Any one want to join me in waiting for eggs, posting and comparing notes?

[h0m3gr0wn]

i have no idea, I just found the post on BYC and it has about 100 comments from people that tried it with success. I'll let ya'll know. She eats it like it is candy. No improvement today...she has had three doses...two days left until it is all gone. Hope it works. She is also eating yogurt. She eats and drinks and poops all day, so she isn't feeling sick. But..she hasn't been laying either, so hopefully she doesn't have a larger problem. When I feel her chest I can feel all of the sand in there, doesn't seem right. I am actually taking my dog to the vet today so I was going to bring it up and see if he has any help/advice to offer.

That chicken dress is too cute!

 

[ploub]

Forgive my new-chicken-owner ignorance, but what is sour crop??

I have new-Chicken-owner ignorance too ,I have never heard of puke a chicken.Please help!

 

[kdwag]

I have been told the opposite, to not hang them upside down as it's quite dangerous. I guess everyone has an opinion as to what works and what doesn't. Sometimes we just have to what we think is best and hope it works. Always something new with these chickens.

 

[nakstk]

My Mabel had an impact crop and sour crop. Impacted crop is when they eat grass that's to long and it balls up instead of moving through the digestive tract. It will feel like they swallowed a golf ball of even bigger depending on just how much your bird ate. That is when olive oil is good to use as well as crop massage. It breaks up the mass of grass so they can pass it. Sour crop is when the food trapped in the crop starts to rot and ferment. Their crop will feel like a water balloon that has both water and air in it and it will be squishy. Sometimes when the chicken lowers its head the fluid will drain out on its own. I used yogurt for awhile and found that it was feeding the yeasts in the crop making it worse. Apple cider vinegar with mother mixed with water really helped my Mabel. I also have her olive oil to help move things along. it is important to withhold food for 24 hours from the effected bird food will make it worse. ACV with water and fresh clean water should be all they get for the first 24 hours after that try what ever you want to. This information comes from my personal experience and many weeks of reading on the topic because my friends chicken died from it and I didn't want mine to die if they ever got it. They did get both impacted and sour crop and she is just fine so I know that it works. Good luck a happy waiting on that first egg. I can't wait to see more first egg pics.

 

[Crafty chick]

i've got 2 BO girls i am giving to my brother once he finishes his coop. they have a 5 mo. old baby at home, so they havent gotten any farther than a frame. i
guess i will be they one waiting on their beautiful brown eggs. they live a good 4 hours away, so not like i can just go over every weekend.
anyway, seems i am waiting on my own BO girls to start laying again. i have 4 and they all stopped after a dog attack. i've been giving them treats and they are healthy otherwise. one is mothering 2 chicks she hatched herself, and the other 3 are bumming around. saddens me though, after we get back from vacation i wanted to fill my incubator and see if maybe my bantam cochin or silkie will set for me.

 

[kdwag]

My Mabel had an impact crop and sour crop. Impacted crop is when they eat grass that's to long and it balls up instead of moving through the digestive tract. It will feel like they swallowed a golf ball of even bigger depending on just how much your bird ate. That is when olive oil is good to use as well as crop massage. It breaks up the mass of grass so they can pass it. Sour crop is when the food trapped in the crop starts to rot and ferment. Their crop will feel like a water balloon that has both water and air in it and it will be squishy. Sometimes when the chicken lowers its head the fluid will drain out on its own. I used yogurt for awhile and found that it was feeding the yeasts in the crop making it worse. Apple cider vinegar with mother mixed with water really helped my Mabel. I also have her olive oil to help move things along. it is important to withhold food for 24 hours from the effected bird food will make it worse. ACV with water and fresh clean water should be all they get for the first 24 hours after that try what ever you want to. This information comes from my personal experience and many weeks of reading on the topic because my friends chicken died from it and I didn't want mine to die if they ever got it. They did get both impacted and sour crop and she is just fine so I know that it works. Good luck a happy waiting on that first egg. I can't wait to see more first egg pics.

ahhh, didn't know that, great information. Mine get yogurt and the ACV in their water at least several times a week so hope that eliminates sour crop, Both conditions sound nasty

 

[Melabella]

Hello Everyone!


Please forgive me as I have been a mad woman with scheduling lately and have rarely had the time to read through threads, and post some of my own. So much news from everyone, I can barely keepup! DH is going out of town for a few nights, maybe I will sit with a nice cup of tea, and hunker down and catch up! Loving all the news of new eggs and sorry for the health issues some of us have had. Right now I am having an issue with vent gleet which I guess is basically a yeast infection of the vent, combined with some nasty dirty butts. I am getting ready to give them all some nice spa soaks on their bottoms, and cover them in NuStock. Some people have posted on other threads about using Monistat. I have to read some about that. Just bought another bottle of Braggs so I will start back up religiously with that. I did read thought that you must treat the rooster too, or he will just keep passing it back to them.... jeezzz... this chickens! Seriously... yeast infection!

The warm weather is upon us in NY, and I have noticed that my girls laying have tailed off a bit. THe first day it got to 98 my Ameruacana just quit laying. No more blue eggs for a while. I have read they don't like high heat. I was getting a solid 7,8,9 eggs a day, now it has tailed to 5,6,7. It's rare I get 8 any more. The flock started laying on New Year's Eve, so it's been a stead flow for a while. I guess now that we have passed the summer solstice and the days are getting shorter, they might be aware of that as well. I find myself wondering when they will go into molt. I certainly know that I will miss those eggs, we are all addicted to them as a family. Now that my oldest is home from college,, we really tear through them. He told me I was nuts thinking the eggs tasted different, but I got a text from him the other day when he was down at the beach for a few days, ,saying that he just ordered eggs at a diner, and he couldn't finish them! LOL

I've been keeping my eye out for a second coop, I really was wishing for a second flock but haven't been able to find anything yet.

Love the new back protector jklyles, I need those for a few of my girls. As much as I love the new rooster, and he is a gentleman to me in everyway, he is a bit rough with his favorites. They are really taking a beating, missing tons of feathers. Other girls are going untouched...wonder if he is even mating with them at all?

Ciao!
MB

 

[Crafty chick]

glad you're back MB wonder if mine will start back laying when we're on vacation in Minnesota? oh, well, atleast they arent sickly looking. poor things got ran into the coop by downpours though. i gave them a new branch twice the diameter of the last one for the run hung through the fencing. they wanted to sleep on it last night my silkie started squatting over a week ago...getting super excited about finding that egg!

 

[TreehuggerMo]

Hi - I was glad to see your post as i am also wondering when I will see the first egg from my little flock. I have been trying to be patient and not ask the "when will my" question I am sure this site has seen oh so many times But now I can anticipate with others in the same situation. Oh thank you!!

Anyway, I have 4 GL Wyndottes (hens) , 2 Cochin's (roos), 2 sizzles (hens - we think) ,and 4 silkies (2 roos and 2 hens) all hatched around 4 March. I don't think they are really ready to lay yet only because they still won't roost and show absolutely no interest in the great boxes we built for them. This is our first flock so we are learning a lot as we go. I feel sorry for our birds having to put up with us newbies at times.

Weather here in MO has been alternating from hot to cool but I don't know how much a factor that would be. So far the roos are not fighting for top bird status - One Cochin is a cross beak we are trying to keep healthy and the small silkie roos are not interested in taking on the other cochin roo - so there is no real issue with top rooster status and all the birds are sweet so far.

Mo

 

[countrygirl74]

Finally caught up around here!!

I've been in and out a bit too, but this is always my favourite thread to check first. Love to hear all the stories, and am often reminded of my slow wait for eggs starting last November.

How time flies - my four girls are nearly all one year old. We have friends over on Sunday for lunch and one family coming have chickens so at least they will understand - I am having a Hen Party!!! I am treating it as their Official Birthday (don't know their exact dates as I got them at around 8 week old pullets).

On the menu is sardines, bread soaked first, broccoli including leaves, rolled oats, tansy leaves and sunflower seeds. All their favourite things. It is winter here now, so I will serve it all warmed. Guess tomorrow I'll give some thought to what I will feed the humans

Get your party frocks on, girls, time to have some fun!

Katrina

Sounds like fun!!

Also one more funny chicken story. Last night I was out taking the dogs potty before we left for graduation and all my girls had their heads turned sideways they were all looking up and having a very intense conversation. No joke they really were. You could almost make out, "what is that thing?" I don't know I have never seen one before" "Do you think it's going to eat us?" "No it's not look at the way it's flying it's in a hurry to get somewhere" "oooo look it's shiny!" So I look up to see Balloons floating over head, someone accidentally let go of them at the stadium.

Great story!!!

Wow, I've been away for too long. It was great reading through and catching up.
We have 100 in the shade today. Our girls are panting away.
Yesterday, our RIR did something crazy. We were bbq ing. The RIR was running
one minute and then just fell down on her side with her leg up in the air. I was
shocked. We ran to check her out and when we got there, she jumped up and
ran away. What the heck?! My DH says he thinks she was drunk on all the
frozen watermelon he fed the girls yesterday to keep them cool. She's fine
today. They sure keep us on our toes.

That's funny because I have a RIR who does weird stuff like that too - but she seems totally healthy and is my best layer! I have noticed that she does that falling over bit right before she lays - the last couple times she did it, I felt her and her egg was right there waiting to come out. She'll also walk around all squatty like sometimes - we laugh because it looks like she's trying to be sneaky. Weird... Besides my cochin, she is the one that has the most trouble with the heat though - maybe something to do with that?

See our girls and bot below.... (anyone want to ID the type of rooster we have?)

Hmmm.... looks like an EE/Welsummer mix??

Hi all!
I'm a fairly new chick mom...our babies will be 17 weeks on Sunday. We have 12 and they just started laying yesterday...well at least two of them have..lol The first egg I found in the run was small, but the second that was in the nest was bigger. Tonight I found a second in the nest box that was the same size as the last one that was in there, so I'm assuming the same girl laid it. How in the world do you tell which ones are laying though? LOL I've thought about getting a camera to put in there but don't want to invade their privacy...lol
When we got the chicks, we got 5 red pullets, and 7 black sex links. One of the blacks has almost no comb and/or wattles. She is the same age as the others that have varying sizes. Also, there is no color other than gray in the little bit that she does have..I mean..we're talking MAYBE 1/16th of an inch off the top of her head. Is this something I need to worry about? I was watching her with the others tonight, and she seems to hold her own with getting food, but she is also one of the smallest chicks. One of the reds is small too. Should I be doing something to help their growth? I mean they really do eat when I take treats, and scratch out to them, but I haven't been able to see them eating out of the feeder very often.
Thanks

With my first batch of girls, I could tell pretty easily as I was able to spend a lot of time out there with them when they first started to lay... this time will be challenging as I have about 14 new ones getting ready to start in a couple weeks. Some people have done the food coloring method - drop different colors of food coloring into their vent and the egg will be streaked with the color when they lay it...
Also, RIR tend to be a little on the smaller/skinnier side of breeds. If you are worried about her, try giving her some extra protein - raw hamburger is a favorite!