Alaska Chicken Lover's Soup for the Cold!!

[BirdBrain]

Jeanette, hatching babies are so fun. Hope you have a really good hatch!!

So, to recap, Tracy and I will be there at 11:30 or a bit before. I realize this is all sort of short notice, but anyone that can meet us at that time would be great. Tori, sorry it doesn't sound like this can work for you. For those that can't make it, let's see what we can do on setting another date and time. This is very much a go and bag your own operation, so unless you can provide bags and money and make arrangements with someone else, you need to be there to bag up. This farmer is located in Palmer about 5-6 blocks off the Glenn Highway toward the Butte.

I checked, and 2-3 cup of barley makes 1 cup of sprouts. So it does bump the counts back up a wee bit.
Sprouts just do not contain significant amounts of calories.

Paula, do you mean that a cup of dry barley expands to make 2-3 cups? It sounds like we will still need to have the other feed available, but they can get significant amounts of green feed out of the barley provided it sprouts long enough. Did I get that right?​

 

[Eveil]

OMG I just got a flashlight and shown it though the window in the bator and there are cracks in some of the eggs and holes in others. To day is only day 16 I put them in on the morning of the 2nd

 

[PaulaJoAnne]

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Paula, do you mean that a cup of dry barley expands to make 2-3 cups? It sounds like we will still need to have the other feed available, but they can get significant amounts of green feed out of the barley provided it sprouts long enough. Did I get that right?

No. Two thirds. I meant to write 2/3. Sorry.

 

[Mrs MIA]

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I dunno... I pour barley until the bucket is about 2/3 full, then add water with a garden sprayer on "shower" and add water until it looks like the barley is just starting to float. Maybe a gallon?

Okie dokie, that actually makes perfect sense to me... LOL I use a garden sprayer on 'shower' too, and I bet it's not even a full gallon.... so now the next question.... (are you sick of me yet??)... I have about 30-35 birds, how long should that bucket of barley last with other feed available?

And you 'turn' this into another bucket at what time?

I feed a bucket a day instead of other feed.
Here's what I do. A 50# bag of barley is enough for 4 buckets, ~ 2/3 full, and is 4 days worth of feed. When starting out, I put barley in one bucket, cover with just enough water to start seeing them float. The next morning, I turn that bucket into an empty bucket, so the wet stuff at the bottom is now at the top (gravity will draw that water back down to the bottom to the dry barley). Barley is poured into bucket #2 and covered with water. The next morning, bucket #1 is turned into an empty bucket, bucket #2 is turned to bucket #1, and a third bucket is prepared. The next morning, Bucket #1 should be sprouting little roots... I will split this into two buckets for the day, and add a scoop of soymeal, a scoop of beet pulp, a scoop of scratch/corn, and whatever else. You can add fishmeal instead of the soy (I can't find the fishmeal down here so I feed boiled salmon/halibut from time to time). I stir it up really well and feed 1/2 to the birds in the morning, prepare Bucket #4, and the other half of bucket #1 is fed in the evening. At this point, you have one feeding bucket, and 3 buckets in various stages of sprouting. Each morning, I split and feed one bucket, turn each bucket down the line to keep the moisture moving through the bucket, and prepare a new bucket. I do all this in the garage, which has the heater so stays about 50°F, which is perfect. If you do it right, all the original moisture is absorbed and you won't have to add more, and you end up with just-sprouted barley that the chickens love.

 

[Eveil]

Man the little guys are taking there sweet time not one have come out of there eggs. I have 12with cracks/holes and I can hear them in there making all kinds of music but no babies yet

. It was ok when they where just eggs I could forget about them but I can hear them dang it they need to come out now.

 

[Mrs MIA]

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Patience.

Sometimes they will take 24-48 hours after pipping to come out. Trust me... they will all get ready like that, then "Bang!" someone shoots off the starting gun and they will all pop within an hour. I guarantee it. Go do something else for a while, but keep an ear open for peeping. Get your brooder ready, grind the food, put marbles in the waterer, and then go away.

A watched egg never hatches.

 

[Wolfwoman]

Mrs. AK-Bird-Brain :

I feed a bucket a day instead of other feed.

And how many birds does this one bucket feed?​

 

[Mrs MIA]

About 80 birds...

 

[Ban seabhag]

Tori I have some pictures of the splashes .. I think one is a pullet and the other a roo..
This is the pullet I believe (HA!)

A picture of both Roo on left maybe????

A splash with A BLRW pullet

 

[Ban seabhag]

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For your hatch!