Hi,
I'm new to this group, but not completely new to raising chickens (although I'd still consider myself a newbie in that). This is my second year raising both meat birds and layers. For a variety of reasons, I had to cull my layers from last season. So this year I have 4 Easter Eggers and 3 Cuckoo Marans. One of each has started laying. I also have 25 meat birds that to to the processor a week from tomorrow.
One of my layers has been limping, so I'm on my way home (I live on an island) with the final parts that I needed to create an enclosure within their 10x10 run for her. This should keep her from using and jumping down from the rousts and irritating it more. I've also been giving her a 81 mg aspirin daily -- which she gobbles up and when I dropped one she made sure another chicken didn't get it. While I've been working on the enclosure, they've all be locked out of it -- so no access to the higher rousts. I also didn't give her the aspirin this am, hoping that would encourage her to take it easy today. I plan on starting up this evening so that she has the benefit of the antihistamine while she is less active. So far, the other chickens have left her alone; and, I hope it has stayed that way while I've been gone picking up some forgotten parts. I'm thinking that I could stick her in the hen house at night and put her back in the enclosure during the day.
Any thoughts on this are appreciated -- and I've been glad for others' comments on similar issues.
I'm new to this group, but not completely new to raising chickens (although I'd still consider myself a newbie in that). This is my second year raising both meat birds and layers. For a variety of reasons, I had to cull my layers from last season. So this year I have 4 Easter Eggers and 3 Cuckoo Marans. One of each has started laying. I also have 25 meat birds that to to the processor a week from tomorrow.
One of my layers has been limping, so I'm on my way home (I live on an island) with the final parts that I needed to create an enclosure within their 10x10 run for her. This should keep her from using and jumping down from the rousts and irritating it more. I've also been giving her a 81 mg aspirin daily -- which she gobbles up and when I dropped one she made sure another chicken didn't get it. While I've been working on the enclosure, they've all be locked out of it -- so no access to the higher rousts. I also didn't give her the aspirin this am, hoping that would encourage her to take it easy today. I plan on starting up this evening so that she has the benefit of the antihistamine while she is less active. So far, the other chickens have left her alone; and, I hope it has stayed that way while I've been gone picking up some forgotten parts. I'm thinking that I could stick her in the hen house at night and put her back in the enclosure during the day.
Any thoughts on this are appreciated -- and I've been glad for others' comments on similar issues.
