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

[Anniebee]

Oh Teila ....

Never mind about writing a book - I will do it for you ....

... call it "The Lady and the Crows" ... ( gosh I am super original !!

).

Now here's the thing : .... Crows are THE smartest of birds. I was googling to see if there is a particular colour that they dislike ( thought it might be red for some reason ?) and found this link which is not only entertaining, but has some very good advice on it.

http://www.getridofthings.com/pests/animals/get-rid-of-crows/ .... ( an American website ).

I most likely am repeating myself, but they have made you, in their wisdom, the 'provider of food' therefore have imprinted on you as their top bird. "Fresh eggs whenever we feel like it - whoopeee !". That's what the crow was after of course, as you well know - when Blondie shrieked. Do you have compost ? ---- crows like compost too. !! More food.

I may have posted here a while back, a link to a video - showing a crow / raven in Britain, who was given an 8 step puzzle to figure out, so's he/she could get to the food reward. It was astonishing to watch it work out each step, and use tools ( a couple of sticks ) to do so. Each step, was not at all easy .... as each tool was in a barred crate. If you haven't seen it, let me know, and I will find it again for you - ( just so's you know how clever they can be ).

Also read on a Google headline, to make your own 'crow' ... dress it up in brilliant colours and sit in their tree. You might like to spread something that smells awful on it - like deep heat ( my idea ). Most all birds have a sense of smell ... so that might work. Also, scarecrows DO work.

I would suggest ( at the risk of losing a nice friend ) ... that now they know where eggs are, they will be back - en masse for feasts. How you protect the eggs, I have no idea, so apologies for being less than helpful with that. I doubt very strongly they would ever hurt your chickens. Would figure it might be the other way around. But I doubt a chicken attack would worry a crow ... they'd just hop / fly out of the way !!

The other thought comes originally from tandykins .... who, in trying to stop her pug from eating eggs, blew an egg out, filled it with tabasco and plugged the holes with candle wax. Just a thought. As long as the girls don't get to it, being inquisitive as to the candle wax. Apparently that cured little Bruno of stealing eggs. Garlic paste might be an idea too. The garlic that you can buy in a tube. Or a jar of crushed garlic made in China ( ONLY for the birds - I would never eat that myself, has NOT got a good reptutation )

( I think also, I would try red ribbons, shiny christmas tinsel, or reflective tape tied all about the trees ).

Good luck with all that .... hope you find something that works.

Cheers .....

 

[Teila]

Tee hee Anniebee nothing said there that would risk losing a friend

I have seen that site before and having pretty much tried Options 1 to 4; I am tempted to go with Option 5

Having said that, I am such a hypocrite! I was sharing my lunch with the gals, or is that they were sharing their lunch with me? Anyways, down comes a Crow, heading toward the coop; he is limping and all down one side his feathers are all out of place and he looks injured … guess who was feeling sorry for him and wondering if I could help? Pathetic

So yeah, as much as I b*&^h and moan about them and threaten to do all sorts of terrible things to them …………………

 

[RodneyRooster]

Oh -absolutely-, and if these babies didn't have their mum I wouldn't even think of integrating them at this age.  I just did it.  Can you guess what happened?


Nothing.  Absolutely nothing.  The adult chickens just wandered into the brooder amongst the chicks and began hogging the chick crumble. XD

One hen got jumped by a chick who thought it would practice fighting and got a gentle peck on the head in return.  Queenie has now decided that this chicken is dead to her.  It is not allowed to come anywhere near her chicks or is attacked. XD

The chicks immediately began trying to ride my head roo (who fathered most of them) and he more or less pretended they didn't exist.  A couple of the older hens who have also raised chicks shared their banana with them - one of my hens has been greedily eyeing Queenie as though she wants to take her babies and is offering them food. I would not be surprised if she tried.  Buttface is a mum through and through. 

So that was extremely anti-climactic.  But good.  Very good.  So far I've left them alone in the garage, brooder open, whole flock in there, just letting them adjust and relax - I can see them from here and I'll check on them like..well...a helicopter mum.

I popped my broody SLW Tetra out of the nest to encourage her to eat and to check to see if anyone else laid in her nest.  Normally when I drop a broody on the ground it makes at least some pathetic vague effort to cushion its fall.  Apparently Tetra just completely forgot how to chicken.  She dropped like a stone.  On her face.  The THONK was loud enough to make me apologize profusely and check her for injuries.  Once I was assured that she was fine, I fluffed her up to make her angry (and get her moving) and she ran off to torture some poor soul for her psychotic PMS.  This is her first time brooding and she took about 4 days to get the hint of, "No your nest is HERE." and pooped on the eggs the very first day. 

However, since getting into the swing of things, she's stayed on her nest and now lets herself out instead of pooping on the eggs.  My husband wanted to break her of her broodiness after the 3rd day of her getting off the nest - but I urged him to give her time, as this was new to her - and I'm glad we did.  She seems to have gotten the idea.

Lol thats exactly how it was for me. Totally unclimactic!

Tee hee Anniebee nothing said there that would risk losing a friend 

I have seen that site before and having pretty much tried Options 1 to 4; I am tempted to go with Option 5 

Having said that, I am such a hypocrite!  I was sharing my lunch with the gals, or is that they were sharing their lunch with me?   Anyways, down comes a Crow, heading toward the coop; he is limping and all down one side his feathers are all out of place and he looks injured … guess who was feeling sorry for him and wondering if I could help?  Pathetic 

So yeah, as much as I b*&^h and moan about them and threaten to do all sorts of terrible things to them …………………

Lol so reminding u of this one one day ;-)

 

[Teila]

Lol so reminding u of this one one day ;-)

ROFL

.. Stayed tuned, your opportunity is probably just around the corner

 

[Anniebee]

They're more like wild birds than chooks, and these ones that I got lived on 100 acres in the trees, so although I originally thought I had to keep them penned for 4 weeks, now I have found out it takes about 8 weeks for them to know where they live. They will travel up to 20 k's per day to return back to where they came from, and they are much stronger than chooks and can fly, so I have to keep them enclosed. I feel so sorry for them, but once I let them out they'll have 8 acres of trees to live in, and hopefully will come back to the coop to sleep.
If your weather is anything like ours at the moment, your big chook will enjoy having a bare bum to keep her cool.

Meeka3 .... I was wondering if you could cut their wings a little, or would that not be good for what is tantamount to a wild bird. ? ... Just cut enough to let them roost in trees, but not fly away.
My hens all have their wings clipped but still manage to 'jump / fly" upwards - onto roosting rails, the wire fence etc., but could never make it into more than the lower branches of a tree ( not that they've ever tried ). A neighbour used to have a peacock who periodically went missing, and could be heard calling from wherever it was enjoying the day. So the neighbours would be out trying to suss out the sound, to catch the dear boy. He had his wings clipped ( I did it actually ) ... while the neighbour held him. That was a fun day !!

20 kms ??? that's one far and wide range they can travel. Seems sad you have to lock them up, but it's for their own safety - so good luck with all that.

And our weather is reasonably kindly at the moment, with coolish nights. So madam-bare-bum, is comfortable enough, for now. !!

Cheers........

 

[ChristieB]

Wow so much has happened
To those integrating chicks. I asked a couple months ago and was told that laying hens should not be eating medicated feed, if they do you cannot eat the eggs. Plus they will waste a lot and the chicks could miss out on the essential nutrients they need, If you can make it so the chicks can get out but the hens can't get in that would be much better for all.
My chicks are having their second free range with the flock today, all is well, having had them side by side means that the mummas don't have to worry about pecking order, and the chicks just stay out of the way for the most part.
Broody hens; ginny broke with just 3 nights in quarantine. I let them out on day 2 to see what would happen and they made their way back to the nest, another night and day broke ginny but Cho is determined, she walks around eats drinks and roosts but the second I let her out she's straight back to the nests, even if I've got the door closed she somehow gets into the coop and nest and immediately goes to evil eyes screaming broody (I've found a small gap under the house that I think she's getting through) I've even dunked her in cool water twice! The second time I held her bum in there for a good minute before putting her on the roost in quarantine. Just waiting it out now

Sadly the heat wave has claimed its first victim, I was out all day yesterday only getting home at midnight so I didn't check them, I found Hedwig this morning dead beside the water bottle, she had been fine yesterday morning before I left, she has no injury so I have to assume heat stroke. All guilt over wanting to keep all the chicks is now gone,

 

[daskhan]

Wow so much has happened
To those integrating chicks. I asked a couple months ago and was told that laying hens should not be eating medicated feed, if they do you cannot eat the eggs. Plus they will waste a lot and the chicks could miss out on the essential nutrients they need, If you can make it so the chicks can get out but the hens can't get in that would be much better for all.
My chicks are having their second free range with the flock today, all is well, having had them side by side means that the mummas don't have to worry about pecking order, and the chicks just stay out of the way for the most part.
Broody hens; ginny broke with just 3 nights in quarantine. I let them out on day 2 to see what would happen and they made their way back to the nest, another night and day broke ginny but Cho is determined, she walks around eats drinks and roosts but the second I let her out she's straight back to the nests, even if I've got the door closed she somehow gets into the coop and nest and immediately goes to evil eyes screaming broody (I've found a small gap under the house that I think she's getting through) I've even dunked her in cool water twice! The second time I held her bum in there for a good minute before putting her on the roost in quarantine. Just waiting it out now

Sadly the heat wave has claimed its first victim, I was out all day yesterday only getting home at midnight so I didn't check them, I found Hedwig this morning dead beside the water bottle, she had been fine yesterday morning before I left, she has no injury so I have to assume heat stroke. All guilt over wanting to keep all the chicks is now gone,

I'm not sure the feed your using but i feed country road layer feed to my layers they do great sometimes it's medicated sometimes not I don't think that should affect they egg all depends on what's in the feed but I've never heard that you can't eat the egg if it's medicated

 

[appps]

Wow so much has happened
To those integrating chicks. I asked a couple months ago and was told that laying hens should not be eating medicated feed, if they do you cannot eat the eggs. Plus they will waste a lot and the chicks could miss out on the essential nutrients they need, If you can make it so the chicks can get out but the hens can't get in that would be much better for all.
My chicks are having their second free range with the flock today, all is well, having had them side by side means that the mummas don't have to worry about pecking order, and the chicks just stay out of the way for the most part.
Broody hens; ginny broke with just 3 nights in quarantine. I let them out on day 2 to see what would happen and they made their way back to the nest, another night and day broke ginny but Cho is determined, she walks around eats drinks and roosts but the second I let her out she's straight back to the nests, even if I've got the door closed she somehow gets into the coop and nest and immediately goes to evil eyes screaming broody (I've found a small gap under the house that I think she's getting through) I've even dunked her in cool water twice! The second time I held her bum in there for a good minute before putting her on the roost in quarantine. Just waiting it out now

Sadly the heat wave has claimed its first victim, I was out all day yesterday only getting home at midnight so I didn't check them, I found Hedwig this morning dead beside the water bottle, she had been fine yesterday morning before I left, she has no injury so I have to assume heat stroke. All guilt over wanting to keep all the chicks is now gone,

Ask what exactly the medication in the medicated feed is you are buying. I did eventually and it turned out to be oregano by a similar sounding name. Not a problem for the big girls or us if we eat their eggs but was hardly what I expected when I'd been asking for and buying medicated feed.

So sorry to hear about Hedwig :-(

 

[Teila]

ChristieB I thought everyone was doing so well with the heat wave and I am so very sorry to hear that you lost Hedwig

That is an interesting point you raise about laying hens should not be eating medicated feed and if they do, you cannot eat the eggs; I had read the opposite.

On one of my hatches, everyone was on medicated feed but not for long because they did not like it.

I have put everyone on pullet grower before and just ensured that extra calcium was available for the layers if they wanted it. Actually, it is always available, even when they are on layer feed.

With your broody, I can loan you KiKi for a couple of days for a small fee

She broke Blondie for me in 2 days!

[Added: appps raised a good point, I guess it comes down to what is in the medicated feed]

 

[littlechicks02]

Hello from the Northern Territory, and may I just say how **** hot it is? Been renovating the coop for my spoiled little beauties and it's like 38 degrees Celsius, IN THE SHADE I don't even want to find out how hot it is in the blistering sun! Few storms can't wait till this heatwaves over and the monsoon finally kicks in. Even though my chickens are petrified of the storms they appreciate the cool air and the termites that come out of the ground, yummy! (Not) my chickens first Christmas! I hope there aren't any cyclones, what a shame if my coop was smashed after I spent heaps of time in the sun working on it going to the farmers market next weekend, I promised that I would not bring any peepers home, but ahh chicken addiction, what can you do about it?