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

[tandykins]

Good to hear. Just keep a keen eye on her over the next few days.

I will do!! It occurred to me this morning that she spent a good couple of hours heavily hunched over under that coop (which has very little clearance, just enough to get airflow under it) and that if I'd done that, I wouldn't be able to walk for hours from the resulting spasms in my back and that something like that may well have been the problem. I was watching her walk this morning and think she might have the slightest limp, but it's very faint. I will indeed keep an eye on her. For once a chicken just got better. -_- That never happens for me. XD

 

[Fancychooklady]

My fairy floss chickens are ready for the show.

 

[sjturner79]

My fairy floss chickens are ready for the show.

What process and dye do you use?

 

[Anniebee]

Hey Friends .. I need your help please?

If you remember, last year I had to deal with what I thought at the time and to this day was a severe mite/lice infestation; but now I have my doubts. If you remember, these things were all over the coops walls and the lawn and any time I stepped outside I had to wash all my clothes, have a shower, our bedding got washed daily the coop got stripped down and washed thoroughly for a couple of weeks in the row, Neem Oil and Pestene [I know some do not like Pestene and there are side effects, possible Parkinsons] all over the place etc. I could not put my washing basket on the lawn without it picking up heaps of these tiny little things.

Eventually, any trip outside to near the coop or on the lawn the numbers of these things dwindled and then were gone. That was November last year.

Since then, as I never wanted to go through that again, while I practiced bug deterrent methods before, I am now paranoid. The coop gets stripped and Neem Oiled every weekend … I have deep litter dust in the run and as you know, I cover the run at any sign of rain so that I am not dealing with damp earth; the nest boxes get dusted with Pestene .. the girls have access to 3 or 4 dust baths and they are checked regularly. Granted I do not actually dust them.

So, nothing until now! I go out into the garden this morning, feed and water the gals as per usual, come back in and notice I have a couple of these little bugs on me …. Oh gees no .. not again!

So, I check the coop .. nothing .. I check the nest boxes .. nothing .. I checked an egg that Cilla has just laid .. nothing.

Then I start to think, is it mite/lice I am dealing with? If these things are bad enough that they are in the lawn and around the coop, surely I am going to see evidence of them in the coop, nest, egg etc?

Hubby has noticed a couple of bites and is a bit itchy. He does not pick the girls up at all and he usually sits with them on the deck except in the afternoon when he sits on the lawn with them and hands out meal worms.

Is it a coincidence that it is the same time as last year?
Could I be dealing with some other critter that is not chicken related?

These things are tiny and do not fly but while I can see them moving, they are too small to really make out what they look like.

PS. I will check the girls and dust them after work today.

Teila ..... do you have an elm tree anywhere near your home. ??

Dutch Elm Beetles don't seem to 'fly' --- they just drop from the leaves onto anything and everything. A really bad dose of them not only eventually kills the tree over years, but are bitey, itchy, tiny little critters that get into everything - on clothes, inside the house, on washing, on arms / bodies, and the ground. Curly dead leaves are a sign of them.

Thank heavens, just before I got my chickens 3 years ago, the guy at the back who owns the tree --- ( and it is humungous !! one of the biggest ever seen ), spent $300 on decontaminating the tree to preserve it. I think he has done the same thing again this year. We spend every Spring / Summer cutting it back from overhang over our own house - that's how big it is. And it prevents some sun getting to my chickens, so branches are removed from shading as well. Everyone who visits here, is enthralled at it's size.

Just a thought --- the description you gave rang all the bells I have, about these nasty tiny things.

Cheers .....

 

[sjturner79]

I've got a little integration dilemma. Yesterday one of my five week old escaped into the run with the big girls. They all either ignored it totally or moved away in a what the heck is that kinda way. It was quite an effort to catch it again. I'm thinking I might try putting them together to see how it goes (they pecked at mum on her return to the flock last time but ignored the chick) but I'm wondering if I'm going to regret it. Last time I just had to call mum back with some scratch mix to lock them up again, I can't do that with this little pair so it's going to be a nightmare if I need to catch them if it goes pear shaped.

Anyone integrate them this young and have a tried and true way to do this that doesn't involve all the chasing? I'm wondering about giving them just a section of run and then adding the big chooks one by one to that but then I worry about it being a smaller area for them if they need to escape. What I really need is a way to make 5 week olds come when called sigh

I generally use self paced intergration where the chicks have a pop hole the larger birds can't get through from thier brooder out to the main flock. I move the out to the out door brooder at about 7-10 days, and by 3 weeks they usually run with the flock, and don't have any issues until the cockerel's hit puberty, and no issues at all with the hens. If I have a broody I don't seperate for more than 3 days at most.

 

[sjturner79]

I generally use self paced intergration where the chicks have a pop hole the larger birds can't get through from thier brooder out to the main flock. I move the out to the out door brooder at about 7-10 days, and by 3 weeks they usually run with the flock, and don't have any issues until the cockerel's hit puberty, and no issues at all with the hens. If I have a broody I don't seperate for more than 3 days at most.

Also I have tried intergrating older birds. Once they get to about 10 weeks you start to have intergration problems as the older hens view them as foreign intruders, instead of just assuming thier chicks so not worth bothering.

 

[Fancychooklady]

What process and dye do you use?

Just food colouring diluted in warm water . We had a tub of each coloring and one with soapy water to wash , then clean water to rinse then dunked them in the colour or colour s of choice.

 

[Anniebee]

Yay. Annie are they actually consuming the pellets ? I only ask because my silkies won't touch standard sized pellets and I had to switch to ' micro pellets '.
CROWS....... Yesterday I went to inspect my silver laced Wyandotte 's nest and after much protest and spilt blood ( mine ) , I managed to lift the hen only to find that the crows had raided her nest and left her with just 1. I got busy and stapled netting over the top of the doorway in an attempt to keep them out and gave her another clutch of eggs.
My poor little Coro chick had a red butt and momma Silkie pecked at it and drew blood so I had to keep it in my shirt for a few hours yesterday till the bleeding stopped and it looked less angry. Washed its butt, smeared some anusol on it to numb the pain and before I put him back I sprayed his vent with Terramycin. I decided to put him in with my little ' chickey ' , she hatched some BLRW and seemed happy to see her new addition with its bright blue butt. ( Terramycin ) .
We are dying silkies for our local show today and it's time to wash Rosie pony for the petting nursery.

Hi Fancy .... to answer your question .... yes all my girls eat their layer pellets with great relish, but of course ( if they had their way ) would prefer 'goodies'. Good eaters, all of them. Even when little Moppitt was alive, she ate her layer pellets with much gusto.

Sad to hear crows have had some feasting on your eggs. I sure hope none of the new 'murder' in our back street, raid my 2 coops. They'd get away with it with little Mindy Araucana, who has now laid THREE perfectly formed eggs ( except for a little sand-papery roughness at the top, which I think would be fragile ) ... and I don't think the calcium had anything much to do with it - she's only had one lot of that, and it takes a while to assimilate in the system ( I think you told me ). So - she is back from her ' egg-less holiday ' ... Mindy doesn't care what comes down to feed with her. The two big girls I believe would chase a crow away - attack it.

Love the dyed silkies - left an ovation on that.

Cheers .......

p.s. Odd how chickens seem to love the colour red. Your mumma Silkie pecked at a red butt. Figures. Painted toe-nails are no more in this house !! Learned the hard way on that.

 

[Fancychooklady]

Hi Fancy .... to answer your question .... yes all my girls eat their layer pellets with great relish, but of course ( if they had their way )  would prefer 'goodies'.   Good eaters, all of them. Even when little Moppitt was alive, she ate her layer pellets with much gusto.   

Sad to hear crows have had some feasting on your eggs.    I sure hope none of the new 'murder' in our back street, raid my 2 coops.  They'd get away with it with little Mindy Araucana, who has now laid THREE perfectly formed eggs ( except for a little sand-papery roughness at the top, which I think would be fragile ) ... and I don't think the calcium had anything much to do with it - she's only had one lot of that, and it takes a while to assimilate in the system ( I think you told me  ).    So - she is back from her ' egg-less holiday '  ... Mindy doesn't care what comes down to feed with her.   The two big girls I believe would chase a crow away - attack it.

Love the dyed silkies - left an ovation on that.  

Cheers .......  

Odd how chickens seem to love the colour red.  Your mumma Silkie pecked at a red butt.   Figures.    Painted toe-nails are no more in this house !!   Learned the hard way on that.       

Well then they should be getting their daily requirements. My birds are standing up to the Ravens, but there really isn't much you could do to offend these ' grim reaper s'.
BB ( blue butt ) is doing very well with his new Silkie momma. Little chickey is one that has always come up to me for a scratch so she has a very calm demeanor. Raining here today , glad I dyed the chickens yesterday.

 

[Anniebee]

Rodney I hope you find your little chick and it is ok.

Ditto from me RodneyR .... I would be out of my mind with worry.