Fermenting Feed for Meat Birds

[Triple Willow]

@Chocolate Mouse... Great find on those birds. Too bad you don't have room for them all. A well beded doghouse turned away from the wind and surrounded by well placed and secured tarps works well in a pinch. I believe they are a lot warmer in a doghouse all huddled up than they are on a roost. I'd rather be cuddled up with some friends than sitting on a stick when it gets real cold! lol

 

[Beekissed]

@Chocolate Mouse... Great find on those birds. Too bad you don't have room for them all. A well beded doghouse turned away from the wind and surrounded by well placed and secured tarps works well in a pinch. I believe they are a lot warmer in a doghouse all huddled up than they are on a roost. I'd rather be cuddled up with some friends than sitting on a stick when it gets real cold! lol

You'd think so, wouldn't you? But for some reason I think they stay warmer on the roost, maybe. In this rooster pen of mine they have about 8 in. of dry leaves on the floor of the pen and plastic under those, so no moisture from the ground coming through those leaves. I also put up a long, thick roost about a foot from the ground on which they could roost if they so wished. Most seem to stay more comfortable on that roost than in the leaves. The guys that are delegated to the floor due to lack of space on the roost all look really huddled and hunkered down when they sleep while the guys on the roost look much more natural in their posturing...maybe that shoulder to shoulder positioning has something to it when it comes to heat transfer. I'm not sure...but even when the roost hardly clears the surface of the bedding, they seem to prefer a roosting spot. Before I put the roosting board in they were trying to roost on the very thin metal lip of the feed trough!

Just stuff I've been noticing and it makes me scratch my head.....I'd be on the floor in a pile in those nice warm leaves if I were a chicken!

 

[hellbender]

I'm totally convinced that feeding everything on this farm, a percentage of DE in their diet has help PREVENT many ills that can overcome us. Also the 'dusting troughs' are filled with a DE/with Bentonite Clay and that prevents infestation with exterior vermin.

Compared to the chemical alternatives, this natural prophylaxis has save me money and much misery for the birds.

 

[armorfirelady]

I have been dealing with white stuff to but the warm version lol. For some reason I can't upload pic.......guess BYC doesn't want to see it either

But as I sit here in Miama I am told we have close to 4 ft of the cold white stuff at home. I'm told the girls won't venture out so my friend is giving them fruit treats while I am gone

 

[Beekissed]

I have been dealing with white stuff to but the warm version lol. For some reason I can't upload pic.......guess BYC doesn't want to see it either

But as I sit here in Miama I am told we have close to 4 ft of the cold white stuff at home. I'm told the girls won't venture out so my friend is giving them fruit treats while I am gone

I can just see the greeny-blue water framed by my sandy feet as I recline in the beach chair...the colorful anklet around my leg has a silvery charm swaying slightly, beads of condensation from the cold, fruity beverage in my hand rolls lazily down the glass as a warm breeze lifts the ends of my hair and tickles my nose with a salty freshness. I hear birds singing and the sound of steel drums off in the distance and the rhythmic lapping of the sea onto the sand nearby......

What??? I'm just dreaming???? I'm really looking out the window at a cold, rainy, grey day while trying to find reasons not to go back to bed?

Dang it.

Thanks a lot, AFL...way to get a gal to daydreaming!

Soak up all that sun, baby girl, you are headed back to reality soon!

I wish I were with y'all, living that dream! Have enough fun, warmth and relaxation for all of us......

 

[Triple Willow]

You'd think so, wouldn't you?  But for some reason I think they stay warmer on the roost, maybe.  In this rooster pen of mine they have about 8 in. of dry leaves on the floor of the pen and plastic under those, so no moisture from the ground coming through those leaves.  I also put up a long, thick roost about a foot from the ground on which they could roost if they so wished.  Most seem to stay more comfortable on that roost than in the leaves.  The guys that are delegated to the floor due to lack of space on the roost all look really huddled and hunkered down when they sleep while the guys on the roost look much more natural in their posturing...maybe that shoulder to shoulder positioning has something to it when it comes to heat transfer.  I'm not sure...but even when the roost hardly clears the surface of the bedding, they seem to prefer a roosting spot.  Before I put the roosting board in they were trying to roost on the very thin metal lip of the feed trough! 

Just stuff I've been noticing and it makes me scratch my head.....I'd be on the floor in a pile in those nice warm leaves if I were a chicken! 

That is strange. I bet a roost in a doghouse would work well. Put the doghouse up off the ground (on a pallet maybe) or some kind of barrier under it, bed it down really well then put a roost a little above that. Sounds cozy to me.

I believe I'd be burried down in the leaves with my head sticking out like a turtle! LOL My dang leaves are breaking down too fast! Okay... talk me down off the ledge... lol I am afraid to put hay in my coops/runs because I'm afraid they will eat it and get compacted crops.

 

[Triple Willow]

I have been dealing with white stuff to but the warm version lol. For some reason I can't upload pic.......guess BYC doesn't want to see it either

But as I sit here in Miama I am told we have close to 4 ft of the cold white stuff at home. I'm told the girls won't venture out so my friend is giving them fruit treats while I am gone

Ditto! Have so much fun you just can't stand it! And you and mom be sure to flirt with all the handsome young men too. lol

I'm determined to see the ocean this year. It's been too long! I live too far from it! I want it within a 30 minute drive. LOL

 

[Beekissed]

Yep...leaves just disappear! Hay retains so much moisture and it hard to displace for drying out, so its not one I recommend unless someone lives in hot, arid climates. Wood shavings seem to be a good balance for leaves.

The birds that eat hay seem to be those who cannot get out and forage so any grass is desirable to them and they can and will get those long strands caught up in the crop and proventriculus. I've never had a bird have problems from it, though I use good, fresh hay in the nest boxes and also throw that into the bedding when cleaning out and refreshing nest materials. I'm thinking free range birds don't eat the hay because they have opportunities to forage better greens than that.

A little hay in the bedding doesn't seem to cause problems but more than a little seems to hold moisture and grow mold. Same with shredded paper...a little, okay..a lot, not okay.

I've dumped tons of leaves in that rooster pen in the last 3 wks and their constant trampling has ground those leaves into confetti only 8 in. thick and I can even see some bare spots on the floor of the pen. That's where a layer of wood shavings in that pen would have come in real handy before adding the leaves.

 

[Windy Bay Farm]

Amen!    Stay warm and safe, WBF!!!  We're supposed to catch the tail end of what you are getting but by no means anything like what you are facing.  I'm sure you folks are used to dealing with severe cold weather there but it's probably still a tough thing to go through...you northerners are a tough breed of cat! 

Be safe.  I definitely don't envy you up there.  We have had unseasonably cold AND warm temperature here in TN...the yoyo effect.....down as low as 9 degrees and as high as 71.  I think it yanks the chickens around and really affects their laying.

Hey there WBF. I'm glad your chickens are giving a few more eggs. Maybe one of these days they will really turn on and see who can lay 4-6 a week. lol Be careful in that crazy weather. That amount of snow topped by ice and those cold temps have got to be rough. Stay warm!

Thanks, Bee, BCM and TW ! It hasn't started here yet but it's a comin'. I live on a hill that overlooks the Gulf of Maine and I can usually see the black of the clouds as the storm approaches from the west long before it even hits us. And by golly, the western sky is getting darker by the minute so it won't be long before we get what's coming to us ! We're stocked up on supplies, lots of food and wood a plenty so we should be good to go. This December has been unseasonably cold for us... We live so close to the ocean that it moderates our temps such that it stays somewhat warmer in winter and cooler in the summer... Although this past summer was unbelievably hot and humid.. I haven't seen humidity here like that in quite some years. Got to cleaning the coop up a bit today and actually had to take a chisel and hammer to get the poop off some of the roosts as it was frozen solid... Chickens aren't liking this weather much.. They stay hunkered down in their coop and rarely, if at all, venture out. They're not liking their precious feet getting too cold... Dainty, spoiled brats !!

 

[BCMaraniac]

I agree! But...by no means are they to imagine that the kidney stone could ever touch the enormity of the pain of labor. It's just a little cherry flavored taste of it ....and not to be confused with real, actual, excruciating pain.

I've had numerous kidney stones, three of which had to be removed due to being too large to pass, I've got stents in both ureters now...and there is no real comparison between those huge stones and the pain of my labor. Whenever men throw that comparison to me I just toss it back and say, "As if...".

I had huge babies, induced labor on all three and it was like someone is lying there peacefully, discussing the day and all the sudden an elephant steps on your abdomen and presses his full weight on you for a period of time and then, over and over until you think your eyes will bulge and pop out of your head with the pain and pressure. My largest baby was 10 lbs and his shoulders got stuck. The third one was also induced and then I still had to have an emergency C-section after going through that torture, they started cutting into my abdomen twice before the anesthesia took effect...pain...I know pain. We are on speaking terms, you could say.

Kidney stone? That's a day in my nightgown and an annoying, pulsating pain, blood in the pee, etc. but it ain't nuttin' like birthin' no babies, Miss Scahlet.

Bless your heart! My mom had big babies. All 5 of us weighed over 10 pounds, and I was the youngest AND the largest at 11#5oz. So when my babies were 2 weeks early, they only weighed 8#4oz and 7#11oz.

Those shoulder dystocias are horrible, with nurses pushing down from above and the doctor tugging from below to get that shoulder out, and telling you to push at the same time......no thank you.