Australia - Six states..and that funny little island.

[sumi]

Hi all, just popping in quick to let you know: https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/970668/attention-all-members-outside-the-usa-new-bst-section/0_30

 

[IamSamSam]

Hi all, just popping in quick to let you know: https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/970668/attention-all-members-outside-the-usa-new-bst-section/0_30 

Thanks!

 

[satay]

I hate having to rehome my boys!

OK, I am probably going to ramble now 

Whenever I give into a broody I beat myself up over the consequences of having boys and the worry of where they are going to end up.  I can't keep them, I certainly can't even entertain the other alternative to finding them homes, so I have to trust my judgement and let them go.

I have been lucky in the past in that they have been taken by people who live on an acreage or are replacing a rooster who they lost.  But, who knows?  That could just be something they are telling me to make me feel better?

I have a lady coming tomorrow who may take all three .. while it would be good to rehome them together; who takes three possible roosters?  Granted they are beautiful little boys but still 

Aaargh! Next time I have a broody and I mention caving, please, please, please remind me of how I feel right now  

Oh sorry telia Answer to your question I would take all three but not many others would. All you can do is trust your gut and hope they are telling you the truth.

 

[satay]

Well, just like that, my little boys are gone 

The lady who took them seemed nice and she apparently lives on acreage where the chooks get to free range all day and then penned up at night.

Cilla is keeping Crystal and KiKi close and is currently camped out under their coop and not showing any interest in going into the temporary, even bigger extension I have just made her which includes nice green lawn.  Way to go in making me feel bad Cilla!

I will give her a couple of days and then let her out for real; have a meet the Aunties session etc.  Hopefully soon we will have one flock again.

So glad you found someone nice to take your boys

 

[Rainbowchooks]

Little isa brown chicks - got them today, so in love

 

[RodneyRooster]

Congrats @Rainbowchooks

Thanks sumi!

Aww teila thats great you got rid of them allowing ur girls and chicks to mingle and be more free and entertained! And hopefully, by gut instinct, theyve gone to a great home trust that instinct and let yourself feel happy about it.

Weve been away all weekend so im going out to see my chickens for the first time and give them loads of leftovers! Lucky things. Hope uve all had a great weekend

 

[Teila]

Aaaaw Rainbowchooks they are sooo cute!

Thanks RodneyRooster I hope your weekend away was enjoyable.

Every summer hubby drags the large wading pool, complete with pump etc, out of the shed, pumps up the support ring, fills it with water and pretty much lives in it!

The poor ole pool that we have had for 4 years now has seen better days and the support ring has developed a few leaks, causing breaches, water loss and dramas etc. So we made a decision that next summer we will get a new one (for $100, 4 summers was pretty good value!).

Anyways, as I am cutting this thing up to put in the wheelie bin I had a light bulb moment … the floor of the pool with make a great rain coat for the run. After discarding the sides and support ring, I measured up the floor, cut it, scrubbed it and as we have the possibility of rain today and tomorrow, I am using it now to cover the main run. It doesn’t cover the whole set up and I still had to use my previous shower curtains as well but it is a definite improvement. [I am going to veer away from this now, but the reason I mention it will be revealed soon].

As I have been taking many, many photos of the nuggets and I had 40 minutes up my sleeve before the girls went to bed, I thought I would spend them taking some photos of Dusty, post moult and anyone else who would pose.

Well, I think they are punishing me! After 40 minutes, crawling all over the lawn for the best position, a couple of ‘eeew’ moments with chicken poop, getting eaten alive by mozzies and taking countless photographs .. I got nothing!

Well, I did get something, I got blurred chicken pictures, headless chicken pictures, pictures of chicken’s butts and pictures of just the lawn!

I reckon they had a meeting and have decided that they are going to make me pay for taking so many pictures of the bubs. Dusty, no doubt, has told them about all the embarrassing moult photos I took of her and shared.

Not only is Bambrook Bantams a no-egg zone, it is also a no-photos zone also!

I have a good mind to go out there, repossess the beautiful new rain coat I made them, let them get wet, take pictures of them and enter them in the wet chicken competition!

 

[AussieChics]

I have just concluded that it is mites on the chickens. Poor cat copped an earful all weekend. But i couldn't see anything until tonight after i lifted the broody up to go feed. Half hour later 1 was crawling on my phone so was easy to see with the light.

What do i need to get to kill them all? Other then kerosene and a lighter? I will ho to the fodder tomorrow after work.

Just want to make sure i get the right stuff

 

[Teila]

Gees AussieChics I am sorry to hear that

Yep, they love broodies .. nice, warm spot to hang out!

The following is what I had to do but I believe fixing them depends on the degree of the infestation. If they are just in the nest box with the broody, you may get away with a change of bedding and just treating the broody herself. Having said that, you will probably need to treat all of your chickens.

I will add here that I use Pestene but others recommend against it. I do know that others recommend other treatment methods and will leave them to advise you so you can decide which path to go down.

So, after dusting the girls, the coop got stripped own completely, washed with soapy water; nest boxes emptied, cleaned and straw replaced. Then the walls and cracks were given a healthy dose of ‘Success’ (at Fancy’s recommendation) and when that dried, an additional healthy dose of diluted Neem Oil (reported to upset the breeding cycle).

Our bed sheets got washed daily, everything than came in from the garden got thoroughly inspected; magnifying glasses were a permanent addition to my person. If I was outside working in the coop at all, had a shower and washed all clothes … I lost count of how many showers I had and how many loads of washing I did!

Then, the following weekend, I repeated the above stripping of the coop, washing walls, Success and Neem Oil.

The good news, I won! Just thinking about it creeps me out and trust me, I considered the kerosene and lighter option!

Just today, I striped the coops and gave them a good clean and a dose of ‘Success’ .. I never want to go down that path again!

But, do not let my story freak you out, as I said, it depends on the degree of infestation.

Yates Success Ultra Insect Control:

 

[appps]

I have just concluded that it is mites on the chickens. Poor cat copped an earful all weekend. But i couldn't see anything until tonight after i lifted the broody up to go feed. Half hour later 1 was crawling on my phone so was easy to see with the light.

What do i need to get to kill them all? Other then kerosene and a lighter? I will ho to the fodder tomorrow after work.

Just want to make sure i get the right stuff

When we had them a couple years back this is what the vet told me. Buy fidos flea wash, mix up as per instructions and spray every single inch of the coop.

Then she gave us a small bottle of ivermectin, enough to dose our chooks and we had to apply it to the skin on the backs of their necks. (Forget dose but there is plenty of info on here about using it)

Not everyone likes the ivermectin I've found since, but they were gone in about three days with no fuss, we resprayed with the fidos after a couple of weeks and haven't had them since.

Disclaimer, ivermectin didn't work on lice six months later so make sure it's mites not lice (tiny little reddish spots with legs if you look really really close that make you itch anywhere dark like your skin folds)