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

[Anniebee]

I've still got the yard and other chicken house to move yet, but at least the new house is better sorted. I put some shadecloth over the end, it's much nicer with just that little bit of extra shade.

potato chip - - - Glad to hear you got your shade cloth sorted, and the new house is up and going. All sounds good.

I have to say, as gently as I can, that when one has chickens, dogs, cats, horses, guinea pigs, lambs, whatever - just any animal or bird they love with all their heart, there is a reality that has to also be embraced.

That is, that most likely they will not outlive us.

This is utterly heart-breaking, but it is what we - as pet owners, take on knowingly.

I think posts that warn of possible problems with a hen ( or hens ) from people who are experienced with them, is something to take note of with thanks - for future reference.

I have found many hints here very helpful, a few not so much - but I figure I have to do some of my own research as well to get an overall picture. Problem is - always with chickens ( I believe ) they are rather fragile in their internal systems, and things can and do go wrong with them. That is simply a fact of chicken owning. Hard to swallow, I know, but it IS a reality.

I suffer from worry myself over my dog, the next doors cats who keep getting out, the over-the-road cat who crosses the road any old time, and particularly my chickens It worries me, but I know I have to toughen up, and realise that in every-day life, nasties happen - not always, but on occasions - they do. We just have to accept that, while all the time trying our best to make sure we DO our best to keep them safe and well. ( I have several times discussed the cats roaming with the owners - but if it's their wish to do nothing to prevent road crossings etc., I can do no more - there is a limit ).

Ok - now that I have sounded like a bluddy old Dutch Aunt !! .... will answer one query of yours.

I don't think white or light feathers has anything more to do with soft-shell or mis-shapen eggs, than any other colour of chicken. You mentioned a chicken laying 'thin shelled' eggs that were not 'right'. One of my girls has tended towards soft-shells on occasions, but she flatly refuses to eat oyster shell ( which is calcium carbonate and best to be offered to your hens on a free-to-take-when-needed basis ). Fancychooklady advised me of this quite a while back and I was grateful for that. Unfortunately, the chicken that had soft-shells, won't go for oyster shell eating at all. Little chook ain't helpful. !!

However, prior to her moult which she is in now, her eggs became harder over a short while and I quit worrying about it. I did not give her scratch mix for a while, gave her a wee bit of cheese here and there ( gotta be careful with that ) , and locked her up in her coop ( she lives by herself [with a toy dog !], for safety reasons from Mandy Welsummer ) for a half day at a time, so's she'd get bored, eat more and more of her layer pellets ( which are balanced properly with calcium and phosphorus etc. ) .... and her eggs came back to normal.

No eggs from anyone at the moment - they are all in moult.

If you can get oyster shell grit, put a small bowl of it in next to her / their layer pellets, and hopefully when needed, they will eat it. It will help balance what they might not be getting or metabolising properly, from their layer pellets. Don't worry about it - just offer it.

That's it for now ........

Good luck -

..........

 

[User395221]

I don't think white or light feathers has anything more to do with soft-shell or mis-shapen eggs, than any other colour of chicken.

She's not white in colour, she's an isa brown like the others, but on her back, she's got white/light coloured feathers instead of the reddy-brown colour. She's a bit "faded" compared to her "sisters". Her eggs mostly don't have proper shells, they just have a weak shell and often are broken. I don't know where to get oyster shell, my grit is just little seashells. I'd read that it can be due to calcium deficiency or just a shell gland defect.

I know what you mean about the things that can befall chickens, I hope my girls don't have too many of the "usual" stuff that happens. I also have rabbits and they are similarly "fragile" in the "horrible things" that can go wrong with them. Luckily I haven't had to deal with any of those things, either. TOUCH WOOD. LOL.

 

[MyHaven]

How far is the front of the car from the curb of that side street directly in front of it? Even though that has no gutter or footpath you will find the grass counts as footpath for a certain distance from the road. I'm guessing it's that technicality they are booking you on.

Thanks again appps .. I did find some fine print on their site that does mention "Parking on a footpath or nature strip is prohibited" so you are probably right.  However, still fighting it    Mainly because 1. Nature strip is not mentioned on the infringement, so I am still not guilty of what they have pinged me for.  2. Everyone does it and 3. not $117 worth of guilt.

I know, I am stubborn 

You need to check the current local law, accessible on the BCC website. It is the Brisbane City Council law you have been fined for infringing. It defines what a walkway/footpath etc is. It doesn't matter if a concrete walking path is present or not. The definition is broad. Also you are prohibited from parking on a verge - however if they have issued the incorrect infringement you can beat it.

 

[MyHaven]

Lol Fancy, yeah, not too many wallabies or nature to speak of in Chermside 

I definitely understand your frustration with the driveway v walkway and I also got a chuckle from the reason it never happened again 

Now I know that it is prohibited to park on the ‘nature strip’, I am not hopeful that I will get the infringement reversed but it is worth a try.  Hopefully, because I was ignorant of the ‘nature strip’ thing and that is evident in my letter because I did not mention it, they may just ‘educate’ me and give me a warning.

I guess I got hit because it is pretty much a business area with few houses and under regular patrol .. just irks me that it happens everywhere else in the suburbs, probably without repercussions.

Also, besides being a nature strip, I was not blocking anything, hurting anyone and/or causing a nuisance or obstruction; not really worthy of such a large fine.

Que sara sara .. we shall see what they say :/

I left my iPad at home one day and got behind in the posts.

I mentioned in my previous post - if they have issued the wrong notice you can beat it.

Your letter will go to the first reviewer who will probably give it the quick flick off - so sad but bad luck. You will then have the option of appealing the first review. You need to ensure you use the right language - inline with the local law. There are other tricks. I'll PM you.

 

[MyHaven]

I have pages of posts to catch up on. But I need advice so will read later.

My dorking chick is not good. Thanks for the previous advice.

I strapped it for 48 hours - I've told not to do it longer. It was improved but not fixed. So I taped it for another 24 hours when it looked like it was worsening. It hasn't helped. She used to be able to pull it under her and it only slipped out when she moved too quickly. Now she isn't standing much and has developed a pressure lump on the inside of her leg where it touches the ground. She can still hop to get around and eats. I'm worried she may be fading.

Is there something else I can try? Should I re-tape it?

 

[appps]

I have pages of posts to catch up on. But I need advice so will read later.

My dorking chick is not good. Thanks for the previous advice.

I strapped it for 48 hours - I've told not to do it longer. It was improved but not fixed. So I taped it for another 24 hours when it looked like it was worsening. It hasn't helped. She used to be able to pull it under her and it only slipped out when she moved too quickly. Now she isn't standing much and has developed a pressure lump on the inside of her leg where it touches the ground. She can still hop to get around and eats. I'm worried she may be fading.

Is there something else I can try? Should I re-tape it?

No experience at all I'm afraid, but without any idea how doable it is on a chick, is it possible to pad the area getting the pressure sore with some cotton wool or such to reduce the pressure on it before it gets any worse?

 

[MyHaven]

No experience at all I'm afraid, but without any idea how doable it is on a chick, is it possible to pad the area getting the pressure sore with some cotton wool or such to reduce the pressure on it before it gets any worse?

Thanks. I've never had anything like this either.

It's not actually a sore on her leg, it's more a lump. But that's a good idea if I can get it on. If it gets worse it may inhibit her moving it as its on the joint.

 

[Teila]

Good morning Friends

I am pleased that you got a laugh from my story and thank you for the kind comments regarding my writing.

I do not know if I have it in me to write a book and while I enjoy sharing my stories with my friends who know me [albeit virtual], having to write for an unknown audience is daunting.

I guess I do have a knack for turning everyday events into something funny but they are random and trying to compile them into something with substance might be tricky.

Who knows, may be one day, when I have retired and have time to spare.

potato chip lol at “To be fair I’d probably go HELP! MONSTER! If I saw a cane toad” Yeah, I have to be honest, while I could never harm one and actually enjoy some of their quirkiness, I can not see me being best buds with a cane toad. Pretty they are not

I still call my nearly 12 month olds “the little ones”

Hi there FarmPetsGirl, welcome to BYC and the thread.

Wow! Fancy “I rarely bring in birds from ‘outside’ ..” Yep, I do believe this is the first time since I have got to know you that you have mentioned bringing in new birds … I can not wait to see them

It is funny how often our first thought is “hhhhm, that will make a wonderful chicken [insert whatever] how to get it home? And how to make it fit?”

Annibee Yep, totally agree “chickens can be ‘difficult’ …”

Poor ole Blondie is definitely not her proud-Princess-self and looks more like a moth eaten hatchery hen. She has feathers sticking out in all directions and bare patches from her current moult.

Every day the dramatic change is obvious and I am taken aback by how ‘messy’ she looks. She is also doing quite a bit of moping and sleeping. She is just over 2 years old and this is the first big moult she has experienced. Lots of protein and TLC in her future.

No eggs here either!

Interestingly, if you remember, I mentioned KiKi was broody on Monday and due to the weather [heat and rain] and not wanting to stress her out, I decided that I would not put her in the broody breaker and would just block her access to the nest box mid afternoon and ensure she slept on the roost etc. Then, this weekend, make a concerted effort to keep her out and about free ranging to take her mind of motherhood. Well, yesterday I went out to let them out for free range and she was in line with everyone else. She wandered around the garden, showing no interest in the coop or nest box and again this morning when I opened up the nest boxes, she was not interested. So not like her, she is usually the hardest to break.

I can only think that because she is not laying and neither is anyone else, she gave up because there were no eggs; may be the slightly cooler nights have helped or may be, because she has never actually had a hatch, just been broody multiple times, she just gave up

Whatever the reason, I no complain

MyHaven Thank You! I wish I was able to return the favour with some good advice about your Dorking chick but sadly I have no experience in that area.

 

[Deej211]

I have pages of posts to catch up on. But I need advice so will read later.

My dorking chick is not good. Thanks for the previous advice.

I strapped it for 48 hours - I've told not to do it longer. It was improved but not fixed. So I taped it for another 24 hours when it looked like it was worsening. It hasn't helped. She used to be able to pull it under her and it only slipped out when she moved too quickly. Now she isn't standing much and has developed a pressure lump on the inside of her leg where it touches the ground. She can still hop to get around and eats. I'm worried she may be fading.

Is there something else I can try? Should I re-tape it?

i have tried strapping a few times in the past and once they get the sores on the joints they cant even bend. I twnd to cull at that point.

 

[MyHaven]

i have tried strapping a few times in the past and once they get the sores on the joints they cant even bend. I twnd to cull at that point.

That's what I was thinking. Tks

I am the eternal optimist though so will strap again once more.

She two weeks tomorrow if that makes a difference. I would think the older they are the less chance they have.