Consolidated Kansas

[chicken danz]

Hi everyone!

I just wanted to let anyone near Wichita know that you can get free straw for animals at Keiter Nursery right now. Someone donated money for the company to give away 100 bales so animals can stay warm. Mighty nice of that person. I think only twenty were taken so far. I didn't know until I went by and was surprised with a bunch of free straw ^_^ It's on the South side of Broadway and 63rd intersection.

Also...is it worth it to buy antibiotics and dressings to do bumblefoot surgery?

And I think it was a dog that mauled one of my chickens yesterday. Should I coop up my chickens in case it comes back or will they be ok to range?

I would definitely pen your chickens until you are sure what ever came around doesn't return.
Personally I don't know if bumble foot surgery pays to do or not. The ones I worked on always seemed to have it come back. I think just giving shots of penicillin works as well as anything. It's said to be a staff infection and they are so hard to eradicate. Now if the bird is in a lot of discomfort I would do the surgery and follow with flushing it each day and giving antibiotics. But if the bird is getting along okay I'd just give the antibiotics and call it good.
That's just my opinion from what I've dealt with. I am sure other's see it entirely different.
Wow free straw. If I were close I'd jump on that. Very nice of someone.

 

[Ralph Moyer]

I have another mouth to feed. One of My neighbors, about 2 miles from me, had an emu he couldn't keep home. Another neighbor, about a mile west of me, called me and ask it was mine.( I did have emus until about five years ago). It was in her pasture and had been hurt by coyotes. I found out who the owner was and notified him where it was at. He told me he was just going to shoot it because he could not keep it in. Well, the lady was very upset and ask if I would take it so he would not have to shoot it. So, to keep peace in the neighborhood, I now I have an injured emu on my hands. He has been here since Saturday and is strutting and grunting. He seems to be healing, and since he made it through that subzero weather, I think he will make it.

 

[HEChicken]

HEChicken you could always build another hoop coop for the RIRs, you have plenty of room for it.

I ended up with 10 heritage RIR chicks our of 12 eggs...

Wow, congratulations - that is a great hatch from any eggs, let alone shipped eggs! I hope the one with neurological issues makes it. It seems like if they are having trouble getting out of the shell maybe that is because of the problems in the first place - I dunno.

Yeah, I know I have the space but I just don't like keeping animals caged or penned any more than necessary - no offense to those who do pen their birds. I really like seeing them out doing what animals do naturally, in as much space as I can offer, and while I'm willing to pen them temporarily to collect eggs I know are pure, I really wouldn't want to do it long-term. I do already have plans to build another hoop coop but that will be the temp pen for one set of turkeys when breeding season rolls around - that way I can be sure I'm not hatching a bunch of mixed breed turkeys. The one hoop coop I currently have is sitting empty over the winter. In spring I will put one rooster and a few hens in, collect the eggs, then switch and put the other rooster in with a few more hens to collect those eggs, but once I'm done hatching, they'll all be out together again.

It is a setting on the washing machine.

I would definitely pen your chickens until you are sure what ever came around doesn't return.
Personally I don't know if bumble foot surgery pays to do or not. The ones I worked on always seemed to have it come back. I think just giving shots of penicillin works as well as anything. It's said to be a staff infection and they are so hard to eradicate. Now if the bird is in a lot of discomfort I would do the surgery and follow with flushing it each day and giving antibiotics. But if the bird is getting along okay I'd just give the antibiotics and call it good.
That's just my opinion from what I've dealt with. I am sure other's see it entirely different.
Wow free straw. If I were close I'd jump on that. Very nice of someone.

x2 on the bumble foot advice.

I have another mouth to feed. One of My neighbors, about 2 miles from me, had an emu he couldn't keep home. Another neighbor, about a mile west of me, called me and ask it was mine.( I did have emus until about five years ago). It was in her pasture and had been hurt by coyotes. I found out who the owner was and notified him where it was at. He told me he was just going to shoot it because he could not keep it in. Well, the lady was very upset and ask if I would take it so he would not have to shoot it. So, to keep peace in the neighborhood, I now I have an injured emu on my hands. He has been here since Saturday and is strutting and grunting. He seems to be healing, and since he made it through that subzero weather, I think he will make it.

Good for you - I hope he makes it!

 

[chicken danz]

Wow Ralph. Is the Emu a boy or a girl? I have no desire to raise them but I think their eggs are super cool looking.
Can you believe it? A bird I don't want!!!
It was fairly warm earlier but when I went back out to finish my feeding it had gotten really cold again. I'm not sure when the storm is moving in. I got a call from the guy that bought turkeys and pullets from me. I guess one of the turkeys is breeding one of the pullets and won't pay attention to the turkey hens. It's a pullet that had been in the pen with him but I had never seen that happen. I had sold him those pullets and every one of them are laying. I thought a couple were but didn't know they all were. I am sure he is a happy guy cause I sold them cheap.
I had to stay outside a while tonight because the darned birds didn't want to go to bed. I still had one bird out when I gave up but this one just kind of does it's own thing. It was broody raised and can't figure out where it thinks it belongs. There is an open pen he can go to if he decides to put himself up. The guineas went into one of the other open pens and they normally sleep in the garage pen. I guess everyone was confused tonight for some reason.
I want to go out tomorrow and pen up the rest of my roosters that need to be butchered. I don't need to take them to town until Friday but I want them to be penned so I don't have to have a chicken rodeo while I'm trying to get ready to go. I need to go get feed again too so I prefer to do it all at once.

 

[Trish44]

Wow Ralph that is a big mouth to feed, I hope it makes it, I love the color of the eggs too.

Well I really did it to myself this time. Yesterday afternoon I went out to do all of the feeding & decided to give the last injection of Tylan to my little lavender Orp pullet & take her back out to her pen. I have had her in a pen in the garage. I had fed the main coop & the one next to it & was headed down the hill to take the pullet back when I slipped on some slick snow & ice going down & my feet just went out from under me. My right leg went at a weird angle & when I hit it wasn't pretty. I was in so much pain & I was out there holding a chicken trying to get up off the cold ground. My two GPs came over to me, they knew I was in trouble, those dogs are so perceptive. I managed to get myself up off the ground & then it was really a challenge to get the chicken put back in the garage & get myself into the house. I found a walking stick we have outside & managed to get in the house. I texted my DH at work, he had not been there but an hour or so at that point & he came back home to finish the feeding for me. I've got an appt. this morning to see the Dr., I'm afraid I did some real damage this time to myself. I can't walk on my right leg without extreme pain & my right ankle is swollen as well, it's not good.

 

[zigzag45]

Ouch @Trish44 , that doesn't sound good at all.

 

[22qZoo]

Gosh, TRISH44- that sounds aw-full. Hope the doc's can get you comfortable,yikes!

RALPH- that's so cool, sounds like you've had some experience with them,I'm thinking it's a little more than "just another mouth to feed" maybe you can post a pic when he gets healed up?

We had a stray cat move in to the loft during the cold spell, poor thing. I was able to pet him and he feels kind of old, gave him some canned food ,maybe I'll be able to catch him eventually. I hate it when people dump animals out here.

 

[chicken danz]

Trish I'm hoping you get some good news from the doctor and you don't have broken bones. A sprain would be bad enough. I wish I was close enough to come take care of your animals for while. I'd be in a pickle here if something like that happened. I don't have any one close who would come feed my animals. I worry about things like that all the time.
It's cold and misty out this morning. I suspect it's slick out there. We were supposed to get freezing rain but it's more like freezing fog. I need to go out and catch and move all the spare roosters into one pen. Three need to go to town tomorrow and all the rest need to be there next week. It would be easier to just get them all penned at once so I don't have to chase them again next week. I'm so ready for this snow to melt and to see the sun for a few days. I guess if they decide to battle each other I'll be butchering some for myself. I do need to stick a few more in the freezer but I don't like butchering in winter for sure. Thus why I'm still feeding about 20 extra ducks out there. I imagine I'll have more boys to butcher by the time it warms up.

 

[Ralph Moyer]

The Emu is a female. She is making a drumming sound and has blue on her neck. I though at first I heard it making a grunting sound that why I thought it to be a male, as that is the sound they make. The females do make a different sound when trying to attract a male. I think that is why my neighbor could not keep her in .Early winter is when the female lays her eggs. She was looking for a male. The Emus are very strange creatures. The female is the aggressive one. The male makes the nest and when the female has laid about 8 eggs the male sets on them for 8 weeks. and when the chicks hatch, the male takes care of them.. the females will try to kill the chicks so they have to be kept away from her. Very strange !!

 

[chicken danz]

I've had several friends that raised Emus but they all had bad experiences, like being spurred and such. Must have been the girl Emus huh? Are you going to try to find a male now or are you just going to let her do her own thing? If she lays without being fertile I'd love to buy an egg or two from you...just so I could have it to sit around. I assume I could blow it out? I'd guess that Checoukan would know someone who raises Emus in your area. Or KansasKid may also know where you might find some. You could send them PMs here.