Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[Pastel the Rooster]

Okay all...NOW I'm worried about Eenie. I stuck the camera in to get a photo of her on the nest and she does not look well! I was kind of shocked when I blew up this picture. She looked okay walking around yesterday. If you enlarge it, her wing feathers look bare and she looks...disheveled. She is eating and drinking and pooping. I'm no longer concerned about the heat. I stuck in a thermometer and it's actually a couple degrees cooler in the nest box than it is in the rest of the coop. But she doesn't really look healthy.

I can't catch her and look her over without my husband to help, but I can check her out more closely tomorrow. What should I look for? What does everyone think?

I suppose it could be from the rooster...poor Sheba is bare at the top of her wings...
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Part some of her feathers and look at the base. I did that with Bolt and Pastel yesterday. I found Lice on them. Maybe she has lice??? Hope she gets better!

 

[Pastel the Rooster]

I want to say it is a blessing having a experienced breeder behind you to give advice and pointers when you are out of your comfort zone. Talked to her a bit today. We discussed the pros and cons of using the incubator or hen hatched. With 15 years behind her incubating silkies I learned of a mistake when I have tried to incubate my own. Apparently like marans, silkies also need a different humidity. She told me she has the best hatch rate when she incubates exactly at 41% and hatches at exactly at 61%. Any fluctuations either way and it effects viability and hatch success. Even with me stalking my incubator I can keep it in range but not a steady percentage the entire time. We then got to talking about how I have more success and how I prefer my hens to do the hatching and rearing. Upon her advice I am taking the gamble to let Perdita have these eggs. It will be a risk either way and I will probably second guess myself with either option. When it all boils down though for the most part my hens do out perform the incubator almost every single time.

What incubator do you use? I have the Nurture Right 360. I love it. That's what my baby guineas hatched in, and what all my chooks except for Willow hatched in.
I have pretty good hatch rates.
I really hope that you have a good and successful hatch!! More chicks!!

 

[featherhead007]

Well a/he isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, so I have time to figure out if he is a she or not


We have rattlers here but they are an endangered species so not very plentiful. I am more worried about the rat problem in my barn!

Milksnakes are not venomous so they can stay around here. They are entertainment for the chickens hahaha! The Garter Snake is also not venomous ,


OK then drapey it is

I’ve seen baby rattlers, and they don’t seem so scary!

 

[RebeccaBoyd]

What incubator do you use? I have the Nurture Right 360. I love it. That's what my baby guineas hatched in, and what all my chooks except for Willow hatched in.
I have pretty good hatch rates.
I really hope that you have a good and successful hatch!! More chicks!!

I have a hoverbator that I got from Rural King 3 years ago now. It does well and in general I have no complaints. I do want to upgrade in the next year or two and am looking at different brands and styles. For what it is mine is perfect when you are just starting out and not even sure you will use a incubator frequently.

 

[featherhead007]

And the punishment for the oldest pun ever made is:::

 

[GregnLety]

The world needs more roosters. My silkie roosters were way older than Martin before they crowed. Surprisingly because their dad never shuts up

Oh I am certain it’s Martin, I just need to look at the neck feathers coming in to see that. I am just surprised there is no crowing….

 

[BY Bob]

@BY Bob @RoyalChick (And anyone else but wanted to make sure they see this.)

I guess I have been living under a rock because I just found out about the new antibiotic rules. Chewy still has several fish variations. (Which they may continue to have, someone said the new rules don’t apply to fish antibiotics but so don’t trust the source.) My finances are really tight right now, and this stuff is expensive, but I want to buy two oral antibiotics and a tube of terramycin. So my question is, which should I buy? I have found these:
Amoxicillin
Ciprofloxacin
Cephalexin
Metronidazole

I am looking for a place that still has Baytril (edit: without a prescription) if you think that one is more important than what I listed.

Amoxicillin is a good first use antibiotic. Ciprofloxacin is a good broad spectrum antibiotic. So those would be 2 worth having.

As of yesterday morning, All Bird Products still had enrofloxacin which is the generic form of Baytril. That is a broad spectrum antibiotic which also treats mycoplasma. I would recommend that over the cipro because of the additional coverage.

 

[Ponypoor]

I want to say it is a blessing having a experienced breeder behind you to give advice and pointers when you are out of your comfort zone. Talked to her a bit today. We discussed the pros and cons of using the incubator or hen hatched. With 15 years behind her incubating silkies I learned of a mistake when I have tried to incubate my own. Apparently like marans, silkies also need a different humidity. She told me she has the best hatch rate when she incubates exactly at 41% and hatches at exactly at 61%. Any fluctuations either way and it effects viability and hatch success. Even with me stalking my incubator I can keep it in range but not a steady percentage the entire time. We then got to talking about how I have more success and how I prefer my hens to do the hatching and rearing. Upon her advice I am taking the gamble to let Perdita have these eggs. It will be a risk either way and I will probably second guess myself with either option. When it all boils down though for the most part my hens do out perform the incubator almost every single time.

That’s interesting, and if that is the case then you are likely better off letting Perdita hatch/raise them for sure.

When will you be setting the eggs?

 

[Ponypoor]

The world needs more roosters. My silkie roosters were way older than Martin before they crowed. Surprisingly because their dad never shuts up

I have all those other cockerels here also and not one of them crows yet! Penne is 8 weeks old I am surprised he isn’t t crowing.

 

[Ponypoor]

What type of rattlers? Haha, I'm interested! I'm gonna look it up! What "state" are you in? Ontario? Montreal? Or does all of Canada share the same snakes?

Montreal is a city, in the Province (think state) of Quebec.

My Province is Ontario, the rattle snake here is the Mississauga Rattler.

No Canada, like the US has different snakes in different zones/climates. They have rattle snakes in southern Alberta which are the same ones you find in the States south of Alberta (Montana and North Dakota I think).

Because Ontario and Quebec are separated by Lake Erie and Lake Ontario and the St Lawrence Seaway from the US snakes differ a bit.

Snake Tax
The kiddos snake hunting