Consolidated Kansas

[mommahen10]

I'm sorry ChicknBaron, I've never had one do that before. I'd probably have done the same thing and it would have been a reaction, I don't think I'd have even taken the time to think. Geez, all the things we need to worry about happening. So, no more washcloths with any height. Maybe put them under the wire? One time, I went to get chicks out and I grabbed one but had to close it to put it down and then get another, I had no where to set the lid at the moment, duh!!!! Anyway, as I put the lid down one jumped onto the rim and I squished him and instinctively opened it and he jumped out, right off the counter and onto the floor. That silly thing didn't get hurt but geez he scared me so bad. I hope yours recovers from this.

 

[Deerfield Acres]

ChicknBaron, Oh dear, I wish I knew what to tell you. Chicks will do the darnedest things. If you have an vetericyn opthomalogic drops, I would use that, maybe? PM JosieChick and see what she thinks. I always check my PM's before reading the forum. So sorry this happened.

 

[ChicknBaron]

Last i checked he was just sittin and sleepin, and looking lonely... i hope he'll be ok... Thats probably normal that he just sits there and sleeps, cuz he's tired, right? I hope the others get hatchin already, because i can't stay home from school again tomorrow, like i did today ... Is it normal for the eggs pipping and hatching time to be so spaced out??? i put them all in at the same time... Those two marans eggs haven't even moved, or pipped... i just hope that chick doesn't have to be all by himself much longer...

 

[Deerfield Acres]

mommahen10, so cute! I just love chick pics!

maindenwolf, I just use pine shavings, normally, and never had any trouble. The chicks will pick at the shavings and that kind of makes me nervous so this time I put a layer of paper towels on top of the shavings and that made me feel better. It's really not necessary but I say, if it makes you feel better, go for it! I'm actually really liking HEChicken's suggestion about the towels. It seems so much less resource intensive since you can just wash the old bath towels and use them again. I may just try that for the next batch of chicks. I do agree that chicks who go out earlier are hardier. I've kept mine in the brooder way too long just because I enjoy having them up close and personal for a longer period. I honestly think they are healthier when they go out earlier.

I sure enjoyed having everyone over who came yesterday. It was fun to meet WichitaKidd and Sunflower, along with Sunflower's friend, R. She was just delightful and I'm so glad you brought her, Sunflower. It was great to see the "usual suspects" again also. Hawkeye, your DD is such a treasure. I could tell she had been taught how to handle chicks properly and loved seeing how much she loved the chicks. Danz tested some of Hawkeye's birds and I'd never seen that done before so that was interesting. We picked up some new tips for keeping the humidity up during lockdown. There were also birds being picked up and dropped off, kind of like a mini swap-meet! The food was really yummy (thanks everyone)! Anyway, thanks to everyone for coming. I truly enjoyed it.

Danz, I'm so sorry to hear you're having so much discomfort. I hope tomorrow is better than today. That's just not fun.

Okay, so I would be remiss if I didn't report that I got two new Seramas yesterday. One from Danz, the other from Josie Chick. Both said the birds needed to get more accustomed to people and I'm happy to say the kids have that well in hand. They quickly named the cockerel Bertram and the hen Lucy. Cute!

DS just got home and came in from gathering eggs and was so thrilled that the new little hen is following him around and allowing herself to be picked up already! That's one smart little hen! He latched onto her last night and made friends with her, holding her quietly and feeding her by hand. She's a quick study and figured out he's going to be a good one to know.

The little roo isn't quite that easy to win over, as you would expect. Last night, he was sitting docilely in DD's lap in the craft room, faking sleep, when suddenly he took flight! DS went to catch him, with the little hen still tucked under his other arm,but when he reached for the roo, that roo let out a squawk that stunned everyone. DS quickly recovered and caught him, just like that! I'd have been flapping all over the room till today, trying to catch that bird, but not DS! Once DS had returned little roo to DD, everyone cracked up at how loud such a little chicken could be. I had forewarned them but there just isn't anything like experience. Little roo is still squawking at them today, but they'll convince him they're friends, I'm sure. The kids are just so thrilled with the newest chicken family members. Even DH smiled when he walked into the craft room to find the kids loving on the new birds yesterday.

Trish, you know I have a ladder type roost also, but I'm planning to redo mine. Would you mind sharing a picture of how you did yours? My rungs are too narrow, the birds don't really seem to be comfortable although they use it anyway. I read that too narrow a roost can contribute to bumblefoot and I sure don't want to contribute to that. Also, Trish, I really think if you look closely at the Ameraucana's combs you can usually see three tiny vertical rows of bumps on the males and they have just a bit of pink to them. But the feathers are the real giveaway. Pointed hackle and saddle feathers are male, rounded are female. The only thing is sometimes the roos are slow to get their pointed feathers and slow to get their rows of bumps on their combs, so there's no guarantee. EE's are the same way and I was only wrong on one bird out of 25 so I think it works out pretty well. HEChicken, you probably know which bird I'm referring to since it took forever to figure out if Suzette was a girl or boy! She looked so like a cockerel the whole time she was growing up until she quit growing sooner than the cockerels who actually got really large.

Oh my. Medawinks there was something I was going to tell you but I've forgotten already. I guess it wasn't a matter of life or death or surely I would have remembered!

ChicknBaron, I hope he'll be okay too. Sleeping a lot is normal when they first hatch, because it's hard work for them. It does sometimes take quite some time between pip and hatch, 24 hours up to 48 even. You really won't have to stay home because if they hatch properly they will have absorbed the yolk and that will sustain them just fine until you get home from school. They can survive 2 to 3 days after hatch without any food or water because of that. That's how they are able to ship day old chicks all over the country. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you!

 

[HEChicken]

Yep Karen, that is funny about Suzette. The funny thing is people STILL think she's a rooster. Mind you, they are usually people who haven't been around chickens that much but everyone who comes to see them always think she's a rooster.

Trish, it seems like you and I are always doing the same things at the same time. We built our nest boxes around the same time and today I took apart my ladder style roost and redid it before I even read that that is what you have been working on too. I need to go and take some pictures, but have to run now and it will be dark when I get back. Tomorrow, I promise.

Karen, what I decided on mine is that the top roost (naturally the most popular) was too high and the jump down may be contributing to bumblefoot. So I wanted to lower the roosts and I decided rather than have a ladder style, where only the top row will ever really be desirable, I would have all of the roost bars on the same level. I went from 3 roosts to 4, but they take up less space than the 3-roost ladder I had before. Basically, I came out from the coop wall with support bars, added a "leg" on the front, and then put in 4 roosts about 12" apart. The neat thing is that the way I attached it to the wall, it will swing up out of the way when I need to clean.

 

[chicken danz]

8 wks is kind of a long time to be brooding chicks. I have heard that they are actually more hardy if they go outside sooner, than if they are brooded inside for too long - but I've never brooded indoors past four weeks so I can't verify if that is true. My last batch were outside full-time by the time they were two weeks old and my most batch were moved outside full-time at 12 days old. They are still only 16 days old and when I saw on the thermometer this morning that it was only 47 degrees, I wondered how they had fared overnight but when I went down to see them, they couldn't have been happier. Chicks are definitely more hardy than we sometimes give them credit for. They spent the night in the coop with no heat. With 15 of them they are able to snuggle together and share warmth but they really do seem to be doing just fine.

I've brooded on a variety of materials. Are we still talking bathtub and that's why you're doing the non-slip mats? I haven't brooded in a bathtub so that might work fine. I used to use pine shavings but found them difficult to dispose of. If I put them in the compost, the wind would take and blow them everywhere, plus they decompose very slowly. Yet I didn't feel right just throwing them away. So I switched to old bath towels and I really liked using those. I would change them out as needed and after letting them dry, shake them outside and most of the poop flew right off. Then I'd save them up until I had enough for a load and they'd come out clean and ready for re-use. The last two batches I have brooded on straw and so far I am liking it the very best. It absorbs liquids and odors better than anything else I've used and there is almost no odor or dust.

I always brood my chicks at least 6 weeks. I guess I am a little more cautious because I don't want them to get chilled. Especially with changing weather I would be careful. I try to reduce the temperature gradually so they acclimate.

YIKES!!!! The only chick to hatch has been to adventurous and injured itself!!!! In the incubator i have damp wash rags, and the chick climbed up on it and touched its eye to the heating element!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I felt desperate because he woulnt open that eye and its blueish in the middle now!!!!!!! i'm such an idiot!!!!!!!!!!! I got so scared i quick (extremly fast) opened it just enough to fit my hand in and then closed it to take him out because he kept trying to do it AGAIN!!!!!!!!!! right now he is RIGHT under the heating lamp in the brooder, because i didn't want to leave him in the bator and do it again!!!!!! WHAT DO I DO!!!!!!!!!???????????????!!!!!!!!!!!! I gotta go real fast to check on him again!!!!!!!!!!!!

If it isn't a burn that looks like a wound I would leave it alone. If it looks like the skin or the surface of the eye is burned I would use some neosporin ointment on it, as long as it doesn't contain the pain reliever. Do not use the triple antibiotic ointment... just the neosporin. My BIL who is a pharmacist, said it is compounded the same way that the prescription ointment for eyes is, just a weaker compound. I have used it on chicken and duck eyes. Veterycin spray for eyes also helps if you have some.
Quote:

mommahen10, so cute! I just love chick pics!

maindenwolf, I just use pine shavings, normally, and never had any trouble. The chicks will pick at the shavings and that kind of makes me nervous so this time I put a layer of paper towels on top of the shavings and that made me feel better. It's really not necessary but I say, if it makes you feel better, go for it! I'm actually really liking HEChicken's suggestion about the towels. It seems so much less resource intensive since you can just wash the old bath towels and use them again. I may just try that for the next batch of chicks. I do agree that chicks who go out earlier are hardier. I've kept mine in the brooder way too long just because I enjoy having them up close and personal for a longer period. I honestly think they are healthier when they go out earlier.
I use towels quite often for chicks or ones that need special attention. I have about a half dozen cheap white towels that I just wash and reuse. I bought the lowest price ones I could find and I use those for my animals regardless of what for.

I sure enjoyed having everyone over who came yesterday. It was fun to meet WichitaKidd and Sunflower, along with Sunflower's friend, R. She was just delightful and I'm so glad you brought her, Sunflower. It was great to see the "usual suspects" again also. Hawkeye, your DD is such a treasure. I could tell she had been taught how to handle chicks properly and loved seeing how much she loved the chicks. Danz tested some of Hawkeye's birds and I'd never seen that done before so that was interesting. We picked up some new tips for keeping the humidity up during lockdown. There were also birds being picked up and dropped off, kind of like a mini swap-meet! The food was really yummy (thanks everyone)! Anyway, thanks to everyone for coming. I truly enjoyed it.
That wasn't a typical testing. Silkies are so much harder because of the dark skin and excess feathers. I promise when I do yours it will be much faster.
Danz, I'm so sorry to hear you're having so much discomfort. I hope tomorrow is better than today. That's just not fun.
I'm just old Darn it. I went and got 1200 pounds of feed while ago. Ineed to go shovel it into barrels. Surely that will make the endorphins kick in! Or put me on the ground whichever comes first.
Okay, so I would be remiss if I didn't report that I got two new Seramas yesterday. One from Danz, the other from Josie Chick. Both said the birds needed to get more accustomed to people and I'm happy to say the kids have that well in hand. They quickly named the cockerel Bertram and the hen Lucy. Cute!

DS just got home and came in from gathering eggs and was so thrilled that the new little hen is following him around and allowing herself to be picked up already! That's one smart little hen! He latched onto her last night and made friends with her, holding her quietly and feeding her by hand. She's a quick study and figured out he's going to be a good one to know.
Awesome! I relly like Seramas for that reason. Given a little human attention they become lap chickens.
The little roo isn't quite that easy to win over, as you would expect. Last night, he was sitting docilely in DD's lap in the craft room, faking sleep, when suddenly he took flight! DS went to catch him, with the little hen still tucked under his other arm,but when he reached for the roo, that roo let out a squawk that stunned everyone. DS quickly recovered and caught him, just like that! I'd have been flapping all over the room till today, trying to catch that bird, but not DS! Once DS had returned little roo to DD, everyone cracked up at how loud such a little chicken could be. I had forewarned them but there just isn't anything like experience. Little roo is still squawking at them today, but they'll convince him they're friends, I'm sure. The kids are just so thrilled with the newest chicken family members. Even DH smiled when he walked into the craft room to find the kids loving on the new birds yesterday.

Trish, you know I have a ladder type roost also, but I'm planning to redo mine. Would you mind sharing a picture of how you did yours? My rungs are too narrow, the birds don't really seem to be comfortable although they use it anyway. I read that too narrow a roost can contribute to bumblefoot and I sure don't want to contribute to that. Also, Trish, I really think if you look closely at the Ameraucana's combs you can usually see three tiny vertical rows of bumps on the males and they have just a bit of pink to them. But the feathers are the real giveaway. Pointed hackle and saddle feathers are male, rounded are female. The only thing is sometimes the roos are slow to get their pointed feathers and slow to get their rows of bumps on their combs, so there's no guarantee. EE's are the same way and I was only wrong on one bird out of 25 so I think it works out pretty well. HEChicken, you probably know which bird I'm referring to since it took forever to figure out if Suzette was a girl or boy! She looked so like a cockerel the whole time she was growing up until she quit growing sooner than the cockerels who actually got really large.

Oh my. Medawinks there was something I was going to tell you but I've forgotten already. I guess it wasn't a matter of life or death or surely I would have remembered!

ChicknBaron, I hope he'll be okay too. Sleeping a lot is normal when they first hatch, because it's hard work for them. It does sometimes take quite some time between pip and hatch, 24 hours up to 48 even. You really won't have to stay home because if they hatch properly they will have absorbed the yolk and that will sustain them just fine until you get home from school. They can survive 2 to 3 days after hatch without any food or water because of that. That's how they are able to ship day old chicks all over the country. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you!

Yep Karen, that is funny about Suzette. The funny thing is people STILL think she's a rooster. Mind you, they are usually people who haven't been around chickens that much but everyone who comes to see them always think she's a rooster.

Trish, it seems like you and I are always doing the same things at the same time. We built our nest boxes around the same time and today I took apart my ladder style roost and redid it before I even read that that is what you have been working on too. I need to go and take some pictures, but have to run now and it will be dark when I get back. Tomorrow, I promise.

Karen, what I decided on mine is that the top roost (naturally the most popular) was too high and the jump down may be contributing to bumblefoot. So I wanted to lower the roosts and I decided rather than have a ladder style, where only the top row will ever really be desirable, I would have all of the roost bars on the same level. I went from 3 roosts to 4, but they take up less space than the 3-roost ladder I had before. Basically, I came out from the coop wall with support bars, added a "leg" on the front, and then put in 4 roosts about 12" apart. The neat thing is that the way I attached it to the wall, it will swing up out of the way when I need to clean.

I made a ladder type roost but rather than having it upright, it looks like a single ladder that is laid flat. I have it about 2 feet off the floor and they love it, although it needs replaced because it is falling apart from all the use. Heather, you should post a picture of your swinging ladder.

 

[Deerfield Acres]

Yep Karen, that is funny about Suzette. The funny thing is people STILL think she's a rooster. Mind you, they are usually people who haven't been around chickens that much but everyone who comes to see them always think she's a rooster.

Trish, it seems like you and I are always doing the same things at the same time. We built our nest boxes around the same time and today I took apart my ladder style roost and redid it before I even read that that is what you have been working on too. I need to go and take some pictures, but have to run now and it will be dark when I get back. Tomorrow, I promise.

Karen, what I decided on mine is that the top roost (naturally the most popular) was too high and the jump down may be contributing to bumblefoot. So I wanted to lower the roosts and I decided rather than have a ladder style, where only the top row will ever really be desirable, I would have all of the roost bars on the same level. I went from 3 roosts to 4, but they take up less space than the 3-roost ladder I had before. Basically, I came out from the coop wall with support bars, added a "leg" on the front, and then put in 4 roosts about 12" apart. The neat thing is that the way I attached it to the wall, it will swing up out of the way when I need to clean.

I think the boldness of the black and white pattern probably contributes to their thinking she's a boy. It's such a bold coloration for a hen.

That sounds like a very good idea, HEChicken. I like that it swings out of the way. The ladder style is really kind of a nuisance all the way round. About how high off the floor are they?

 

[HEChicken]

Well when I was planning the new roosts I planned on doing them 3' high but that seemed low when I got there so instead I went four feet high. Im going to try it like this for awhile but can lower them if necessary. It would actually be super easy to lower them since only 2 screws attach the whole thing to the wall. Huh. Just discovered I can get online with my Kindle so have posted this from afar.

 

[maidenwolfx80]

Thanks guys for all the input I have the brooder ready and plan to get them out to the coop as soon as the feather. I cant wait till they get here...

I thought if I was going to use the pine shavings at all placing them in with the paper towels over for a few days and removing the paper towels would be easier than trying to add shavings with chicks in there.. But I do really like the old towel thing I have 20 old towels sitting in a tub I could use for that..

 

[ChicknBaron]

the little chick looks better... like you said chicken danz about if the actual eye is burned or if it is just the skin... i think it might have burnt the actual eye because one time, at the right angle, it appeared to be bluish in the middle like something (a heating element) had touched it... he (i feather sexed it, and everytime i've came to the conclusion it is a he... i'll keep checking tho) always keeps his eyelid on that side shut while the other is open, and fine. I think it might have touched his eye lid too tho. For now i think i will just leave it be, and just keep an eye* on it and if it gets bad like swelling or anything that looks infected i'll put some neosporin on it,--I'm pretty sure my dad has some-- but he's looking ok, I think it probably just stings him a little and thats why he always keeps it shut, so as not to get air in it but... who knows

p.s. I'm going to try and integrate some time where i can try to upload some photos, so... if i remember