California - Northern

[tj74roberts]

Yay! I am glad to see this kind of post starting, I  love seeing them throughout the spring.
Was that really an accident, or were you trying to get an hour head start on the sales area?   


For once I am not jealous of the people who don't live so close to town! Most of the raccoons I see here are about the size of a chubby house cat. 
There is a good chance they can manage it, but like Chris says you could make them some mash for the first few days to make sure. Just be careful, they can and will coat themselves in it when they are tiny little fuzz balls.

Lol, not trying to get a get start, Lol. Thanks for the info on the chick food.

 

[tj74roberts]

If the chicks are too small(They seem to be able to eat fairly large crumbles), I use a mortar and pestle that I have. It is a big one but does a great job making the crumbles smaller. I only do this for the first day or so.

thank you

You could always turn it into a mash by adding water and some ACV 

The birds love it wet and it cuts down on waste

Thanks Chris, doesn't it turn to cement after a lil while?

 

[caychris]

thank you

Thanks Chris, doesn't it turn to cement after a lil while?

I havent experienced this usually as it dries it is crumbly. The only times Ive not seen them clean it up is when they get shavings mixed in or cover it up. With Chicks I found that I had to do frequent small feedings. I would make a batch in a bucket then just spoon out enough in a cat dish for them to eat up in about 20 min. For day olds I would gauge about a tip of my thumb for each one. (Bantams probably less) because it stays put for the most part you can tell how much they are eating. If the batch gets too dry just add some more water to hydrate. ive found that chicks hand fed like this end up being quite friendly. With 25 I would use several dishes so everyone gets a share.

I would refresh the food frequently but they would start to get into cycles of awake to eat then sleep between meals. After the first couple of weeks the feedings would get spread out a bit more. I also found that the less soiled feed the easier my brooders were to clean and didnt smell as bad. Most of the smell came from soiled feed. Overnight I would place a bit more food so they could eat over night if they got up but it tended to encourage them to have night time. Switching to heating plates really helped with this too.

I went to the dollar store and bought a bunch of double bowl cat dishes for the little chicks. Mash is one of the best ways to cut waste and with the hand feeding essentially the birds get really used to you. Its also something that your 4hrs can do on their own as well and real easy to get feed a single bird on your lap that way. Kind of forces you to spend some time with them and they start looking forward to you coming to see them.

 

[tj74roberts]

...

I havent experienced this usually as it dries it is crumbly. The only times Ive not seen them clean it up is when they get shavings mixed in or cover it up. With Chicks I found that I had to do frequent small feedings. I would make a batch in a bucket then just spoon out enough in a cat dish for them to eat up in about 20 min. For day olds I would gauge about a tip of my thumb for each one. (Bantams probably less)  because it stays put for the most part you can tell how much they are eating. If the batch gets too dry just add some more water to hydrate. ive found that chicks hand fed like this end up being quite friendly. With 25 I would use several dishes so everyone gets a share.

I would refresh the food frequently but they would start to get into cycles of awake to eat then sleep between meals. After  the first couple of weeks the feedings would get spread out a bit more. I also found that the less soiled feed the easier my brooders were to clean and didnt smell as bad. Most of the smell came from soiled feed.  Overnight I would place a bit more food so they could eat over night if they got up but it tended to encourage them to have night time. Switching to heating plates really helped with this too.

I went to the dollar store and bought a bunch of double bowl cat dishes for the little chicks. Mash is one of the best ways to cut waste and with the hand feeding essentially the birds get really used to you. Its also something that your 4hrs can do on their own as well and real easy to get feed a single bird on your lap that  way. Kind of forces you to spend some time with them and they start looking forward to you coming to see them.
[/quote
Thanks Chris! What a great exexplanation.I will definitely try it. I also am using a brinsea heat plate for warmth but not she its working so great at warming them so under the tub I put a heating pad on one end. Its helping a lot. Just got these guys this am and they are so tiny. Lots of color and couple of crests i think. My kids are going to be so happy

 

[shahtir101]

you have another pullet? Do you have pictures of her? Can you pm to me please

Yes I will

 

[curious chickee]

I havent experienced this usually as it dries it is crumbly. The only times Ive not seen them clean it up is when they get shavings mixed in or cover it up. With Chicks I found that I had to do frequent small feedings. I would make a batch in a bucket then just spoon out enough in a cat dish for them to eat up in about 20 min. For day olds I would gauge about a tip of my thumb for each one. (Bantams probably less)  because it stays put for the most part you can tell how much they are eating. If the batch gets too dry just add some more water to hydrate. ive found that chicks hand fed like this end up being quite friendly. With 25 I would use several dishes so everyone gets a share.

I would refresh the food frequently but they would start to get into cycles of awake to eat then sleep between meals. After  the first couple of weeks the feedings would get spread out a bit more. I also found that the less soiled feed the easier my brooders were to clean and didnt smell as bad. Most of the smell came from soiled feed.  Overnight I would place a bit more food so they could eat over night if they got up but it tended to encourage them to have night time. Switching to heating plates really helped with this too.

I went to the dollar store and bought a bunch of double bowl cat dishes for the little chicks. Mash is one of the best ways to cut waste and with the hand feeding essentially the birds get really used to you. Its also something that your 4hrs can do on their own as well and real easy to get feed a single bird on your lap that  way. Kind of forces you to spend some time with them and they start looking forward to you coming to see them.

This is how I feed all my birds, it is called fermented feed, also this would be a great show for your 4H kids to observe. Seeing showmanship is and making notes while watching then asking their fellow 4H kids. Best way for your kids to learn is to observe their peers. My daughter just did this at the gold Coast Hollister show to help prepare for modesto.

 

[caychris]

This is how I feed all my birds, it is called fermented feed, also this would be a great show for your 4H kids to observe. Seeing showmanship is and making notes while watching then asking their fellow 4H kids. Best way for your kids to learn is to observe their peers. My daughter just did this at the gold Coast Hollister show to help prepare for modesto.

Sort of true but fermented feed smells a bit more. I just make fresh mash

 

[curious chickee]

Sort of true but fermented feed smells a bit more. I just make fresh mash

True it smells like sourdough bread starter, but I love the extra probiotics and higher digestible nutrients, and only need to make it every few days.

 

[QueenMisha]

I heard last week from my tutor that someone had dumped four chickens off at a nearby pond/park. Finally got over there to check if it was true or not. Found them pretty easy. Looks like four gamefowl cross cockerels. I managed to get some blurry pictures.

I'd love to take them but they would be an absolute pain to catch and as it is I have 40 cockbirds in my flock already (20 of which I don't even remotely need and 10 more that desperately need a one way ticket to freezer camp). If anyone wants them they are at Lumsden Pond in Placerville. I'd advise bringing a gamefowl net or better yet a cage trap with some corn... these guys were very flighty. That said, they look to be doing surprisingly well. Apparently the same people who feed the ducks and geese there are feeding them a nice fat diet of bread and such... not exactly healthy but it'll keep em going for a while. In fact I was surprised by how good they were doing. Reminded me of the feral chickens in Hawaii and Florida. I wouldn't mind having our own little population of ferals here but since it's not subtropical I doubt they'll last indefinitely on their own.

 

[ronott1]

I heard last week from my tutor that someone had dumped four chickens off at a nearby pond/park. Finally got over there to check if it was true or not. Found them pretty easy. Looks like four gamefowl cross cockerels. I managed to get some blurry pictures.









I'd love to take them but they would be an absolute pain to catch and as it is I have 40 cockbirds in my flock already (20 of which I don't even remotely need and 10 more that desperately need a one way ticket to freezer camp). If anyone wants them they are at Lumsden Pond in Placerville. I'd advise bringing a gamefowl net or better yet a cage trap with some corn... these guys were very flighty. That said, they look to be doing surprisingly well. Apparently the same people who feed the ducks and geese there are feeding them a nice fat diet of bread and such... not exactly healthy but it'll keep em going for a while. In fact I was surprised by how good they were doing. Reminded me of the feral chickens in Hawaii and Florida. I wouldn't mind having our own little population of ferals here but since it's not subtropical I doubt they'll last indefinitely on their own.

That is amazing!