Fermenting Feed for Meat Birds

[BCMaraniac]

Thank you. Yeah that is what I will do from now on. Hopefully the three will make it okay. The pullet is not too happy being away from the flock.

I have four babies that I am getting ready to have to "wean" from Mama. She loves babies apparently, because this is her second brood of the year. Last time, she wanted to leave, then she didn't....she wanted to leave, then she didn't. Finally, I had to throw her out!! As soon as I put her out, the rooster bred her, and she laid an egg in the nesting box the next day. Of course, she laid two more eggs, then went off to herself and started another clutch, and brooded them. I guess I should wait another couple of weeks to separate them.....just to make sure she doesn't get any more ideas about babies this year. She is living up the Marans reputation of being TOO broody....and she is my best Marans layer. I am going to taking full advantage it next year when I breed her and my other marans to my young Marans rooster. Let her raise babies, not me.....

 

[RoseMarie1]

I have four babies that I am getting ready to have to "wean" from Mama. She loves babies apparently, because this is her second brood of the year. Last time, she wanted to leave, then she didn't....she wanted to leave, then she didn't. Finally, I had to throw her out!! As soon as I put her out, the rooster bred her, and she laid an egg in the nesting box the next day. Of course, she laid two more eggs, then went off to herself and started another clutch, and brooded them. I guess I should wait another couple of weeks to separate them.....just to make sure she doesn't get any more ideas about babies this year. She is living up the Marans reputation of being TOO broody....and she is my best Marans layer. I am going to taking full advantage it next year when I breed her and my other marans to my young Marans rooster. Let her raise babies, not me.....

Just don't let her do that back to back like that a lot because they say it sure does take a LOT out of them sitting on the eggs like they do and not getting their nutrition like they need to do. Sure don't want her going and getting sick on you or anything. With only one time being broody they get to looked pretty ragged around the edges.

 

[Triple Willow]

@RoseMarie & armorfirelady... I don't believe it was a predator or it would have got the other chickens while it was in the coop. That poor chick's head wasn't any bigger than a big marble, not even big enough to be consider a snack! I saw one of the other pullets paying a little too much attention to them the other day and pecking at them a little bit. I'd say it was her. I figured the broody would take care of it if she got too rough. She seemed to keep the others at a distance but didn't straighten that one out. I wish I had a way to see how much that pullet is laying, she is on my bad list! I believe more all the time that Australorps have got to be one of the best breeds. They didn't bother the chicks and if anything tried to help the broody. If I'm right it was a Columbian Rock that killed the chick.

 

[Triple Willow]

I have four babies that I am getting ready to have to "wean" from Mama.  She loves babies apparently, because this is her second brood of the year.  Last time, she wanted to leave, then she didn't....she wanted to leave, then she didn't.  Finally, I had to throw her out!!  As soon as I put her out, the rooster bred her, and she laid an egg in the nesting box the next day.  Of course, she laid two more eggs, then went off to herself and started another clutch, and brooded them.  I guess I should wait another couple of weeks to separate them.....just to make sure she doesn't get any more ideas about babies this year.  She is living up the Marans reputation of being TOO broody....and she is my best Marans layer. I am going to taking full advantage it next year when I breed her and my other marans to my young Marans rooster.  Let her raise babies, not me.....

It is nice to let a broody hatch/raise them. The other day I saw the broody walk off just a little ways and caught a bug. Those chicks all came running! One of them snatched it out of her mouth, turned its back to the rest of them and chowed down. lol

The broody still looks good. I kicked her off the nest twice/day to eat and drink. She grumbled about it but was pretty cooperative. I had to check her nest anyhow because one of them kept laying eggs in her nest.

Watching chickens with all of their natural instincts sure does give me an even better picture of just how amazing their Creator is. Things like that assure me that things are not "an accident".

 

[Triple Willow]

Have y'all ever wondered what a broody thinks about all that time she is sitting on those eggs? lol

 

[Coralietg]

Okay I'm not happy at all with somebody! Somebody killed one of the new chicks and ate its head off! I have a feeling I know which pullet did it too, well one of two - can't really tell them apart. I took the mama and remaining three chicks out and put them in a cage to their selves. I was hoping they would act "chicken civilized" and let chicks grow up amongst them! Any advise beyond eating the murdering culprit? If I only knew for sure who did it...

We had a bantam wander out from under the shed with her babies following her. First chicken we have had to hide her eggs and hatch a clutch. By the time I saw her out of the window and got outside, I had a full size chicken run past me with a dead chick hanging from her beak. I think tiny babies look like tasty snacks to some chickens. We caught mama and her 6 remaining babies and isolated them in a brooder box for about 10-14 days. They are now feathered and look less like little golfballs running around, none of the other chickens are bothering them

 

[BCMaraniac]

Just don't let her do that back to back like that a lot because they say it sure does take a LOT out of them sitting on the eggs like they do and not getting their nutrition like they need to do. Sure don't want her going and getting sick on you or anything. With only one time being broody they get to looked pretty ragged around the edges.

She was thin when the first brood hatched, but by the time she raised them, she was the fattest she had ever been. She and her brood of 9 ate starter/grower feed, and everybody thrived. She was blueblack and so shiny....the best looking chicken I had, and immediately starting laying jumbo eggs. The problem with the second time was she hid her clutch(the first time we brought her into the barn to brood where she would be safe), so when she started incubating them, she was just gone. After many days, I actually saw her eating at the feeder, then she went and took a dust bath, ate herself silly with scratch, and finally led me on a wild broody chase and got out of sight. After looking and looking, I finally found her. She was over half way through when we found her, and she came out regularly to to eat/drink/relieve herself. I checked on her one day and she was acting unusual, not in her usual trance, and the next day she showed up with her brood of four at the back of the barn and started eating everything she could get in her mouth. She has them up to 6-7 weeks of age, and she looks great. I think she has them roosting at night by themselves. She used to bed down with them in one of the nesting boxes, and you could tell she was in there because of the poo in the back of it. Now you can tell they are perching on the ledge of the nesting box, because the poop is smaller and at the very front of the nesting box behind the front ledge. She loves this motherhood thing, so I will let her wait a couple more weeks if she wants to stay with them before I kick her out, and back to the flock, in the hopes that the days will be short enough and the weather cool enough that she doesn't get any more ideas about babies till spring. The babies will go into my mixed breed capon/poulard flock.

 

[BCMaraniac]

It is nice to let a broody hatch/raise them. The other day I saw the broody walk off just a little ways and caught a bug. Those chicks all came running! One of them snatched it out of her mouth, turned its back to the rest of them and chowed down. lol

The broody still looks good. I kicked her off the nest twice/day to eat and drink. She grumbled about it but was pretty cooperative. I had to check her nest anyhow because one of them kept laying eggs in her nest.

Watching chickens with all of their natural instincts sure does give me an even better picture of just how amazing their Creator is. Things like that assure me that things are not "an accident".

Indeed, there is a divinely inspired order to this earth that can't be denied. I found a big worm and put it in with mama and her brood She picked it up, and one of the little ones grabbed it and took off with the others chasing behind. I think it got eaten in pieces, because one would carry it, the another would grab it and tear it leaving the first with a bite, etc. The worm kept getting smaller and smaller with each pass of the baton....LOL.

 

[Lacy Blues]

Hi Bee... Wasn't able to get any real good pics of the girls because they just won't sit still... But here are a few of the ones I did take. Let me know if you think you see a rooster amongst the crowd....

I'm not Bee but they ALL look like girls to me. Roosters are a dime a dozen, if you need one, I'm sure it won't be hard to find.

Okay I'm not happy at all with somebody! Somebody killed one of the new chicks and ate its head off! I have a feeling I know which pullet did it too, well one of two - can't really tell them apart. I took the mama and remaining three chicks out and put them in a cage to their selves. I was hoping they would act "chicken civilized" and let chicks grow up amongst them! Any advise beyond eating the murdering culprit? If I only knew for sure who did it...

@RoseMarie & armorfirelady... I don't believe it was a predator or it would have got the other chickens while it was in the coop. That poor chick's head wasn't any bigger than a big marble, not even big enough to be consider a snack! I saw one of the other pullets paying a little too much attention to them the other day and pecking at them a little bit. I'd say it was her. I figured the broody would take care of it if she got too rough. She seemed to keep the others at a distance but didn't straighten that one out. I wish I had a way to see how much that pullet is laying, she is on my bad list! I believe more all the time that Australorps have got to be one of the best breeds. They didn't bother the chicks and if anything tried to help the broody. If I'm right it was a Columbian Rock that killed the chick.

Sometimes new hatchlings look like mice to the younger, inexperienced birds. Plus, they "squeak" too! After they get some feathers and look more like a bird, they'll leave them alone. I would agree that you have a predator problem, most likely a house cat that got the chick. But if you're positive it was that pullet, just cage the mama and babies for a couple weeks and let the pullet back with the flock as it will be much harder on her to blend back in if you keep her separated.

 

[Windy Bay Farm]

I'm not Bee but they ALL look like girls to me.  Roosters are a dime a dozen, if you need one, I'm sure it won't be hard to find.



Sometimes new hatchlings look like mice to the younger, inexperienced birds.  Plus, they "squeak" too!  After they get some feathers and look more like a bird, they'll leave them alone.  I would agree that you have a predator problem, most likely a house cat that got the chick.  But if you're positive it was that pullet, just cage the mama and babies for a couple weeks and let the pullet back with the flock as it will be much harder on her to blend back in if you keep her separated.

Thanks, Lacy !