California - Northern

[chicksnthestiks]

Good stuff Ali hahahahaha...I may have said this here before but I read somewhere on BYC that pullets are impressed with the size and show of a rooster whereas mature hens want him to be a provider and protector. I have told my daughters...and other people's daughters too for that matter that they need to be taking lessons from the birds

That is so true! Don't forget the health certificate.

 

[ronott1]

Tommysgirl, did your daughter make it safely?

It was weird this afternoon, there were three eggs out in the chicken yard and two outside of the nest boxes on the coop floor. It was like an Easter egg hunt with poorly hidden eggs....

 

[tommysgirl]

Tommysgirl, did your daughter make it safely?

Yes she did Ron Thanks for asking. She is homesick already but tomorrow she starts working and meets more people. That should help.

 

[Ali707]

Tommysgirl, did your daughter make it safely?

It was weird this afternoon, there were three eggs out in the chicken yard and two outside of the nest boxes on the coop floor. It was like an Easter egg hunt with poorly hidden eggs....

I went out with some meal worms tonight and everyone was a little freaky. Easily spooked and just odd.

 

[GallusGirl]

I had dinner out and when I came home to close up the coop, my little Golden Sebright hen wasn't inside! I looked everywhere for her, it was the first time she wasn't fast asleep in the proper place by 7:30. Checked all the bushes, trees, even climbed on top of the roof (in spite having clipped her wings) to no avail. Thank goodness I finally found her...sitting on a small branch of a big tree about 15 feet directly above her chicken coop! I really didn't think she could get that high up with the clipped wings, and I have no idea what drove her to try! I guess it was a day for weird chicken behavior.

I went out with some meal worms tonight and everyone was a little freaky. Easily spooked and just odd.

 

[tommysgirl]

I had dinner out and when I came home to close up the coop, my little Golden Sebright hen wasn't inside! I looked everywhere for her, it was the first time she wasn't fast asleep in the proper place by 7:30. Checked all the bushes, trees, even climbed on top of the roof (in spite having clipped her wings) to no avail. Thank goodness I finally found her...sitting on a small branch of a big tree about 15 feet directly above her chicken coop! I really didn't think she could get that high up with the clipped wings, and I have no idea what drove her to try! I guess it was a day for weird chicken behavior.

hmmm something in the air?? Gallus Girl I have never clipped wings but I watched a video so yeah I totally know nothing from experience. Anway the woman in the video said you only do one because that way they are unbalanced. If you do both wings they can still fly. It was a British lady. I will go look for the link.

 

[juststruttin]

I go to Tahoe for a few days and come back to 450+ posts. Holy Moly alot going on here. I didn't have a chance to read them.... but I sure hope everyone and their chickees are doing well.

I am gone of 5 days and cannot believe how big all the juvies got while I was gone. You don't really notice how fast chicks grow untill you don't see them for a few days.

Two weeks ago I got five 5 Freedom Rangers from a friend of a friend. I had planned to keep them with my 5 week olds, but they are 3 times their size so I put them in with the 8 week and they were still bigger. I really love their personalities. They are sooo friendly. Although they are huge, they dust, eat and roost like normal birds.

I think I have 4 girls and 1 rooster. My plan is to cross 3 of the girls to the FR rooster and put 1 girl in my Sulmtaler pen and the other in the Bresse pen to see how the crosses turns out. I understand FR do not breed true so it will be interesting to see how the next generation will turn out.

Has anyone ever tried to grow out and breed Freedom Rangers? Love to hear the results.

 

[debs_flock]

Quote: Exactly, one wing only.

 

[chiqita]

OK, I found some GREAT information on facebook yesterday from a vet on the serema pages.

Since with a lot of the tiny chicks it is hard to tell if they have cocci until they die, and she says medicated food does not do much if they are not out with a momma, here is her LONG regimen for making sure you never loose birds to it. She says to do this with new birds you get from other areas too because new cocci can kill older birds and people don't look for it or expect it.


This is the cocci immunity building program

• I copied and pasted the following info from an article written by Peter Brown - it is exactly in line with my personal advice and saved some time re. typing: Controlling Coccidiosis and still allowing immunity to build is accomplished in the following way. Use Amprol/Corid powder in the birds drinking water at the rate of one teaspoon per gallon of water for seven days and 1/8 teaspoon of 3-Nitro-W as well. Then skip twenty one days and then begin treating with Sulfadimethoxione at the rate of one ounce per two gallons of drinking water for five days. Then skip twenty one days again and start the treatment all over again beginning with the Amprol/Corid and the 3-Nitro-W powder. Continue this program until all birds are five to six month sold or until the hens begin laying eggs and then discontinue the program and treat on an as needed basis. It is important to start the Amprol/Corid powder first and then use the Sulfadimethoxine as some species of Cocci cause intestinal bleeding and the use of Sulfa drugs first, will contribute to the bleeding before it makes the situation better. It is also advisable to add ¼ teaspoon of VITAMIN E to the water as research shows that VITAMIN E can help shorten the course of a Coccidiosis outbreak. When starting baby chicks it is important to start this program no later than ten days of age as this disease will kill baby chicks very quickly. Newly developed technology has produced a new Coccidiosis vaccine that is both effective, safe and, affordable. It is really simple to use just mix the vaccine according to the directions that are provided with the vaccine and spray the vaccine on the birds feed that you are feeding for the day. Its that simple. If vaccination was done properly the birds will show mild symptoms of Cocci but should not be overwhelmed by the vaccine and immunity will build from there. No medication should be necessary for the life of the birds.
  Some of the symptoms that you may observe during an outbreak of Coccidiosis are as follows: Ruffled feathers, droopy or sleepy eyed appearance, birds may drop one of both wings, birds may become lethargic and reluctant to move even when prodded. Some birds may show an uncoordinated gate or appear to stagger of walk as though they are trying to step over something when there is nothing in front of them. Some birds may have a chilled appearance as well. There may or may not be blood in the droppings depending upon the species of Cocci that is affecting the birds. Weight loss as well as loss of appetite and mortality may also be observed.
  Just a word of caution when using Sulfa drugs. Never use Sulfa drugs for longer than the suggested period of time. Never use two Sulfa drugs at the same time. Always use the proper dose for the drug being used. Always allow three weeks between the use of different Sulfa drugs, never use them back to back. The overuse of Sulfa drugs can and will if not properly used cause permanent and irreversible KIDNEY DAMAGE and RENAL SHUTDOWN (kidney failure). Use Sulfa drugs with confidence but with a sense of caution. It will be of value to use some 3-Nitro-W in with the Corid/Amprol powder when treating for Cocci. There is a synergistic effect when the two are used together. Synergistic just means that the ability of the Corid/Amprol powder to fight Coccidiosis will improved if the two are used together.
  Sunday at 4:52am · Edited · Unlike · 2
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  Ilse Zweegers so for your next hatch, you can choose between building immunity as described above or by vaccination. What I will strongly advise is strict bio security - I know you have done your utmost to disinfect etc. but the most common transfer of cocci to chicks is through a human carrier i.e. hands, clothes, shoes. So keep some shoes and clothes that you wear with the chicks but never with other poultry until they are at least 8 weeks old. Wash and disinfect hands each time before handling them. Never mix chicks from different hatches. Remember to control temperature and ventilation, an average of 75 degrees without artificial heat is comfortable for chicks. They should have a source for extra warmth (heating lamp, heater plate) when they want it, but must be able to have areas the extra heat doesn't reach so they can cool off. What a difficult start for you! persevere, they are worth it please tag or PM me if you have more questions.
  Sunday at 4:14am · Unlike · 1
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  Ilse Zweegers For the current hatch, switch to unmedicated feed immediately. Continue the Corid 9.6% at 2cc per quart of water for the next 5 days, make a fresh solution daily and give as the only source of water. Add liquid vitamin E to the medicated water. Add probiotic powder to their feed - it will be less effective than normal, but every little bit helps. Clean feeders & waterers everytime you refill them. Change bedding daily. Cease adding ACV for now. You can always use again after recovery. Some people believe it helps prevent cocci but it aggravates the stomach lining if they are already sick. It also cancels out the benefits of probiotics due to the PH level. Check they are drinking (otherwise dehydration and not absorbing meds) - if not, hand hydrate every few hours using a 1cc needleless syringe. You can make a 'smoothie' in a blender of feed, water, probiotic powder and raw egg and feed them little bits every few hours using a needleless syringe if they aren't eating. I will post a few links below so you know which products you are looking for and where you can buy online in case you can't source locally. You should have them in your first aid kit anyway for future use.
  Sunday at 4:27am · Unlike · 1
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  Ilse Zweegers Just an extra note : medicated feed is only useful if chicks are hatched by a hen and stay with her. There is no point to give in a brooder situation as they are not exposed to cocci in the soil on an ongoing basis. Also, if you build immunity with treatment outlined above or if you vaccinate, the medicated feed actually interferes with the regimes, so give unmedicated starter only. AND. West Slope Seramas - I am strongly against the use of Sulmet as are most of my colleague vets incl. Dr. Peter Brown aka the Chicken Doctor. It is EXTREMELY harsh on the kidneys and especially when used on chicks can actually cause mortality rather than saving them. However, your own experience is what you should base your choices on. It is not prudent however to advise using such aggressive medication to others who may not have the knowledge or experience on which to base their choice of treatment.
  Sunday at 4:30am · Unlike · 1
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  Ilse Zweegers One final note : Nitro-3-W is basically Roxarsone (inorganic arsenic) However, it has recently been removed from sale in certain countries, so you would need to ask your vet or contact Dr. Peter Brown to ask if it is still available for you. If not, the immunity building program remains identical, but then without the use of Nitro-3-W

 

[GallusGirl]

hmmm something in the air?? Gallus Girl I have never clipped wings but I watched a video so yeah I totally know nothing from experience. Anway the woman in the video said you only do one because that way they are unbalanced. If you do both wings they can still fly. It was a British lady. I will go look for the link.

That makes enough sense! Although I haven't clipped chicken wings before, I used to have other birds (cockatiel, lorikeet, parakeets, and parrot) around the house and we would often clip their wings to prevent them accidentally flying out an open door, but I think we clipped both wings on those birds. It gave them significantly less power when flying, but they could still flutter safely to the ground and had control of the direction they were moving, so they flew into walls less often. I'm not sure what the best option is with my Sebrights. I don't really want to take their balance or all of their flying ability away, I just don't want them easily flying onto the roof or over the 6' fence around the yard (although some flight might help them stay away from neighborhood cats). Clipping both wings seems to have accomplished that goal pretty well up until now! It was also pretty painless for them. I waited until they were fully asleep, wrapped them in a towel, then quickly trimmed a few feathers. They hardly noticed!