- Thread starter
- #31
- Aug 2, 2009
- 69
- 1
- 29
Quote:
One little square bale lasts me 2 years.... I keep it in a metal drum..
One little square bale lasts me 2 years.... I keep it in a metal drum..
Is Hay Good for Chicken Bedding, Or Not Good?
- Thread starter Chickenz1
- Start date
Quote:
See my other post about bringing him in the AC..
I forgot to mention I did scramble an egg in a tiny bit of butter..He did not want anything to do with it..
Would mites just bother his face and back of his head?? Skin under his body feathers and around his little butt isn't dry looking or scaley...Just the regular light color...
Woweee!
I just went through to see what your fellow's ailment is and looked at your other posts- poor thing!!
If it were mine, I'd bring him in anyway, put him on a cushy pillow in a box so he's stable, and put food an water near him. I'd put him on a towel so you can change it whenever he poos. I'd try to keep him on a normal diet so he gets enough protein (too many treats=not enough protein) and I'd give him yogurt for extra calcium (possible cracked bones?) and probiotics (good bacteria for his guts) to replenish his intestines following the antibiotics he got. My hen also fell off of her roost in a bedtime territory scuffle- I wonder how often that happens?
I'd also not worry about his pasty comb and face- this and the panting are likely due to stress. My broken pelvis hen had horrible raspy breathing for a week, despite absolutely NO injury to her chest or lungs. It was all stress. The coloring of the comb and face will pale and shrink even due to stress and normal cycles- in this case, stress. My hen's lovely comb went pale, yellowed, shrunken and flopped over. Now that she's healed, she's getting back to normal quickly. It's nearly upright again.
I think the poor fellow needs a cool, quiet place to get some rest and heal. A darker room will allow him to get very mellow- we kept Georgie (my hen) in the dark bath for a couple of days, initially, so she'd sleep a lot. It was good for her- we thought she wouldn't even make it through the night, initially, her breathing was so bad. She was a mouth-breather for 2 solid weeks, though, before that part quit. It was just what her system told her to do.
I hope your little guy is okay!!
See my other post about bringing him in the AC..
I forgot to mention I did scramble an egg in a tiny bit of butter..He did not want anything to do with it..
Would mites just bother his face and back of his head?? Skin under his body feathers and around his little butt isn't dry looking or scaley...Just the regular light color...
Woweee!
I just went through to see what your fellow's ailment is and looked at your other posts- poor thing!!
If it were mine, I'd bring him in anyway, put him on a cushy pillow in a box so he's stable, and put food an water near him. I'd put him on a towel so you can change it whenever he poos. I'd try to keep him on a normal diet so he gets enough protein (too many treats=not enough protein) and I'd give him yogurt for extra calcium (possible cracked bones?) and probiotics (good bacteria for his guts) to replenish his intestines following the antibiotics he got. My hen also fell off of her roost in a bedtime territory scuffle- I wonder how often that happens?
I'd also not worry about his pasty comb and face- this and the panting are likely due to stress. My broken pelvis hen had horrible raspy breathing for a week, despite absolutely NO injury to her chest or lungs. It was all stress. The coloring of the comb and face will pale and shrink even due to stress and normal cycles- in this case, stress. My hen's lovely comb went pale, yellowed, shrunken and flopped over. Now that she's healed, she's getting back to normal quickly. It's nearly upright again.
I think the poor fellow needs a cool, quiet place to get some rest and heal. A darker room will allow him to get very mellow- we kept Georgie (my hen) in the dark bath for a couple of days, initially, so she'd sleep a lot. It was good for her- we thought she wouldn't even make it through the night, initially, her breathing was so bad. She was a mouth-breather for 2 solid weeks, though, before that part quit. It was just what her system told her to do.
I hope your little guy is okay!!
Last edited:
- Thread starter
- #33
- Aug 2, 2009
- 69
- 1
- 29
Quote:
See my other post about bringing him in the AC..
I forgot to mention I did scramble an egg in a tiny bit of butter..He did not want anything to do with it..
Would mites just bother his face and back of his head?? Skin under his body feathers and around his little butt isn't dry looking or scaley...Just the regular light color...
Woweee!
I just went through to see what your fellow's ailment is and looked at your other posts- poor thing!!
If it were mine, I'd bring him in anyway, put him on a cushy pillow in a box so he's stable, and put food an water near him. I'd put him on a towel so you can change it whenever he poos. I'd try to keep him on a normal diet so he gets enough protein (too many treats=not enough protein) and I'd give him yogurt for extra calcium (possible cracked bones?) and probiotics (good bacteria for his guts) to replenish his intestines following the antibiotics he got. My hen also fell off of her roost in a bedtime territory scuffle- I wonder how often that happens?
I'd also not worry about his pasty comb and face- this and the panting are likely due to stress. My broken pelvis hen had horrible raspy breathing for a week, despite absolutely NO injury to her chest or lungs. It was all stress. The coloring of the comb and face will pale and shrink even due to stress and normal cycles- in this case, stress. My hen's lovely comb went pale, yellowed, shrunken and flopped over. Now that she's healed, she's getting back to normal quickly. It's nearly upright again.
I think the poor fellow needs a cool, quiet place to get some rest and heal. A darker room will allow him to get very mellow- we kept Georgie (my hen) in the dark bath for a couple of days, initially, so she'd sleep a lot. It was good for her- we thought she wouldn't even make it through the night, initially, her breathing was so bad. She was a mouth-breather for 2 solid weeks, though, before that part quit. It was just what her system told her to do.
I hope your little guy is okay!!
Well he did make it through the night, and was breathing more through his nose this morning, but was not interested in eating what I could mix up for him..I mixed up scrambled egg, yogurt, some soaked supplimental pellets and some starter crumbles into a mash..He did not want any part of it..So then I mixed up a raw egg yolk, yogurt, a drop of honey and a pinch of sugar, and the juice from 4 black grapes..He rewarded me by taking maybe a whole ml before he said NO MORE...
I put him back in his pen with grains and granite grit in front of him, and I saw him pick a tiny bit..Then I gave him a little cut up watermelon..He did drink water on his own, and he did eat the watermelon..Then I went to town and got VetRx and some regular crumbles..By the time I got back, he was mouth breathing more again..I got a bit of yogurt and water into him, but again, just a tiny dab..HE IS STILL ON the antibiotic.. Today is day 5 since I restarted it..About 12 days altogether out of the last 21 days..I am recalling when my family doc kept putting my son on antibiotics whenever he'd get tonsilitis, but he would KEEP getting it..Went to a pediatrician who said get him off all antibiotics..So I'm wanting to take this rooster off..HOWEVER, there are 2 things I fear..I fear that it is the antibiotic that causes him to have ANY desire to eat..And I fear that somehow he just might have an infection from the injury to his back..Without plucking his feathers out, I can' tell much about it..Just a hump there.. and if I stop the drug before the 14 days are up, it might get worse.. I DID dilute the stuff a little in case he's getting too much, though I mixed it 1/8 cup of (1 ounce) Aureomycin powder to one cup of water for the stock, then one tablespoon of stock to a half gallon of water...Or in this case, I use the vitamin/electrolyte water to mix it in instead of plain water..so he gets the meds and vitamins together in every sip..
I hope I mixed the antibiotic right..The directions are for like 100 chickens at a time..Vet had it worked out for using a whole package of powder at once, and I did not want to use the whole package because it would just waste it..so I figured it down as best I could..Not being good at math, I may have messed that up, but I don't think so..The color of the final stage looks right..Very pale yellow..
I will get a box and pillow and towels and set him up in the house...Maybe the VetRx will help his nose even though the central AC tends to stuff it up.. (It does it to me too..always has..)
His poor little face..When I put the VetRx on, dry skin flakes fell off..He moved his head..seemed to lean into it..but could have been trying to push me off his face, so don't know if he liked it or disliked it..
See my other post about bringing him in the AC..
I forgot to mention I did scramble an egg in a tiny bit of butter..He did not want anything to do with it..
Would mites just bother his face and back of his head?? Skin under his body feathers and around his little butt isn't dry looking or scaley...Just the regular light color...
Woweee!
I just went through to see what your fellow's ailment is and looked at your other posts- poor thing!!
If it were mine, I'd bring him in anyway, put him on a cushy pillow in a box so he's stable, and put food an water near him. I'd put him on a towel so you can change it whenever he poos. I'd try to keep him on a normal diet so he gets enough protein (too many treats=not enough protein) and I'd give him yogurt for extra calcium (possible cracked bones?) and probiotics (good bacteria for his guts) to replenish his intestines following the antibiotics he got. My hen also fell off of her roost in a bedtime territory scuffle- I wonder how often that happens?
I'd also not worry about his pasty comb and face- this and the panting are likely due to stress. My broken pelvis hen had horrible raspy breathing for a week, despite absolutely NO injury to her chest or lungs. It was all stress. The coloring of the comb and face will pale and shrink even due to stress and normal cycles- in this case, stress. My hen's lovely comb went pale, yellowed, shrunken and flopped over. Now that she's healed, she's getting back to normal quickly. It's nearly upright again.
I think the poor fellow needs a cool, quiet place to get some rest and heal. A darker room will allow him to get very mellow- we kept Georgie (my hen) in the dark bath for a couple of days, initially, so she'd sleep a lot. It was good for her- we thought she wouldn't even make it through the night, initially, her breathing was so bad. She was a mouth-breather for 2 solid weeks, though, before that part quit. It was just what her system told her to do.
I hope your little guy is okay!!
Well he did make it through the night, and was breathing more through his nose this morning, but was not interested in eating what I could mix up for him..I mixed up scrambled egg, yogurt, some soaked supplimental pellets and some starter crumbles into a mash..He did not want any part of it..So then I mixed up a raw egg yolk, yogurt, a drop of honey and a pinch of sugar, and the juice from 4 black grapes..He rewarded me by taking maybe a whole ml before he said NO MORE...
I put him back in his pen with grains and granite grit in front of him, and I saw him pick a tiny bit..Then I gave him a little cut up watermelon..He did drink water on his own, and he did eat the watermelon..Then I went to town and got VetRx and some regular crumbles..By the time I got back, he was mouth breathing more again..I got a bit of yogurt and water into him, but again, just a tiny dab..HE IS STILL ON the antibiotic.. Today is day 5 since I restarted it..About 12 days altogether out of the last 21 days..I am recalling when my family doc kept putting my son on antibiotics whenever he'd get tonsilitis, but he would KEEP getting it..Went to a pediatrician who said get him off all antibiotics..So I'm wanting to take this rooster off..HOWEVER, there are 2 things I fear..I fear that it is the antibiotic that causes him to have ANY desire to eat..And I fear that somehow he just might have an infection from the injury to his back..Without plucking his feathers out, I can' tell much about it..Just a hump there.. and if I stop the drug before the 14 days are up, it might get worse.. I DID dilute the stuff a little in case he's getting too much, though I mixed it 1/8 cup of (1 ounce) Aureomycin powder to one cup of water for the stock, then one tablespoon of stock to a half gallon of water...Or in this case, I use the vitamin/electrolyte water to mix it in instead of plain water..so he gets the meds and vitamins together in every sip..
I hope I mixed the antibiotic right..The directions are for like 100 chickens at a time..Vet had it worked out for using a whole package of powder at once, and I did not want to use the whole package because it would just waste it..so I figured it down as best I could..Not being good at math, I may have messed that up, but I don't think so..The color of the final stage looks right..Very pale yellow..
I will get a box and pillow and towels and set him up in the house...Maybe the VetRx will help his nose even though the central AC tends to stuff it up.. (It does it to me too..always has..)
His poor little face..When I put the VetRx on, dry skin flakes fell off..He moved his head..seemed to lean into it..but could have been trying to push me off his face, so don't know if he liked it or disliked it..
Poor guy!
I think the hump may be many things, but I'm not sure whether he'd have an infection if he didn't break the skin- but you're right, about not stopping the antibiotic mid-treatment.
I guess I think you shouldn't go any further than that, though, because it may be decreasing his appetite if it upsets his guts, which generally happens.
I'm not sure about the vitamins in the water- I think I've heard not to do that, but don't know why. I would be feeding him as much yogurt as possible, since that will assist his intestinal flora.
I would highly recommend getting Exact baby parrot food to give to him- when fed straight it seems to have a flavor they enjoy- mine have always eaten it when nothing else would go down. When immobile, my hen ate a couple of tablespoons mixed with water and did well.
I wish I knew what was going on with his skin- perhaps open up a thread about it? ThreeHorses is wonderful with health care for chickens- you may want to pm her.
Just read on another thread that Vitamin B helps with appetite- go get some parrot food, as it has lots of Vitamin B in it!!
I think the hump may be many things, but I'm not sure whether he'd have an infection if he didn't break the skin- but you're right, about not stopping the antibiotic mid-treatment.
I guess I think you shouldn't go any further than that, though, because it may be decreasing his appetite if it upsets his guts, which generally happens.
I'm not sure about the vitamins in the water- I think I've heard not to do that, but don't know why. I would be feeding him as much yogurt as possible, since that will assist his intestinal flora.
I would highly recommend getting Exact baby parrot food to give to him- when fed straight it seems to have a flavor they enjoy- mine have always eaten it when nothing else would go down. When immobile, my hen ate a couple of tablespoons mixed with water and did well.
I wish I knew what was going on with his skin- perhaps open up a thread about it? ThreeHorses is wonderful with health care for chickens- you may want to pm her.
Just read on another thread that Vitamin B helps with appetite- go get some parrot food, as it has lots of Vitamin B in it!!
Last edited:
- Thread starter
- #35
- Aug 2, 2009
- 69
- 1
- 29
Quote:
I don't know if a frature can develope infection without having broken the skin or not..So much I do not know..
I've been talking with threehorses on another thread, or another forum, or someplace..
The vitamins I'm using is Durvet water soluble powder..a "nutritional source of vitamins and electrolytes",,,it's got B12 and E in it, amongst other things.. I can't figure how it would hurt to mix the antibiotic and vitamins/electrolytes together..He has to have both... I'll see what I can find out on that..
No, I probably won't go past 10 days in a row, then not start any more antibiotic..14 days in a row is the max on this Aureomycin..
He's been in a big box on a pillow (and towel and paper towels over that) for the past 5 hours, and he has cooled down..Comb is still warm, but the body isn't overheated like it seemed to be when I brought him in..He may or may not have picked at the crumbles and grain and grit I put in there for him..Hard to tell..His water is right by him where he can reach that too..I offered water with the eyedropper and he declined, so he may be continuing to drink..He's still mouth breathing, but I put another round of VetRx around his nose and cheeks, and within seconds he seemed to not be breathing quite so fast with his mouth so wide open..I put dark cloth ovre 2/3 of the box to make it dimmer for him..He is only about 6 feet from his brothers outside so he hears them crow..
Here in awhile I'll get him out of the box and see if i can get some yogurt into him..He HAS to be more physically comfortable on that pillow than on hay on the ground..and more comfortable not being out in that heat..
I will make a note to get the baby parrot food and try him on it..How often did you give your hen the 2 tablespoons mixed with water? Did she drink it on her own, or did you have to coax with an eye dropper?
I don't know if a frature can develope infection without having broken the skin or not..So much I do not know..
I've been talking with threehorses on another thread, or another forum, or someplace..
The vitamins I'm using is Durvet water soluble powder..a "nutritional source of vitamins and electrolytes",,,it's got B12 and E in it, amongst other things.. I can't figure how it would hurt to mix the antibiotic and vitamins/electrolytes together..He has to have both... I'll see what I can find out on that..
No, I probably won't go past 10 days in a row, then not start any more antibiotic..14 days in a row is the max on this Aureomycin..
He's been in a big box on a pillow (and towel and paper towels over that) for the past 5 hours, and he has cooled down..Comb is still warm, but the body isn't overheated like it seemed to be when I brought him in..He may or may not have picked at the crumbles and grain and grit I put in there for him..Hard to tell..His water is right by him where he can reach that too..I offered water with the eyedropper and he declined, so he may be continuing to drink..He's still mouth breathing, but I put another round of VetRx around his nose and cheeks, and within seconds he seemed to not be breathing quite so fast with his mouth so wide open..I put dark cloth ovre 2/3 of the box to make it dimmer for him..He is only about 6 feet from his brothers outside so he hears them crow..
Here in awhile I'll get him out of the box and see if i can get some yogurt into him..He HAS to be more physically comfortable on that pillow than on hay on the ground..and more comfortable not being out in that heat..
I will make a note to get the baby parrot food and try him on it..How often did you give your hen the 2 tablespoons mixed with water? Did she drink it on her own, or did you have to coax with an eye dropper?
I mixed the food into a paste and let her peck at it all day- it seemed to be good that way.
It sounds like he's comfy and able to get what he needs, and it sounds like you're getting great advice.
It probably very comforting to hear his buddies out there!
It sounds like he's comfy and able to get what he needs, and it sounds like you're getting great advice.
It probably very comforting to hear his buddies out there!
- Jul 30, 2009
- 192
- 9
- 111
According to this article (http://www.themodernhomestead.us/article/Beginners.html) hay is a bad idea. The goal is to keep the carbon (litter) to nitrogen (manure) ratio high. Here is a quote:
As in a compost heap, the decompositional microbes use the nitrogen in the droppings as energy (food) source as they break down the litter into simpler elements. As the carbon in the litter is used up, the nitrogen can no longer be utilized efficiently by the microbes and begins outgassing to the atmosphere as ammonia, a compound of nitrogen and hydrogen. Breathing ammonia is bad for your birds delicate respiratory tissues, so that first whiff of ammonia is your signal to clean out the litter, or add fresh high-carbon material.
Therefore, the author advises against hay.
[Edited to add - because hay is higher in nitrogen than pine shavings.
Therefore, the author advises against hay.
[Edited to add - because hay is higher in nitrogen than pine shavings.
Materials higher in nitrogen such as hay and threshed soybean vines are not appropriate for litter, since they decompose too quickly, and release ammonia.
Hope that's clearer!]
Straw is better; I think pine shavings are best.
Wisconsin Garden Chick
http://backyardnestegg.blogspot.com/
Hope that's clearer!]
Straw is better; I think pine shavings are best.
Wisconsin Garden Chick
http://backyardnestegg.blogspot.com/
Last edited:
- Thread starter
- #38
- Aug 2, 2009
- 69
- 1
- 29
Quote:
You bet I'm getting good advice, and I thank you and everyone who has been giving me information very much.. Im' going to turn into a chicken expert here..
The baby waited til I put him to bed tonight to eat and drink something..Took him all afternoon and evening to calm down enough..I think he's got a real chance now..
You bet I'm getting good advice, and I thank you and everyone who has been giving me information very much.. Im' going to turn into a chicken expert here..
The baby waited til I put him to bed tonight to eat and drink something..Took him all afternoon and evening to calm down enough..I think he's got a real chance now..
Hooray!!
This weekend I made two nests for my 18 week old BO, NHR, and Wellie pullets. Then I mowed the yard, Then the next day I raked up the clippings and put them in the nests. This should be OK. Is it?
Similar threads
New posts New threads Active threads
-
Latest posts
-
-
-
-
There is a time and place for shenanigans. (edit: THIS is that time and place)- Latest: azurbanclucker
-
-
-
Latest threads
-
-
-
-
8 week old silkie bantams - any guesses on gender?
- Started by AllyCat16
- Replies: 1
-
-
-
Threads with more replies in the last 15 days
-
-
BYC Software Update 2025- Started by Nifty-Chicken
- Replies: 173
-
-
-
Anyone trained their dog to stay away from chickens like this?- Started by ChickenShepherd_6116
- Replies: 68
-