Fermenting Feed for Meat Birds

[Lacy Blues]

Yes, very similar dogs!!! (And we love that movie! Almost named ours Hercules after that movie...)

Ha - and yes, those weights are definitely wrong. Females top out around 130 lbs, males between 160-180 lbs, though some breeders are deliberately breeding larger specimens with the intention of breeding super-sized versions over 200 lbs. 160 lbs so far suits me just fine...

They grow so big so fast that they can be somewhat prone to joint issues, but we try to feed ours some natural things that help with that - olive oil, honey, etc. He also eats a lot of eggs.

We got a young german/australian shepherd mix dog last year. Before he was even a year old, he displayed joint problems!

Well, we couldn't afford a bunch of vet visits and medical bills for him so if my daughter hadn't done some research, we might not have this dog today. What she found out is that hip displaysia is a lack of Vitamin C. So, we tried it. We started giving him 2 pills morning and night of 500 mg Vit C with his food. He didn't have any issues taking them and it wasn't long til he was looking for them. He showed minor improvement right away... enough so that we continued the treatment. When he showed strong improvement we started decreasing the dosage as 2,000 mg of Vit C for a 50 - 60 pound dog is pretty high. It did the trick though. Now he can run like the wind and he doesn't chew his leg joints anymore. Oh, he never broke the skin but he would chew at them. Also, he was slow. At times he would yelp in pain and this is what made us take a good look at him. So, Vit C is his friend and he is once again a happy dog.

 

[7acres]

We got a young german/australian shepherd mix dog last year. Before he was even a year old, he displayed joint problems!

Well, we couldn't afford a bunch of vet visits and medical bills for him so if my daughter hadn't done some research, we might not have this dog today. What she found out is that hip displaysia is a lack of Vitamin C. So, we tried it. We started giving him 2 pills morning and night of 500 mg Vit C with his food. He didn't have any issues taking them and it wasn't long til he was looking for them. He showed minor improvement right away... enough so that we continued the treatment. When he showed strong improvement we started decreasing the dosage as 2,000 mg of Vit C for a 50 - 60 pound dog is pretty high. It did the trick though. Now he can run like the wind and he doesn't chew his leg joints anymore. Oh, he never broke the skin but he would chew at them. Also, he was slow. At times he would yelp in pain and this is what made us take a good look at him. So, Vit C is his friend and he is once again a happy dog.

Interesting. Do you think that as a dog matured in age this would help them with stiffness and mobility?

 

[Triple Willow]

@Bee... Can you see one of those scrawny poodles attacking a chicken? The chicken would probably kill it after it was done laughing. LOL

Those fruity people that declare that any dog can be trained to coexist with chickens AND it is the owner's fault if their dog kills a chicken - those people drive me totally nuts to put it nicely! They need to meet my "Cujo" out back, and please train her for me while they are at it! LOL But the other dog, I think there is hope for him. He is a Aussie mix, looks just like an Aussie. That boundary thing with them is funny at times. He knows not to come to the front of the house because of the driveway and the road. People come over and he comes to his boundary and barks at them. If it is somebody he knows sometimes they will kneel down and call him and call him but he won't come across his boundary. He's jumping up and down wanting to but he won't. lol Now the back of the house, that is his about 10-15 acres to roam. Most all of the time he is around back laying way up under the deck, but I have a feeling he slips off to visit the neighbors when I'm not looking. I wish I could install some of that underground fence on about 15 acres. lol This dog loves everybody except the trash man. He thinks he is stealing. lol

 

[Beekissed]

Lacy, that is excellent information and I will share that with my niece who is paying big bucks right now on surgery on a young Great Dane she has.

Quote:

So funny.."feel guilty".... that, my good friend, is the difference between someone who is keeping a flock of chickens and someone who merely HAS chickens. Flock keepers actually plan and adjust things in their animal's lives that improve on their quality of living. They are constantly trying to circumvent problems before they occur because they cherish the well being of the animal and are in a good partnership with the flock.

Chicken "havers", on the other hand, just have chickens and they feed them a lot of really good food and treats and pet them a lot and give them cute names, put their pictures up on Fakebook and BYC (not saying that is a bad thing, exactly but it seems to come with the territory of things that are not necessarily a good thing), and they cry a lot in public when they die from this or that due to their poor management...but they never really change anything to make it right because they are so busy "loving" their chickens to death..literally.

Kudos to you!

I wouldn't worry about the horse manure because the bugs and your birds will disperse it so well that it will break up any mold caps that have formed in the straw/manure clumps. Then it will start the wonderful process of feeding the bugs that feed your chickens and the bacteria that will keep your chickens healthier. It's a lovely system.

That's a good move all around and many people who say they don't have leaves for bedding need only drive to the closest burb and ask people who do have them to save them their bagged leaves. Poke some holes in the bags so the leaves can get some air and won't mold too badly and keep them stored somewhere dry and you have wonderful bedding for winter. Now, the leaves will break down far faster than the shavings, but it's a great thing to add to the compost of the coop and it's free..so it's all good!

 

[wlhtx]

Unfortunately, it's those kind of people who really, really love tough breeds...maybe so they will feel more secure in life by owning a big dog?  Not sure.  I've done a lot of observation on people and their dogs and it always astounds me how many good dogs are going to waste out there for lack of good leadership.  The dogs suffer so much from it and result in being restless, cranky, barking all the time, chasing things, and lacking in social behavior.

Agreed! With Timba, we made sure from the get go that he knew who was in charge. My DH is the alpha, no question about it. But I made certain - knowing how large he would grow to be - that I am a very close second. I wasn't about to have a dog as large or larger than me thinking he's the boss. Timba can be extremely hard-headed, and as I've said, his prey drive is higher than I would like and so we've had to fight those natural instincts, but at least he knows his place in the line up.

We got a young german/australian shepherd mix dog last year.  Before he was even a year old, he displayed joint problems!

Well, we couldn't afford a bunch of vet visits and medical bills for him so if my daughter hadn't done some research, we might not have this dog today.  What she found out is that hip displaysia is a lack of Vitamin C.  So, we tried it.  We started giving him 2 pills morning and night of 500 mg Vit C with his food.  He didn't have any issues taking them and it wasn't long til he was looking for them.  He showed minor improvement right away... enough so that we continued the treatment.  When he showed strong improvement we started decreasing the dosage as 2,000 mg of Vit C for a 50 - 60 pound dog is pretty high.  It did the trick though.  Now he can run like the wind and he doesn't chew his leg joints anymore.  Oh, he never broke the skin but he would chew at them.  Also, he was slow.  At times he would yelp in pain and this is what made us take a good look at him.  So, Vit C is his friend and he is once again a happy dog.

Very interesting info! Thankfully, he hasn't had any major issues like hip displaysia, but has had a couple fluid sacs develop on his front leg joints that we've had to fight. So, I am definitely going to look into this some more. Thank you!!!

 

[foreverlearning]

All that time the owners just stood there...I couldn't tell if they were mad at me for correcting their dog or what..they never really said, but they left shortly thereafter. I think the dog was smarter than the humans and that could have been the trouble in that case, as the dog learned rather quickly but I know they will take that dog home and not train her any further because they just never train a dog...they tie them up in their yard and expect them to train themselves and then get rid of them, eventually, because they can't do anything with them.

And this is how I get all the great dogs I do from the HS. I usually pick the most scared or "wild" ones they have lined up for death row. I have to sign a bunch of waivers every time and they (parish and HS) certified my property and myself a long time ago (still check every now and then). Most of the poor dogs that hit death row are because of lack of training, lazy owners, and abusive owners. They seem to take well to training once they realize that they are safe and well taken care of. It takes a while for some to recover from their past lives but it is well worth it.

 

[Triple Willow]

...That's a good move all around and many people who say they don't have leaves for bedding need only drive to the closest burb and ask people who do have them to save them their bagged leaves.  Poke some holes in the bags so the leaves can get some air and won't mold too badly and keep them stored somewhere dry and you have wonderful bedding for winter.  Now, the leaves will break down far faster than the shavings, but it's a great thing to add to the compost of the coop and it's free..so it's all good!    

About those leaves... this is nothing I would ever imagine but an Illinois man was nearly killed a couple months ago just from trying to burn some limbs, leaves, etc. He didn't know it but there were bags of leaves in the pile he was going to burn and come to find out, methane gas builds up in bagged leaves that are stored for a while. He poured just a little gas on the pile and was going to light it but before he ever lit it, it EXPLODED and he was burned bad! I never imagined that leaves could be deadly.

http://www.wpsdlocal6.com/news/local/Sesser-man-burned-in-a-backyard-explosion--218162241.html

 

[Beekissed]

Thank you for that information, Triple Willow! That is good to know and especially for those who are storing leaves in warmer climates. Aerating those leaves by poking plenty of holes in the bags should help dispel that gas but it still remains a prudent thing to be careful.

There was almost whole farming family killed in a sileage tower over in VA some years back for the same reason...the build up of methane overcame them and as each one went in to rescue another, they each succumbed to the gas.

 

[Triple Willow]

Thank you for that information, Triple Willow!  That is good to know and especially for those who are storing leaves in warmer climates.  Aerating those leaves by poking plenty of holes in the bags should help dispel that gas but it still remains a prudent thing to be careful.

There was almost whole farming family killed in a sileage tower over in VA some years back for the same reason...the build up of methane overcame them and as each one went in to rescue another, they each succumbed to the gas.  

Yep, you never imagine some of the things that can actually kill you. Poking holes in the bags should prevent that but like you said, I guess bagged leaves are something to be cautious about. That poor guy was burned bad. Most explosions around here are meth labs. There was one lady in town that was having bad headaches and was just sick from some kind of fumes. She called an ambulance and when they came they found the good for nothing son and his girlfriend were cooking meth in the kitchen.

 

[foreverlearning]

I need help please!!! I have 3 meat birds that have shown this and one died last night. I am not sure if this killed it or not (looked squished) but last night the only one that showed this is the one that died. It feels and looks like an air pocket and the discoloration is FF on it. It goes from their crop area to the top of their shoulder.