My first necropsy on my lovely Matilda (graphic pic warning).

[Kiki]

@PouleChick I am sorry for your loss.
@rebrascora As always...fabulous posts.

@bruceha2000 I too say cut ALL treats out. They won't kill you I promise.

 

[rebrascora]

I like rebrascora's suggestion. Another idea is to make a custom "treat" mix, with only a little BOSS, and other lower cal items like crushed egg shells, greens and millet seeds.

Personally I would not mix a calcium source like egg shells into a treat as it may encourage them to eat more than they require, which over the long term can cause health problems. Calcium in the form of crushed oyster shells or egg shells should be provided in a separate dish or even just piled in a corner for them to access as and when they need it or scattered on the ground. The advantage of having it in a dish is that you can see when it is getting low and top it up.

 

[Morrigan]

Personally I would not mix a calcium source like egg shells into a treat as it may encourage them to eat more than they require, which over the long term can cause health problems. Calcium in the form of crushed oyster shells or egg shells should be provided in a separate dish or even just piled in a corner for them to access as and when they need it or scattered on the ground. The advantage of having it in a dish is that you can see when it is getting low and top it up.

That's a good point. I always have oyster shell free choice in a can, as I feed flock raiser, but a couple of times a week, I crush up a few shells and scatter them over the ground at the same time as I toss out a few other treats. Some hens gobble them up, and others ignore them. I assumed that those that wanted them would eat them, and those that didn't, wouldn't. But maybe "feeding frenzy" mentality of treat time, might push some to eat them that don't really need them.

 

[Meg-in-MT]

I'm so sorry for your loss @PouleChick . It sounds like you were quite attached to that girl and I applaud you for doing a necropsy on an animal you cared so much for. I'm not sure I could do that.

Thank you for posting pictures of your investigation. 1. What a great learning experience for everyone and 2. Realizing you can go ahead and do it, even if it's incredibly hard, is so very helpful. Sometimes you feel like you just can't. Seeing this makes you realize you can. You just have to buck up.

Also, this has brought in a lot of other information. Quite an amazing community, BYC is. Big hugs to you and yours.

 

[bruceha2000]

They will come back to the barn once it gets dusk from habit but if you are worried you could swap their scratch for a pan of warm mash made by soaking their layer feed in warm water or fermenting it. If yu sprinkle a little scratch on the top to get them started they will easily transition..... I hope my lot never find out that this wonderful treat is actually their normal boring layer pellets but just in a different form. I sometimes get a bag of unmedicated chick crumbs and mix half and half with the layer pellets to mix with the water to up the protein % and they like that even better.

How do you feed them the mash? I'd need 20+ feet of some sort of trough or maybe several 4' ones. My girls don't believe in sharing.

 

[Morrigan]

How do you feed them the mash? I'd need 20+ feet of some sort of trough or maybe several 4' ones. My girls don't believe in sharing.

Plastic rain gutters work well for troughs. How many chickens do you have? You can also get several plastic dog dishes, and scatter them about. I find my flock of 13 birds is able to share two dog dishes fairly peaceably.

 

[bruceha2000]

18 girls. Can't see them sharing even 3 dishes. Now if it were out 24x7 it would be fine. They have a single hanging feeder for their layer pellets. It always has feed in it so even the meek ones can eat when the pushy ones aren't hungry.

 

[ButtonquailGirl14]

So sorry

 

[rebrascora]

I use an old frying pan for 11 so two similar sized pans or guttering as suggested or dog bowls. I think you may be surprised that they are too busy trying to guzzle their share to worry about chasing off other birds. I have a couple of bossy ones but they soon realise that whilst they are chasing off one bird 5 or 6 others are tucking into their share, do it isn't worth the effort and you don't need them all to get it anyway as it is no different to what is hanging in the feeder, so it can't cause a dietary imbalance. It just serves the purpose of getting them to return to the coop on a night for you. Those that don't manage to get into the pan of mash can top up at the hanging feeder and if there isn't enough to go round then it is first come first served and that will make them keener to get there first.
There is no harm in trying it because it doesn't require anything special, just soak their pellets or crumbles in warm water half an hour before you go to bring them in or you can soak it in the morning and loosely cover it and it is ready to dish up at night. As I said, it may help to sprinkle a very small amount of scratch on top of it to get them used to eating it and then phase the scratch out.

 

[PouleChick]

I'm so sorry for your loss @PouleChick . It sounds like you were quite attached to that girl and I applaud you for doing a necropsy on an animal you cared so much for. I'm not sure I could do that.

Thanks so much.

autopsy is humans, necropsy for animals other than humans.

Thanks for teaching me that - I think I said on another thread we were talking about it I thought it was an American / Aussie thing I've changed the thread title!

Fine in the morning, talking to me from the alpaca stand, dead on the ground later in the day. She was only 10 months old.

I'm so sorry you lots your girl. 10 months seems very young to have got fatty liver, I would have thought it would take longer than that or be an older hens issue but obviously not!