don't have a copy of a valid VFD from a veterinarian, you will be breaking the...
Well, Katey, looks like you're going to be in for an interesting ride with your little cockerel! Since he is the only chicken you have and appears to have adopted you as his flock, he is naturally going to want to be with you pretty much all the time which is why he doesn't much care for his...
I seem to remember that some people who breed Silkies have to trim the "fluff" a bit around the vents of both sexes so that everything ends up meeting up properly.
I'm having a little trouble visualizing...can you post a pic? In some of the oriental breeds the feathers are pretty hard/short so the keel is left bare. I have a Shamo pullet that is getting a bit bare-breasted as she grows.
Depends on quite a few factors, but in general you look at chick behavior rather than a thermometer. Here's the big thread of info: https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/956958/mama-heating-pad-in-the-brooder-picture-heavy-update
Yes, it may not be in the poultry section though: http://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/probios-dispersible-powder-240gm
If it is losing its feathers just on the butt, you may also want to pick up a bottle of Vetericyn spray for poultry to apply to the skin. It's a nice antiseptic that will...