INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[Too Fast]

Hi Everyone. New chicken keeper here and really enjoying it so far. I was thrilled to find this thread and see so many like minded people that I can call neighbors.

Not being one to tiptoe, we started with an order of 25 assorted rare chicks from McMurray. It has been so much fun trying to figure out what we got. Of the 27 chicks they sent, we are pretty sure we know what we have with the exception of 2 hens (well, pretty sure they are hens)

We actually have 4 chicks colored identically. 2 of the chicks we have tentatively identified as Silver Leghorns. The mystery chicks are identical, but have dark/slate/grey colored legs compared to bright yellow for the leghorns. I would also say they have slightly longer legs also.

Here are a few pics:


Here is a good look at one of the dark legged chicks

and now one with yellow legs (We think it is a Silver Leghorn)

And another compare shot with both birds almost cooperating.

The chicks are about 9 weeks old at this point. Any ideas on what they might be?

Looks like they are chickens, for sure. Ha ha, I'm trying to be funny.

We are new to this also, we jumped in with 8. Originally gonna get 3 or 4.
We have 2 white leghorns, 2 amber-links, 2 New Hampshires, and 2 silver laced wyandottes, 6 of these are pullets. Our goal is eggs. As long as the roosters are well behaved, we won't send them to freezer camp.
Welcome to the very active Indiana thread!

 

[ShawnaScott]

You can eat fertilized eggs, right? I plan on keeping two of my Roos, I did have plans earlier to build a seperate enclosure for them, but with the way things are going I am going to be lucky to get the coop done on time! My mother kept chickens when she was a child, and whenever I say that you can eat the eggs even if its fertilized, she just gets this "all knowing" look on her face and shakes her head like a baby chick is going to be in it. If I gather them every day, the chick shouldn't have started forming, right?

 

[AATH]

You can eat fertilized eggs, right? I plan on keeping two of my Roos, I did have plans earlier to build a seperate enclosure for them, but with the way things are going I am going to be lucky to get the coop done on time! My mother kept chickens when she was a child, and whenever I say that you can eat the eggs even if its fertilized, she just gets this "all knowing" look on her face and shakes her head like a baby chick is going to be in it. If I gather them every day, the chick shouldn't have started forming, right?

Yup. Just make sure to collect them everyday. When they are fresh the only way to even know its fertilized is by a tiny spec

 

[vickichicki]

itsjustme~ I'm just getting online-- it's been a busy day. I'm happy to help with the map and will PM you.
Re: the discussion about other states~ we have a member who lives over the state line in Illinois I believe.

AATH~ Chicken City looks like fun! Don't worry, I still need to finish painting my year old coop! When I go outside, my hens beg me to take them out in the far back yard (where there's lots of grass unlike the fenced-in yard!), so it's hard to get anything done in the fenced area. I don't want to suffer the wrath of mad hens!

Cluck and Jchny~ Congrats on both of your new broods of chicks!! I'm kinda thinking about putting some wooden eggs in to see if I can get a broody hen who would hatch two eggs. My coop was made for 6 hens and I have 5, but just 4 egg layers. I'm not sure what the story is with my Jersey, but she pretends to lay eggs. I could use a couple of more egg layers since family and friends enjoy the eggs.

Oooh what is that I hear... the tapping on a calculator... the adding up of the start of Mothers chicken math.....

 

[vickichicki]

Been working super hard the past few days...

Had time to read through the missed threads, but not much time to make a tea and spend some time replying.. Other than the Mother one which I could not resist.

Be warned, I am due some replies... I will be a long one

 

[Crafty chick]

Ok, I will have a few bantams I will be willing to trade! I will take pics of them and post soon too many roos!

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

Btw, [COLOR=008080]Pipd[/COLOR]-- you take excellent photos!

Okay, I don't know why it won't quote the whole thing, but...

In regards to 'there's a thread for that', glad you caught that. I was wondering if anyone would.

And thank you--although I think it's more the camera than anything. Well, and the beautiful (if easily distracted) models.

 

[SallyinIndiana]

Cluck and Jchny~ Congrats on both of your new broods of chicks!! I'm kinda thinking about putting some wooden eggs in to see if I can get a broody hen who would hatch two eggs. My coop was made for 6 hens and I have 5, but just 4 egg layers. I'm not sure what the story is with my Jersey, but she pretends to lay eggs. I could use a couple of more egg layers since family and friends enjoy the eggs.

I can gather Fertile RIR (production) eggs if you want some of those. I'm trying my hand at incubating too so I might have more chicks around memorial day.

 

[Crafty chick]

Mother2hens~ Ican give you some B.O. fertile eggs if you want some too

 

[jhfamily5]

Holy Cow this thread moves so fast! Shame on me for disappearing for the better part of a week! Hi everybody

Thank you to jhfamily5 for the new sebright and the amazing tour of their coops.

You are most welcome and it was a pleasure to meet you and your friend! Hope the "kiddos" have worked everything out amongst themselves. How is "Goldie aka Sneezy aka What'shernewnamenow"?

Do you think it's better to cull a chick or wait till a deformity makes them suffer?

This is going to sound callous so I have to first say that I love my animals. All of them. I do everything I can to save them if it is possible. I go to extraordinary lengths...to the point of ridiculous. My corgi has hip dysplasia and is on prescription dog food that is $78 a bad. Thankfully he doesn't eat a lot! I have a Silkie that I adopted that survived a hawk attack and has one wing and a D'Uccle that is crippled from a hip break but other than being gimpy is just fine. Jeepers! I have a bleeding heart... That being said, when a chick is born with cross beak it will continue to get worse as it grows. A lot worse. It is a skull deformity and it cannot be corrected. Cases that can be corrected are usually slight enough early on that they aren't even really noticeable until they grow out a bit. Those can be trimmed with a Dremel (use a small pointy fine sanding bit) and only trim a little at a time off the top and bottom to help it line up as best you can. It is very easy to go into the quick so be careful. The beak is very much like a fingernail and is super sensitive so only do a little then go back and do a little again in a week or so. Then for maintenance you should only have to trim it a couple of times a year. The nail clipper thing is only if you are taking off the whole tip top and bottom like when there are pecking issues. (I personally would never do that to a bird but that is just me.) This chick above cannot be saved. It may be fine for a few weeks before it starts to really suffer and grow weak from lack of nutrition. It may get by just fine right now but please believe me, it will not survive with a case that bad and you will just continue to grow even more in love with it and the loss will be so much worse. The eye thing is not a biggie but that beak is bad. You would be doing you both a favor if you culled now. I know it is heartbreaking and I cry when I have to do it but it is what is best for the bird and that is our responsibility when we assume ownership. I will tell you although it sounds disgusting and you won't think you can do it, the best method I have found (well that my hubby found and pushed me toward for when he isn't here to spare me the task) is to take a pair of pruning shears, hold the chick over the trash bin outside and snip. It fast, not messy like it sounds and over in an instant. I would advise you to skip the "gas chamber", neck snap etc and just do it this way. Snip and walk away to clean off the shears. Don't look, just snip and move on. This situation is so familiar to me because I have lived it not too long ago and it's so agonizing that I had to tell you my $.02 and please feel free to disagree or ignore. I won't be offended. I have just learned this through personal experience and hope to save you the same pain. Good luck with whatever you choose to do and I am so sorry for your situation.

Hey all! I picked up 2 light brahma pullets today or I should say that's what they were marked as. They look to be about 2 wks-ish I'm guessing. They will be joining our small flock of 3 a RIR, EE, Golden Comet. Any advice for a new Brahma momma?? And any guess for age and if they look like light brahmas pullet chicks? Thanks all!

Umm...that dark one isn't a Light Brahma. Why do stores do that? Mix the breeds but don't change the signs. The light one is a Light Brahma but the dark one looks like a Dark Brahma. I personally love them both and think that my Dark Brahma hen is the most beautiful of all my layers. They are so big, docile and gorgeous. This is my Bella :

I like the idea of getting together to process some chickens. Only the obnoxious ones, lol.

I am totally in! We can pitch in to rent the equipment if nobody already has it, have a cookout and make a day of it.

Animal Lover~ Congratulations on your new business!! Just an idea since you live in Buck Creek, how about "Cluck Creek Eggs" or "Pass the Buck Creek Eggs!" (Not sure if you are familiar with the term "pass the buck.") If you would like an egg label or sign made in any style you'd envision, I'd be happy to help a young high school entrepreneur out. Just PM me. Here is the label I use (Since I don't get many eggs, I just give extras to neighbors or friends).

You could always raise Turkens and name it Buck Naked Farm!

My cat loves trying to bathe the chickens. I tried telling him it's a chicken & not a kitten, but he insisted Colonel Sanders get cleaned lol Colonel Sanders loves my cat too. Odd pair.

I almost spit my coffee! That's hysterical!

odd couples do happen a lot.
This was Bacon and LilX, best buddies! she used to ride on his back. Both would SCREAM if I took her away from him, I finally left it be.

They go together like bacon and eggs!

Hi Everyone!
I think I need help. I'm so new to chickens that mine should be worried. They are 8 weeks oops and still living in my basement. Their house is a 48" dog crate with an attached 2x5.5' run that I keep very clean. They have food, grit, fresh water, scraps, and petting daily. Today I went down to see them and muffin (on my avatar) is limping. She (I hope) sits around with her legs to the side kind of on her own. I took her outside with me and she just stood with me and then curled up like a cat on my lap. I can't see anything specifically injured but I know that something isn't right. She just kind of flops down. Should I separate her so that she gets some rest alone? Their coop is about 1 1/2 weeks from done so I can't move her outside yet.

If, and I stress the if, that is Marek's it is passed through inhaling the dander so separating them and THOROUGHLY cleaning out the brooder and changing the litter is imperative.

Marek's disease is a highly contagious viral neoplastic disease in chickens. It is named after József Marek, a Hungarian veterinarian. Occasionally misdiagnosed as an abtissue pathology it is caused by an alphaherpesvirus known as 'Marek's disease virus' (MDV) or Gallid herpesvirus 2 (GaHV-2). The disease is characterized by the presence of T cell lymphoma as well as infiltration of nerves and organs by lymphocytes.[1] Viruses related to MDV appear to be benign and can be used as vaccine strains to prevent Marek's disease. For example, the related Herpesvirus of Turkeys (HVT), causes no apparent disease in turkeys and continues to be used as a vaccine strain for prevention of Marek's disease (see below). Birds infected with GaHV-2 can be carriers and shedders of the virus for life. Newborn chicks are protected by maternal antibodies for a few weeks. After infection, microscopic lesions are present after one to two weeks, and gross lesions are present after three to four weeks. The virus is spread in dander from feather follicles and transmitted by inhalation.[2]There are six syndromes known to occur after infection with Marek's disease. These syndromes may overlap.

• Classical Marek's disease or neurolymphomatosis causes asymmetric paralysis of one or more limbs. With vagus nerve involvement, difficulty breathing or dilation of the crop may occur. Besides lesions in the peripheral nerves, there are frequently lymphomatous infiltration/tumours in the skin, skeletal muscle, visceral organs. Organs that are commonly affected include the ovary, spleen, liver, kidneys, lungs, heart, proventriculus and adrenals.
• Acute Marek's disease is an epidemic in a previously uninfected or unvaccinated flock, causing depression, paralysis, and death in a large number of birds (up to 80 percent). The age of onset is much earlier than the classic form; birds are four to eight weeks old when affected. Infiltration into multiple organs/tissue is observed.
• Ocular lymphomatosis causes lymphocyte infiltration of the iris (making the iris turn grey), unequal size of the pupils, and blindness.
• Cutaneous Marek's disease causes round, firm lesions at the feather follicles.[2]
• Atherosclerosis is induced in experimentally infected chickens.[3]
• Immunosuppression – Impairment of the T-lymphocytes prevent competent immunological response against pathogenic challenge and the affected birds become more susceptible to disease conditions such as coccidiosis and "Escherichia coli" infection .[4] Furthermore, without stimulation by cell-mediated immunity, the humoral immunity conferred by the B-cell lines from the Bursa of Fabricius also shuts down, thus resulting in birds that are totally immunocompromised.

Well, from my experience, if you do everything in your power to stop them from brooding, they'll set into it for a month or more.

But seriously, just leave her be and she'll go into broody mode on her own when she's ready. Mine usually have a couple days of the maybe-I-will-maybe-I-won't broody attitude before BAM! I'm getting this look from the nests:

I swear something must be in the water right now or it's just that spring is in the air but I have so many broodys that it is just crazy! It's actually not just my Silkies either. I have 5 Silkies, 2 Showgirls, 2 Bantam Cochins, I GLW, I Ameraucana and I SB OEGB hen all broody right now and not sitting on a thing. I collect the eggs every day (because my bators are full and I don't need more than I have much less am hatching- total hatchaholic) and still they sit. Ugh...short of making a bunch of broody breaker cages I don't know what to do with them. My cochins are super sweet but when they have chicks they are positively feral so I can't break them that way.

Behavior question: Just in the past few days, my chickens have been doing this little thing where they run full speed at each other, just before they collide they stretch up as tall as they can (reminds me of ballerinas on point), and they just hold that pose and lightly flutter their wings.

Is this normal? Why are they doing it? ALL of my chickens are doing it, not just a few.

It is quite entertaining!!!

Makes for great chicken TV (which is what we tell the kids we are watching when we settle in for an hour of admiring the chickens free ranging).

Love watching them establish the pecking order when they are that little. Better than WWF...sorry I am showing my age...WWE.

Talk about crash course chicken style. Lost 2 chicks today while at work pasty but got em I will never use medicated feed again I hope I saved the other 5. A lot of booty rubin with aquafore and warm water. I'm now going to soak all feed and use acvup in all their water. My older chickens are flourishing on soaked and fermented feed and raw ACV in their water I also had my 5 week old Marans plucked by another bird so my protein level needed to be raised and my fodder system is now under construction I just need to decide on an automated water delivery system

The medicated feed won't cause it. Pasty butt happens and it is gross, but it would still happen on regular chick starter too so don't worry about changing it unless you go to FF. Hope it gets better. I have cleaned a lot of butts this year. Way more than last year but only from my hatchery chicks. All that I have hatched myself have been clean as a whistle. Come to think of it, the hatchery birds that I let a broody foster stayed clean too. Who knows... but everyone was on the same medicated feed before and after the pasty butt episodes.

Well, I went downstairs to check on them and I have a second chick doing the same thing. I just finished cleaning out another dog crate (who knew they would be so handy) and am putting the two chicks in there together. I hope this doesn't spread, but I guess I need to replace all their bedding too?

Oh no... I am so sorry to hear that. Definitely separate them and sterilize everything. Then all you can do is pray.

I now pronounce the grand opening of chicken city!!! (Minus the paint job that I have yet to start)

Looks good! You got that done fast!

This is my 2nd time incubating eggs and I have a question. Iv done tons of research but didn't see anything about chicks making a zipper on the side of their eggs? Its on the fat end of the egg near the top but its on the side. Should I leave it alone and see if he figures it out? Id say hes had his hole for about an hour and a half. I can see the white membrane it doesn't look like its drying out so ibdont think that's trappingthe chick in there?

The membrane isn't trapping it in there. They often sit after externally pipping for a good 24 hrs at least while they build up strength to break free. They run out of oxygen approx a day after internally pipping and then twitch (almost like a seizure) from the buildup of CO2. That twitching causes them to hit their beak (with the egg tooth) against the shell thus creating an external pip. Then they have to sit and rest from all that stress and get ready for round two. The zipping part. You don't usually need to help them to do it. You just have to sit on your hands and let them do it in their own time. I KNOW how hard it is but opening the bator (even quickly) will do more harm than good at this point. Hang in there!

You can eat fertilized eggs, right? I plan on keeping two of my Roos, I did have plans earlier to build a seperate enclosure for them, but with the way things are going I am going to be lucky to get the coop done on time! My mother kept chickens when she was a child, and whenever I say that you can eat the eggs even if its fertilized, she just gets this "all knowing" look on her face and shakes her head like a baby chick is going to be in it. If I gather them every day, the chick shouldn't have started forming, right?

Roosters are great to have in your flock. They are usually great protectors and if you collect every day, you would never know you were eating a fertilized egg. If it hadn't been sitting under a broody hen for a very long period of time or put into an incubator then you won't get babies. They taste the same and have exactly the same nutritional value. There are an awful lot of ridiculous yet common misconceptions out there about fresh eggs. Like some people think that brown eggs taste better than white but if you have layers of both in your flock and they are fed the same then they taste the same too. That came about because most people that raised chickens had brown egg layers and thought that only store eggs were white. Well, fresh are WAY better but people can own white layers too. I have heard people say that green shelled eggs are rotten. My favorite is, "You have to have a rooster to get eggs.". Jeez people...