bad or half-baked chicken advice you've received?

[al6517]

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I allways laughed at that one.

 

[peterlund]

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From the processing farms I have seen online he may be correct....

 

[MadameDork]

When I was talking about getting my girls, my Dad told me that I had to have a rooster, which I then pointed out is illegal in our city and the neighbors don't have any. They get more eggs than they can eat.

I have two coworker who have/had chickens. One thinks it is very strange that my chickens seem to like me. When I told her two of them like to sit on my hands (they are 4 weeks old) she said they are odd chickens. The other one, that had roosters and had hatched chicks was convinced the rooster "sprays the eggs" to fertilize them.

While I hadn't specifically looking into chicken reproduction, I knew that wasn't accurate.

 

[debs_flock]

When I discussed I was getting chickens, I mentioned I had no plans of getting a rooster (I ended up with two cockerels which will stay as long as they don't get overly aggressive with me, the ladies or each other). The response -

"Oh, you aren't getting the chickens to have eggs then?"

I was also asked if the eggs are fertilized before or after they are laid..................Huh?

Deb

 

[Noobchick]

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X2!! Now that mine are laying, I'm amazed at how loud they are. Granted it's no worse than song birds or crows but it IS distinctly chicken-sounding. So far, not a peep from the neighbors though. Whew!!

 

[darin367]

By far, the worst advise has got to be, start your chicks at 95 degrees and lower 5 degrees a week.... I'm no expert but since I let the hens raise my chicks and watching week old chicks run around all day in 40 degree temps and grow happy and healthy I truly believe most people are raising their chicks way to warm. I'm a firm believer this is the cause of most of peoples lathargic chicks...... But it has been so in grained in us most people can't help themselves to keep em hot! I must admit it took me a few hatches to accept the fact that they were fine outside running around in the rain at 40 degrees.....

 

[al6517]

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Agreed !!!! ever wonder why there are so many ......... OOhh my please help my chicks have pasty butt !!!. Well it's because they have the temps in their brooders at 40,000 degrees, and most of these people have had them shipped from the chick factories and they think they need all kinds of weird remedies to bring them back to health when all they need is some water and a lower dose of searing heat and some air flow will do wonders.

 

[wyododge]

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Agreed !!!! ever wonder why there are so many ......... OOhh my please help my chicks have pasty butt !!!. Well it's because they have the temps in their brooders at 40,000 degrees, and most of these people have had them shipped from the chick factories and they think they need all kinds of weird remedies to bring them back to health when all they need is some water and a lower dose of searing heat and some air flow will do wonders.

I am glad you said that I got tore up pretty good a while back for trying to reason with... well you know.

 

[MadameDork]

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Agreed !!!! ever wonder why there are so many ......... OOhh my please help my chicks have pasty butt !!!. Well it's because they have the temps in their brooders at 40,000 degrees, and most of these people have had them shipped from the chick factories and they think they need all kinds of weird remedies to bring them back to health when all they need is some water and a lower dose of searing heat and some air flow will do wonders.

I am glad you said that I got tore up pretty good a while back for trying to reason with... well you know.

I was new to this and the guy at the feed shore said to use an actual heat lamp bulb. It was like a blow torch it was so hot. The girls couldn't get far enough away. I took that out, put in a normal bulb, and never used a thermometer. I judged it by them and the temp in my house was never lower than 60. They moved outside (which is in the 40's-60's) when they were 4 1/2 weeks old. They have been fine and much more happy than the stupid box they were in. If I followed the 95 and lower 5 degrees a week, they would still be inside with a heater on, crammed in the box. They seem to like the cold more as I keep finding them sleeping in the grassy part of their coop, then in the coop it's self. But they are still learning.

 

[featherz]

As I mentioned earlier - once I got the ecoglow I realized the error of my ways with heat lamps etc (although I had already moved to a 100W bulb). They stay under the ecoglow for a day or so then they stay out in the 60-70F house almost 100% of the time until it gets dark.. then they huddle under 'mama' again at night. My broody took her chicks out at two weeks old into 30 degrees - they were completely fine. Even better, for the 'brooded' chicks I hatch in an incubator, no pasty butt since I gave up the heat lamps!

(plus, they get used to 'dark' since there's not a light on them 24x7 - you don't have the frantic panic when they are first out in the coop and it's OMG DARK!!).