2018 Newbie Chat!

[No More Empty Nest]

Well, the duck hens are back indoors, I didn't take them in they followed me in when I went to get them all some banana, and went straight to my bedroom door so I opened it enough so's not to let the boys out but so they could get in and they went straight in so at least I know I did the right thing putting them in with their boys in the first place. Boys are desperate to get out but how do you explain to a duck that they are better off where they are and that it won't be forever, just until there's no more ice or snow. Well the girls had about 45 mins outside so at least that's something.
It's now starting to rain again so I'm thinking to put the chickens in the run and sit in with them, otherwise Pedro and Jellybean will beat up on Roo. I don't interfere but Roo runs under my chair and the others back off when she does so at least she gets some respite.
We 5 are in the run now, it's amazing how different the temp is in here compared to outside - good ole tarpaulin - great invention!

Glad the bad weather will miss you! Yes, it's amazing what a little tarp or plastic will do to make a nice cozy place in the cold. I was amazed at the difference when the wind was blocked but the sun was not.
It's now 1 degree ABOVE zero!! Yay! The water was not frozen so the heater just wasn't made for that degree of sub zero temps. I had been thinking of getting one like my daughter's but we most likely won't get this low again until the one I have is old and broken.

 

[No More Empty Nest]

Oh I hope yall stay safe in that weather! Meanwhile in Tx today's high is 66 F or 18 C. It feels so nice outside. My new girls and Bear are 21 weeks now. No eggs and no attacks. Bear still keeps his distance. I don't have any major updates just catching up and checking in. There was a local story about 3 teen boys, about 45 minutes from where I live, setting a chicken on fire and posting the video. So disturbing what people think is amusement. They're all facing criminal charges thankfully.

That's horrible! I don't even have the words to express my feeling.

 

[Anna Ranieri]

Glad the bad weather will miss you! Yes, it's amazing what a little tarp or plastic will do to make a nice cozy place in the cold. I was amazed at the difference when the wind was blocked but the sun was not.
It's now 1 degree ABOVE zero!! Yay! The water was not frozen so the heater just wasn't made for that degree of sub zero temps. I had been thinking of getting one like my daughter's but we most likely won't get this low again until the one I have is old and broken.

Glad your weather is on the way up makes sense about the heaters not working when weather below 0, as I imagine they are only a low wattage otherwise the water would boil.
Now your warmer weather is coming maybe it will be egg time for you, let's hope

 

[Anna Ranieri]

Hi guys, can anyone please tell me, when you scramble eggs for your birds, do you just use egg or do you add milk and butter? I'd like to see if they will eat some now they are somewhat older.
We had quite a bit if rain early afternoon and it did us the world of good because it melted all bathe snow, the day warmed up to about 3°c so we decided to let the ducks out for a while as Napoleon's feet are back to normal, needless to say they were happy yo be outside and were doing so well I considered sleeping them out, but unfortunately we haven't been able to because Napoleon now has wet feather! For those unfamiliar with this, it's when a duck is no longer water proof. We haven't given him a complete check over yet but aim to tomorrow, we are as confident as we can be that it isn't trouble with his preening glad nor is lice but I do think it may be down to stress. We've done all we can for him this evening and he is settled nicely with his flock in my bedroom, I am going to sleep on the sofa tonight so they eill be completely undisturbed (as I snore) and tomorrow we will bathe him and see if the treatment we've given him has been enough to stop it in its tracks.
I admit I've done terrible with my birds this winter and have made so many mistakes and have let them down badly. To start with I didn't notice his feet knackering, my only defence is that he has natural black markings on his feet which are just his markings and my eyes sight isn't very good at all so I just didn't notice. We still don't know what or why the extra black happened but we doubt very much that it was frostbite because once frostbite turns black it is incurable and his has clears up just from being indoors in the warm. Another mistake I made is not checking over my bedroom thoroughly enough, Jughead crawled under a pushchair I have stored in my bedroom ready for when my next grandchild comes in May, and although I covered it I didn't do so well enough and Jughead crawled under it, couldn't find his way out again and panicked when I lifted the pushchair to let him out and as a result now has a crack in his beak. Fortunately the crack hasn't gone all the way through and looks more like a deep scratch, and could very well be and it is clean and not bothering him at all so we are leaving it because ducks beaks more often than not will heal by themselves (don't know if it's the same with chickens?) But we are keeping a close eye on it. Tjhen there was when I wentbin yo take gheir eggs while they were still in the room, then this morning I was using my tourch rather than scare them by putting the light on and when I put it on the bed to get dressed, it shone on my window (curtains were open) and made a shadow of me which looked gigantic and scared them out of their wits and then lastly, when I got Napoleon for us to examine his feet, I had covered a table with a plastic rubbish back so I could stand him on it while my daughter and I examined his feet, he got spooked when I picked him up and carried him out to the table, he got spooked by the bag and by us both touching and turning his feet to examine them and when he tried to fly ( he's a runner duck which can fly even though they are not supposed to be able to) I was worried he'd get hurt so tried to grab him and ended up causing him to fall to the floor, the fear in his eyes is heart breaking for me to even think about and I should have just let him go at the first moment he struggled. I noticed his feathers were ruffled beyond recognition which is a clear sign of stress in a duck and then I let them out at which he went straight to his pool and got soaked and couldn't dry off and with the cold wind and still low temps I had to bring him in again - it's a wonder he hasn't flown away with all the mistakes I've made this week!

 

[CannedMonster]

Hi guys, can anyone please tell me, when you scramble eggs for your birds, do you just use egg or do you add milk and butter? I'd like to see if they will eat some now they are somewhat older.
We had quite a bit if rain early afternoon and it did us the world of good because it melted all bathe snow, the day warmed up to about 3°c so we decided to let the ducks out for a while as Napoleon's feet are back to normal, needless to say they were happy yo be outside and were doing so well I considered sleeping them out, but unfortunately we haven't been able to because Napoleon now has wet feather! For those unfamiliar with this, it's when a duck is no longer water proof. We haven't given him a complete check over yet but aim to tomorrow, we are as confident as we can be that it isn't trouble with his preening glad nor is lice but I do think it may be down to stress. We've done all we can for him this evening and he is settled nicely with his flock in my bedroom, I am going to sleep on the sofa tonight so they eill be completely undisturbed (as I snore) and tomorrow we will bathe him and see if the treatment we've given him has been enough to stop it in its tracks.
I admit I've done terrible with my birds this winter and have made so many mistakes and have let them down badly. To start with I didn't notice his feet knackering, my only defence is that he has natural black markings on his feet which are just his markings and my eyes sight isn't very good at all so I just didn't notice. We still don't know what or why the extra black happened but we doubt very much that it was frostbite because once frostbite turns black it is incurable and his has clears up just from being indoors in the warm. Another mistake I made is not checking over my bedroom thoroughly enough, Jughead crawled under a pushchair I have stored in my bedroom ready for when my next grandchild comes in May, and although I covered it I didn't do so well enough and Jughead crawled under it, couldn't find his way out again and panicked when I lifted the pushchair to let him out and as a result now has a crack in his beak. Fortunately the crack hasn't gone all the way through and looks more like a deep scratch, and could very well be and it is clean and not bothering him at all so we are leaving it because ducks beaks more often than not will heal by themselves (don't know if it's the same with chickens?) But we are keeping a close eye on it. Tjhen there was when I wentbin yo take gheir eggs while they were still in the room, then this morning I was using my tourch rather than scare them by putting the light on and when I put it on the bed to get dressed, it shone on my window (curtains were open) and made a shadow of me which looked gigantic and scared them out of their wits and then lastly, when I got Napoleon for us to examine his feet, I had covered a table with a plastic rubbish back so I could stand him on it while my daughter and I examined his feet, he got spooked when I picked him up and carried him out to the table, he got spooked by the bag and by us both touching and turning his feet to examine them and when he tried to fly ( he's a runner duck which can fly even though they are not supposed to be able to) I was worried he'd get hurt so tried to grab him and ended up causing him to fall to the floor, the fear in his eyes is heart breaking for me to even think about and I should have just let him go at the first moment he struggled. I noticed his feathers were ruffled beyond recognition which is a clear sign of stress in a duck and then I let them out at which he went straight to his pool and got soaked and couldn't dry off and with the cold wind and still low temps I had to bring him in again - it's a wonder he hasn't flown away with all the mistakes I've made this week!

Awww Anna don’t beat yourself up.
You’re just learning.
Animals just get frightened because they don’t understand and of course we are unable to communicate so we have to do what we can for their own good even though they’re scared.
All birds are skittish animals and it’s almost impossible to calm them when you have to minister to them.
You know you’re intentions are good even if you made awkward mistakes.
That can happen to anyone.
I know you’re trying to improve your skills but you’re new to this as we all are so I don’t want you to be too hard on yourself.
Take a deep breath, and let this incident go and think about how you could make it easier next time.
I would perhaps wrap him in a large towel and have one person hold and the other person examine.
When leaned backwards or onto their backs, all my birds start flapping like crazy.
I had to do this to Agatha to examine her and she hated it.
I had to be sure her wings were pinned and I would hold her during the initial struggle and then start the examination.
But I realized that at some point she would struggle again so I had to be ready for it.
He will be okay and I know he forgives you!

 

[Cbarr00]

I have to be very careful when I hear about things like this.
I have a vivid imagination and my mind goes there...to the terror and pain...
I can’t even...

I know I didn't dare watch the video. Breaks my heart for those poor defenseless animals out there.

 

[Cbarr00]

That's shocking and awful! That poor chicken - just cannot fathom the minds of these people!
Anyway, always nice to hear from you soooooo jealous of your warm weather, send some over here please lol.
So glad your birds are doing well, great news about Bear, I think you have yourself a good one there - bless him

It is so nice this week! We will be hitting the mid 70s or around 23C. I love coming to read about everyone's birds! I feel like I know everyone here so well I really enjoy this thread and the camaraderie.

 

[Cbarr00]

Hi guys, can anyone please tell me, when you scramble eggs for your birds, do you just use egg or do you add milk and butter? I'd like to see if they will eat some now they are somewhat older.
We had quite a bit if rain early afternoon and it did us the world of good because it melted all bathe snow, the day warmed up to about 3°c so we decided to let the ducks out for a while as Napoleon's feet are back to normal, needless to say they were happy yo be outside and were doing so well I considered sleeping them out, but unfortunately we haven't been able to because Napoleon now has wet feather! For those unfamiliar with this, it's when a duck is no longer water proof. We haven't given him a complete check over yet but aim to tomorrow, we are as confident as we can be that it isn't trouble with his preening glad nor is lice but I do think it may be down to stress. We've done all we can for him this evening and he is settled nicely with his flock in my bedroom, I am going to sleep on the sofa tonight so they eill be completely undisturbed (as I snore) and tomorrow we will bathe him and see if the treatment we've given him has been enough to stop it in its tracks.
I admit I've done terrible with my birds this winter and have made so many mistakes and have let them down badly. To start with I didn't notice his feet knackering, my only defence is that he has natural black markings on his feet which are just his markings and my eyes sight isn't very good at all so I just didn't notice. We still don't know what or why the extra black happened but we doubt very much that it was frostbite because once frostbite turns black it is incurable and his has clears up just from being indoors in the warm. Another mistake I made is not checking over my bedroom thoroughly enough, Jughead crawled under a pushchair I have stored in my bedroom ready for when my next grandchild comes in May, and although I covered it I didn't do so well enough and Jughead crawled under it, couldn't find his way out again and panicked when I lifted the pushchair to let him out and as a result now has a crack in his beak. Fortunately the crack hasn't gone all the way through and looks more like a deep scratch, and could very well be and it is clean and not bothering him at all so we are leaving it because ducks beaks more often than not will heal by themselves (don't know if it's the same with chickens?) But we are keeping a close eye on it. Tjhen there was when I wentbin yo take gheir eggs while they were still in the room, then this morning I was using my tourch rather than scare them by putting the light on and when I put it on the bed to get dressed, it shone on my window (curtains were open) and made a shadow of me which looked gigantic and scared them out of their wits and then lastly, when I got Napoleon for us to examine his feet, I had covered a table with a plastic rubbish back so I could stand him on it while my daughter and I examined his feet, he got spooked when I picked him up and carried him out to the table, he got spooked by the bag and by us both touching and turning his feet to examine them and when he tried to fly ( he's a runner duck which can fly even though they are not supposed to be able to) I was worried he'd get hurt so tried to grab him and ended up causing him to fall to the floor, the fear in his eyes is heart breaking for me to even think about and I should have just let him go at the first moment he struggled. I noticed his feathers were ruffled beyond recognition which is a clear sign of stress in a duck and then I let them out at which he went straight to his pool and got soaked and couldn't dry off and with the cold wind and still low temps I had to bring him in again - it's a wonder he hasn't flown away with all the mistakes I've made this week!

It sounds like it's been a rough transition but like chooks said it's a learning curve so dont beat yourself up too bad. This is after all the Newbie thread lol. hope things get better!

 

[PNW_Peepers]

@Anna Ranieri when I scramble my eggs I don’t add anything. Both dairy and fats like oil and butter are very bad for chickens.

 

[Anna Ranieri]

Awww Anna don’t beat yourself up.
You’re just learning.
Animals just get frightened because they don’t understand and of course we are unable to communicate so we have to do what we can for their own good even though they’re scared.
All birds are skittish animals and it’s almost impossible to calm them when you have to minister to them.
You know you’re intentions are good even if you made awkward mistakes.
That can happen to anyone.
I know you’re trying to improve your skills but you’re new to this as we all are so I don’t want you to be too hard on yourself.
Take a deep breath, and let this incident go and think about how you could make it easier next time.
I would perhaps wrap him in a large towel and have one person hold and the other person examine.
When leaned backwards or onto their backs, all my birds start flapping like crazy.
I had to do this to Agatha to examine her and she hated it.
I had to be sure her wings were pinned and I would hold her during the initial struggle and then start the examination.
But I realized that at some point she would struggle again so I had to be ready for it.
He will be okay and I know he forgives you!

Thank you so much for your kind words and great advice You are right, I am only now learning and my intentions are good, just want to do the best I can for them but my biggest problem is I panic too easily and is when I make the most stupidest mistakes.
I like your idea of using a towel I can see how that would work really well, I will be using this next time.
Thank you again foe your care and advice hun