Michigan Thread - all are welcome!

[1muttsfan]

Criptoe.....

 

[SillyChicken]

I hatched silkies from eggs that I got from emvickrey this spring. They are sooo cute, but I don't know how to teach them to come back to the coop at night. Every time I let them out I lose a couple that hide before I can catch them to put them back in. My other chicken just go back to roost at night, but these guys just seem to stop and go to sleep where ever they happen to be. I even leave a light on in their coop. Does anyone know how to teach them to go back in at night?

Not sure if you got an answer about getting chicks back in the coop a night... I always kept the chickens closed up in the coop for several days, then when I started letting them out, they would go back in by themselves. Had you tried that? What about feeding them in the coop at dusk?

 

[swampducks]

If I remember correctly, Meyer Hatchery in Ohio also has a small chicken order. No idea how small but you could check it out. I get my birds from them and have been very pleased.

You guys are all too sweet, but after thinking about it, I think, and that is the operative word, that I will order a few from my pet chicken, since they will allow small orders.


So this next question, I want these chickens and eggs to be as natural as possible, do they really need the Marek's vax? they will be free ranging in the good weather.

 

[NovaAman]

LOL, yes 1mutt... Criptoe is a faverolle/NH cross. She is the chick that I got in January with the severely crooked toes. AND incedently, she is also the fattest, meanest hen. And now she is broody. She has two eggs under her and she will not even get out of the box to eat. She's chosen the nest box with the smallest opening too to top it off, so I can't get her out to make her eat. Dang bird. LOL

 

[NovaAman]

Trefoil, are they sharing the coop with other birds already? If not, rig a temporary pen to keep them confined close to the coop until they've got it figured out after a few days confined to the coop. This is what I did with both sets of brooder babies that I have had, and it works great.

 

[chicken grandma]

Hi CG,
Before I posted, I went through the paperwork from MSU that you had sent me. I did not find any recent citations so I started surfing. (I'm bummed that I no longer have access to the university data bases that I had as a student)

I suppose I was tainted by my professors who wouldn't allow us to use any research older than 5 years. Ten years was ok as long as we had a recent article that referenced that particular paper. Kind of education snobbery in some ways, but research does evolve and gets better.

Hi RaZ - no it is not in any paperwork that we were given. Dr. Mick Fulton just gave us that information in his lecture. He said that Mareks is the only vaccine that they currently recommend.
I kept a notebook from that afternoon and I refer back to it often.

I hope Michigan State University does another Poultry Workshop in 2013. It is really a good way to get a lot of information from veterinarians about chickens. You might not want to follow all of their advice but it sure was good to hear it!

 

[gladahmae]

Played photo-shoot with the chickens for a few minutes after hanging diapers out on the line this morning!


remember my sick chick? here he/she is! (wanna play guess the gender? it's about 5 weeks old?)



One of the BSLs that's pinking up! I'm thinking we might have eggs in about a month!




HUGE difference in the level of red in the comb/wattles in my 2 BOs right now.



Future broody?

I'm amazed at the difference in temperament between my wyandottes. My GLW is definately the 'alpha' chicken, while the SLW (see her hiding in the back?) is quite timid.




Cuckoo marans cockeral(?) and the splash. You can see that the cuckoo's comb area was damaged (pecked or something by mama at a day old) . I'm assuming boy based on coloring, and the VERY different sounding peeps he makes from the others. No crows yet, but very different from the ladies.



My BCM pullet.



"Pickles" the BR. She likes to hop out of the coop when you go to shut the door for the night. She's also the most curious of the bunch.

 

[greenmimama]

Very pretty ladies, I can't wait to get mine in the mail

 

[taprock]

Harvesting has finally begun here. I wouldn't start anything until the fair was past. I did up 6 pints of salsa, froze green and jalapeno peppers, 18 quarts of diced tomatoes and froze cauliflower and broccoli. I just plugged in the second freezer to start putting all the new food in. I have corn to freeze and more salsa to can but I ran out of lemon juice.
On the chicken front the fighting has settled down but I have fancy bantam roosters if anyone is interested. Cochin, showgirl, sizzle and I might even consider getting rid of a Polish. We have had a huge increase in hawks lately, migrating? Red tail and Harrier. They all seem to head to the same dead tree and just browse for dinner. No one has been eaten yet but it makes me a bit nervous.

 

[Wynette]

FWIW, I never vaccinated my chicks or gave them medicated feed. They are all hale and hearty and very productive. They have never had mites, scale or any other parasites even though the wild birds are ever-present and the mallards nested in the run. Maybe I've been lucky.

(sorry late to reply - catching up!)

I don't vaccinate mine for Marek's either. And I also do not feed medicated starter. I HAVE, however, had mites twice in my flocks, and because of this, I treat for parasites twice yearly now. I can't bring myself to go more than twice a year, though; I prefer to keep my birds as natural as I possibly can.

greenmimama - one of my very best friends lives in Cedar Springs; she no longer has chickens, but might be able to hook you up if you're still looking. PM if interested in her contact info.