New flock, New keeper, bunch of questions!

[Tolyn Ironhand]

So I have been lurking around trying to find info the pertains to my new flock. Our flock is a mix of 5 RIR, 1 Americana, 1 black star, 1 Barred rock, 3 Red star, and one buff/red colored one that I am just not sure of. This is the first time I have tried to raise chickens and all in all things seam to be going good. I just have a few questions. They always got chick food from Fleet farm or Tractor Supply. First bag was medicated and the rest have not been.

I have read a bunch about chicks having twisted toes and making "shoes" for them. My chickens (3-4) did not start having the twisted toes until about 6-8 weeks old. Some get around fine while the Barred Rock really has a tough time. They have had perches to go to and I gave some Sol-u-mel in the water and it really didn't seam to be any change. Any thoughts?

The one Barred Rock I have is kind of in rough shape. It can get around, find food and water but it stumbles a lot. I have also determined that it is blind or partly blind. It eyes are cloudy and does not respond to movement around it head but it does seam to respond when I get close to it. I did feed it some Sol-U-mel drops by hand. Could this have any result in the blindness?

The other odd thing is they are mostly all feathered out and about 12 weeks old. I let them out of the coop to eat grass and bugs but they only stay around the coop and will only come out if I am there. Even then they will filter back into the coop/run. I kind of expected them to wander around the yard more. Is this normal?

Lastly, in the evening when I go down to shut the coop and take a head count, I find they are piled in the coop door (I have a enclosed coop inside a run which has wire around and a roof above. Then a door to the "world") pushing and shoving. Next to the door is a man sized door that I have been leaving open for air and thinking they want to watch the setting sun and to stop the pile/pushing/shoving. I again, have perches for them to sit on in the coop but they don't seam interested in them. I can grab them and bring them on to the perches and they will stay but they don't seam to have the best balance. Do I need to have some perches out side the coop in the run?

I will end this post now because I know it is kind of long. Thank you for reading and happy clucking!

 

[jeffro29]

first

I am not sure why the problems maybe someone with more knowledge can help you out but it almost sounds like maybe a nutritional problem but am not sure just guessing. I had a bad run at the bigging of the year with some chicks but by 6 weeks all the ones with problems had died. I think mine was a bad breeder but that is a whole other story. Hope someone can help you out. jeff

 

[Judy]

What are the perches made of? How well ventilated is the coop? What is your climate like? Did leaving the people door open stop the piling?

 

[fiberart57]

When I go out to put my eight week old girls to bed they are all piled up in the corner still giving me somewhat stricken looks. (They were raised in the house and became very comfortable.) By morning when I let them out most of them are on the perches. They seem to be adjusting to them and getting along fine.
Mary

 

[debakadeb]

How is your coop constructed? Does it, by chance, have wire on the bottom? If so, that could cause the foot problem.

I let mine find their way to the perch gradually. It was rather humorous. I have four barred rock that are three weeks younger than the rest. They started roosting first. My others began when they were about 14 weeks old. No more piling

but let them decide when they wanted to roost.

What type of food are you feeding them? At their age you should probably either still have them on unmedicated starter or grower food. This should provide the nutrition they need. Are you feeding them a lot of snacks? If so, they may be snacking more so than eating the food with all the nutrients.

I know this doesn't really answer your questions. You might also ask the questions about the feet and eye under emergencies. Some of the more experienced members might be able to help. Before posting there is a sticky giving you an idea of the type of information needed in order to help you the best.

Hope you find your answers.

And,

Deb

 

[Tolyn Ironhand]

Thank you all for your replies and for the welcome!!

The coop has a plywood floor with wood bedding so no wire.

The perches are made of wood dowels aprox 1" in diameter.

The coop is a converted lean-too. There is a full wall up to the roof on two sides and the other two sides the walls go up to 8' and are about 12"-16" shy of the roof so the top is open for ventilation.

Around here we get all kinds of temps. Last week it was 95 and humid. This week it is in the mid to upper 70's and dry. Last week I could tell they were hot because they were panting and held their wings away from their bodies. They got plenty of water and I check it every day. I am now feeding grower food after 2 bags of starter food. (First one medicated and the 2nd not) No snacks except eating the grass out of the run.

Leaving the man door open did not stop the piling.

I will check out the emergency section. If you have any other thoughts please let me know.

 

[Judy]

OK, the perches may be the whole problem. Chickens do not like to hold onto a perch as many other birds do. An ideal perch is the wide side of a 2x4, so their feet are flat and they can settle down onto them. If you have subfreezing temps in winter, this also prevents frostbitten toes.

 

[Judy]

One more thing, in rereading. You said wood bedding. Pine or hardwood shavings are fine but cedar is toxic to them.

 

[Tolyn Ironhand]

Thank you. I will fix it right away!

I had another thought. Does everybody leave a light on 24/7? Do they need a "nightlight" or is it better to make them have some shuteye in the dark? I know about the egg laying thing but I don't think I will have much of that anyway.

 

[highcountrychickens]

Not sure what to tell you about the blindness, but for the tendency to stick around the coop, that's just a confidence thing - they'll venture out more and more as they grow up... especially if they are all hens - I have found that flocks with a rooster tend to have a bit more confidence because they have a guardian.

What we did when my youngsters did what yours are doing in the evenings was to put a light inside that stayed on about an hour after dusk (ours was on a timer) to encourage them in. Also, for about 2 weeks, we went out every night at the same time (around or just after sundown) and 'bustled' them up the ramp and into the house. They will eventually cotton on, and it will be a habit. DDawn is spot on about the perch... especially when they're young like this - when they're learning to perch, it's a balancing act, so I'd recommend a wider perch.

Have fun!