Fermenting Feed for Meat Birds

[Angelicisi]

Heh heh heh...if I had a cam I'd set up a good sealed bucket in the woods here to see it.

I am wanting to see a FF Explosion myself. hehehe

 

[Beekissed]

Do you trim under their vents to help with this so it's not so matted? You really can't tell anything if she had bugs in that area or not because it's so matted.

No. Since mine free range all the time, they tend to be self-cleansing in the dew and rain, plus they will groom that area themselves. When I got the Gnarly Bunch back I did some trimming and cleansing until I could be assured it wasn't a gleet infection from their last place of residence but after that, they are on their own. You can trim it but in my opinion that just lets the mess get closer to the skin and allows flies into that area as well...the fluffy feathers there can form a barrier between the poop and their own skin and flies and their skin. I found that out the hard way when I cleaned and trimmed Bertha's butt a couple of times...the more I trimmed and cleaned, the more her butt was exposed to the fecal matter, then her skin got red from the feces caking there....which caused me to have to keep cleaning her bottom...rinse, repeat if necessary kind of thing. When Middle Sister had it, I left it alone to see what would happen and it wasn't long before she had a snow white bottom again.

If chickens are kept in clean environments they are pretty much self-cleaning if you just let them be. Chickens have had messy butts since the beginning of time and no one cared to wipe it for them...I'm pretty sure the good Lord set them up well for keeping butts clean when it's necessary. I know how you feel about messy butts, though...they looked so pretty and fluffy and all the sudden they have what looks to be dirty behinds and it messes up the pretty picture of your flock. I feel the same way and I'm almost embarrassed when people visit that they will notice that black streak on the very white birds and ponder about my chicken's hygiene...sort of like when people who don't know you well visit unexpectedly and find you filthy dirty in your work clothes, hair all a mess~that's the level of embarrassment. I love it when my birds all look clean and glossy but I also know this is a working flock and working can make ya dirty and that's just the process of getting things done.

Heh heh heh...if I had a cam I'd set up a good sealed bucket in the woods here to see it.

You sound like my boys...if they knew the FF had the potential to explode they would have already asked me to lend them some so they could make a "feed bomb".

They like to see anything go BOOM!

 

[Beekissed]

She is beautiful Bee. Are the two in the back Faith and Charity?

One of the birds in the background is Grace and the other is Middle Sister, the foster mama that no one really needed.

 

[mlowen]

One of the birds in the background is Grace and the other is Middle Sister, the foster mama that no one really needed.

I have Faith, Hope, Charity, Grace, and Margarite. Neither they nor I are sure of who is who...except Margarite. She's the lone GLW. (I know she's M. She has no idea.) I believe they think of me as "the food thing."

 

[Beekissed]

The Food Thing! Yes!

I like that better than my title, The Food Bringer. I wish more people would realize that's most likely how they are viewed by their livestock and that their chickens are not really returning their love and affection..... farmers call that Bucket Love. Very few livestock have a true loyalty to the farmer that doesn't revolve around that feed bucket. Usually dogs, horses, sheep and the rare cow or so will have it without feed being a factor, but for the most part it's true Bucket Love.

 

[RoseMarie1]

Some production layer breeds will get a little shabby looking when they are laying well...it seems to be a bit of a trade off for consistent, daily lay. My granny always used to say that the scruffiest looking bird in the flock will be your best layer and I would have to agree with her on that, particularly with the RIR breed or sex link birds. My best layer in this current flock is a little New Hampshire hen that just can't be beat..but she's never really glossy like the other birds and her comb doesn't get that bright, cherry red.

Nutrition will be diverted to maintaining reproduction when they are laying well and not so much into plumage...and, conversely, when a bird is molting heavily and trying to recover from it, nutrients get diverted to feather regrowth and not towards production. In a true layer breed it will mostly go into reproduction most of the time, sometimes leaving them the ugly girl at the prom.

Many newbies rush to deworm their birds at the slightest hint of dull feathering or comb, but I won't be the one to ever recommend that to you...there are several reasons for individual birds to have dull feathering or a less than cherry red comb~only one of which could be anemia caused by a severe parasite infestation, at which time they would not likely be laying well. For birds with good nutrition, good care and a naturally clean living environment, anemia from internal parasites would be the very last thing I would think of when assessing appearances. If they were being raised in horrible conditions, it would be more inclined to believe they had an infestation above other causes and would act accordingly.

I don't think much of DE as a wormer or as anything I'd use in my chicken arsenal, though it seems all the rage right now for that very thing. I'd just give it a wait and see attitude and watch how they go along, but I wouldn't be getting nervous about internal parasites with them just yet.

OK BEE, wanted to update ya on what I did..... took some of her chicken poop to the vet just to SEE IF she had worms/parasites of any kind.....I just cut and pasted this from our FB page that I had updated them on the latest about my chicken since I had asked for advise there to. Remember I am new at this and now I am even more confident than ever I am doing the right thing especially since I have NEVER actually WORMED my chickens with any chemicals. ..... see below the details.....


OK I have wonderful news and I am so excited about it because it shows me I am doing right and makes me MORE confident in what I am doing with my chickens. LIKE I already said, my way doesn't have to be your way but it's working for me. EXCEPT changing their food program which I think is/was the whole problem with the color change.
Ok took her poop to the vet and she had NO parasites/worms and he also checked her for something else he said chickens get a lot and she was clear of that as well. Either it started with a C or a K and ended with a sis. lol sorry there's no way I could spell it. lol it sounded like a long word. But he said chickens get that. (ALSO that word is coccilsis or something like that. )So she's clear and I am almost positive now it was that food change so she is BACK on her food or THEY are back on their food and she is back with the group. (separated her so I could KNOW it was her poop I was getting tested.) No need to stress her out anymore. Sure hope she lays me an egg today now after having to separate her. lol Got 5 eggs yesterday so another one started laying.

He also didn't charge me. Like I said before though, we're friends and we made him some bread doing this Wheat Belly thing we're doing because he had asked us to make him some. He liked it by the way. lol he asked me if I had my chickens on Wheat Belly to.

We do have our dog on a grain free/wheat free diet as well and he called the other day wanting to know the food name because he had one keeping an upset stomach and he wanted to try the food. Well awhile ago he told me the dog has been on it for a few weeks now and he has finally got his diarrhea stopped. YEA!

 

[BCMaraniac]

The Food Thing! Yes!

I like that better than my title, The Food Bringer. I wish more people would realize that's most likely how they are viewed by their livestock and that their chickens are not really returning their love and affection..... farmers call that Bucket Love. Very few livestock have a true loyalty to the farmer that doesn't revolve around that feed bucket. Usually dogs, horses, sheep and the rare cow or so will have it without feed being a factor, but for the most part it's true Bucket Love.

I am the "food thing" and my hubby is the "water thing"

I did have a Dwarf Nigerian who would jump in my lap every time I sat down, though. Thank goodness for the "Dwarf" designation!

 

[RoseMarie1]

I have Faith, Hope, Charity, Grace, and Margarite. Neither they nor I are sure of who is who...except Margarite. She's the lone GLW. (I know she's M. She has no idea.) I believe they think of me as "the food thing."

lol you need to make you some little bands like I did for their legs. I made them about an inch wide and the size of their little legs. They're leather and I put snaps on the ends. Just used the shirt snaps they use on western shirts. BUT your leather has to be thin or you wont be able to get those snaps through it. Then you can write their names on the leg bands.

 

[AletaG]

lol you need to make you some little bands like I did for their legs. I made them about an inch wide and the size of their little legs. They're leather and I put snaps on the ends. Just used the shirt snaps they use on western shirts. BUT your leather has to be thin or you wont be able to get those snaps through it. Then you can write their names on the leg bands.

Oooh, now that's a great idea! I think that would be better than sport tape. I don't have a snap installer, and every time I've tried using my mom's I just end up shredding whatever I work with. What would it cost to have you make a couple dozen blank ones? Maybe a price per dozen + shipping?

 

[Beekissed]

OK BEE, wanted to update ya on what I did..... took some of her chicken poop to the vet just to SEE IF she had worms/parasites of any kind.....I just cut and pasted this from our FB page that I had updated them on the latest about my chicken since I had asked for advise there to. Remember I am new at this and now I am even more confident than ever I am doing the right thing especially since I have NEVER actually WORMED my chickens with any chemicals. ..... see below the details.....


OK I have wonderful news and I am so excited about it because it shows me I am doing right and makes me MORE confident in what I am doing with my chickens. LIKE I already said, my way doesn't have to be your way but it's working for me. EXCEPT changing their food program which I think is/was the whole problem with the color change.
Ok took her poop to the vet and she had NO parasites/worms and he also checked her for something else he said chickens get a lot and she was clear of that as well. Either it started with a C or a K and ended with a sis. lol sorry there's no way I could spell it. lol it sounded like a long word. But he said chickens get that. (ALSO that word is coccilsis or something like that. )So she's clear and I am almost positive now it was that food change so she is BACK on her food or THEY are back on their food and she is back with the group. (separated her so I could KNOW it was her poop I was getting tested.) No need to stress her out anymore. Sure hope she lays me an egg today now after having to separate her. lol Got 5 eggs yesterday so another one started laying.

He also didn't charge me. Like I said before though, we're friends and we made him some bread doing this Wheat Belly thing we're doing because he had asked us to make him some. He liked it by the way. lol he asked me if I had my chickens on Wheat Belly to.

We do have our dog on a grain free/wheat free diet as well and he called the other day wanting to know the food name because he had one keeping an upset stomach and he wanted to try the food. Well awhile ago he told me the dog has been on it for a few weeks now and he has finally got his diarrhea stopped. YEA!

That word would be coccidiosis..and remember this day so you can look back on it and tell it to others. Make sure you let them know you live in the south, that your birds are exposed to wild birds, that they are living on a build up of their own poop....lots of it...that you never deworm, you free range, etc. For everyone who claims that coccidia~and parasitic worms~ is just more prevalent in the south and cannot be avoided, so they must medicate their chicks and their flocks for every runny butt they see, this is important.

Good for you!!!

Now...let me take a moment to say, "Told ya so..."