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  1. Gibs

    Wing clipping - one or both?

    Hm, sounds like what I've been hearing offline as well - some people do one, some people do both. ^^ My goal is the LEAST amount of lift possible. It would be nice if they'd stay where I put them for once, and stop jumping up in my olive tree.
  2. Gibs

    Wing clipping - one or both?

    Just to be clear, I'm talking about clipping fully grown flight feathers - painless and temporary (until the next molt). I'm NOT talking about pinioning, or clipping growing/blood feathers - ow! Basically, I would like my chickens to be a little less flappy, and a little more easily deterred by...
  3. Gibs

    What breed should I add to my flock

    It really depends what you want them for! If friendliness /docility is your main concern, then I might have a few suggestions. Silkies are near the top of the huggable list (also good for meat), and I've also had some very sweet Polish hens (some can lay fairly well). The only problem with...
  4. Gibs

    Wing "layering" problem?

    Thank you guys! Sorry for not replying earlier - a couple days after I posted this, I got a nasty case of appendicitis. :P Update on the bird: I tried wrapping his wing figure-eight style for a few days, but I think he got the wrap off fairly quickly each time. On the bright side, his wing did...
  5. Gibs

    Wing "layering" problem?

    Hey guys, I have an almost-grown squab - he's about a month old, almost as big as his parents and starting to eat solid food (though still begging Mom and Dad like crazy when he gets a chance). He seems to be doing fine, except that his left wing isn't quiiiite folding away properly on its...
  6. Gibs

    'A' for effort

    No, it'll eventually get yucky like any other egg - though it might last a bit longer because these "wind eggs" usually don't have much yolk. If you've ever slaughtered a hen of laying age, have you seen the unlaid yolks inside her? Usually there are quite a few, ranging from normal yolk size...
  7. Gibs

    Retraining an egg-eater?

    Yes, they're definitely hard-shelled eggs that she's eating... unfortunately. :( I'll try to grab a picture if it happens again, but it's your typical case of "egg eaten by a beaked predator," where a jagged hole is made on the side of the shell facing upward, and about half the contents have...
  8. Gibs

    Retraining an egg-eater?

    Not at all! Very informative, thank you for the "hijack." :D My hens mostly don't disturb the bedding unless there's something interesting in it (like pieces of a broken egg, insects, etc if it's gone unchanged for too long), but nest-messing and egg-eating definitely seem related. All part of...
  9. Gibs

    Retraining an egg-eater?

    Hey folks, The things I've heard about hens eating eggs are pretty discouraging - basically, that once they've started they won't ever stop, and they'll teach others to do it as well. That's what I've read, anyway... but this is a new problem for me, so I'm wondering if anyone with experience...
  10. Gibs

    I have a mean silkie rooster

    Sorry to hear about all the trouble you've been through! In my experience, Silkies are usually among the LEAST aggressive breeds - the hens go broody very easily and will mother just about anything (including ducklings!), and the roosters usually wind up pretty low on the pecking order. But of...
  11. Gibs

    Training Chickens Where Not to Go?

    Hm. I don't want to be a big nay-sayer, but I have had NO luck teaching chickens where they shouldn't go. :P Yell at them, lure them elsewhere, spray them with water, chase them away.... It's hard to know exactly what message they're getting, of course, but I read it as something like: "Oh, I...
  12. Gibs

    How long to keep dual-purpose hens?

    Hi folks, Just wondering, if anybody else has experience raising dual-purpose breeds and using the hens first as layers, then as stew: when do you make that transition? To be clear, I'm not in a hurry to get rid of my girls - I have plenty of space and no big problems. They're currently a year...
  13. Gibs

    Pair losing interest in nest?

    Hey guys, My two mated Frillbacks keep laying eggs but not incubating them for longer than a day or two, and then mating again almost immediately. Has anyone else had experience with that? I know there are some reasons a pair might normally abandon their nest (e.g, if the nest were invaded by...
  14. Gibs

    So, tell me... ;)

    This is my first clutch as well as the parents', but everybody seems to be doing great! Happy and healthy and eating a LOT. I am just about the proudest godfather around. So, I'm just wondering - is there a word that means "cute" and "ugly" all at the same time? Or maybe "so ugly...
  15. Gibs

    Parasite / fungus / ???

    Well, I do have a jar of coconut oil and not much to lose! :) I'll give that a try and look for lice - do they appear all over the body or only at certain locations? I did check around her legs, belly and under the wings earlier, but I was mostly looking for more white stuff. Thanks for the...
  16. Gibs

    Parasite / fungus / ???

    Hi folks, I noticed these white specks on the wattles and throat of one of my hens today - anybody familiar with what it might be? They're hard to the touch, granular in appearance but very difficult to pull off of the feathers (at least, without pulling out the entire feather). I tried a...
  17. Gibs

    Phoenix, silver Leghorn, something else...?

    Great, thank you all so much! donrae, I think it was indeed McMurray - they actually sent me a couple extras, but the other one (a little white Polish) was easier to identify. :)
  18. Gibs

    Phoenix, silver Leghorn, something else...?

    Hey all, Any thoughts on what breed this little guy is? He looks similar to a couple of Phoenixes I've seen, but at almost 5 months, he has a less impressive tail than my Sussex rooster of the same age. (Although it's worth noting that he was an "extra" in a large order from a hatchery, so if...
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