Michigan Thread - all are welcome!

[RaZ]

I don't have any roosters would she still think she wants to go broody? Or is she trying to keep her bottom warm?

You don't have to have a rooster for a hen to go broody.

 

[chickwhispers]

Thanks! I didn't think so. Kind of like no roo needed to lay eggs. Never kept a roo so wanted to double check. Now to figure out how to get her to quit! Today she didn't want to get down to eat warm scrambled eggs but would eat them in the nest box. Shhhsh! Spoiled girl!

 

[chickwhispers]

Maybe I should borrow a roo.

 

[chickwhispers]

Not!

 

[SillyChicken]

lol, if you want to break her of being broody you'll have to get some air up under her... or lock her out of the coop for the day. or, get some fertile eggs from someone else and hatch some out!

 

[RTFchickens]

I have some fertile buff orpington eggs if you want some ;-)
I also have a beautiful buff orpington roo if you want to use his "services" it might give my girls a break!

 

[ladyrsanti]

Are you sure they just aren't getting bullied from the dish at molt? Rocks are a nicer breed, i know my ee's got bullied when i tried adding a production red. I was bringing in all kinds of canned fish and goodies trying to figure out why they were getting so thin until i finally saw it one day! I have a rescued rock that i am 100% sure came from a hatchery that is doing great! But all my birds are the same on the temperament scale, the rock is actually more aggressive by a hair than most of my ee's. All softies all in all though. Another good product is the manna pro showbird/ gamebird pellet, it is a feather enhancer that is supposed to be for show. Very concentrated nutrition, i like to have it on hand for sicklies too. A Tb or two will give the day's nutrition if they aren't eating well, and it makes their feathers so silky! When i can get it i like to feed it to individuals by hand as a "treat". That way i know who got what, and it (along with bananas) is an instant friend-maker. Townline could have not given the mother hens the right nutrition, though. Happens. I like the manna pro supplement for broodies breeding hens too, to make sure my babies are healthy.

Scrambles is a dominant bird but Souffle has always been on the bottom, albeit sassy. Slipper (RIP) was on the bottom too but being deformed set her aside. Their withdrawal seems to be the cause of their weakness though, rather than the brutality of the pecking order. I've never actually seen them being bullied at the food bowl and as a stay-at-home mom, I have a lot of time to watch their behavior. I keep multiple feeding stations in the coop to help the outcasts but they don't even gravitate to the available bowls. Souffle rarely even attempts to eat. Lately, when I come out to throw some scratch, Souffle will actually retreat to the roost and watch or go to sleep. This morning she did pick at a few grains but without being picked on or bullied, she opted out and left for the corner to be alone. Scrambles is doing pretty well now though, holding her own. She used to be on top of the pecking order, a beautiful and strong bird. That's why it was so weird that she especially -along with the other two- just seemed to be done, done with living. All of my 18mos. hens molted this fall and I took care of all of them equally with regards to increased protein. But those three just couldn't seem to handle it and like I said, my sister had a few barred rocks that did the same thing (and a few that didn't). They just seem to lose the will to live, though I'm sure that's not actually the case. If I get barred rocks again, I might make sure they come from a different source. I do love them, otherwise.

I'll keep that feather enhancer in mind.

 

[1muttsfan]

No need to borrow a roo - I will GIVE you one. For FREE.

 

[Trefoil]

It would likely cause aspiration pneumonia, which is foreign-body related and does not respond to antibiotics. Not that she couldn't give them, it just would not be effective against a foreign body.

I had a hen get a piece of grass stuck in her trachea once, sounded just like a little tin whistle - fortunately she was able to cough it back up.

Thanks for the information.

 

[Trefoil]

Scrambles is a dominant bird but Souffle has always been on the bottom, albeit sassy. Slipper (RIP) was on the bottom too but being deformed set her aside. Their withdrawal seems to be the cause of their weakness though, rather than the brutality of the pecking order. I've never actually seen them being bullied at the food bowl and as a stay-at-home mom, I have a lot of time to watch their behavior. I keep multiple feeding stations in the coop to help the outcasts but they don't even gravitate to the available bowls. Souffle rarely even attempts to eat. Lately, when I come out to throw some scratch, Souffle will actually retreat to the roost and watch or go to sleep. This morning she did pick at a few grains but without being picked on or bullied, she opted out and left for the corner to be alone. Scrambles is doing pretty well now though, holding her own. She used to be on top of the pecking order, a beautiful and strong bird. That's why it was so weird that she especially -along with the other two- just seemed to be done, done with living. All of my 18mos. hens molted this fall and I took care of all of them equally with regards to increased protein. But those three just couldn't seem to handle it and like I said, my sister had a few barred rocks that did the same thing (and a few that didn't). They just seem to lose the will to live, though I'm sure that's not actually the case. If I get barred rocks again, I might make sure they come from a different source. I do love them, otherwise.

I'll keep that feather enhancer in mind.

You said they all came from the same place? Would that mean they are related? Is it possible that they have some kind of vitamin/mineral deficiency? The reason I think of that is because I recently hatch some ebay eggs and of the 5 that hatched, one had poppy butt for 2 weeks, a first for me with eggs I've hatched, one has a severe cross beak, and one, at 2 weeks old just got wry neck. And short of worms and not being allowed access to food, a deficiency is what comes up next.