Consolidated Kansas

[HEChicken]

OQB, don't throw the tomato vines to the birds - they are in the nightshade family, so the leaves are poisonous. I'm amazed you still have anything left on your vines at all - mine all died out weeks ago when we had that hard frost, mid-October or so. I pulled some of them right away and still have a few more I need to get up there and pull.

I'm glad your little Marans cockerel has recovered. From your description, my first thought was some kind of nutritional imbalance but I didn't want to lead you down the wrong path if I was wrong. However if a special diet fixed him, and the others, then I think perhaps that is right after all. If you are feeding a commercial chick starter, I can't understand why there would be an imbalance in the first place though, unless they do have a gut load of worms that are "stealing" the nutrition they need. Perhaps worming WILL help.

Brrr. It was supposed to be in the 20's last night but my thermostat says its only 19 out there right now. I haven't been out but I can see birds out enjoying the sunshine. I guess I can't wait too long to go out and give them some water, since what I put in the rubber bowl last night has surely frozen.

Trish, I'm glad to hear the Exchequers figured it out so quickly, and I'm glad they were able to get in the main coop given how cold it got last night. Sounds like they are fitting in. I like your idea of using dried leavings in the bedding too. I may try raking up some of the leaves around here and doing the same thing, to stretch my straw a little further.

 

[JosieChick]

Thank you much. So the lighter girl with the bunny tail would be ok to use? The other girl wasn't looking at the camera but she is in one of the pics she is darker and less round tail. Also is it important that I make sure they have yellow legs?

This girl is looking pretty nice, she appears to have nice overall shape, her mottling may or may not come in properly but give her time if she is still young. Check her foot feathering.


younger group -- blue mottled pullet

I like this girl too, can't tell on her shape from the pic, she has kinda of a crowish beak but let her grow out some.


black mottled pullet

This guy has a pretty wonky comb going on, nice eye color, longish beak, not sure if his foot feathering has broken off or if he doesn't have proper feathering to the middle toe?

black mottled cockerel, he didn't like standing on the kennel much I will get a better pic of him

This guy doesn't look like he has good shape but it may be the angle I don't care for the appearance on his head, if you have to use one of the two I would use the black mottled but give him some time to grow and see what they look like in a few months. I will try to find a pic of my black roo for you to see a good example.

blue mottled cockerel, he is the only boy without yellow legs I still am not totally sure if that is important..

What a great idea!

I also spent some of today building a "hay wall" for the sheep and goats. The run-in shelter we have keeps the rain off and has a north wall but that's about it. The east and west walls were blown out in a wind storm before our time, and since it is built for horses, it doesn't provide adequate shelter (IMHO) for the little guys. So, using a livestock panel on one side, I laid down pallets on the ground, then stacked hay bales on the pallets. I figure the pallets will keep the hay from direct contact with the ground, which can tend to get wet due to drainage, when there is a downpour of rain. I then put another livestock panel outside the hay bales. The sheep and goats will be able to eat the hay through the panel but won't be able to pull the bales down and scatter them everywhere. So it will serve double duty as a wind block and hay feeder. Since I know that description got confusing and a picture says a thousand words, here it is:

When I locked up the birds tonight, the goats were sitting in the corner next to where the salt block is now. Their igloo is on the other side of the hay wall, facing towards the wall so in the igloo they have shelter on all sides from the wind but at dusk they were still choosing to lie outside. I do plan to extend the wall, but this was as much as I was able to get done today. We also plan to put in a wind block on the side where I was standing to take the photo, and then put a roof over the top, which will help to keep their heat from escaping so quickly, but one thing at a time. At least for tonight I know they have a corner to escape the wind. The sheep don't really seem to care about weather. When it was calm and 60 this morning, they were resting under the shelter. Once the wind picked up and the temperature dropped, they headed out to graze. Go figure.

I feel like they need sweaters!!!

My poor Delaware is at the peak of a hard molt. I decided to plug in the Sweeter Heaters even though the coop is above 35 (for now). She was shivering on the roost. One of my EE's is almost as naked as Angel, and one other chicken is losing lots of feathers, too.. Silly chooks. Why do they do this now?

Was thinking about this boy last night. Have you sprayed your brooder down for mites? There is one species of mites that comes out and feeds only at night. I had a bird that got really weak and one night I went out and flipped him over and he was crawling!!! After I sprayed him and the brooder he got better.

Update on the sick Marans cockerel that I posted a picture of last night. 24 hours later here is another picture of him.

Amazing turn around. I gave him vitamin E, vitamin water, scrambled egg and FF with Flock Fuel on it. I had to give him the water in a dropper this morning and afternoon, but then he got his appetite back, gobbled up the FF and egg mixture and then wandered into the kitchen to watch me fix dinner. Right now he is resting on my lap making the contented chick noises. But I am totally perplexed as to what the cause of this could be. He is the 4th chick (and they have been from different hatches) to come down with this and all have recovered after getting the special diet.
Danz when you mentioned about the peachicks could have worms we got a bottle of Ivermec and got everything wormed. Think I will get some of the Rooster Booster for the spring worming. Trish made it sound easy and effective and I believe you should rotate wormers.
Maidenwolf those are some really pretty chickens, but I just peeked at the pictures.

can't be falling in love with another breed.
Stay warm

 

[chicken danz]

Okay Josie, what are you using to spray birds with for mites? Are you mixing up sevin into a liquid or what? It seems like spraying would be a darn site easier than powdering each bird or even treating with ivermectin. I've noticed most of the partridge brahma boys have a slow feathering gene but it worries me just the same that I could possibly have mites in the brooder house. I have treated the shavings with DE and sevin. There are just too many chicks in there to treat each one. I am looking for someway to make sure they are all clear of varmints.
HeChicken I've built straw walls before but that was ingenious. I like the idea of building a wall. I have used a curved piece of cattle panel as a large round bale feeder before though. It was great. Problem of course is having the equipment to put it in there. We don't have forks on the tractor. But I like the idea of the "eating wall"
Sharol I have a suggestion. I found a pattern for no-sew chicken saddles. You simply cut a rounded edge rectangle out of fleece and cut a couple slits for wings. I just searched and found an example. Mine didn't look quite like that. https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/112898/saddle-patterns-pics-added
I just sort of measured the distance between the wings to know where to cut the slits. I cut the fabric so it went right to the base of the tail. They aren't very big holes because the fleece sort of stretches to go over the wings. You could cut a couple of these for your naked girls and help keep them warm. I had some fleece here from making a baby quilt so I didn't buy a thing.
OkieQB I am thinking maybe that chick is more of a docile bird and was getting pushed out of the food bowl. Maybe he just wasn't getting as much of the right nutrition. The possibility may be that he got worn down and then something else affected him.
I found a 2 month old gold laced brahma yesterday in my brooder dead. Big healthy chick. Nice and fat. I picked it up and it had blood coming from it's beak. Makes me think he died of some traumatic injury but I haven't a clue what it might have been or how he might have done it. I didn't have time to do a necropsy because I was too busy trying to winterize everything.
Maidenwolf those cochins are just adorable. I only had a couple of bantam cochins I bought for broody hens. They were total crap. Yours are so much nicer. I just don't do bantams myself. I get tired of them.
However I just traded for some English chocolate bantam Orpington eggs. The long term plan if they hatch, is to breed my own chocolate LF English Orpingtons splitting them with black. Of course by the time I produce the right offspring they'll probably be cheap! I did some research on these genetics and was surprised to learn that chocolate is a sex link color. That changes the rules a little for breeding for a color.
It was 19 degrees at 8:00 am. Burr. I haven't gone out to check my water bowls yet today to see if they are all working. DH got smart and put a night light in the plastic box we have the cords on one side attached in. So I can look out and know the circuit is still working...at least at night. The other side of the yard doesn't have anything so I need to run out soon and make sure all is well. I am short one heated water bowl to have enough to go around. I was going to make that cookie tin heater last night but couldn't find one package that had the nuts to go on the threaded rod to hold everything in place. Everything else was stored together in a cookie tin. I may have to run to town today to pick up some more nuts. I am sure I had a package with them in it. I left the gate on the garage pen open last night so the dogs could go in there to get out of the wind. I still have one more of the dog houses tied up with birds. I need to get some kind of shelter for them rigged up soon. I was surprised to see those chickens out running around the yard this morning like it was a normal day.
The silly bourbon red turkeys went in their new building yesterday afternoon when it got cold and I was thinking how they had finally figured it out. But when it got dark they were out laying on the ground. I love the turkeys but you can't accuse them of being smart!!

 

[HEChicken]

I love the turkeys but you can't accuse them of being smart!!

Isn't that the truth? Last night they all went in voluntarily, but most nights I go out at dusk and they are all perching on the vinyl fence or hoop coop and I have to chase them off and into the coop. DH suggested once that perhaps they don't know how the pop door works and/or find it too dark to get in there. Yet if I go down there mid-morning, half the turkeys will be in the coop, sitting on the roosts. So clearly they know HOW to do it - they'd just rather be outside in the dark and cold.

 

[Trish44]

Turkeys aren't the smartest birds, but the ones I think are even dumber are the Guineas. In the summer mine will come back to the coop most of the time but even though they go in & out the door every day they can't seem to find it without direction. It's absolutely maddening to get them all in at night. I have them shut in for the winter now because there won't be any bugs for them to eat anyway. They'll get out again in the spring when we have an explosion of ticks.

Brrrrr, I had a lady come at 9:30 to pick up the rabbit cages she bought from me & I had to go out there to help her load. When I saw that she hadn't brought a truck I knew she wasn't going to get them all in. We managed to get the top two cages, but she will have to come back for the bottom one & the frame. She said her daughter's truck heater wasn't working today so she wasn't going to drive around with no heater, I don't blamer her there. I'm going to wait a bit before I go out to check on the animals, it's 31 out there now.

 

[chicken danz]

It's warming up nicely for you Trish. It is still just 25 degrees here. I think that lady could have just waited until it was warmer since she wasn't in a huge hurry anyway. Yes I have to agree that guineas aren't smart enough to figure out gates. My dumb guineas will bounce off the wire on the side of the pen or try to get in through the top netting rather than to find the gate. I shut up my 2013 babies a week or so ago to get them to quit roosting in the trees. I still have four older ones and the one remaining poult that free range. I have one late hatch in the brooder house I need to move out. I think I'll just throw it in with the other young ones and hope it doesn't get picked on. Those dumb birds were sleeping outside last night too. I moved their water pan inside and put it on a cookie tin heater so they could stay warmer and they still slept out on the ground. I have no roosts outside in that pen.
I need to make some more apple sauce today since I obviously won't be spending as much time outside. I'll still have to go out and feed an water. I sure hope all my hoses aren't frozen. I still need to get those rerouted for winter use. I wish I had at least one more hundred foot pirit hose but I sure can't afford it.

 

[ChirpyChicks1]

Hello Kansas people

On this cold cold day I figured I'd get on here and try to find some locals I'm located in east central Kansas, enjoying a blistering 28* right now

I have six pullets, all who turned 8 months old today. I guess I should go out and check their water again, what a pain in the rear!

 

[maidenwolfx80]

Thank you Josie for all of your help. you have been a blessing.

I cant wait to let these babies grow and see how their mottling developes. I think I will go with the black mottled cockerel, the nice black mottled pullet, the blue mottled pullet and the darker blue mottled hen not the one with the bunny tail. I like her but I am not sure if she is over mottled or her color washed out. If the tail isn't desirable then I don't want to continue with her.

Here is the blue mottled hen who had her head turned

 

[HEChicken]

Wow Trish, lucky you! It is only 26 here now, and that is quite awhile since you wrote. It was 19 when I woke up but I waited until it warmed all the way up to 21 before I went out and did morning chores.

Welcome ChirpyChicks1!

 

[cherwill]

HEChicken that hay wall is a good idea, I used to make straw huts for the boys' show pigs. Kept them nice and cozy. Your goats will appreciate it, the sheep will just be happy for the hay feeder.

Update on the sick Marans cockerel that I posted a picture of last night. 24 hours later here is another picture of him.

Amazing turn around. I gave him vitamin E, vitamin water, scrambled egg and FF with Flock Fuel on it. I had to give him the water in a dropper this morning and afternoon, but then he got his appetite back, gobbled up the FF and egg mixture and then wandered into the kitchen to watch me fix dinner. Right now he is resting on my lap making the contented chick noises. But I am totally perplexed as to what the cause of this could be. He is the 4th chick (and they have been from different hatches) to come down with this and all have recovered after getting the special diet.

That's great news! He looks 100% better than he did in the last picture.

Turkeys aren't the smartest birds, but the ones I think are even dumber are the Guineas. In the summer mine will come back to the coop most of the time but even though they go in & out the door every day they can't seem to find it without direction. It's absolutely maddening to get them all in at night. I have them shut in for the winter now because there won't be any bugs for them to eat anyway. They'll get out again in the spring when we have an explosion of ticks.

My SIL says her ducks aren't too bright, either. A couple of weeks ago, when it was really windy, they'd run back in their house every time a gust of wind hit them. However, they will stay out in very cold and rainy weather and she has to go shoo them into their house for the night.

Hello Kansas people

On this cold cold day I figured I'd get on here and try to find some locals I'm located in east central Kansas, enjoying a blistering 28* right now

I have six pullets, all who turned 8 months old today. I guess I should go out and check their water again, what a pain in the rear!

Hello and welcome! What kinds of pullets do you have, and are there pictures?!

Thank you Josie for all of your help. you have been a blessing.

I cant wait to let these babies grow and see how their mottling developes. I think I will go with the black mottled cockerel, the nice black mottled pullet, the blue mottled pullet and the darker blue mottled hen not the one with the bunny tail. I like her but I am not sure if she is over mottled or her color washed out. If the tail isn't desirable then I don't want to continue with her.

Here is the blue mottled hen who had her head turned

I don't know anything about showing birds, but I think the bunny tails are really cute.