Colorado

[suncatcher]

Judi, Nice looking chicks!

Thought I would cross post this here on our local thread too...... https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/861416/manx-cat

 

[maggiemo]

Beautiful chicks, Pozees. I wish April 4 would hurry up and get here so I can pick up my PBR chicks from the Kiowa feed store.

I have chicks coming from Meyers Hatchery that week too.
It's killing me to wait.

 

[CoMtnGal]

My salmon Faverolle shipped eggs hatched. Not a good rate for shipped eggs- 4 out of 14 eggs, 6. Went in the hatcher., but they are all well. Of 8 blue wyandottes, one hatched, but is splay-legged and still not eating or drinking on her own. I made little hobbles which helps, but she's gotta start eating.

 

[suncatcher]

My salmon Faverolle shipped eggs hatched. Not a good rate for shipped eggs- 4 out of 14 eggs, 6. Went in the hatcher., but they are all well. Of 8 blue wyandottes, one hatched, but is splay-legged and still not eating or drinking on her own. I made little hobbles which helps, but she's gotta start eating.

That seems to be about the average for shipped eggs to our altitude. Usually the newly hatched don;t eat for a day or two, but if it goes longer than that you can try mashing up some boiled egg for her. They love it!

 

[Pozees]

That seems to be about the average for shipped eggs to our altitude. Usually the newly hatched don;t eat for a day or two, but if it goes longer than that you can try mashing up some boiled egg for her. They love it!

Right, and dip the beak into the water several times every couple of hours to ensure it stays hydrated.

 

[ruralmom]

Can anyone tell me when the next swap is in Greeley? and if there is one in Fort Collins? I have some turkeys that need new homes. Thanks

 

[CoMtnGal]

What kind and how old are your turkeys?

 

[yawningreyhound]

Chicken Rodeo today. I'm new at this so every time I read about some malady they may have, I'm all looking at them and sure enough, a few days ago someone had posted a photo of "early scaly leg"...and 2 of my 5 wyandottes have lifted scales right next to their claws.

It was time to clean the coop anyway, so I cleaned the dirt-floored run and the coop. I even vacuumed the coop cuz it's still brand new and has a vinyl floor and is small. I puffed food-grade DE everywhere, then I put clean straw in the run and chips in the coop.

I had only done the 2 hens with lifted scales and I read I should do everyone, so today I did everyone. Soak, scrub gently, dry, vaseline, food-grade DE, wash, rinse, repeat.

They hate me now.


But they DO love their new straw. I only put down a tiny amount of the bale, then I squeezed the remaining in between a wall and the other bale. They will make that their life goal to disseminate that remaining bale. WHAT IS IT about chickens and partial bales? Are they bug searching? Is it FUN?

Do you LOVE the expressions on their faces when they're scratch scratch scratching, then peck peck pecking?

They're so darned determined. They crack me up.

Another dead mouse in the water this morning. That's two this week. I usually cover the water just to keep the dust out of it, but I've missed a couple times and I've gotten a drowned mouse.

Found the hole. Fixed it. And I'm also raising their food high in the coop run at night. We feed the birds which just chums in the mice and there's beau coup mice on this mountain, I swear.

Hope everyone is enjoying this incredible weather. I worked outside all day today on those chores the weather interrupted.

And now snow tonight! I put a big tarp I found blown onto our property out under the chickens' favorite tree and surrounding area. My experiment is to turn back the tarp with the 4 inches of snow forecasted and they'll have clear space!

Sounds like it might work.

 

[Godiva]

I like your tarp idea yawningreyhound! Something I found helped with mice getting into the feed (you have only mentioned them in the water but nonetheless...) I mixed a bunch of cayenne pepper into the feed for a while and the mice decided to try food that had less spice in it I also set live traps in the coop and was very busy for a while deporting the unwanted critters to another pasture area. I think watching the hens destroying straw bales, cabbage treats etc is very entertaining. Even more so if you put it just barely out of their reach and they have to jump a bit to get a decent bite LOL

 

[wsmith]

I like your tarp idea yawningreyhound! Something I found helped with mice getting into the feed (you have only mentioned them in the water but nonetheless...) I mixed a bunch of cayenne pepper into the feed for a while and the mice decided to try food that had less spice in it I also set live traps in the coop and was very busy for a while deporting the unwanted critters to another pasture area. I think watching the hens destroying straw bales, cabbage treats etc is very entertaining. Even more so if you put it just barely out of their reach and they have to jump a bit to get a decent bite LOL

I have several mouse traps around my chicken areas. Inside the main coop, I built two covered boxes with a mouse sized hole in one end,m and placed a trap inside. Haven't caught anything in them yet, and its been 2 years. Caught lots in the other ones outside of the chicken pens though. Peanut butter on the mouse traps as bait.