California - Northern

[BCollie]

Quote:
I will do that, thanks!

 

[caychris]

When the current bag of layer runs out, switch to grower or flock raiser and provide free choice calcium. Layer for a short time will not hurt the 3 month old chicks.

They will be fine.

My bag of flock raiser is running out and I bought King Freedom layer crumbles because my Dels are starting their 18th week some lay as early as 20 weeks my Bufs are starting on Week 14 this week. The feed store said it shouldnt hurt them to have the calcium and the Dels are going to need it. Should I wait and get another bag of flock raiser and move them to the King feed after the Dels lay?

I was considering fermenting the King feed as well but wasnt ready to start that just yet.

Is pellets better for bigger birds. I figured crumbles would be good because thats what they are currently used to. I dont see much waste now with the PVC feeders.

 

[Redtractorranch]

Anybody interested in Silver Lakenvelder? I ordered a couple of assortment packs of Show Quality chicks and ended up with some Silver Lakenvelder cockerels. They aren't really my thing, anyone interested? Located in Gilroy. Willing to trade for ? ?? but I am trying to move them fast, fights are breaking out in my cockerel pen.

I also have an abundance of BLR Wyandotte bantams. Right now I am thinning the cockerels, but will be culling pullets in a couple of months.

 

[ronott1]

I saw that someone mixes DE in with the feed. What kind of ratio and how do you do that.

Freedom Feed(The new GMO from King Feed) has DE in it.

I put about 1/3 of a cup per feeder--the smaller feeders. I only give it to them when they need a calcium boost. DE will not kill worms in a chicken since it works by dehydrating the bugs--It will not work when wet. It may cut down on flies once the manure dries though.

 

[ronott1]

My bag of flock raiser is running out and I bought King Freedom layer crumbles because my Dels are starting their 18th week some lay as early as 20 weeks my Bufs are starting on Week 14 this week. The feed store said it shouldnt hurt them to have the calcium and the Dels are going to need it. Should I wait and get another bag of flock raiser and move them to the King feed after the Dels lay?

I was considering fermenting the King feed as well but wasnt ready to start that just yet.

Is pellets better for bigger birds. I figured crumbles would be good because thats what they are currently used to. I dont see much waste now with the PVC feeders.

The extra calcium should not hurt them. King Freedom GMO free layer is on the low side of calcium too. It is the really young chicks and long term exposure to rooster that hurts them. Chickens have fragile kidneys.

Too much calcium can cause Pullets to have more problems with the first egg but that is rare.

 

[caychris]

Pics of the girls this is Clara the most shy of the bunch

Verna the Piggie largest of the lot


Lurk (front 1/2 blind) and Verna thinking the phone is a treat


Lurk again she has pretty neck feathering


Good old Penny/Pete though convinced she is Penny now the meanie to the Buffs

And my daughter with the lap chickens
Brownie

Goldie the calmest of the whole lot and actually will snuggle up in your lap

 

[Hangtown Farms]

I read an article about organic Soy Beans used for Feed being mostly imported from china. It looks like it is more and more true for all Organic Soy products. The Article said that most of the USA regular Soy is shipped to China While the Organic Soy is shipped to the USA for Feed. There is a huge price difference.

This Article has some of the information along with a link to an USDA Article.

http://www.cornucopia.org/2009/06/usda-report-indicates-american-organic-farmers-being-sold-out/

isn't everything imported from China now

Juststruttin,
I used King Organic starter/grower and Organic Layer Pellets for awhile, but the local feed store is flaky and inconsistent with stock. I tried the Freedom but didn't like the substitute for soy. I stopped using King due to my birds getting sick, having to treat them, and eventually finding a hand sized lump of moldy pellets in a bag I was using. I suspect neglect of rotation/allowing stock to get wet by the local feed store, and since they are the only ones stocking King, I go elsewhere. I use Modesto Milling and am satisfied with their organic rations.

For adult birds, I supplement water regularly 3x a week with a Breeder Plus solution and Probios dispersible powder. When they are in the pre-molt stage and become stressed or less active, I use Lewerstim (made by MedPet)1x per week since it has the required amount of B vitamins, Calcium Pantothenate, thiotic acid, and liver extract which helps cleanse and support the liver. This, I believe, is most important for older birds that tend to get fatty livers from being less active. Some of my birds are 10 yrs old now. When they are moulting, I will mix some wheat germ oil fortified with A,D,E and nutritional yeast flakes in with each lb of feed 1-2 times a week maximum. If I give no-salt tuna or buttermilk (never both together), I do it sparingly mixed in feed, and only give enough that they will eat it all right away, as to not attract flies. I've found this encourages those difficult moulters, who sometimes go off feed during moult, to eat better. I think it is good to examine choline content in foods. Choline is also a liver cleansing vitamin.

I supplement greens by using kale or spinach since they both have good mineral and vitamin profiles. Not much green here this time of year. Other things I grow, such as lettuce and occasional tomatoes, are also given on occasion.

I just use Nutrena all flock , I give Food grade DE or Oyster shells ( big abalone shells work good as holders and have lots of calcium )
with greens from the garden .
The occasional tomato should aid with acidity in the system aiding the birds in helping stay healthy.
I sell my breeders after a few years but my birds are usually fine with few issues have good feather quality and are always happy.
I have good shell quality usually good fertility and rarely ever any sick birds.

I give them ACV in the water and most my coops are open on one side with lots of ventilation. They have extra large runs.
DE is also good for fly control. I put it in my spreader and spread around my runs

 

[Audio51]

Quote:
I think that we bought ours at the same show, Karen! And yes, they were that expensive! Mine came with a crunched corner and it bothered me to spend that much for a book with a defect! Of course, now it has real signs of wear!

Mine was a Birthday gft from my Mom about 20+ years ago but in creat shape. I havent used it much since we moved here and I initially gave up chickens.

@caychris As far as pattern goes with Barred breeds the pattern is supposed "link" from feather to feather so that the bird looks more striped like this:


Whereas a Dom is a cuckoo breed. Their markings don't form continuous lines from feather to feather so they are less uniform like this:

or thi
s

Nice clarification. That was very easy to understanf and great visuals!

So, as you guys may know I have a Cream Legbar and a Black Copper Marans. My mom and I both agree that they are about half the size of the adult chickens right now. Ron said to wait until they were 3/4 the size of the adult chickens before leaving them out together all the time, and this is what I planned on doing...however, I GIVE UP! Actually, I gave up about a week ago. They keep getting out of their grow-out pen and joining the flock. They've been out with the flock for about a week now and nobody has been injured, so at this point I think it's safe to say they're going to be fine to live out with the adult flock full-time. They know who the meanest girl is(the speckled sussex is downright nasty towards them) and know to run away when she goes towards them. But, things seem to be going really well and the adult girls are even letting the little girls eat food and treats without pecking at them! I think they're going to be okay.
My concern is this...their food. They know where the big girls food is, and so for the past week they've been eating layer feed. I know this is bad for them since they haven't started laying yet, they're only about 3 months old. What do I do about this?

It won;t hurt them short term, but you should probably switch to a grower of flock formula and supplement the calcium.

Quote: Waste isn;t the only reason to ferment. It makes a lot of the nutrients more availalbe so they don't need as much even if they consume 100% of either

Pics of the girls this is Clara the most shy of the bunch

Verna the Piggie largest of the lot


Lurk (front 1/2 blind) and Verna thinking the phone is a treat


Lurk again she has pretty neck feathering


Good old Penny/Pete though convinced she is Penny now the meanie to the Buffs

And my daughter with the lap chickens
Brownie

Goldie the calmest of the whole lot and actually will snuggle up in your lap

Very cute! The Dels do look like they are getting close to POL.

 

[Audio51]

Quote:
I would be a little cautious with the amount of spinach you offer. Too much will inhibit calcium absorption.

 

[Audio51]

Quote: I let it and its hatchmate out in the run today. They both definitley enjoyed being back out in the yard, It is able to limp around and actually moves pretty well. , but I wonder if that will still be the case once the foot dropes off. The others pecked at them a bit but I don't think it was anymore that it would have been with any "new" flock members. They are both much friendlier than the others and the other one jumped up on my shoulders. The injured one seems to enjoy being held and petted. I think I will see how it goes once the foot drops off make my decision then.

Quote: What a great link! Wish there was more info and pictures...especially of the chicken wearing it.