Michigan Thread - all are welcome!

[Chickin Fairy]

Hi lovelies !
I have a full house again tonight but the brown leghorns decided to go over the cage and the buckeyes followed them I left them be. So far the leghorns are letting the white babies be next to them with no pecking so far.
I do have a question. They have oyster shells available but P2 has been for the past 3 days getting on the roost to lay her egg and its soft and brakes. Is there someti need to worry about or will she get back to laying on the nest boxes one day?

So the feed I get is from a guy who makes his own in a mill. He told me to mix the layer and starter feed together 1:1 for calcium and to make an "all flock feed." You'll have to see if that is acceptable with the feed you use, though. My guy knows his product and what's safe for young birds and layers.

Do you have anything in the nesting boxes that would encourage her to lay there? I've had golf balls in my boxes since day 1 and have come to realize if I take them out, my girls get so confused and start laying all around everywhere.

 

[Chickin Fairy]

So at the end of May, received a couple fertilized eggs from a local lady who has Silver Seabright bantam hens. I hatched them out thinking "dad" was a Hamburg (that is what she says she was told when she got him) but with the feathers on his bonnet, he might not be?

Yesterday, I started to realize that my female chick has a bit of a mohawk, but not as defined as a Appenzeller Spitzhauben, much more subtle. The feathers were never sticking straight up like I've seen on Spitz chicks.

I realize this is not breeding quality at all, but with the cross I mentioned above, is it possible she has some Spitz there? Coloration is far too dark, I know, but is this a lacing pattern I'm unaware of? The chicks are definitely flighty. Always in trees and flying around. I have supervised outings for free ranging and they always come back to the run for treats, per my training. Their run is high (10 feet tall) and I'm in the process of putting perches in so they have places to go upwards.

So, my questions are basically, what the heck is Dad? What is this lacing pattern on my chicks? What is my roo's comb looking like? And what do you think this cross is?

 

[Dreamzchaser]

@Chickinyes, there are ceramic eggs in all of the nest boxes. I have Jlo who is daughter of a golden sebright and a Pitbull, a cubalaya roo. She never lays in the nest boxes. She lays them in the poop board no matter what,lol But P2fa laid in the box today. Hope she keeps it.
They still have trouble organizing themselves at night and going inside,lol. Instead of following the big girls, they just go all over in the run. Need to gether them at night and put them inside. Once inside, the next saga begins. They flapped all over tonight that took out the 2 cameras. Went in and fixed them. Sussexes get on the cage with door open. Brown leghorns and buckeyes go on top of the cage on a smaller roost and the 9 babies go on next to the big girls. P2fa is very nice to them.

 

[RaZ]

I'd love to look at your elbow Raz! Maybe you are overworking it...

If I could get a photo of it...
The wound is right on the point of the elbow. Probably the worst spot for healing. Any movement at all keeps it open. It is healing, albeit slowly. The other 3 incisions are completely healed. There isn't even any scarring. Best of all is the absence of any pain like what I had before the operation.

 

[RaZ]

Randy, you may need to go to a wound specialist.

Not necessary. It is healing but sooo very slow. I had a follow up with the doctor who did the procedure. He explained that where the incision was made is probably the most difficult spot to close. It is healing so I'm grateful.

 

[RaZ]

I fell to that "chicken math" thing. I couldn't duck it.

I brought home a few ducklings from my local TSC. Six discounted khaki Campbells. A buck apiece. And 6 Cayuga ducklings that had just come in the day before. I've always liked those bottle-green ducks.
Duckies are in the big coop on the side that I got cleaned out. I'll get the chicken chicks out there tomorrow once I get that side cleaned up. All that is left is to replace the poop boards and make sure that the chicken side is ready for the move.

 

[Sally PB]

Well, @RaZ, pictures....???

 

[Chickin Fairy]

I fell to that "chicken math" thing. I couldn't duck it.

I brought home a few ducklings from my local TSC. Six discounted khaki Campbells. A buck apiece. And 6 Cayuga ducklings that had just come in the day before. I've always liked those bottle-green ducks.
Duckies are in the big coop on the side that I got cleaned out. I'll get the chicken chicks out there tomorrow once I get that side cleaned up. All that is left is to replace the poop boards and make sure that the chicken side is ready for the move.

Duckies!! Doesn't sound like you're very busy, so upload some pics, just like Sally said!

My mother-in-law tried to get me to buy more chickens, telling me about the $1 TSC price. She must like me better than her son. I said no. So far, I remain immune to chicken math.

 

[Chickin Fairy]

Okay, guys, sorry to be bombing this page so much, but there is a proposed Egg Production Factory Farm going in 6 miles from my home and I need your help. A link to send a pre-filled letter is here. You do not have to live in the area to help us out/send a letter!

Deets: there is a proposed Egg Factory Farm for Sister Lakes. The property would house 45,000 birds in two barns (11,250 egg layers per barn), which will each be 42 by 500 feet in size. Two outbuildings will house manure and will be full for most of the year, since manure can only be spread on their crop fields in the late fall/early spring, when the plants have been harvested. There are a whole host of reasons Factory Farming is not great (waste runoff, smell, well contamination, etc) but we're a small community with a big tourism industry. Lots of us live on quiet farms, have well water, and the biggest farm manufacturing around here are fruit trees and vineyards/wineries.

I also know how battery chickens are treated and it is terrifying to have something like that so close. Knowing that my girls live the spoiled life they do and then the girls just down the street

I may not have fallen for chicken math yet, but it would be hard for me not to rescue every battery chicken that is retired out of somewhere so close, all their health issues and trust issues and all.

Please help us. Send the letter in the link above to tell the representatives we don't want a Factory Farm in our backyard!

Thank you and please share if you can!

 

[aart]

Send the letter in the link above

Not seeing a link..maybe underline and italicize it?