Retired and very recently widowed, live with my son who has just bought a small farm. Bought 12 chickens and two roosters, and 5 ducks. Having a lot if bad luck with them. One duck died, I think he may have eaten something harmful as they gobble everything in sight. We found what looked like black spilled paint, not sure. One hen was caught by a predator, and another just died. I now feel their pen is inadequate. It is an old French pen with the henhouse upstairs and 5 little rooms downstairs for small livestock. It is built out of concrete, which is old and cracking here and there. Now a hen became broody and hatched two eggs. The chicks were doing well until yesterday when one died. I discovered it was riddled in lice. I have dusted mother hen and the other chick with lice powder but they don't appear to be infected. Mother hen then lost interest in her chick, so I have brought it inside and it seems well enough. I feel I have to re-disinfect the whole henhouse but fear the concrete won't dry off quick enough as it is winter and I have nowhere else to keep my chickens. I have sprinkled D.E. in the coup and their dustbath.
Welcome to BYC. Sounds like you are off to a rocky start; I don't have a lot of great advice to help with your problems but I know there are plenty of people here who can. My experience with a single chick is that it likely will bond with you and insist on attention. I currently have one who NEEDS to go outside soon -- she is fully feathered and likes the outdoors. But, she isn't interested in other chickens; she sticks to me like glue. Try not to get discouraged. Do your research, do your best.
Hello, it's nice to have you here with us! About the lice, I would guess that if one bird has them, they all do. Their coop will also have to be cleaned up or the chickens will just get them again. For questions about the health of your flock, use this link to go to the ER forum. There are a lot of knowledgeable members there that could help you: Emergencies / Diseases / Injuries and Cures If you need help with the lice issue, you can get advice here: Predators and Pests Best of luck to you!
Hi and welcome to BYC. It sounds like you’ve had a rough time. Hopefully reading resources here and asking questions will help. Here are some links to useful resources: List of guides on how to use the site - “How to...” guides Great go-to resource - Learning Centre Good starting point for browsing the site - Articles Insightful feedback on how members manage their flocks - Topic of the Week back-catalogue Excellent sources of local information - U.S. States thread list Best wishes Pork Pie
Good morning and welcome to the BYC flock!!! Please don't get to discourage or down on yourself. I have only just gotten into chicken raising this year and have had bad luck as well. I was ready to throw in the towel, but it is so rewarding once all the kinks are worked out! That's not a guarantee either, I recently acquired 3 new chicks and now weeks later one is experiencing wry neck. It is so frustrating seeing them have issues, but we care about them so much making it worth the fight! If you are able to get your loan chick a friend it would be best, but I wish you the very best and don't give up!
Hello and welcome to BYC! Glad you joined. Sorry to hear about your husband. Chicken keeping isn't always easy. Sometimes things go very nicely and it's a joy to work with the chickens. Then all of a sudden, everything bad starts to happen and it gets frustrating and sad. You need to just tackle things as they happen and it will straighten out again. It is part of the process and a worthwhile endeavor. You feel free to post various threads for your various issues and you will get help and support along the way. It really helps. Good luck.
Hello there and welcome to BYC! It's always something with chickens. But these issues help you learn along the way. The learning never does end either. Welcome aboard!