Hello from Hopkins SC with my pet chickens and ducks

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AnimlCrakrAcres

AnimlCrakrAcres

In the Brooder
7 Years
May 15, 2012
31
1
24
This is my first year with any kind of birds, so they are more like pets to me than just live stock. I started in Feb. and so far I have 6 khaki Campbell ducks, 4 pekin ducks, 5 assorted chicks, 5 serama chickens, and one coturnix quail chick. I have been on a vegan diet (I don't eat any thing made with or by any animals) but I am making an exception to my own birds eggs. I also have a mini pot belly pig, three dogs, one cat, four ferrets, one foster dog and one understanding husband. I will also be getting a pygmy goat at the end of the summer, and I hope to get some more coturnix quail and chicks this weekend.
I have never been a bird person but after seeing all the different breeds at the state fair and falling in love with the silkie chickens, I read some chicken books and I got a few birds...then more...then more..and the cuter they were the more I wanted. There is a charm about chickens and they have such funny antics. And my ducks are so soft and sweet, they follow me all around the yard when I am doing work, and sit on my lap when I sit down. My Khaki's are not as friendly because most of them were adults when I got them, but they will still come up to me for food.
Since I have started I have lost three ducks and one quail and both of my silkie chicks, which upsets me the most since silkies were the whole reason I wanted to get into chickens in the first place, I have been very careful with all my birds, raising them in cages and bathtubs in the house then moving them to a barn stall with outdoor pens. I try my best to secure everything against predators and even leave the foster dog out to roam around the barn at night. I still get up and check on everyone during the night. To alleviate some of my anxiety bought a huge homemade cage to let some of the chickens live indoors as pets.
I decided to join because I have a lot of questions and will definitely need some advise especially with my "special" birds (more on them later).
 
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My special chickens:
Some of my birds aren't your normal type birds (at least to me) anyway. One hen insists on trying to hatch a nest of golf balls, one duck wears a homemade diaper and hangs out inside the house, and one chicken has a neurological problem but a wonderful personality. That is my serama rooster Timmy whom I have living in the house as a pet bird. He is very small, maybe only 1 or 1 1/2 pounds or so, and he loves to sit in my lap and be pet for hours, usually falling asleep. He gets around just fine except he is constantly shuffling and sometimes falls over. He occasionally flys into things and his landings could use a little work. He can't breed with the females but bosses around the other roosters and chicks when he is in the pen. He was born with the disorder and the breeder decided not to cull him, and he grew up just fine and managed to avoid any major confrontations with the other chickens. He avoided getting into fights and had no problems getting food and water or staying sheltered from the elements. But he seemed more of a loner than part of his flock. Because of that he became very people friendly, following around like a dog and wanting to be picked up and held (probably because being secure makes him relax). Even tough I have secured everything I can around the pen and the barn I am paranoid that a predator or something might get him so I got a huge home made cage to keep him in the living room. I haven't decided if I am going to keep another bird in there for company or if he'd rather have it all to himself. He gets along fine with the dogs and the pig, but we keep the ferrets separate from him.
 
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