Hello everyone!
I'm (relatively) new to keeping birds... started the adventure almost two years ago. (This site has been an incredible resource!)
I only have three ladies currently. Only one of our original batch of 6 hatchery chicks is left, a wonderful, friendly RIR, Red.
Red recently lost her only buddy, a Spanish black turkey hen, Moe. I know chickies and turks don't always mix, but these ladies were pretty content together, and free ranged happily during the day.
Well, we lost poor Moe at the beginning of the month, and Red was pitifully lonesome.
Sooo... I did a really dumb thing... I ran out with good intentions to get her a friend, but brought home sketchy birds.
All of our flock problems over the past two years have been due to predators or accident (in Moe's case) so I really didn't know what to look for when it came to buying young adult birds. Lets just say this past month has taught me a lot in that regard...
The new gals are young but I'm not sure of age. One looks like a mutt barred rock and the other is a buff orph. I knew they didn't look nearly as good as my hen when I got them, but I didn't realize just how bad they were until I got them home. After berating myself mercilessly for bringing sick birds onto the property, I started doing research and addressing on problem at a time.
Its because of these two sick chickies that I decided to finally join up. I'll start a health thread about them next.
So a little about me: My husband and I live "out in the country" in North Florida on several wooded acres. I work from home and take care of our 10 month old son. We are animal people through and through. Also part of our family are an aging lab/pit mix, a cat, a raccoon, and a pot bellied pig.
Looking forward to learning!
I'm (relatively) new to keeping birds... started the adventure almost two years ago. (This site has been an incredible resource!)
I only have three ladies currently. Only one of our original batch of 6 hatchery chicks is left, a wonderful, friendly RIR, Red.
Red recently lost her only buddy, a Spanish black turkey hen, Moe. I know chickies and turks don't always mix, but these ladies were pretty content together, and free ranged happily during the day.
Well, we lost poor Moe at the beginning of the month, and Red was pitifully lonesome.
Sooo... I did a really dumb thing... I ran out with good intentions to get her a friend, but brought home sketchy birds.
All of our flock problems over the past two years have been due to predators or accident (in Moe's case) so I really didn't know what to look for when it came to buying young adult birds. Lets just say this past month has taught me a lot in that regard...
The new gals are young but I'm not sure of age. One looks like a mutt barred rock and the other is a buff orph. I knew they didn't look nearly as good as my hen when I got them, but I didn't realize just how bad they were until I got them home. After berating myself mercilessly for bringing sick birds onto the property, I started doing research and addressing on problem at a time.
Its because of these two sick chickies that I decided to finally join up. I'll start a health thread about them next.
So a little about me: My husband and I live "out in the country" in North Florida on several wooded acres. I work from home and take care of our 10 month old son. We are animal people through and through. Also part of our family are an aging lab/pit mix, a cat, a raccoon, and a pot bellied pig.
Looking forward to learning!
