NY chicken lover!!!!

[vmdanielsen]

I have 3 silkies broody,,,,sheese. I want eggs not hens sitting on nothing. None of my other breeds go broody much, except one of my Marans. Eggs have been sporadic this winter and having issues with my incubator doesn't help.

The Marans I got from you seem to be broody all the summer months. They lay well into fall and one has started up all ready, with no lights. Your marans don't go broody?

 

[Purpletie3]

I have guinea hens. I think they are easier than chickens to be honest. But I free range them and they sleep in trees most of the time. Unless there is snow on the ground they are hardly ever in a their coop. I give them water and half a can of grain everyday during the winter but in the summer they hardly touch the grain and just forage for themselves. But we have lots of woods and area for them to roam. I've had them 4 years now and still have 4/6 of them. Lost the 2 too a fox.

I have heard they are great flock alarmers too! I have 14 acres to play on...a swamp, a pond, some woods and a huge barn... We do have neighbor dogs though...can they fly or well enough to get out of harms way?

 

[Purpletie3]

Guinea hens are awesome! I would like to get some more especially after getting ticks on me three different times this fall just walking around my house. The last bunch I had played in the road, and we live a couple hundred yards from the road. :'(

I dislike ticks too!

Your roo avatar looks just like my boy. He's finally getting his coloring and mass...

 

[Beer can]

I have heard they are great flock alarmers too!  I have 14 acres to play on...a swamp, a pond, some woods and a huge barn... We do have neighbor dogs though...can they fly or well enough to get out of harms way?

Lol! I did not ever see mine fly, didn't know they could. One morning I heard my male guinea making all sorts of ruckus, I heard they were good watch dogs so I went out to investigate and found the farmer who lives a mile aways pitbull mix was trying to breed my beagle. The guinea roo was on top of our second story chimney going nuts!

 

[rancher hicks]

That is why many places won't adopt anything that isn't already been spayed/neutered and current on all shots. That is one reason why the cost to adopt is so high in most places. When we were looking for a new dog a few years ago we were going to adopt form a place called Helping Hounds in Dewitt. The adoption fee was $450! It was hard for us to come up with that at the time and we ended up finding someone right before they were going to take the last "puppy" to a shelter. He was 7 months and a handful and they didn't want him. We weren't looking for a puppy, but we agreed to take him...If I knew then what I know now not...well lets just say his name fits him..."Mater"

There are those shelters who are so dense they price themselves right out of adoption. I don't think they really are interested in adopting and I would never donate to them.

I've also learned the hard way. The Maggie I rescued was so bad, we finally called animal control and they took her. You just could not train her. She'd get out of the kitchen, messed on the rug, got out of the fenced in yard. When she got on the stove and took a cake and broke dishes that was it!

Also like chickens breeding is key. Some dogs are just messes. Mean and nasty, can't be trained. Dumber than a box of rocks.

Some times the ASPCA has a deal on adoptions, but I suspect the euthanize plenty.

The CNY Cat Coalition takes cats to be fixed before hand. They charge a fair fee for adoption.

 

[rancher hicks]

WELCOME! I love finding more of us from NY.


The last 2 females I had spayed I had the surgeries done at the same time. For their first shots and the surgeries was just short of ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS. I didn't qualify for the reduced price spaying from the SPCA and at that time didn't want to be dishonest. So..you can't get rid of strays, can't afford to have them spayed or neutered. No surprise they are dumped off.
Our neighbor's barn cats and the strays we have running around are always stalking my chickens. Sometimes desperate times call for desperate measures.

We are in for some very cold weather as I'm sure most of you NY'ers will be too. Be safe.

1. Met a Vietnamese woman in TSC and gave her my card (has BYC written on the back). She's hatching Quail and looking for Duck eggs.

2. While I do understand the price to have a dog spayed or neutered, there is just no reason to abandon a dog on the side of the road. Perhaps it's time to write letters to our legislators about requiring in state funded shelter to take all dogs and cats to be surrendered. Also more work at securing the safety and welfare of cats and dogs.

3. When it gets cold my girls let up laying. I hung some fleece across where the birds roost in this coop and now I'm getting less eggs. I think it's due to less light since they don't get the light til I let them out. (it's an old pic) You would think they'd huddle together but they don't. I really should add more hens, but to add more will upset the balance and then no one will lay.

 

[marquisella]

Quote: Just the one, and she drives me nuts. Every day, have to pull her out of the nest box. The rest don't care...

 

[PhoredaBurds]

Burr!!!
...just sayin

 

[Aria]

pharmchickmom, Let me know how the Yaktracks. I was thinking of
ordering a pair. Our minds run the same ha ha.

Does the COLD bother the Silkies? We lost one chicken a month
ago...but she was elderly. Yesterday we lost one of our young
chicks. We think it could be the cold.

Our barn has no drafts. Regards, Aria

 

[Gramma Chick]

pharmchickmom, Let me know how the Yaktracks. I was thinking of
ordering a pair. Our minds run the same ha ha.

Does the COLD bother the Silkies? We lost one chicken a month
ago...but she was elderly. Yesterday we lost one of our young
chicks. We think it could be the cold.

Our barn has no drafts. Regards, Aria

Could be ...around 8 months heart problems usually get chickens ...may apply to Silkies too
More Details : age of chicken ? any marks ? Blood ?