Flock/Life Journey's 2019

[micstrachan]

Aaww, that all sounds terrible.. how old is your flock? And how many do you have? I think I may have missed something....? Cuz I don’t remember reading that you had a sick one

I only mentioned that I had lost one and that the first prelim didn’t reveal anything. I euthanized her myself... my first one. I hated that. She was pretty limp and unresponsive at that point, poor girl. I waited too long, sort of expecting her to pass in the night. She didn’t. Anyway, she was three. I still have two of the remaining four. I also have six two-year-olds and three five-week chicks. All hatchery stock. All are supposed to be vaccinated for Mareks. If and when I start another flock (at a different location, if there is Mareks here), I will try to get healthier stock. Livestock Conservancy, perhaps?

Anyway, speaking of five week old chicks, check out this cuteness I got lucky enough to capture right now! I’m sitting in the run with the ladies...

 

[ronott1]

I only mentioned that I had lost one and that the first prelim didn’t reveal anything. I euthanized her myself... my first one. I hated that. She was pretty limp and unresponsive at that point, poor girl. I waited too long, sort of expecting her to pass in the night. She didn’t. Anyway, she was three. I still have two of the remaining four. I also have six two-year-olds and three five-week chicks. All hatchery stock. All are supposed to be vaccinated for Mareks. If and when I start another flock (at a different location, if there is Mareks here), I will try to get healthier stock. Livestock Conservancy, perhaps?

Anyway, speaking of five week old chicks, check out this cuteness I got lucky enough to capture right now! I’m sitting in the run with the ladies...

Mareks is everywhere and the vaccine is designed to lower the percentage in a flock that gets the secondary mareks cancer. That starts at about age 2. If the report did not find tumors, I would not worry too much about mareks. From what I have seen, the more lethal strain of mareks involves chicks dying during the initial infection.

Make sure new flock members are vaccinated. If ordering from a hatchery, it is an add on per chick.

 

[rjohns39]

Also, I’ve actually never worked with pvc. Can I just wrap teflon tape around it inside the connections?

Depending on gravity and psi you may not even need that. My hydroponics setup is just pressed together and does just fine. In some places I've used a roofing screw or two (with rubber washer) to hold a joint together and easily disassemble it.

@bantamsrmyfav I may be going to the beach today and will think of you! When you all get a chance, can you help me with names, since I joined late and I’m still not up to speed?

Bob, how many eggs still have a chance?

I’m still working my way backwards through the thread so I can ask more people questions.

I have 108 spread out over four hatching trays. Some already out, several internally pipped and some late bloomers. 5 or six of the eggs looked much more like day 14 rather than 18. Two were externally pipped last night and are out today.

Oh, wow. I forgot to tell you all I got the preliminary necropsy report. It’s really bad and heartbreaking! Poor Margo did likely die from an acute infection, which I suspected. But she also had some respiratory issues, and there’s been something going through my flock. What’s worse is the poor thing was suffering from chronic egg yolk peritonitis, despite being a strong layer up until the end. And she was carrying a lot of fat. These last two things have me really concerned for my barred rock, Bridgette, who is a BIG girl and seems not to have laid in a year (she bad very distinctive speckled torpedo eggs). You haven’t heard the worst part... Margo had evidence of Mareks, despite the fact that the feed store where I source chicks requests vaccines. This may be my last flock for quite some time. But my remaining lovlies will get to live out their days with the best life I can provide.

Don't give up hope. Meriks vaccine is just to build immunity but doesn't guarantee they won't get it. Do a search of articles looking for an author Orr (something). In any case there are several here on BYC who've maintained flocks with the disease. They hatch out from existing stock and though they'll always have it, they don't show symptoms and live out good and healthy lives.

 

[FlockQueen]

Sorry, I’m a late thread joiner and haven’t read all the way through. Were you one of the people whose birds were getting sick from the gnat bite toxin? That sounded like a nightmare!

I can't imagine reading the whole thread I've read a lot but not all for sure. Yes i had lost quite a bit of my flock to the gnats. It was awful...and a ton of extra work! Thanks!

 

[FlockQueen]

Some pictures from today. I think this hen is attempting to break the guineas out of "jail" coming to a theater near you...."chicken run prison break"

 

[MysticUniKitty]

Thanks ladies

Awesome video Michelle ,

How many eggs did you say you were hatching, Mystic?

Is Vinny the same as Babarino, WhoDat?

You both may have mentioned these things but I’ve forgotten also lol

Was 12 but now 11.

 

[MysticUniKitty]

Hahahaaa!!! Now THAT is funny. Umm... no. Mine don’t fly at my face. I take it yours do? I can’t stop laughing!

To explain... this is 7ft up... my BRs Soy, Sesame, and General Tsao with my EE BBQ... every morning to open the pop door i have to walk past these guys and pray they don't pick that moment to fly down. I'm working on getting string and wire rigged to open outside.... yesterday i had one of them make themselves comfy on my back while i was cleaning.

No respect here

 

[MysticUniKitty]

Mystic, whatever happened with Cajun? Is she ok? Laying again?

She seems to be doing fine, I'm in texas and the sun is baking us all so she has probably just stopped for now.

Everyone calls me Mystic on here but my name is Monica.

I try to get on here once a day and i have read the entire thread... I usually catch up while hiding from my kids

 

[WhoDatChick]

I only mentioned that I had lost one and that the first prelim didn’t reveal anything. I euthanized her myself... my first one. I hated that. She was pretty limp and unresponsive at that point, poor girl. I waited too long, sort of expecting her to pass in the night. She didn’t. Anyway, she was three. I still have two of the remaining four. I also have six two-year-olds and three five-week chicks. All hatchery stock. All are supposed to be vaccinated for Mareks. If and when I start another flock (at a different location, if there is Mareks here), I will try to get healthier stock. Livestock Conservancy, perhaps?

Anyway, speaking of five week old chicks, check out this cuteness I got lucky enough to capture right now! I’m sitting in the run with the ladies...

That is so sweet! I just adore how much they like us

 

[bantamsrmyfav]

WhoDat- aw you’re rehoming Vinny...sniff. Well I just know that’s going to be me one day when I can finally move to an acreage and have roos but of course there’s the possible issue of them fighting so I’ll have to make a pen for them or rehome them So yeah I totally understand why you would want to.

Michelle, that is sweet, thanks for thinking of me! My name is Kim Sorry about your hen, glad you found out what happened to her though.

Looks like I’m going to have a busy week. Fleur my guppy fish is showing signs of being in labor. She barely ate anything today and is hiding near the orange plant. She might have the fry (baby fish) tomorrow.

We also have someone checking the oven because it causes the fire alarm to go off every time we use it. Our car is making noise so DH is bringing it to the shop Tuesday, we are contacting daycares so we hope to visit at least one this week and this weekend we will probably make a trip to the feed store to buy shavings for my button quail.