Michigan

[RaZ]

Sorry about that last post folks. I couldn't resist following that Amprolium clue when I first read the post.

Anyway, I spent the morning with my Mom getting her taxes done and then out to breakfast with her. We had a couple of pretty good arguments discussions about all kinds of topics. I guess that's where I get my argumentative streak from.

I'm glad to see the good healthy debates / discussions that are coming from the reports of our BYC Ambassadors who attended the MSU seminars. Thank you again for going and telling us what they discussed. Some of us will consider opinions of experts as gospel truth and some of us will question those same opinions, it's all good if you ask me.

Even if you don't ask me, I'll often give my opinion.

Enjoy the day. It is mid-50's, sunny and very windy here. It makes me laugh when the wind blows up the chickens' butt feathers.

 

[BobBry]

Hi everyone- I wasnt on all weekend so theres no way I can catch up.
Saturday was my birthday= and when you turn forty three you get to have an ultrasound for a birthday gift. Confirmed gallstones and inflammation. I have to call the surgeon today. But, I cant schedule surgey until after I can figure out how to schedule myself off for two weeks. Until then, I eat chicken soup. Anything else hurts. Its the 'over forty diet".

Mom2em,

Sorry about the tardy response. Been off line for most of a week. Trying to switch to new computer an things are not going well.
Reason for this post: to Nova too. When/if you talk gallbladder surgery be sure to have it done arthroscopically if at all possible. ( I mean through a scope , dictionary says a---- is in a joint ?? don't find the correct term, sorry ) Due to previous surgeries and scare tissue mine left the smiley face scar ant the recovery is nasty and lengthy. The scar is not a problem, the pain from the large incision and the long recovery is. U have been warned. hopefully in time. Ha ! I'm almost 300 posts behind...... Bob

 

[RaZ]

I am out of chick starter.
This is dangerous.
I have to go to Tractor Supply.

I have to work today. So, I cant go to Tractor Supply. I could go see if the pet store has any chick feed in yet- they sell it in small paper bags when they have Easter chicks...straight run chicks...mainly packing peanuts to the general public as impulse buys...

I have a 50 lb bag of non-medicated chick starter here, M2M. I'll share it with you if you want to avoid the TSC or pet store. I can meet you after work if you like. Do you still have my phone number?

 

[NovaAman]

yeah... Its like a 2 inch incision now... Just like when I got fixed... A tiny incision just ovrr my belly button...

 

[babigyrl22]

Mom2em,

Sorry about the tardy response. Been off line for most of a week. Trying to switch to new computer an things are not going well.
Reason for this post: to Nova too. When/if you talk gallbladder surgery be sure to have it done arthroscopically if at all possible. ( I mean through a scope , dictionary says a---- is in a joint ?? don't find the correct term, sorry ) Due to previous surgeries and scare tissue mine left the smiley face scar ant the recovery is nasty and lengthy. The scar is not a problem, the pain from the large incision and the long recovery is. U have been warned. hopefully in time. Ha ! I'm almost 300 posts behind...... Bob

I think you mean laparoscopy. I've had a couple surgeries this way. Easypeasy.

 

[Olive Hill]

Wow! He's fast. I sent off an email to Dr. Fulton a few minutes ago and he has already responded. Very nice! Here's the exchange for those sitting on the edge of their seats in suspense. LOL!

My email:



Quote:

And his response:



Quote: I too am not aware of an exception for Amprolium use in organic poultry. I think she must have been mistaken. I merely stated that Amprolium is not an antibiotic. I also stated that people that want to raise organic products have to use coccidia vaccine to control that disease.

Sorry if there was any misunderstanding,

R. M. Fulton, D.V.M., Ph.D.

 

[chickenhawk62]

I was there yesterday as well, and this was news to me (the staggered approach). I just started with chickens last year, mainly because my daughter (MSU student) bought a box of 25 chicks (hens and roosters). According to my daughter, and now I'm not so sure this is true, if you plan on eating the roosters you have to wait two weeks after they have stopped eating the Amprolium feed before having them processed. For whatever reason, we didn't switch them over to the regular feed until they were around 12 weeks old. This was just about the time ALL of the roosters started to crow. That was the longest two weeks of my neighbor's life! LOL!

John.

 

[Juise]

I forgot to say that the "weaning off" of the medicated feed does sound like a good idea, and I don't see as how it could be harmful, anyway.

Nova - Yes, it really does take an average of 40 gallons of sap to 1 gallon of syrup! Isn't that crazy?

Surgeries - Ugh, yes, I would definitely try to find out if laparoscopy is an option, even if they do not bring it up. I have an 8 inch incision scar from just over 10 years ago that still gives me problems. Sometimes it aches, and sometimes it twinges and always I can barely feel half my belly. Also it gives me hiccups a lot!

(Which sounds a bit funny, but they "accidentally cut too close" to my diaphragm, and you get the hiccups when your diaphragm gets irritated and starts contracting. So now my scar tissue irritates my diaphragm and gives me hiccups, which was really no joke after the surgery!

Those were some painful hiccups. Now I still need to sit down often when I get them, they are hiccups extreme.

)

 

[Juise]

Thanks, Olive! Good to know.

 

[chickenhawk62]

Juise - I was at MSU yesterday, and it was very informative all around. There were many different topics that we didn't have time to discuss, but we were able to walk away with a lot of documentation. Most of the positions they were voicing, are primarily intended for commercial farmers or farmers that will be taking their poultry to shows and fairs. Their primary focus is the prevention of various diseases and ensuring that diseases aren't spread through physical transportation (to fairs, other farms, etc.). For the average backyard chicken farmer (that's me), many of their concerns don' t really apply or their control methods aren't used. A lot of what was discussed was very informative, but will not be practically applied for small flock farmers. Yes, we could implement many of these bio-security measures and they would be very sound practices. But if we have no intentions of showing or selling our birds, then it would be over-kill. However, I will now be smarter about how I introduce new chicks to my flock (where I purchase, if they are testing the hens, are they vaccinating, etc). I certainly don't want to bring in something unknown, and potentially impact my small flock.

The one thing to consider: If you let your birds free-range, then all of this goes right out the window. Unless you have a very controlled free-ranging environment, where other bird species and other animals cannot contaminate the area, then your birds will be exposed to outside influences the moment they step out of their pen. It would be devastating to the backyard farmer if some disease appeared and wiped out their flock, but more so from an emotional perspective as opposed to financial / economical perspective. I took away from this a lot of good content, but will only probably apply a small portion of what I learned. Knowledge is good!

John.