Ameraucana thread for posting pictures and discussing our birds

[FVRM]

Chicks do better being hatched as day olds. Your chicks look like they could be around 5 days old. When you ship chicks that have had food and water, and they are that young, they don't ship well. If they were day olds, mailed out right away, they would not have feathers like those.

With that being said, they look like they could of been on a really high protein diet. Some people give there chicks game bird starter, they get pasty but really bad. They tend to be lethargic, and when they do move it looks really weird. They have there head really close to there body, and there head is tilted back a little bit. They usually die from anorexia. When the primaries are dragging like that, I usually count that as a weak chick. I will mark it, and usually not keep it. I also want to watch it grow and take notes. If the feathers "fix" themselves, I might keep it..............IDK, you can't keep them all! So you got to figure out what you cull method is going to be.

i used to give them starter but i switched to flock raiser. the label says it's also for day olds. is that a good diet?

 

[Marsefx]

Our new lady. Leader of the pack. She makes the rooster flinch! Wonderful, friendly bird that gives us blue eggs.

 

[heatherscooby77]

i used to give them starter but i switched to flock raiser. the label says it's also for day olds. is that a good diet?

That is a seriously loaded question!!! LOL, there are so many factors that go into a birds diet. I personally don't like all veggie, high in corn and soy, diets for my birds. That is my opinion. There is only one food that Purina makes that has animal protein in it, I think its called SHOW. Its geared toward meat production. It is medicated, so some people aren't into that either.

My birds seem to be picky eaters. I don't like Purina and neither do I. My favorite commercial brands are ADM Alliance, http://www.admani.com/Poultry/Poultry index.htm

This is the one I am feeding now. I am really happy with it. It sounds like from the label its for molting birds only. It's also recommended for show birds, conditioning. I also like that it has the higher calcium in it. Its $12.50 for a 40# bag. At least around my house...............

http://www.nutrenaworld.com/products/poultry/naturewise-poultry/feather-fixer/index.htm

 

[heatherscooby77]

I forgot to say that I use Nutrena chick starter for the weeks 0-12

 

[MrsBachbach]

That is a seriously loaded question!!! LOL, there are so many factors that go into a birds diet.  I personally don't like all veggie, high in corn and soy, diets for my birds.  That is my opinion.  There is only one food that Purina makes that has animal protein in it, I think its called SHOW.  Its geared toward meat production.  It is medicated, so some people aren't into that either.

My birds seem to be picky eaters.  I don't like Purina and neither do I.  My favorite commercial brands are ADM Alliance, http://www.admani.com/Poultry/Poultry index.htm  

This is the one I am feeding now.  I am really happy with it.  It sounds like from the label its for molting birds only.  It's also recommended for show birds, conditioning.  I also like that it has the higher calcium in it.  Its $12.50 for a 40# bag.  At least around my house...............

http://www.nutrenaworld.com/products/poultry/naturewise-poultry/feather-fixer/index.htm

I really wish there was an ADM dealer around here. I have seen PenPals scratch somewhere although the bag looked different. I've also seen ADM but it doesn't read or look like the same stuff. That feed at your link sounds great although I don't see any animal proteins. I like the fact that it contains pro-biotics and in some the ampro and bactracin. When you see intestinal sloughing (which I always do during the grow out period) you should give your birds that. So, I'm always alternating between corid and bactracin while growing out birds and it is really a pain.
I've used the feather fixer once, but my birds tend to leave pellets alone. So, I didn't waste any more money on that.

I really think the protein needs to be increased during the grow out period. I have found that keeping them on an 18% protein source seems to lead to feather eating. They just don't seem to be getting enough.

I would also like to see manufacturers start using a birds natural protein source, insects. There seems to be a push lately to have us humans start consuming insects as a new protein source. No way am I going to try that! However, I think it would be a great idea to start adding dried ground insects to the chicken feed. Surely that would increase the protein levels and possibly make it more palatable for the birds. Mine aren't too crazy about their feed in general. I think it would be a win win!

 

[KYTinpusher]

I really wish there was an ADM dealer around here. I have seen PenPals scratch somewhere although the bag looked different. I've also seen ADM but it doesn't read or look like the same stuff. That feed at your link sounds great although I don't see any animal proteins. I like the fact that it contains pro-biotics and in some the ampro and bactracin. When you see intestinal sloughing (which I always do during the grow out period) you should give your birds that. So, I'm always alternating between corid and bactracin while growing out birds and it is really a pain.
I've used the feather fixer once, but my birds tend to leave pellets alone. So, I didn't waste any more money on that.

I really think the protein needs to be increased during the grow out period. I have found that keeping them on an 18% protein source seems to lead to feather eating. They just don't seem to be getting enough.

I would also like to see manufacturers start using a birds natural protein source, insects. There seems to be a push lately to have us humans start consuming insects as a new protein source. No way am I going to try that! However, I think it would be a great idea to start adding dried ground insects to the chicken feed. Surely that would increase the protein levels and possibly make it more palatable for the birds. Mine aren't too crazy about their feed in general. I think it would be a win win!

Why wait for the manufacturers to provide healthy food for your chickens? I give my birds homemade kefir. You should look into it. It provides LOTS of probiotics and helps build a very healthy immune system so all the antibiotics aren't necessary. Much better than yogurt, though yogurt is good, too. Also, I grow mealworms for my chickens and they LOVE them. It's easy to set up a colony.

 

[MrsBachbach]

Why wait for the manufacturers to provide healthy food for your chickens? I give my birds homemade kefir. You should look into it. It provides LOTS of probiotics and helps build a very healthy immune system so all the antibiotics aren't necessary. Much better than yogurt, though yogurt is good, too. Also, I grow mealworms for my chickens and they LOVE them. It's easy to set up a colony.

They get probiotics, either in their water with vitamins and minerals or on occasion with yogurt in their mash. Weather is really to hot right now for yogurt. It will spoil quickly. It also doesn't go a long way when you are feeding over twenty birds at a time. Despite ACV or probiotics, coccidiosis is still a real threat to growing chickens especially in my pens despite sweeping up as much poop as I can. I lost one within five days of hitting the ground and he was given corid on day four, but it must have been too late. Intestinal sloughing always seems to happen also. I've read that neocrotic enteritis is as much a threat to their health, growth and weight gain as anything else and that it is often overlooked and left untreated. I'm talking about juveniles not grown birds when referring to medication.

 

[maryhysong]

They get probiotics, either in their water with vitamins and minerals or on occasion with yogurt in their mash. Weather is really to hot right now for yogurt. It will spoil quickly. It also doesn't go a long way when you are feeding over twenty birds at a time. Despite ACV or probiotics, coccidiosis is still a real threat to growing chickens especially in my pens despite sweeping up as much poop as I can. I lost one within five days of hitting the ground and he was given corid on day four, but it must have been too late. Intestinal sloughing always seems to happen also. I've read that neocrotic enteritis is as much a threat to their health, growth and weight gain as anything else and that it is often overlooked and left untreated. I'm talking about juveniles not grown birds when referring to medication.

young chicks here get dirt, greens, worms the first week; that is when they can build passive immunity to cocci, before they get to the age where it can be fatal. Also I ferment my feed, gives a lot of probiotics and I don't need to mess with ACV in the water.

The fermented feed also helps prevent cocci. In several years, hatching 80=100 chicks each season I've had one batch with cocci and that was birds that came from elsewhere, not my home hatched ones.

 

[jonsccm]

I have two roosters that have become my favorites!

 

[JennieRD]

Amerucana chick behavior ! Has Anyone out there ever seen a severely aggressive amerucana chick? I've got a 4 week old that is literally attacking every chick that walks by him/her and he's the runt in the nursery as I call it! I can't figure him/her out. I've just never seen one this youg and aggressive it's so bad ill either have to cull him or pen him up seperate he's literally attacking the back of their necks pulling feathers and the down feathers causing the others to bleed! I hate to cull him!