NY chicken lover!!!!

[rancher hicks]

I agree that with this rain it's been muddy. In front of my coops is mud city.

The front of my large hoop coop run is gets water and I tried to fill it in but it's still a pool when it rains. The plan is to raise the coop and the run so I can build a berm of sorts and trench down one side so the water "flows" away from the area.

Country Max will have shavings on sale and I'll buy Nobles which are big chips. I dump a bag in the runs to keep things dry. One bag covers quite a bit. The runs are deep littered since they are outside and the chickens can scratch for corn and oats. When I clean I just take it down a bit but never get it all.

I also only keep food in the coops without runs. The coops with runs get their food hung up at night and then filled in the am for the day.

Mites like to hide in dark damp places so having lots of sunlight is good. They come out at night to pester the birds while they are on the roost. This is why I said run vaseline on their legs and feet and on the roost.

The Practical Poultry magazine sells stuff for Red Mites. They seem to have more than their fair share of trouble with them over there.

 

[armorfirelady]

Lynzi I read the eucalyptus is a mite deterrent. I got some oil and diluted it in water. Only a few drops for a sprayer full of water. It's really very potent smelling and I didn't want to overwhelm the hens, I sprayed it in the morning so it could air out. But I have a hoop coop so lots of ventilation anyways. I also know people used white washing to clean/seal their coops and get rid of mites. I prefer non chemicals but that's just me.

And Nustock is great for vents and legs for mite removal and protection. Or even vaseline like rancher said.

Vinegar and water works well for cleaning waters out naturally. I don't know if it would work for mites tho. And it's a great natural house cleaner. Is all I use since I have inside critters also

 

[Lynzi777]

Thanks Everyone,
I'm just about in tears right now, feel like the worst chicken mama ever. I got all the coops and runs cleaned out, moved onto the chick pen and discovered my babies have lice!!!! Came inside quickly and googled how to treat lice on chickens and read some one used dawn dish soap in a bath of water, dunked her chickens in and the lice died immediately. So I did that with all three chicks and it worked, the lice was gone (thank god they're so small and not fully feathered where I can actually see if there are any). Now I have to wait a few more days and wait to see if anymore eggs hatch from the tiny patches of nits near the base of the feathers. They each have one small spot. I'll dunk them every day if I have to. I am just soo upset right now. The only place they could have gotten them from is Stella, which means SHE must have them and now I have to get my hands on her and give this full size chicken a dawn bath! They havent left that brooder box since they hatched and Stella was the contact with them. Now she's in with the bigger ladies so I'm sure it has spread to them!

Only good news is I got the coops out of the shade and into the sun. As much as I didn't want to do that, I did it because I think the wetness up in the backyard, the sun not being able to get to the coops to dry them out was a bad idea and thats what caused parts of the coops to have moist damp areas in them. Things should stay dryer now.

Off to take care of the rest of this problem. I wonder if I make a dawn spray solution and spray the chickens with it would be easier than trying to dunk them in a bath. Ughhhhhhhh I am dreading this!

 

[Lynzi777]

Lynzi I read the eucalyptus is a mite deterrent. I got some oil and diluted it in water. Only a few drops for a sprayer full of water. It's really very potent smelling and I didn't want to overwhelm the hens, I sprayed it in the morning so it could air out. But I have a hoop coop so lots of ventilation anyways. I also know people used white washing to clean/seal their coops and get rid of mites. I prefer non chemicals but that's just me.

And Nustock is great for vents and legs for mite removal and protection. Or even vaseline like rancher said.

Vinegar and water works well for cleaning waters out naturally. I don't know if it would work for mites tho. And it's a great natural house cleaner. Is all I use since I have inside critters also

Thanks but after cleaning everything out and checking out my chicks I realize my problem is worse than mites....

 

[Breella]

Wookiee is dead. My mother in laws gods be ****** evil dog killed her. Pulled her through inch size bars to get her outside and then ravaged her. I cane out just in time to hold her while she died. The dog needs to go. I can't stand living in this woman's house. Had she gotten this dog before I got my first chickens I would have never gotten them. I don't feel safe around the dog, I would not trust him with small children, cats or small dogs. I will snap his neck with my bare hands if I ever see him even think of going near my coop again.

 

[JLaw]

Well i'm not so sure it's the drop that messed up my chickens leg. I put her in the coop for some water cause she kept spilling all I put in dog kennel. Well the roo comes in and in 3 sec is trying to pen her and mount her. I quickly got him off and desided the small coop is now sick bay since the little chickens was ok with big ones last night and today. I'm not too happy with my roo atm, then again it is my fault buying a roo a month or two older than my other girls and only one hen his age.

jlaw

 

[Lynzi777]

Well i'm not so sure it's the drop that messed up my chickens leg. I put her in the coop for some water cause she kept spilling all I put in dog kennel. Well the roo comes in and in 3 sec is trying to pen her and mount her. I quickly got him off and desided the small coop is now sick bay since the little chickens was ok with big ones last night and today.  I'm not too happy with my roo atm, then again it is my fault buying a roo a month or two older than my other girls and only one hen his age.

jlaw

Can you separate the roo for a while until they are bigger??


Breella - sent you a Pm, but again, I'm so sorry to hear of your Chicken!!! Hope something gets done about that dog!

 

[vmdanielsen]

V, they had that horrible flooding in Fort Plain, but a little farther on in Herkimer they have the diamond mines and a couple of really nice "rock" shops with kid friendly merchandise. Herkimer is right on the canal and probably about a little more than an hour from Albany.

Herkimer was what i was looking at. by flooding, do you mean that the canal is nonoperational? Thank You!!

 

[vmdanielsen]

There is definitely camping. "Herkimer Diamond Mine Campground". It is directly across from the "mine". There are locks all over the place in NY State. Champlain, Erie and the canal connecting the Finger lakes. The closest Lock to Albany is just above Troy (north) on the Hudson. (Up to that point the Hudson is navigable by Sea Faring ships....north of Troy only barges and tug boats can travel it. Well, and pleasure boats too) I have absolutely no experience actually going and seeing a working lock, I just know where they are. Several along the road to Mechanicsville/Stillwater, also.

Edited to add: You can just drive up route 4 from Troy and there are signs telling you where the locks are. Or you could google it before heading out to be safe. LOL

Thanks Cass, Troy is only 45 minutes for me. I need to wait until my sister reads my emails and gets back to me. It is good to have options!!

 

[vmdanielsen]

I don't have time to catch up on 140+ posts. Sorry.
Peeved this morning. Dd went to put the cooler of eggs outside only to discover our egg sign has been stolen. So if any of you in your travels see a huge, flat plastic white egg (stands almost 4 feet tall) with wood screwed to the bottom as a stand, IT'S OURS.
Off to make a new sign.

My sister gave me a handpainted horse -sign with our last name on it and someone stole that! There are no other Danielsens around here. II was so angry!! Sorry for the loss of your sign.