INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[Leahs Mom]

But...if your hen house is set up and ready when you get the kiddos. they can be put directly into the hen house. Doing it the same as you would if they're inside...have to provide the appropriate heat and protection, but just out there instead of inside.

 

[HappyHappyHappy]

So far so good with my first time hatching. My Astralorp is doing well so far,(at least still on the nest) hatch day is next Wed-Thursday. Started with 10 eggs under her one was smelling rather nasty so i tossed it,( like a baseball into the beanfield) I was to chicken to break it open and look. One has a crack in it but I Left it there to see what will happen. The other hens are not trying to lay in her nest or mess with her so far so that is good. I may box of an area of the coop for her when they hatch just incase the other hens decide to hurt them.
Also I see Brad is going to possibly do some H Barred Rocks. If possible and you have any left I am very excited to get at least a Roo if not a flock of em..

My Son and I are planning to go to the show in Leb next weekend. I have never been to a show so it will be a first for me. I hope to meet some of you there.

 

[bradselig]

Got some pictures of some of the silkies, legbars, and tolbunts. Ohh and the random OEGB who lives with the silkies as the other roos are just too large and afraid they will squish her when they try to mount her.

 

[Novafrk]

I am no expert since this has been my first year, But something I ran into when i got my chicks this past april is the outside temp.. I am not sure what your set up is, but I kept mine in a 4'x4' box in the house until it was warm outside for them. The longer they are in the house the more of a pain they are to clean up after. 6 week old peeps make more of a mess then 6 day old peeps and smell worse also... 32 peeps in the house at 6-7 weeks old is not so great. At that point my wifey says cold or not your all going outside now......

Hello H3, I'm going to start them in the house for the first few weeks. I was then going to move them out to the garage.(4-8wks) From there to the chicken tractor/yard. I don't have a set in stone time table because obviously the weather and the chicks themselves demand flexibility. My wife is... hesitant to embrace my chicken desire. As soon as they start making a mess in the house I'll have to move them to the garage. Thanks for the input though definately something to consider.

 

[PeacefulWalls]

I was struck yesterday by how many different colors of eggs were getting now. Not sure who's laying some of them. So pretty all together that I had to share!

 

[Leahs Mom]

I was struck yesterday by how many different colors of eggs were getting now. Not sure who's laying some of them. So pretty all together that I had to share!

When I sell them, I call it a "party in a box"

 

[DarthLayer]

[COLOR=006400]kabhyper~[/COLOR] [COLOR=8B4513]Found this online:[/COLOR] http://www.healthaliciousness.com/articles/foods-high-in-riboflavin-vitamin-B2.php [COLOR=8B4513]Note: There is much more info at this site regarding each item on this list. This is a list for Humans.[/COLOR] [COLOR=8B4513]Please research if each item is OK for chickens. (I would, but I actually am supposed to be working[/COLOR] [COLOR=8B4513])[/COLOR]

[COLOR=A52A2A]Top 10 Foods Highest in Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin)[/COLOR] [COLOR=8B4513]Yeast Extract Spread (Marmite)[/COLOR] [COLOR=8B4513]Liver[/COLOR] [COLOR=8B4513]Dried Herbs, Spices, and Peppers[/COLOR] [COLOR=8B4513]Almonds[/COLOR] [COLOR=8B4513]Dry Roasted Soybeans (Edamame)[/COLOR] [COLOR=8B4513]Cheese (Roquefort, Brie, Limburger)[/COLOR] [COLOR=8B4513]Wheat Bran[/COLOR] [COLOR=8B4513]Fish (Mackerel, Atlantic Salmon, Trout)[/COLOR] [COLOR=8B4513]Sesame Seed[/COLOR] [COLOR=8B4513]Sun-dried Tomatoes[/COLOR] [rule][COLOR=006400]Darth~[/COLOR] This was in my "Chicken Health for Dummies" book: We're all thinking of you!

An elderly man in my neighborhood kills his by tying a string around their neck and holding them in the air until they die. Have not seen this done and can't quite get past the idea that maybe it's not such a great way to euthanize. He says it doesn't really hurt and they don't struggle much. Any thoughts? Chopping off heads or breaking necks sound gruesome too, but maybe a quicker death.

We use the vein cutting method and cut the large veins, one on each side of the neck. We have them in a cone and we process them. There is messy results with the method though it is very fast. I agree try to get on a breeder's list. But as for when well that depends on when you want to be able to put them out on their own with no additional heat. I got some this year at the end of March but April turned really cold and They were indoors longer than I liked. Another thing to consider is when do you want eggs? If the breed is a late layer like my RIR breed well you really want them as early as possible and might just need to plan on heat and a good place for them to stay for 6-8weeks instead of 2-4. The bright side is that during the cold weather a chick is cheaper to feed than a full size hen. I'm not sure that a chick that is free ranging is going to save a whole lot of feed since they really don't eat a whole lot in the first 9 weeks. So feeding a chick you get in January is really only going to cost you a touch more in feed and a then the heat. The issue is finding a breeder that hatches in January / set eggs in December. There is talk on the RIR thread about how it helps the 4H children to get their birds in January so maybe the other breeders are breeding then too. I have personal reasons this year for wanting to set eggs in the winter, but so far no eggs for me to set and the roos are not really mating the hens either.

[COLOR=006400]kabhyper~[/COLOR] [COLOR=8B4513]Thanks for giving me a "Gux-fix." I love those tail feathers! It was also fun to see pretty mom Lavender and her babies.[/COLOR] [COLOR=A52A2A]Poultry Podiatry[/COLOR]https://sites.google.com/a/poultrypedia.com/poultrypedia/poultry-podiatry [COLOR=8B4513]You may have already consulted this site. Back when I was dealing with Violet's leg injury, I posted this site that I had come across. Someone else , maybe Darth, also posted it. If you scroll down, there is chick podiatry info. Btw, that seems weird to give vitamins several times a day since some aren't water soluble. Maybe it works differently for chickens.[/COLOR] [COLOR=0000CD]DarthLayer~[/COLOR] [COLOR=8B4513]So sorry to hear that you have to go through that. I knew about Lola since she started having problems after Violet's injury. Isn't she the Cornish? I'm sorry, but I can't remember the info about Curly. I know that it's a tough decision, but you have obviously tried to help them for a long time and you should feel good about all that you've done. I had Violet put to sleep at the vet. Since I don't process chickens, I couldn't imagine anything else. IMO, Whatever you decide, don't do it yourself! Find an experienced person. If you live in the Indy area, please PM vickichicki because I believe that she has access to a CO[SUB]2[/SUB] chamber,[/COLOR]

Thank you all for the information. I don't think I could do any of those, but I noticed M2H listed like a gas chamber. Could I make one my self? I don't want to make my parents to drive to the vet to put down two chickens if I know I could do it myself. Also Curly was Lola's brother and originally he was fine but started to get worse

 

[CCCCCCCCHICKENS]

Thanks for the information. I was planning on getting my chicks from one of the breeders here in Indiana and not one of the big commercial hatcheries. So mid March is a good starting time for chicks in central Indiana?

A lot of breeders takes orders in advance. SO if you wait until march you will probably be too late. Not all breeders do this but most do- they take orders around now until maybe January or Febuauary and after they start hatching they let you pick when you want them shipped out> i have not ordered from anyone in indiana so I dont know how they do theirs.

 

[bradselig]

More tolbunt pictures. I just love these guys.

 

[Novafrk]

A lot of breeders takes orders in advance. SO if you wait until march you will probably be too late. Not all breeders do this but most do- they take orders around now until maybe January or Febuauary and after they start hatching they let you pick when you want them shipped out> i have not ordered from anyone in indiana so I dont know how they do theirs.

One of the breeders in New Castle starts taking orders in December. I want to run up and see his birds first though. I would be picking them up.