Michigan

[RaZ]

I've eaten a lot of strange things in my life but I never eaten placenta.

First deer I killed, i ate his heart. It is tradition to do so. It is a bonding of spirits.

 

[Juise]

Quote:

I did a birthing center and it was awesome.

I didn't want to fight anyone. I've hard of placenta wearing (I think that's the term) where they dry it in a bag they wear for awhile with salt and herbs. That was a bit far for me.

Neat! I have had a lot of friends have great experiences in birth centers.

Yeah, I think it is called "lotus birth", I don't particularly get it, I guess. I mean, lots of animals eat the placenta, I see the sense in it, but leaving it on until it falls off?

Those little belly button nubs are gross and stinky enough! We did do delayed cord cutting, which is basically where you wait until the placenta stops passing blood to the baby, but that is like a couple hours. That makes sense to me, after that...? Well, like I said, I guess I just don't get it.

Quote:

I've eaten a lot of strange things in my life but I never eaten placenta.

First deer I killed, i ate his heart. It is tradition to do so. It is a bonding of spirits.

Raz, I think I might be just a little freaked out of you had eaten a placenta.

I haven't eaten any deer hearts, but I have had sheep. Haggis!

 

[Opa]

Opa is that a picture of you?

Yes about 60 years ago on my horse with one of my younger brothers.

I have given much thought about my recent problems with rooster aggression. The fav roo i had tried to keep, he started fighting my roo after he got his first hen, and my roo didn't like giving her up. Understandable. Then i stepped in between, and seperarated them with the soft part of the broom, put the newer roo in the goat pen with my red hen. Couple days later the roo started attacking me. Went on for a month despite me trying to get him to knock it off, and i didn't let the roos range together, kept the fav in the pen unless EE was in with his girls. I think the other EE roo i had to give up may have been the same way, starting after i stepped in., etc etc. My big question is, should i continue trying to seperate the roos if it is getting serious, or should i leave it be and hope for the best? I never let them get into a fight on purpose, and never in a caged area, they always have room to bow out and run, and i never let the winner pursue if i can help it I am particularly attached to my pet roo, and i don't want him to be seriously hurt, he is feisty but not a good fighter.
Both of these other roos were not excessivly handled, and were friendly until they got a hen, and i broke up their fights. ?????

There isn't really any good method to stop aggression between roosters. It will continue until one is completely submissive or dead

 

[Opa]

This morning is on the seriously damp side. Thunder, lightning, rain. Just the things to keep me from mowing the lawn. Oh yeah, the fact that the sun has come up yet is probably another factor.

 

[taprock]

Thanks for the information! I don't have a thermometer that will read the air very well but I will take my most sensitive one down now to check. To my hand it feels awfully warm (I wouldn't want to sit under it for very long). My basement is dry and I wouldn't consider it cold. They are tucked between a filing cabinet and a stack of plastic bins and I am keeping their bin off the floor with some cardboard boxes because I was afraid of it leeching the heat out from the bottom.

I'll go and put a towel down there so they can go underneath it if they want. So far no one is huddled together under the lamp and no one's hiding from it in the other side. I put the lamp at one end of the bin so they have a choice.

As soon as we could I filled their water dispenser with filtered water and their food dish with the same stuff they were using at the Tractor Supply out here. The light is the same one they were using in the brooding bins at TS, red bulb and everything. They should be a week old at least because that's what the associate told us; they have little wing feathers all ready.

I agonized over the lamp placement and I've been adjusting it all afternoon; I hooked it with the clamps on a bit of metal and a few good tugs didn't bring it down.

Is there anything I am missing? The pasty butt is all better as far as I can tell. The chick is drinking, eating, moving around well. The bedding is all stirred up from their kicking it around (going to make it deeper tomorrow).

Agenda for the morning:
-Add more food, rinse and refresh water dispenser
-Clean bedding, make deeper
-Pick up sticky thermometer for brooder
-Disinfect and scrub larger bin so there is more room for the chicks
-Give them an intact, old towel to snuggle with

Anything else I am missing? I'm going to re-read a few books tomorrow.

ETA:

So I took my thermometer down there, it's a no go since it's electronic. Near the light it was climbing over 95 so I'll get a thermometer from the pet store as soon as I can tomorrow.

They were all asleep until I started poking around to check the temp. No one was sprawled out or panting and they weren't huddled together for warmth. There were a few pairs snuggled together but two that were a bit further apart from each other. I was concerned the air around them was under 90 degrees so I moved the lamp down a few inches. My husband will check on them at 5am. They have plenty of water and food still.

I'm not being mean (it's just cute) but you are soo a new chicken mom! It sounds like me two years ago. I read every book a month before my chicks. I had everything set up a week in advance. Now for example hubby brought home 6 chicks last week as a surprise. I clean a fish tank, grabbed an extra light and waterer from the shed, put a piece of cloth in the bottom, popped the chicks in and cut off a sour cream container to make a dish. Ten minutes and they were settled. I even took the time to fix a splay leg on one. I haven't checked temps since my first batch, I just move it up if they are in a circle around the light and down if they are huddled. Just wait it takes time but you will catch on fast. BYC is great for learning.

 

[Ferrret]

Could an empty belly cause a chicken to walk in unsteady circles?
Checked the chickens this morning and found my littlest silkie behaving a bit off. She seemed to be unable to walk in a straight line, instead walking to the side in a circle. She could run away from me in a straight line, but not walk around.
Her crop was so empty I couldn't even feel it, and now that I have her indoors and isolated I've noticed she has a small sneeze. She may also be molting, she's putting off a lot of loose feathers. I gave her some egg and a little bread, as well as water and grit. She ate the egg in large gulps, the bread a little slower, but hasn't show interest in the water or grit. She's walking normally now, and is grooming herself, so I have no idea if I should think she's sick or not.
She's pooped twice since being brought in, first was watery but not abnormal looking, the second was solid but again nothing appeared off.

She has had issues eating around the others lately. It's almost as if she's not part of the flock anymore, the others will chase her away from whatever they are eating and have pecked her so much the back of her head is bald. She's often far away from the other birds and very wary of them, especially our BCM's (they're usually the bullies). I've tried my best to make sure she gets treats and up until today she's always had food in her crop.

 

[Nigellas]

Juise, are you on MDC? You struck me as someone who might be. (I mean that in a good way!)

 

[ladyfeather]

I'm not being mean (it's just cute) but you are soo a new chicken mom! It sounds like me two years ago. I read every book a month before my chicks. I had everything set up a week in advance. Now for example hubby brought home 6 chicks last week as a surprise. I clean a fish tank, grabbed an extra light and waterer from the shed, put a piece of cloth in the bottom, popped the chicks in and cut off a sour cream container to make a dish. Ten minutes and they were settled. I even took the time to fix a splay leg on one. I haven't checked temps since my first batch, I just move it up if they are in a circle around the light and down if they are huddled. Just wait it takes time but you will catch on fast. BYC is great for learning.

I know! I was concerned I was over stressing them and being too nuts about this stuff. The stuff said they need 2 square feet in a few weeks per chick and I have 8 so I don't think they will be in the smaller bin for long. I just checked on them and all are just hanging out with each other. No one's peeping loud or fast, no panting, no huddling. I took the shavings out of their water and my toddler did his bit to check them out by trying to pet one.

Right now I am excited this Spring is so warm so they can run around the yard in a few weeks. I've been reading as much as I can on these forums but I thinking TS sold me something different than and ISA or maybe it's a roo because it has the same feathering as other babies but is twice their size.

 

[Nigellas]

OK... I'm already stressing about all of the eggs I have under my broody. I gave her 12 and she seemed to be pushing out 2 early on, so I took those away. But 10. 10! lol. SillyChicken is going to take 2 of the females (as a trade for the eggs she gave me), and I'd like 1. If the hatch goes well I'll need homes for the rest of these babies, so let me know if you are interested in a Faverolle or 7.

 

[ladyfeather]

Could an empty belly cause a chicken to walk in unsteady circles?
Checked the chickens this morning and found my littlest silkie behaving a bit off. She seemed to be unable to walk in a straight line, instead walking to the side in a circle. She could run away from me in a straight line, but not walk around.
Her crop was so empty I couldn't even feel it, and now that I have her indoors and isolated I've noticed she has a small sneeze. She may also be molting, she's putting off a lot of loose feathers. I gave her some egg and a little bread, as well as water and grit. She ate the egg in large gulps, the bread a little slower, but hasn't show interest in the water or grit. She's walking normally now, and is grooming herself, so I have no idea if I should think she's sick or not.
She's pooped twice since being brought in, first was watery but not abnormal looking, the second was solid but again nothing appeared off.

She has had issues eating around the others lately. It's almost as if she's not part of the flock anymore, the others will chase her away from whatever they are eating and have pecked her so much the back of her head is bald. She's often far away from the other birds and very wary of them, especially our BCM's (they're usually the bullies). I've tried my best to make sure she gets treats and up until today she's always had food in her crop.

That's sad I hope someone can give you some advice.