NY chicken lover!!!!

[Mitch Mullenax]

I'm Mitch in Essex county. Still building my coop. I'm going to try Yam Cemanis. Any New York tips?

 

[Gramma Chick]

He is wearing Bluecote, so am I cause I was in a hurry.

Poor Earl ! It doest matter what I do ....or take precautions with ..I always get Blue kote on me somewhere

 

[Purpletie3]

Anyway we have baby # 5 on the way.
I just worry about things like gas and oil prices going up. What do you all think. Should we go for it?

Congrats on the baby!!! I think the one thing that you can count on is the price of oil going up. This winter has been a gift and I don't think they will keep this pace. I remember gas almost being $5 a gallon and fuel oil almost $4.

My boyfriend was laid off this winter...it sucks without being able to predict funds.

 

[Gramma Chick]

Well I tried something different with the fermented feed .
a 9 x 11 cake pan ..put in the heating pad then put in the wash bin .
Works great ...feed is non frozen ..

only ...10 Degrees in my coop at 1:30 am last night ..
I am adding a skirt on under the hen house to keep more heat in ..
they seem fine ..they went out today ...they had enough being cooped up I guess

 

[LuvMyChicks1491]

Hope that everyone made it though the bitter cold. 100+posts so didn't read them all.

(-26 at 7 am)

Woke up to the coldest that I can remember. Our water was frozen. We have been here for 11 years and have never had frozen pipes before. They froze in the basement, oddly enough right next to the furnace. There is a vent in the basement to keep it warm, but it wasn't enough. We finally got it defrosted in the evening.

All my babies made it through the night with minimal frost bite. Had to melt snow to get them some water. Took a while to get enough melted and warmed up. I had to beat out the water tubs for the ducks, but I had emptied out the chickens the night before. We didn't realize that it was going to get that cold.

Had 4 eggs under a broody when checked on her in the afternoon she was on some other eggs and hers were cold. If there was a silver lining, she was only on them for a week so I'm going to give her a few more tomorrow.

Getting ready to fire up the incubator!!

 

[PhoredaBurds]

I'm Mitch in Essex county. Still building my coop. I'm going to try Yam Cemanis. Any New York tips?

Welcome! A couple of us on this thread work w cemanis. They are beautiful! A little wilder than some other chicken breeds, but a little attention when they are chicks helps with that. Good winter protection is important too. Block the wind, but have good ventilation at the top of the coop. Enjoy!

 

[Mitch Mullenax]

Here in the Adirondacks it can be minus 30. The interior of the coop will be insulated. How would you recommend ventilation in the top?

 

[Beer can]

Here in the Adirondacks it can be minus 30. The interior of the coop will be insulated. How would you recommend ventilation in the top?

where my rafters come out on the roof it isn't sealed off. It has the end facia? but no bottom soffit?..coops 8' high. Seems to be adequate. I also don't shut the pop door to their run only in extreme cold.

 

[HISIRISHGEM]

Check your roosters combs. They get cracked and bleed and then he shakes his head and you see what happens. Put some blue kote on it.

I was thinking same thing @HISIRISHGEM even a pullet or hen could get a small unnoticeable cut on comb or wattle, shake it's head and cause that mess, doesn't take much blood. That's what it looks like to me. I've seen pics like that inside coops blood sprayed to the rafters with no visible injuries, most logical explanation. ? I think?

FOUND it!!! My poor sweet Black Australorpe was bleeding from her comb. Poor sweet girl! I tried to cover her eyes and spray her comb. This of course before I saw your recommendations tonight. I hope I didn't get it in her nostrils. I feel awful. Is this from Frostbite? I saw a couple of the girls trying to attack her on the head. Is this because she's bleeding? Should I bring her in for a few days if it gets worse? She's one of my gentle girls and probably one of my favorites. Poor sweet girl!

Are you guys under a winter weather advisory too? I guess a mix of snow, sleet and ice. I hate the ice!

Yup! Oswego Co.((sigh)) I'm just on the line between Onondaga and Oswego Co. So who knows what we'll get. Thank you for the recommendation.

Hisirishgm, glad to hear from you again. I'm with the others that the blood is probably from the wattles somewhere, but don't worry it looks bad but I have never found it to be serious.


Anyway we have baby # 5 on the way...

Hooray! Congratulations on the baby! Thank you for sharing your experience with me. I feel reassured that although she's bleeding, it may not be anything too severe. Phew!

@HISIRISHGEM When I have to put bluekote on or near a chickens face, I spray it onto a couple q-tips and paint it on. I agree w rancher that best time to treat is at night w a headlamp. They're much calmer & easier to work with. Also, with blue kote, I recommend wearing gloves bc that stuff gets everywhere and stains ur skin like crazy. Did u end up finding the culprit?

Thank you, I missed the spray information so I'll check her comb tomorrow and use the q-tip idea in the next few days.. I did however wear the gloves. As you can see above, I did find the culprit was my poor sweet Australorpe. Love her to bits and it made me feel so bad for her. I also saw one of the girls trying to peck at her bleeding comb. I've been wondering if I should bring her in tomorrow if I see it's not getting better or if its nothing to worry about and they'll figure it out.

Gramma, I like your thinking! I stopped with the fermented feed for the winter. The girls just didn't like it. It didn't smell like bread to me either. I figured I'd try it again in the fall. Will you give them the FF during summer months too? Will there be fruit flies? I used the pellets for the FF and I think I liked it better with the other food. I'm also interested in your input on Herbs. I'd like to grow some herbs for them this summer that would be beneficial for them. Maybe an herb garden just for them to get into. What do you think?

Welcome Mitch! I'm fairly new at chicken-keeping so the others are more likely to help you as I see already. You'll find the group to be very helpful.


Hoping everyone is having a toasty warm night.

 

[Mitch Mullenax]

Hey Beer Can! Great help. I would have buttoned it up.