INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[ellymayRans]

Pipped I am so sorry for your loss. This made me cry. I know how much you love your birds. Prayers for you.

hugs to you too! I'm sooo sorry. What a wonderful accomplishment though. Great job raising that girl!

 

[ellymayRans]

Hey all, just wanted to chime in to be part of this great Indiana thread.

Welcome!!

 

[raisinemright]

Got my Favs home! Changed some coops around now all I have with my Favs us just the little bantam Cochin hen. They get along great. I'm really impressed with the Rooster I picked out (had two to choose from)!

 

[raisinemright]

I picked up two new waterers at TSC tonight. I liked the design the price is crazy high for a waterer but I thought I would try it.
I really like them so far and if you have seen them but didn't want pay the price imo they are pretty good.
Here they are

They run $14.99

 

[Faraday40]

OK all 9 eggs that went into lockdown, hatched, & were moved into the brooder. I got 6 black & 3 lavender chicks.
So out of my 12 fertile eggs. 75% hatched. (If I didn't drop an egg on day 18, perhaps it would have been 83%. I still feel bad about that one!)

Here's a handful of cuteness.

I had to band some of the chicks so I can tell them apart. Some are mixes.
Like this Easter Egger Orpington. Looks like she got her Mama's cheeks.


My busy brooder. I'm trying paper towels for the 1st 2-3 days. I think I still prefer the large wood flakes, though. The brooder always looks messy!


This was a simple test hatch. I get my good eggs on Sunday!

 

[ellymayRans]

A few updates on all my doctoring around here!

1st: RIR with the prolapse vent..whoo..she worried me good! I kept her on no feed for 72 hours and vitamin water only. After 3 days of putting her back together I moved her to the garage as she was in a box kept mostly in a dark bathroom but an hour or two a day. Day 2 in the garage she started to lapse again but not as bad. I'm sure it was because she was back on feed struggling with bowel movements. I put her back together 2 more times and then she lapsed again!! I finally said what will be will be.. 2 days past and Boom she was normal! She's doing awesome now! Yet to lay an egg so I'm hoping she doesn't end up egg bound but for now she has free run of the garage to outside whenever she likes.

2nd: Wry neck silkie. She's been on selinium, Poly vi and Vitamin E. I've lost track of how many days. She has been hit and miss but I didn't get the selinium until Monday cuz our walgreens was out til then. It's odd..there are times she is twisted head upside down walking backwards then I refill her bowl and she straightens right up and eats no problem. Tonight is the first time she's sleeping with her head tucked on her back like normal and not upside down!?! Still waiting on her to improve full time! She's in the garage hospital.

3rd: The sweet little d'uccles roos. 6 of the 7 had an extreme case of scaly leg mites. Monday I immediately started treatment when I got them home. I chose to go the swift fast treatment..1st day dipped feet in gasoline drip dry and then slathered with A+D ointment, 2nd day ointment again. Skipped any treatment yesterday..busy with work and kids, late and cold. Today I ran a warm bath with baby soap and let their feet soak for like 2 hours..then proceeded to pick and chop away..mind you with wire cutters that have rounded tips!! Gosh they look so much better already. One is going to lose a couple toes on each foot. A couple others toes have turned and are facing the wrong direction but they are able to walk a little better and I think they will get thru this. I spent about 4 hours at least taking turns on them. I'd work at as much as I could then let them soak more while I moved to the next one.

The first day several of them bit the tar out of me (tried I had gloves on)lol..but the past 2 treatments none did. They all let me work them over on their sides etc with out a fuss. All going to be good boys!

A couple pics

 

[ellymayRans]

Speaking of the d'uccles. Forgot to kindly remind everyone that of the 6 I belive 4 have homes. That leaves 2 that will need a forever home!
I've not decided which one I'm keeping yet...I just adore them all but I kinda feel like I shouldn't be sending the one that's losing toes anywhere?? I don't know what to do about that.

If anyone is interested in one please let me know. I won't be sending them anywhere until I know they are all healed up. I'm guessing another week at least.

I will take some individual pics the next nice day we have when I can have them posed all pretty!

 

[ellymayRans]

Re: deep litter... We are coming up on 9 months of deep litter, and it is pretty awesome. Thanks to the suggestions above, I have located some local wood chips from a tree service and we hope to go fill out our truck with some soon, for the run. Our run is small, but the chickens + the melted snow + spring rain have really turned it into a yucko zone! I honestly can't wait to get some wood chips in there, but it's a matter of working it into our schedule, since we have to go load them, ourselves. (I'll be on the lookout for a tree service delivery soon.) Hope all are doing well. I've skimmed a few posts, but as usual, I am about 1000 posts behind. We are 19 days out from our second ever batch of chicks. Originally I figured I would have to sell off extras if I had overcrowding, but then the coolest thing happened: we adopted a new dog. I don't know why I felt compelled to adopt a dog (actually, I do...it was all the dog rescue posts I see every day on Facebook), but we ended up with a beautiful five year old Great Pyrenees. After a few weeks together, I tested him several times on a leash around my chickens. I am happy to say that not only does he love guarding the chickens, but he seems to be capable to teaching my Jack Russell Terrier to leave them alone, as well. This is huge news for us because the animals have always time-shared the yard. It's part of the routine and I don't mind it, but it will be a lovely safety-check / time-saver if the dogs and birds can all be out at once. PLUS...I don't have to stress about extra chickens if they are free ranging in the yard all day! All but one, at any rate...we have a pooch in the hospital for the second day in a row. He hurt himself and we've been to two vets: one said nerve damage, the other said a blood clot. We're hoping for a full recovery. If he does recover, a friend who knows GPs well tells me the GP will likely be able to train both dogs. I am amazed by all this. I just wanted to adopt a sweet dog who needed a good home. I never thought he might like a "job," but he sure loves it. Hope you are all keeping warm. I finally permanently unplugged my dog bowl water heater in the chicken run. Hopefully that doesn't curse us with more freezing weather. My silly silkie who showered in that awful freeze seems to be fine. I don't think she got frostbite. If she did, I just haven't been able to tell. I am still patiently waiting for my guinea hen to lay. Just because I am walking the yard looking in all the corners under last fall's leaves doesn't mean I'm impatient... Some new pics... Louie, the first day the birds got to come out and forage again. What a long freeze that was! He only stands on the rail when he is checking on me to see if I'm bringing kitchen scraps out soon. (aka spying on me) They had the weirdest chickens at Rural King last weekend! We adopted Samson just before the 2nd to last snow melted off. We discovered he loved snow A LOT when the 9" fell the day after the melt. After testing him multiple times on the leash and finding he had no impulse to go after the chickens and they had no fear of him (unlike our terrier and hound), I started taking him out without a leash, while holding onto him by the collar. In very short order he won my trust and now he seems to prefer to hang out with the chickens instead of me. If I get out his leash he gets excited to go for a walk down our country road. I love this dog!!! Farrah says hello! Took this with her yesterday. Well, I am officially over limit for rating content today, so if I did not "like" your post, forgive me. Welcome new members and howdy to old. I can't believe it has almost been a year since I got my girls! It has been a wonderful journey and I am looking to many more years of keeping birds!

I love GP's! He's a doll and they surely can be wonderful livestock dogs. You're fortunate to have found him and he work well with your birds. My mom has another I've posted pics here before of him but we've both had them, she's on her second but he is limited to the yard now instead of their 300 acres because he was going to her dads..next house adjoining land and killing the barn cats and he hates birds. They don't have birds but he goes nuts everytime he sees them! Shame.. Congrats!!! Look forward to more pics of him! Such eye candy!

 

[leslea]

I love GP's! He's a doll and they surely can be wonderful livestock dogs. You're fortunate to have found him and he work well with your birds. My mom has another I've posted pics here before of him but we've both had them, she's on her second but he is limited to the yard now instead of their 300 acres because he was going to her dads..next house adjoining land and killing the barn cats and he hates birds. They don't have birds but he goes nuts everytime he sees them! Shame..

Congrats!!! Look forward to more pics of him! Such eye candy!

Thank you!

I can't believe how much I love him! LOL! He has such a wonderful personality. When he gets excited and jumps around like a puppy it is a real laugh, because he's so BIG.

I've heard they will roam if they don't have a fence. He will stay in our yard unless we take him for a walk. I bet your mom goes crazy having to chase her dog down! I guess they get bored, though.

 

[ellymayRans]

Why no males? Male ducks are much quieter than female ducks, and they sound like dirty old men telling jokes. In my experience, they're protective of their girls but utterly incapable of inflicting any harm on other pets or children (excepting the really rare case of a drake that wants to rape a hen. Give him a girl of his own, and he won't bother). Just like with chickens, it's all about individual temperaments, but a drake is a very quiet animal (unlike a rooster), and he can't peck you (unlike a rooster). The only time a duck has ever remotely hurt anyone on my property was when an injured drake(he'd been mauled by a large dog) bit the inside of my upper arm while we (DH and I) were rebandaging him and giving him shots. For all the venom he could possibly muster, I got a teeny tiny bruise--from a 10-12lb drake putting his whole might into biting the most sensitive skin on my body.  

My ducks love a kiddie pool, but if you're not willing to give them puddles or tiny pools, get Runners. Runners don't need large bodies of water (none of them do, really when it comes down to it; it's just something they really like to have); just give them a bucket to drink out of and wash their faces in. Runners are also gentle and hilarious (like all ducks, in my experience). Even when they didn't particularly like being pet, they won't hurt anyone. They also flock in a really tight group and look like a roving herd of bowling pins. Like I said, absolutely hilarious.

Also, if you get a small group of them, you get ducklings and eggs. Eggs are huge and great for baking; and ducklings are about the cutest thing on God's green earth.

If you're interested, I have a broody Black Swedish sitting on a bunch of Pekin mixes right now, and I can let you know when they hatch. I have two Pekin drakes, two Rouen hens, one Pekin hen, one Black Swedish, and one chocolate Muscovy. Babies could be any combination of those, and they should be easy to tell apart. All are great layers, and my Pekin hen lays a ton of double yolkers. Outside of emu, I think this bird lays the biggest eggs I've ever seen.

And on another bright side, ducks don't get lost. Even if someone chases them from your property, they always find their way back. They're true blue homebodies.

Thanks!

No males due to the potential chicken mating issue=death to chickens and ultimately duck!!

My son is still trying to convince dad..lol... I'm always willing to try something once! Haha! But I would just need a plan for rehoming if a drake popped up. For as much as the occasional baby quackers waddling filling a momma is soo appealing I think I could accomplish with bought fertile if decided!

I also am more interested in the least noisy breed. My neighbors behind us have what sounds like a hundred that are non stop quacking but I've never seen them as they're on the other side of some trees with a good amount of land between us but wow they annoy me! Haha! I'm sure they think the same about my constant group of crowing machines this side of the trees...if they can hear them over the quacking!