INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[Chaneys Ranch]

Question for those who incubate. Do you used a forced air incubator for hatching? I think I'm going to try and turn off my fan (and readjust the temps) for my next hatch. It seems like if they don't zip shortly after pipping, they get stuck and I have to help them.

I use a still air, bought it just for hatching. Just another cheap LG. Since I switched to it, I rarely have shrink wrapped chicks anymore. Easier to keep humidity at 70% too, and have better hatch rates now. It runs 24/7 and I just clean it each week before the next hatch and let it regain temp and humidity.

Looks like I'll be buying more of the lavender cuckoo eggs. I had one hatch (Yeah!), but need more. For the first time I'm hoping it is a roo so I can get lavender hens (much easier to find) to breed to him. In the mean time, gotta buy more cuckoo eggs. I guess I should have candled before putting in lockdown. The other 5 looked like they were quitters around days 10-14.

I also just hatched around 45 quail to fill orders, 2 Birchen Marans that I threw in there just to see if they were fertile, and a naked neck/Marans cross egg is currently pipped. That's the last egg to go until Monday, then I have more Rhodebars, blrw, and barnyard mixes from my flock all going into lockdown.

I am so sorry, I know that is so disappointing. I have one lonely little coronation sussex, and am still trying to win another set of eggs through a guy in KY (David). He has excellent feedback.
Your quail chicks are by far the biggest, healthiest quail I have, all 39 adorable adorable tumblebugs and just hop and climb all over my hands. My A&M are destined for the freezer. Hateful, nasty lil things, they attack my arms and hands when i refill the feeders and gather eggs. They bite and hang on! it doesn't hurt, but gees, bite the hands that feed you

! Getting away from that breed altogether. The tennesse red (except the lil roos) , speckled,and tuxedo are all friendly too. I like the jumbos the best.

I posted #10,000 on 7/18/13.

Since then, 4175 messages have been posted.

That's 67 per day.

John

I am so far behind.. I just get thru as many pages I can every evening. Winter gets here, will be in the house more, ugh. I hate staying indoors but hate cold worse!

Pretty sure I'm going kindly suggest to Husband that I'd like to tarp the part of our run closest to the coop door. Ours is completely enclosed due to the inbred cat infestation living across the street so we'll just have to toss a tarp over the chicken wire and tie down. I had to work all day in this nasty weather so I haven't gotten my chicken fix yet :-(

I started here in April and thought SOME of you (no names *cough, Old Salt, cough* JUST KIDDING) were crazy for the way you treat your birds...chickens, as pets?!?! No, no. Chickens are for eggs and meat only!.... yyyeeeaaaaahhhh, that lasted all of 2 minutes haha! Now I need a way to keep my girls water thawed?! Can't have my babies going without!

Does anyone else get giddy at the sight of Buff Orpingtons? My Cheesecake is AMAZING! Easily my favorite (don't tell Lemon-Pepper)

Enough chicken rambling (you people are the only ones that GET me).

I keep seeing the plastic hanging waterers, heated. there's several real good ideas using cinder block with a light fixture inside, and a cookie tin heater too on the coops page:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/homemade-chicken-feeder-waterer-designs-pictures
I have them on my birthday wish list, And a stock tank heater for my piggies. Heated buckets for ducks, geese, and the goats.
After carrying buckets of warm water out several times a day last year, UGH, need a better way!
I do love the orps! I wanted buffs, when I saw the lavenders I was HOOKED! The roos are as friendly as the hens if that's possible...
DH sat down for a sec to watch chicken TV and had 3 in his lap, he wound up sharing his cheetos LOL!
it was so cute, they were so carefully picking the cheesy crumbs off his shirt

The australorps are just as sweet. Bruce has become his favorite roo!

Ok here's today's update!! The animal control guy did cal me back!! Took me leaving 2 messages! First of all......he's an idiot!!!! He gave them a written warning and told them that next time he would fine them $100!!! He did not take the dog, kill the dog!!! I have once again been told to "take care of it" if the situation arises again!!! Sometime next week I will be filing a small claim against them( because they don't take this seriously) and will be seeing for lost chicken and loss of revenue from eggs, as well as roosters !!! Also to have them repay the $75 filing fee!!! He said he had only been notified 2 times and this not rue this is number 3. I will be documenting all of this for the claim. And I also told him that my other neighbor( who lives next to the culprit) had been losing guinnies and had found them on the culprits burn pile!!! AND.... I reminded him that the dog had CAME at me and he said the dog was friendly to him!!!! I'm soooo mad!!!!! So now I have a chicken friend who is bring me a large animal trap to keep out!! And my chicken have to be couped up because they can't control their dog!! And did I mention that the dodg was emaciated??? And looked awful!! Ok, don't ranting! Thanks for listening.

On a better note. CRSelvy- loved , loved the pic of the kids....soooo fun!!!

Welcome to all the new people

GET EM!!!!! Awesome! Rant all you need and then some! I am so sorry you have to deal with this

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

I have a sort of double run attached to my coop. There is a gate I can close to keep the chickens off it. Then I will every other month let them on. Well it was open this morning and some how it closed today during the big rain storm and half the flock got soaked. Man were they ticked when we got home. I should have taken a picture.

Oops hehe, they needed a bath anyways, right? We had some really strong winds with the storms, thats probably what did it.

Quote: LOL, tooo funny! My first roo that attacked me was Butters, my buff silkie. Bit me HARD. He is the official "baby daddy to the new chicks" joining the main flock. Do not DARE look at his chicks, pick up a chick around him. all 20 oz of him turns into a physco killer chicken! He body slams, kicks and bites til you put HIS baby down! He had my laughing so hard, i was in tears

He is my oldest DDs favorite chicken. I keep him for her, and the comic relief, and he protects the chicks VERY well from the flock. Even the young jakes are afraid of him!

Quote: candle at the end of day three, if any look or smell bad, remove them. if not wait to the end of day 5. Sometime I find the late to hatch have issues, but I give them all a chance.

Quote: I agree with you on the roofing. They don't need it unless you don't have enough coop space for the number of birds you have. When there's a lot of snow, I shovel out an area in the run so that I can open the feed shed and the gate without the snow getting in the way. Other than that, I let them be. They do just fine.

As far as water, I used to just refill their buckets as needed, but that becomes tiresome with a big flock. I now have a heated bucket I use that keeps the water just above freezing. A word of caution--you do need to be meticulous to make sure this setup is safe. I unplug and empty the bucket every night and refill it in the morning. I also check the length of the cord for any signs of tearing or fraying and I dust the outlet regularly. I use this outlet year-round for my baby monitor, so it is dusted at least once a month all year, usually more often.


As we are getting close to that time of the year again, I also feel the need to mention that for a number of reasons, chickens do not need a heat lamp in the colder weather. While you may feel compelled to give them a heat lamp, all this is is an unnecessary fire hazard. Heat lamps can ignite dust--something that is not in short supply in a chicken coop--and bulbs can shatter. Also, if you lose power for any reason, you will have a flock of birds that are not accustomed to the colder weather. Heating your coop is more of a risk than it is a benefit. Here is a great thread with lots of fire safety tips. I recommend anyone new to chickens read this--as well as those that are thinking about heating their coop or even using a heated bucket like I do: https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/745178/fire-safety-in-your-chicken-coop-barn-important
Excellent post, thank you pipd!

Quote: I love this picture soooo much! Those happy little faces, oh my

That's what keeps kids healthy, let them be kids and have fun. They wash up so well

you would never know.
The clothes, well, not so much, but worth those precious happy smiles anytime.

danand, I'm sorry you are dealing with all of this!

Welcome newbies!!! Fastest thread on BYC!!!

bradselig, use a hen.

...........................I just have to say, Broodie poop is horrible!!!!!!!!!!!!

.............From the depths of hell that stuff is!!!! She did come out and eat and stretch her legs with less effort tonight though. Right before she dumped that awful load. She did it in the barn too. Poor alpacas had no warning.

I bet the alpaca were very insulted by that odor!

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

My favorite pullet so far. She is a chesty girl and almost as big as the boys. I suspect she is the one leaving me eggs.

she is lovely, is she a cochin?

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

browncow~ What does CE mean? Consumer Electronics, Civil Engineering, Chicken Education?
browncow posted: Chicken Education

that's funny! CE=continuing education I have to have 16 hours every 2 years to keep my vet tech liscence current and I missed last year so...

browncow~ I think I accidentally invented a new excuse for enabling chicken addicts! Just tell your DH, DW, or SO that you will be gone to catch up on CE when you actually are going chicken shopping (Well, that's educational!)

Urbanmom~ Just speaking from personal experience, our first chicken purchase a year ago spring was 6 RIR pullet chicks, which turned out to be 1 pullet and 5 cockerels! (Rural King offered both straight run and pullets). I traded with other people and I'm glad to now have one hen each of 7 different breeds.
CRSelvey posted: I don't know if I will get to go to the poultry show, but we are trying to figure out the logistics for going to the game as well. My MIL called and offered us free tickets if we can get them from her and make it back in time for the game. I hope you have a great time visiting your daughter.
Cheryl, Here's my daughter, Lauren, (on the right) with her roommate at a recent game with a secret admirer-- Whaaaat? That's what we thought when she texted us the photo with Tom Crean.



CRSelvey posted: If you can't find BonBon, don't come looking in my coop. She's not there.


Bonbon was seen escaping from CRSelvey's clutches!
CRSelvey posted: This is what happened the last time I went somewhere and left the kids at home:

They lived and I only had to soak that dress for about a week.
Those beautiful children look so abused and unhappy!

Loved the pic of your DD Lauren, and Sweet lil BonBon!

30 some years ago when I first had chickens, I went to a feed/elevator. They had cleanings (the stuff that was the result of running grain through the seed cleaning apparatus at the mill). They gave it to me for free. I got a pickup truck load and brought it home and fed my chickens for free. It consisted of weed seeds, broken corn and soybean kernels, chaff, dust. I threw a scoop shovel or two out into the chicken yard every day. The chickens loved it and ate very little regular feed. I brought my dad a truckload for his chickens.

I recently went back and asked about it They don't do seed cleaning anymore.

I checked around and found a feed mill in Frankfort that does seed cleaning and have the cleanings available. Nowadays, they sell it to cattle farmers for feed. It is $180 per ton. That would make 40 50# bags, costing $4.50 per bag.

I found a farmer near me that runs his grain through a dryer. The dryer also does a minor type of seed cleaning, dropping out big pieces (rocks, cob) and small pieces (crushed kernels). He said I could have all the "smalls" that I wanted. I'm gonna take a trailer over there with a tarp liner and see just what comes out.

I won't know about the quality of either until harvest time. I'll post my findings then.

This is not something someone with 5 birds would be interested in. Someone with 50 or 200 likely will find this interesting.

John

You have my full undivided attention, I will be looking into it! I bet fermenting will make the smalls much better too!

Quote: Does it matter what wires hook up where on the switch? I am completely electric illiterate! I know red is hot black is negative.. that's about it.

Big r is nice. Mine doesn't have a huge poultry section for supplies, but always cheaper than TSC. They sell pretty much everything, food, clothes, pet supplies, guns, plumbing, etc. I like it even though I've had issues with them not willing to accept Nutrena coupons that are emailed to me. I did get a $25 gift card after complaining when they refused to take them the second time even though they have papers by the feed telling you to sign up for a newsletter and coupons.

I wonder if we have them locally here, will go on the website

So watching the chicks in the spare bedroom making sure the most recent hatched chicks would be ok with them and I swear I saw and heard a legbar cockerel that is almost a week old try to crow! Funniest thing ever.

a week, wow! bet he will be a busy boy when he grows up!!

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Quote: Oh my!! she is lovely!

Quote: Hehe! I know that eye roll well!

According to the latest issue of 'Your Chickens' magazine, playing classical music in the coop can increase egg size by 19%. It's worth a try. Can't hurt; might help. A nice bit of Mozart would do anyone some good!

Great idea, and I love the music too. Dont think classic rock would help much, but thats my fav

Help me it is late and I can not fall asleep.

whats on your mind? count chickens not sheep jumping the fence......
Wait, forget that, you will be out there catching them!

With this thread moving at a rate of knots it may be almost futile to post here. But I am overladen with unwanted cockerels, roosters and even some unwanted POL (I hope) pullets. Every 2 weeks I keep earnestly trying to make myself get ready (ie. make some cages up) and take them to the Veedersburg sale barn... and every two weeks there is absolutely no time whatsoever to do this. I have tried putting them on Craigslist and managed in this way to shed an Andalusian. But I need to find homes (or hungry new owners) for a few more. To wit:


* A batch of awful Crevecoeur pullets (McMurray) who look like white crested black polish dipped in ink. I say awful because they are unrecognizable as Crevecoeurs, but they are very, very sweet birds, I think they must be something like 95% WC Black Polish based on their temperament alone. Quiet, friendly, like to stand around looking cute. Big round, spreading crests. 21 weeks old this weekend.

* White faced Black Spanish. A 19 week old cockerel, beautiful white face (so he is fun to look at) but I feel his legs are a little too short for the breed. Also a 3 month old cockerel and pullet, and a 4 month old cockerel. The 4 month old has the distinction of being the natural born child of a broody Spanish (Spanish are supposedly "non broody" - this one found an abandoned, half collapsed dog house and hatched two chicks out of a clutch of seven eggs in a pile of rubble and broken wood. Then brought them to my back doorstep)

* White Crested Black Polish. 2 cockerels, 23 weeks old. One has a big, visible V comb, the other has almost no comb, so there's something for everybody. Although both birds are trying to grow new crest feathers, each has a bald spot on the back of the head from unknown assailants. They should start to look good for you a very short while after they move in to their new home. Have a one year old hen to make up an unrelated breeding pair, if that is what you are looking for.

* Beautiful BBR Cubalayas - 19 weeks old, Duane Urch. Two nice looking boys and one who is also nice looking, but who lost a toe in his second week of life to an angry silkie mother in an adjacent pen. I feel guilty about that and would like to find him a nice home where he can be the dominant rooster. Cubalayas tend to be easy on the hens and like to have a "best girlfriend" (they're almost monogamous) that they drag around with them, trying to show her a good time (dust baths, tasty food, shady bushes, etc).

* one Buckeye rooster, he is 2 1/2 years old and from ALBC stock, from Jeannette Beranger. A sweet boy, maybe not the biggest or the best but not outrageously small either, very nice personality, color.

* a couple of Houdan cockerels (Urch again), 19 weeks old. Look like they're developing very shapely white mottles on their feathers. Long crests. But not for me. I feel they are a little slender and leggy. Should be fine if you just want a Houdan with attractively mottled feathers. Female Houdans available also, from a different stock with a more solid build.

If anyone is interested in birds, please PM me, I doubt I'd be able to find responses in the whitewater that is the INDIANA BYC'ers HERE thread. I live in Warren county, near big pine creek.

Best regards - exop

Welcome to our thread! And I wish you luck! You have many interesting breeds from excellent stock, I am envious

I am pretty far away, but I bet you have some takers!!!

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

exop ~ Welcome to the Indiana Thread! I love your descriptions of the chickens you are selling!
gingergma ~ Welcome to the Indiana Thread!
LOL, you are so right i hate missing a single post.

I love how everyone is so helpful, I have located some Araucanas, anyone familiar with this breed, my brooder is ready, coop is coming due to arrive Wednesday, they are week old so I shouldn't need it yet, im getting antsy and excited! reviews on that breed are great but ive read they are rare,

I don't have any but hope someone can answer any questions you have. Its so exciting to add new babies

be sure to share pics!

Does anyone know if the chickens will go back in the coop when it gets cold? Or when it rains? Or combinations of that? Ours quit sleeping in the coop last June, and have not slept in their since. They do go in for the nest boxes and food, but rarely otherwise.

They were out in the cold drizzle last night. They don't seem bothered by it all, just wondering if it is a problem. They seem to love roosting in the run, under the stars. Or cold rain. Birdbrains, indeed!

If there were some sort of problem in the coop, I can't find anything.

Mine hate roosting in the coop. usually its my original 8 birds in there if any do. The rest like the big tree branches outside and HATE being in the coop.
Merlin will roost with his girls in their coop, same for Bruce and his ladies. All my GLWs from this year will NOT go in and roost even in the rain.
I think its just the individual birds choice and their ages. I have ladder roosts in there so there is plenty of room, and usually no problems.

Recently acquired an upright commercial style fridge and it has quit working. So.. I think I am going to be converting it to an incubator for next year. I will have to remove the fabulous Coke Cola signage from the front and sides. It has the fans built into it already, although they are located close to the top and they may require relocating to provide better air circulation.
Hoping to document what I do and I can link a page later on.

Figured as soon as I get one built all the Cochins will go broody and it won't be needed. Which is fine and dandy by me

Great idea! Shame you can't leave the coke signs, so cool and nostalgic! Sell them for sure, pretty valuable for a collectable.
I have a tall apt sized fridge I have had since 1983. It finally died. Dad wants to make me a cabinet bator out of it...
Its kinda special, since was my first fridge I bought after I was "on my own". I told him yes, and will be looking at plans.
Still getting my sportsman cabinet tho! I want something more dependable when the geese, pekin and scovy start laying in the spring.
My pekin hens are laying now but no drake

that's my luck, always too many hens.

 

[Mother2Hens]

Choking Chicken? Anyone had a similar experience?
I spent part of the afternoon out in the far backyard with my seven girls. Three of the hens are molting-- My Jersey Giant looks like a wreck-- no tail feathers, a bunch missing around her neck, and she's shedding lots of little feathers I had been digging in the dirt with Jersey for awhile and she was her usual conversational self. Then she started opening her mouth like she was trying to swallow (gapeworm is my most feared chicken illness although I didn’t think that was the problem since this suddenly started). I carried her up to the house, but she wasn’t interested in water. I brought out her favorite treat--blueberries. She wanted them, but acted like she couldn’t lean over to pick one up. I figured that she must have something stuck in her throat and I started to feel panicky since it would be difficult to look in her mouth/throat. I held a blueberry close to her mouth and she ate it. That seemed to push down whatever it was! She then ate a bunch of blueberries and was fine. My DH guesses that she had a feather stuck since she’s molting so much and I bet that is what happened. She had taken a dust bath and was grooming herself while we were both playing in the dirt. They make hairball formula for cats-- do they make featherball formula for chickens?

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Quote: I know, that's the reason I don't care for hatchery chicks much, I want the real deal. My BAs I am happy with, (Mt Healthy in OH) but the rest of my birds are all from private breeders.

Quote: Pipd agreed, mine are so pretty and every bird is different. I have 1 true ameruacana hen, Bunny (SP?) and I have crossed her with glw, cx and ba so far. next will be lavender orp, then BCM. i love all the different colors of the chicks and look forward to the colors of the hens eggs. I assume she is true due to her beard muffs and build, she is a buff, blue hen. She is a seasonal layer, and only get eggs from her early january thru july. very odd.Her chicks are all friendly and social but she is very flighty and timid towards people. Guessing its how she was raised.

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Quote:

Have 6 more lavender cuckoo cochin eggs coming! Lets hope this hatch goes better

Awesome news, good luck

They are really cute no matter the breed UrbanMom519. We also thought we were getting Ameraucanas when we got our Easter Eggers. The people at tractor supply think they are the same thing, but if you go to the Ameraucana thread, you will quickly be informed of the difference. My Easter Egger, Nutella, lays the prettiest light green eggs ever and while she is not the friendliest bird I have, I wouldn't trade those eggs. My rooster, Peanut Butter, has turned out to be a really nice boy (on my Avatar) and looked very similar to the darker chick in your pics. Congratulations on your babies.

X2, we love all the babies no matter what some opinions are on other threads. Please share pics! we all love to see the babies

Quote:
John oh my!

you make me laugh, love your posts!

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Last weekend I went to TSC in Boonville since they had a farm animal swap day. I got two Mille Fleur bantam pullets (one of which is in a tree in Evansville ((can they ever fly)) and my sister is desperately trying to catch it) and the other will be moving out with the rest of them in a couple weeks.

I also got two Black Copper Marans from a different from a different person and when I got them home I found this on there heads:


It looks like dandruff holding onto the feathers or non-moving lice. Any help would be appreciated.

Hoping you were able to catch your millie! Use the garden type sevin dust 5% liberally, turn them upside down by their feet. be sure to cover all their feathers, under the wings, get to the skin. if it is mites or lice that will kill them. Repeat once a week for 3 weeks or until gone.Better safe than sorry. It does appear to be eggs from mites or lice. Keep us posted and don't hesitate to ask for help, we have all been thru a similar situation adding new birds and its sad that they sold them to you in that condition.

So hows every ones egg counts? I'm normally 10-12 a day with 14 layers, 1 broody and I'm down to 5 eggs a day. EE and the white chickens are laying regular, nothing from my 3 BA or 2 BLRW. I may get 3 brown eggs a week. New normal is now green and white. Is it the weather, should I be concerned for my birds? I did see one white chicken (really don't know what kind she is lmao) that has some raised scales in the bend of her foot. Shes laying great. Everyday. Everyone else looks normal. I don't see any other signs of mites or lice.

Mine is still very low production,,. 5 chicken, 1 pekin and 11 quail today.I am clueless as to why, but I went thru this last year too,