2018 Newbie Chat!

[Anna Ranieri]

The heated roost bars work well too. I got those. They come on when it hits 35 and warms them through their feet. They all used them(I got two). We are getting into the negatives today through next week. I just don't see how these little creatures can take that kind of weather. It's brutal. Granted mine are in the house, but next year they won't be. I'm also thinking that the dycks, especially the runners might not ever do well in this weather. They are very slim ducks to begin with.

We reached -3°c and it was very hard on my Runner's, it was hard on their feet and they were shivering loads so I ended up doubling up a thick duvet, put a wool blanket on top and put it on the ground with food and water for them to lay on, by the end of the day the blanket and top of the duvet gets a bit damp but it still works at keeping them warm, especially as the day warms slightly, then each night I give the duvet and blanket and hard shake to remove poop, dropped food etc, then put both the blanket and duvet on a radiator to dry out ready for the next day. Thankfully it did the trick, they were fine using it. I also have cardboard strips on the ground ( which I change regularly as they tend to get damp eventually) for them to walk on and have found it working very well for them. I've also found they do quite well getting into their pools I remove all the ice then top the pools up with tepid water for them. I read that putting wood on the ground is very good for them for walking on, but they've been fine using the cardboard and duvet/blanket so I haven't used that method.
I've also put masses of woodchip all over the floor if the run which is also working well and I've put 4 times as much bedding, than usual, in their duck house and have found this is working well at keeping them warm at night. My Khakis aren't bothered by the cold or ice at all but often end up on the duvet/blanket at some point as they like to stay with their drakes.
My chickens aren't bothered by the cold either as long as they are dry - even when the ground was covered with 2inch thick ice and covered in frost, they have used the cardboard a bit too but tend not to use it much.

 

[Anna Ranieri]

DH has added a temporary fence in the gap of the unfinished privacy fence so we can let the flock out into the side yard so they can have more space.
He let them out for the first time on Thursday and they just had a field day!
I’m so glad they have more space and I can tell they’re enjoying that immensely.
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Here they’re drinking out of the fairy statue bowl
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Pippin and Cleo on a walk about. Cleo is the same size as Pip now.
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Looks really good. Love these pictures

 

[Anna Ranieri]

Bathing isn’t too hard at all. Get a small tub of lukewarm water, you can even go a little warmer. Set her in and let her soak for at least ten minutes. If you let her stand on her own she’ll be quite calm. After ten min, get a small dime size amount of baby shampoo and start working the spot that’s matted. It should come right out. Rinse, then set her on a towel and promptly blow dry. The only thing you want to avoid is getting her earlobes and head wet. Blow drying takes a really long time, and you want to make sure she’s completely dry before putting her back out. I think it took me 45 min to blow dry my last bird so be prepared!

My daughter and I bathed Jellybean, Lilah and Pedro today. They really didn't like the bathing bit especially Jellybean who protested and tried to get out, ended up separating us with water at one point lol. But all were fine and washed up well. Jellybean and Lilah really enjoyed the hairdryer which surprised me as none of them have ever encountered a hairdryer before, both were so relaxed and didn't try to jump off my daughter's lap and even fluffed their feathers as they dried. Pedro was ok but she wasn't so keen, at one point she got distressed and I realised she was wanting to lay her egg, we couldn't let her out while she was still wet so we had to keep going. Poor thing ran faster than I've ever seen before, to get to the nest box and layed her egg in record time. Its another very big egg, the last big egg she laid was a double yolker so I'm guessing this one will be as well.
Thanks for your help and advice, they all are so clean and Lilah is actually white again lol.

 

[llombardo]

My daughter and I bathed Jellybean, Lilah and Pedro today. They really didn't like the bathing bit especially Jellybean who protested and tried to get out, ended up separating us with water at one point lol. But all were fine and washed up well. Jellybean and Lilah really enjoyed the hairdryer which surprised me as none of them have ever encountered a hairdryer before, both were so relaxed and didn't try to jump off my daughter's lap and even fluffed their feathers as they dried. Pedro was ok but she wasn't so keen, at one point she got distressed and I realised she was wanting to lay her egg, we couldn't let her out while she was still wet so we had to keep going. Poor thing ran faster than I've ever seen before, to get to the nest box and layed her egg in record time. Its another very big egg, the last big egg she laid was a double yolker so I'm guessing this one will be as well.
Thanks for your help and advice, they all are so clean and Lilah is actually white again lol.

What did you use to bath them? I think I will do this when I get them back outside.

I'm concerned about the runners too. I announced at work today I would take any kind of extra blankets anyone has. They may be in tve house but it is super cold in the bathroom

 

[Anna Ranieri]

What did you use to bath them? I think I will do this when I get them back outside.

I'm concerned about the runners too. I announced at work today I would take any kind of extra blankets anyone has. They may be in tve house but it is super cold in the bathroom

I just used a bucket full of lukewarm water, deep enough to cover them up to their backs, then after a couple of minutes soaking them, I used a small amount of baby shampoo on my fingers and massaged the poopy feathers, then rinsed with clean water. Whole bath time (not including drying time) took about 2-3 minutes for Lilah and Pedro and about 5-6 minutes for Jellybean who was the dirtiest and had the poopiest butt. There was one spot on Jellybean where the poop had dried like cement and had matted a few of her feathers. We didn't want to cut out any feathers due to the extreme cold so on this one matted spot we only cut it half way down, and then massaged the remainder between my finger and thumb to break it down, then it washed off easily after that. Drying time took the longest about 20 - 30 minutes per bird.

 

[PNW_Peepers]

Warning!!!!!
Graphic!!!!
This is Ash’s wound from being over mated. Wally doesn’t even have developed Spurs, this is simply from mounting repeatedly.

The black is a scab starting to form.

 

[No More Empty Nest]

Warning!!!!!
Graphic!!!!
This is Ash’s wound from being over mated. Wally doesn’t even have developed Spurs, this is simply from mounting repeatedly.
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The black is a scab starting to form.

Poor Ash! It looks like it's healing well. You're doing a great job caring for her. I hope I do as well if it's ever needed.

 

[llombardo]

Warning!!!!!
Graphic!!!!
This is Ash’s wound from being over mated. Wally doesn’t even have developed Spurs, this is simply from mounting repeatedly.
View attachment 1653347
The black is a scab starting to form.

Ouch. I really hope I don't have the same issue. I got so much going on with the dogs, I'm hoping I can focus on them for just a little bit.

I have 3 dogs with hip dysplasia, 2 have had hip surgeries on both hips. The youngest is doing really good, the older one that had surgery is on adequan and my oldest that is 14 was diagnosed with it not long ago--never saw that coming. She is on adequan. I bought a laser pad for pain relief and will be using that on the two older ones--both my girls. One of my GSDs gets allergies in the winter--he is actually allergic to the heat source in the house. So I keep the heat at 68 with a window cracked open which eased the itching. I got him a seasonal support supplement that seems to work for others. And I found a lump on my oldest golden. I've been monitoring it and it could be a fatty tumor--it hasn't grown, but another little lump appeared a couple inches from that one. I don't like this lump. My experience as a former vet tech is telling me its not good. I've moved away from lots of traditional medicines. I don't want surgery so it can spread, chemo destroys the gut. So I went with medicinal mushrooms along with a mushroom complex for immunity support. I will do this and watch these lumps. Of course I will take him in if I feel it's getting worse. I'm keeping my fingers crossed here. He us such a good dog. So my focus is on him and my oldest(she is 14.5) She seems to be moving better with the cold/snow. She goes out and is rolling around in it and doesn't want to come in..lol. She wakes me up to go lay out there. Her name his Misty but we call her Misty Furball.

So lots going on. Sorry for the vent, I just needed to get it all out. The struggle is real here, but we are survivors and I will do anything for all of them.

 

[llombardo]

Oh and I put an old soft dog bed I found in with the ducks. I'm pretty sure it will make a difference. I'll just rotate that with some blankets. They all were just looking at it, because of course they don't trust it yet. One of the runners did have one foot on it and was staying put. Hopefully they take advantage of it.

 

[llombardo]

And they still don't trust it. They are all around it but not dating to go on it. Silly silly ducks.