California - Northern

[ronott1]

Not a common concern but feeding corn to white birds will tint the feathers. Our judge mentioned it a few years ago when examining a white Cochin. Another reason I don't have white birds.

DD's pigeons are mostly white, the only feed we could find on short notice has corn in it. I pick through it every morning picking out the corn. I'll be glad when this bag is gone but that may take a long time, we could only get it in a 50# bag, they get 1/3 cup daily. At least I've got room in the freezer for most of it.

Thank you! corn is supposed to make yellow legged breeds have a brighter yellow. It is supposed to help with yolk color too.

Marigold will do the same thing though.

 

[chicksnthestiks]

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For me, They go down in badness from Soy Beans then corn and then wheat. Wheat is ok for them but too much causes watery manure.

All of the grains are ok for them but they have trouble digesting corn. Fermenting helps though. Soy Beans are toxic if the percentage is too high. Organic is better but still not great.

It is like fishmeal or flax--Too much Soy makes the eggs taste funny to me.

I have posted before about this. Do not feel bad if you live in a place where you can only get Flock Raiser or similar feed. The Chickens will be fine with it and it is better than Factory raised Poultry. I would try to get them some fresh greens though.
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Mine love kale! They also love alfalfa hay. I was reading on a site from facebook about spinach. It said not to feed it often as an acid it contains was bad for them, like it inhibits calcium absorbtion. I had one hen who started having thin shells so decided to cut out the spinach to see if it would work and it did. I thought it was odd because spinach has calcium but too much is bad.

 

[ronott1]

Quote: The same thing happens with my daughters bunny--he is not supposed to have too much spinach but is supposed to have Kale every day. I give mine Kale several times a week. They also get grass clippings.

Do you chop up the Alfalfa hay?

 

[chicksnthestiks]

The same thing happens with my daughters bunny--he is not supposed to have too much spinach but is supposed to have Kale every day. I give mine Kale several times a week. They also get grass clippings.

Do you chop up the Alfalfa hay?

No I don"t chop it but I buy from a local grower and make sure I get the fine stem hay. They seem to love to tear it up with their feet. I take a flake and divide it in half usually. They don't eat the stem but I know it is good for the soil as it breaks down and the bugs love to hide in it.

 

[ronott1]

Thank you all for the nice comments on my pullets. They are really great, pretty and friendly. I do not have mean chickens though.

I have one more to share tonight, a Black Australorp.

 

[OR4-hmom]

Ron, those are some gorgeous birds, the wide tee pee tails are awesome!

I throw flakes of alfalfa in the runs in the winter. They pick the leaves from the stems, kinda messy to clean up but they have fun with it. We have a local farm that grows it organic for their cattle. I learned that part of what was being sold at the feed store was the round-up resistant alfalfa.

 

[ronott1]

Ron, those are some gorgeous birds, the wide tee pee tails are awesome!

I throw flakes of alfalfa in the runs in the winter. They pick the leaves from the stems, kinda messy to clean up but they have fun with it. We have a local farm that grows it organic for their cattle. I learned that part of what was being sold at the feed store was the round-up resistant alfalfa.

They do have great tails!

Thank you for the alfalfa tip. I might double up on the kale this winter if I cannot find a source for Organic Alfalfa.

 

[chrissyr]

But wait! I have one more!

Sooo pretty! Also, so healthy looking. All of their plumage is gorgeous

 

[ronott1]

Sooo pretty! Also, so healthy looking. All of their plumage is gorgeous

It helps that they get along with each other. Australorps are not aggressive towards each other. Of course they are so large that it would be silly for the others to challenge them.

 

[Ali707]

You are counting your chickens incorrectly. Each breed counts as one chicken....

Wow! Using this method I only have 5 chickens and am within the County guidelines! Yay!!!

Your chickens are all poofing up nicely Ron. They are really looking good.

I am trying to finish the bag of Organic Costco feed, and I really don't think they are liking it. They are all losing weight. It could be a coinsidence with the move and all, but I am going back to the King Freedom and see if things improve.

Man I miss one day on here and have 99 posts to catch up on.

This morning I was rushing (because I was late, Surprise!) and went to let the chickens out and noticed two soft shell eggs on the poop tray. I hadn't seen any since the first one on Wednesday. I must have missed them because they were soft shelled and it was kind of dark when I got home. The first egg was a nice thick shell, then two membrane only.

Tonight I got back from Anaheim (day trip to see mom) and I got my first Welsummer egg! Yay! In the bucket nesting box. I think the buckets might be a little too small for the Orpingtons..... I am going to try to put a different one out there tomorrow and see what happens. Here are the two firsts side by side. Amazing the color difference.