Blue eggs!

[anneestern]

I've always wanted to raise chickens in my small urban back yard but I've met steady resistance from my husband. Now, my dear brother has started raising chickens on his large garden/small farm where he donates all the vegetables he grows to food banks. He's started with Rhode Island Reds and the Barred Plymouth Rocks which are doing a decent job of keeping me in fresh eggs (not sure about the homeless people). Anyway, last weekend I bought some Americanas (Red, Silver and Blue) at a local farm swap. I thought my nieces and nephew would get a kick out of blue eggs. I asked the seller whether I could just put them in with the existing flock and he said that, as long as they had somewhere to run and hide from the pecking order, I could do it. So I did. THEN, I got on this website and learned that they needed to be quarantined!!!! So my brother left his existing brood in the hen house and yesterday found me chasing (and catching!!) the Americanas to put them in a large dog crate nestled against a small, empty rooster hut. Unfortunately, when my brother went in to let his brood out, one was dead. It was very hot yesterday but all the rest seemed fine. I certainly hope that my new addition was not the cause of her death. My brother tossed the body into the field to let nature take its course but should we have examined it (for what?) to determine the cause of death? I examined the vents and feather shafts of the Americanas and didn't see any mites or unhealthy looking skin. Anything else I should be looking for?

Whew!! This is so so much fun and I really appreciate this site for all the good advice it gives. I've now spent hours looking up all my (other) questions! Thanks for being here!!!

 

[Mountain Peeps]

Hi and welcome to BYC!! Please make yourself at home and we are here to help.

So sorry about the loss of your little one! Sometimes chicks die for no particular reason.

You can ask more here if you want https://www.backyardchickens.com/f/10/emergencies-diseases-injuries-and-cures.

So happy you joined!!!

 

[TwoCrows]

Hello there and welcome to BYC!

So sorry for your loss. Sometimes unless you do a necropsy, you never do know what they died from. But yes, over heating will do it. As will other diseases. Quarantining new birds is always a good idea to protect your original flock.

But you might post this in our emergency section for more help. Mountain Peeps has left you with the link.

Great to have you aboard and welcome to our flock!

 

[gander007]

Alright

great to have you joining the BYC flock

BYC has a very useful learning center

 

[Michael OShay]

Welcome to BYC! Sorry about the loss of your bird. You should be aware if you bought your Ameraucanas at a local farm swap, they are probably Easter Eggers and not true Ameraucanas (a certainty if the seller misspelled it as "Americana." If you want to know the difference between Ameraucanas, Araucanas, and Easter Eggers, there is a good article explaining the difference at http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2011/09/ameraucana-easter-egger-or-araucana.html The bottom line is that if you have Easter Eggers you may not get blue eggs (or only some of them may be blue). You could also get olive, green, beige, or even pale pink or gold eggs. A lot of chicken owners prefer that anyway to the strictly blue eggs of the true Ameraucanas. If it matters to you, post some pics of your birds (full body profiles including the legs and tails) and we can tell you whether they are true Ameraucanas or Easter Eggers. In the meanwhile, good luck with your flock.

 

[drumstick diva]

Happy you joined the flock

 

[anneestern]

Thanks to all for your kind replies. I so sad to report that the new chickens (definitely Easter Eggers and not Ameraucanas) disappeared in the night. No sign of feathers but I assume that they did not make it and that some predator had a very nice dinner . In any event, what is clear is that the quarantine pen was not high enough to keep them in or the foxes out. I'm feeling guilty for not knowing more before I bought them and their little lives are weighing a bit heavy on my heart. The good news is that my brother Bill and I had such fun learning about chickens and raising them for the (very) short time that we had them, that my brother is going to build a new, more secure pen for quarantine purposes for any new birds we add to the flock. Now that I know a bit more, I have even more questions!
1. Bill's existing pen has fencing that reaches about 6 feet but he doesn't want to add net roofing because it's too hard to walk in the pen with a net on top. Suggestions?
2. Up until (I think) we learned better, Bill's been feeding them only purchased chicken feed. A bit expensive but the eggs are delicious - either because they're fresh or because of the feed. Recently we've added kitchen scraps to their diet. What are the benefits/downsides of adding scraps to their diet? I'm concerned that the left over meat products may have lured predators to their pen so I'm going vegetarian until I hear differently from you folks. (Although no sign of feathers may indicate that it wasn't predators in the pen that made them disappear. Thoughts?)
3. Bill's pen will hold up to 50 chickens and he wants to add more birds. His existing flock of 12 consists of Plymouth Rocks and Rhode Island Reds. My research indicates that these birds, while they have their benefits, are not the friendliest. Any thoughts on what kind of chickens we should obtain that may get along with them?
Whew! Thanks for all your advice.
A sadder but wiser bird.

 

[HugHess]

I've always wanted to raise chickens in my small urban back yard but I've met steady resistance from my husband. Now, my dear brother has started raising chickens on his large garden/small farm where he donates all the vegetables he grows to food banks. He's started with Rhode Island Reds and the Barred Plymouth Rocks which are doing a decent job of keeping me in fresh eggs (not sure about the homeless people). Anyway, last weekend I bought some Americanas (Red, Silver and Blue) at a local farm swap. I thought my nieces and nephew would get a kick out of blue eggs. I asked the seller whether I could just put them in with the existing flock and he said that, as long as they had somewhere to run and hide from the pecking order, I could do it. So I did. THEN, I got on this website and learned that they needed to be quarantined!!!! So my brother left his existing brood in the hen house and yesterday found me chasing (and catching!!) the Americanas to put them in a large dog crate nestled against a small, empty rooster hut. Unfortunately, when my brother went in to let his brood out, one was dead. It was very hot yesterday but all the rest seemed fine. I certainly hope that my new addition was not the cause of her death. My brother tossed the body into the ( I had no clue 

Whew!! This is so so much fun and I really appreciate this site for all the good advice it gives. I've now spent hours looking up all my (other) questions! Thanks for being here!!!