Michigan Thread - all are welcome!

[BackyardFarmMom]

Yay!!! Noodle has been laying one egg a day I have gotten 5 eggs in 6 days!!!

They have gotten lighter in color. More of an olive than tan... they look blue in this picture though.

This one shows color much better!!! RaZ's eggs are to the left and my 5 are to the right!!!
They are so beautiful!!!
My son is obsesed with wanting to hatch them (me too) LOL

 

[mrcush]

Does anybody let their chickens out in the rain/snow. I let mine out today and it's kind of cold and drizzly outside. Is that ok?

 

[ladyrsanti]

I dunno but I went out to the barn to give the sheep their treats and the chickens were just out there standing in it. They have a dry coop but I guess the elements are preferable?

 

[NovaAman]

Yeah its ok. My birds are out right now. Neighbors birds are out...


I have a question, and I tried searching it, and wow... so darn difficult to find an answer, even after searching through a lot of threads...

Can a cockerel kill a hen by standing on her after mating? There are no injuries on my hen, she's just dead in the nest box, and my faverolle cockerel who is coming into his manliness will stand on the hens for several seconds sometimes, then mate again, stand and then get off... SO, I was wondering if it is a possibility that she died from him standing on her? The nest she was in was the broody coop, so no real nest box, but just deep litter with a nest in it that several hens prefer to the 6 other nest boxes... Well anyway, I checked her over and found no injuries to her back, under her wings, her neck or her head. I flipped her over and looked at her belly, and it felt a little squishy, crop full, normal feeling, but her vent looked odd. Never seen on like that on a dead hen before, so my other question is, could she have died from a prolapse that quick? She was coming out of her molt, and had just started laying again last week... The vent was kinda protruding a little, but not a lot, just the look of how it is prior to the egg starting to come out. No, I didn't feel an egg in there, and there as an egg in the nest, that looked like her normal egg, no blood on it... Comb and wattles normal looking as well.

This is a first for me on this, I am at a loss. Never had any of the other cockerels stand on the hens before that I noticed. He is has only just started to do the rooster deed, or try to do the rooster deed in the last week, week and a half.

On another note... I had my first exploding egg today. It. Was. Gross.

 

[hickchick55]

Thank you Raz for all your work regarding the changes to GAAMP. I have contacted the board member in Traverse City.
mrcrush- my chickens go out in all weather, but the snow came down fast today and they all went back to the coop. I have one who is in a really heavy molt, and I am feeling sorry for her. Just gave her some yogurt and a some new canned cat food I bought that the cats won't touch. Hopefully a little extra protein will get those feathers growing.
nova- Sorry about your hen.You are way braver than me. I don't ever want to deal with roosters.

 

[NovaAman]

LOL, I normally would have taken the cockerels to freezer camp, but this guy is my new faverolle, and breeding plans are in place for spring...

 

[kimmie6067]

Had my husband put my blue pullet down, finally. It should have been done a long time ago but I didn't want to let her go, she was a blue orpington so sweet,

 

[NovaAman]

Ah, sorry kimmie. Hate to have to do that...

 

[chicken grandma]

Really sorry for your chicken losses Nova and Kimmie. I hate losing a chicken!

 

[Opa]

Growing up I witnessed and participated in the slaughter of more birds and animals than I can remember. As a hunter I've shot countless birds, rabbits, squirrels, over two hundred deer, several antelope and a half dozen caribou. There's no telling how many predators I've sent on their way. Yet, inspite of all those numbers, taking a life is never easy. Sorry you had to put a favored bird down.