INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[animallover2202]

I know this is not. Chicken related but does anyone know a home remedie to cure the cat cold??? Ms. Oreo has a cold she's sneezing and breathing weirdly any home remedies would help (if they dont hurt my cat) thanks

 

[Chic-n-farmer]

If you let the guineas brood, they are good brooders but poor moms. They arent attentive like a chicken, and tend to forget about the babies, so I have been told...Most of the guinea people I have spoke to take the eggs and incubate themselves due to the high mortality with the moms in charge.

I don't know that I would say they are bad mothers. I think our weather has so much to do with it. Guinea keets are fully capable of keeping up with momma guinea's frenetic rushing around, but they are easily chilled on our cool, damp mornings and that is what usually gets them. I am sure in their native climate things are very different.

I prefer to incubate the eggs myself as personal experience in chasing guinea keets has shown me that it is much easier that way! While chicks may cheap and cry when they are separated from their mother, a guinea keet will go to ground and remain perfectly still and quiet.
Even a well-manicured lawn (not that we have one!) can make looking for a day-old keet feel like searching for a needle in a haystack.
And do I even need to mention what an angry guinea momma is like when you are trying to catch her babies?

Yep. I agree that incubating the eggs is the easy way to go.

 

[itsjustme]

If you let the guineas brood, they are good brooders but poor moms. They arent attentive like a chicken, and tend to forget about the babies, so I have been told...Most of the guinea people I have spoke to take the eggs and incubate themselves due to the high mortality with the moms in charge.

that's what I hear also. But my incubators full and these 3 guineas are sharing and sitting on the same nest. And I think I have a 4th hen still laying in it. She comes in when 1 of the others are off eating stays awhile then leaves. The amount of eggs is insane. And the grass in the area they are nesting in is super high and driving me nuts lol

 

[Chic-n-farmer]

So, we had no idea our 12 week old chickens would try to eat just about anything, including dead baby birds


. I'll make the picture small if anybody is squeamish. Just click on it:

We finally got the bird out, but it was too late. I wondered why our chicken was running around, with other birds chasing her!

Years ago we had pigeons that lofted in the top of the chicken house. If an unfortunate squeaker happened to fly within the chickens' reach all we would find was the skeleton.

That's why we keep them well apart now.

My kids were grossed out when they saw one of our chickens slurp up a small dead snake like a strand of spaghetti.

As a dear, departed friend on BYC used to say:

Poultry- they may be your pets, they may be your hobby, they may be your livestock. But remember, if you fall down in the pen, unconscious? They WILL eat you.

 

[EmSteele]

Need some opinions! Husband swears we need to wait until our chickens are a year old to butcher....that the chicken wouldn't be 8 pounds before then. I think we can butcher a lot earlier and have more tender meat that way, especially since we have dual purpose breeds... what are the pros and cons of both sides?

 

[Too Fast]

^^^I thought I read somewhere that the best time for freezer camp is when they are 12-16 weeks old. I may be wrong, tho. Ours are now 12.5 weeks old.

 

[EmSteele]

^^^I thought I read somewhere that the best time for freezer camp is when they are 12-16 weeks old.  I may be wrong, tho.  Ours are now 12.5 weeks old.

That's what I've read too. Husband was told by his grandpa years ago that it's a waste of chicken and they aren't big enough by then. All my research shows 12 weeks as earliest and by 22 weeks for tender meat.

 

[kabhyper1]

Hello! Haven't been on here in a good long while.
I have been hatching / raising / selling chickens for a long time and have decided to 'retire' from chickens (too much competition from farm stores now). Still gonna keep birds, just done with hatching / selling.
I have 9 assorted color guinea fowl for sale. 6 hens, 3 males. Please email [email protected] if interested.
Also have a 2 yr old white silkie hen w/ a bum leg for free. She makes gorgeous babies.

Glad to see you on here!

 

[SkinNFluff]

this is a very sad day. this is one of our silkies. she has stood on one leg for months now and refused to leave the coop. no swelling and no other symptoms. i never found any sore spots or anything with her leg. 3 weeks ago we brought her in from the coop into the small coop we have inside because she started to loose a little weight. we started her on poly-vi-sol and anti-biotics. she started to seem like she was getting better. then last week that all changed and she collapsed. she is now unable to stand at all and just lays on her side. i have been helping her eat and drink once an hour since. i feel the time has come that it would be best to end her suffering. she has no quality of life at this point. she is one of my favorite chickens. i feel like my heart is being ripped out but know this will be for the best. please don't think this is easy for me because it isn't. this is one of the hardest things i have ever had to do. she will always be in my heart.

 

[CCCCCCCCHICKENS]

I know this is not. Chicken related but does anyone know a home remedie to cure the cat cold??? Ms. Oreo has a cold she's sneezing and breathing weirdly any home remedies would help (if they dont hurt my cat) thanks

When my cats have a cold i give them medicated mi;lk. It is really for cows so you haave to cut back a lot on how big of a dose to give.i always just guess, i give it to my baby chicks sometimes too. most feed stores carry it.