- Thread starter
- #41
I can get better ones tomorrow, but here's a general idea
Ignore the cat
Ignore the cat
Follow along with the video below to see how to install our site as a web app on your home screen.
Note: This feature may not be available in some browsers.
I can tomorrow. It's almost 10 at night and my barn is almost a half mile away so I really can't walk there right now.@Wyorp Rock, another consideration besides temps is humidity. OP, can we get pictures of the setup these chicks are in, including any windows, doors, etc.? Thank you.
Problem is water freezes within a few hours now here, so bucket traps could very well just give me a bucket of live miceAlthough gout is rare in such young birds, it could happen if they have a steady diet high in minerals such as calcium and electrolytes. Do you regularly put electrolytes in their drinking water?
We humans often look for just one cause of a health issue when there can be more than one working in tandem. Mice and barn rats are omnivores and will zero in on compromised tissue. At night, chickens are helpless to evade these vermin, and it's not at all uncommon to see feet nibbled on. And much worse. I've seen photos of Silkies with rodent wounds so bad they couldn't be saved.
Lots of chicken keepers feed layer feed to chicks, and many of those people do not keep these chickens as long term pets. They are usually slaughtered before gout sets in, and even then, it could take several years of a high mineral diet to see it.
My suggestion is Epsom salt soaks to try to improve circulation to the injured extremities. And work on the rodent problem. I have huge success with bucket roller traps.
Will salt water work below -10?I dump salt into the water in my bucket traps and it keeps the water from freezing unless you get down in the hideous range. Engine coolant will work even better, but that can be dangerous for free roaming animals. A quick taste of briny water won't kill a dog.
My cat can only catch so many, and we don't let feral cats stay since we lost a hen to one. And I don't like little dogs, and don't trust little dogs around chicksYou need a good mouser cat or a Jack Russell!