NY chicken lover!!!!

[Devona]

Aargh! His temperature went up again....and I'm congested and coughing. Do the no crow collars really work? Maybe I could get one for chick....good luck with your breeding and new chickens ruby, and Pyxis, I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you. I'm moving my chicks downstairs to the basement bathroom. I fear they have outgrown the rabbit cage. I'll take the cage down, but leave the doors open so they can come and go in the bathroom area. I'd like them the sleep in the cage, on the roosts there. I'll need to put in a light on a timer though, because it's dark there.

 

[Lapeerian]

Pyxis - I'm going to try the no crow collar as well so I can begin breeding. Let me know how it goes for you!

I finally decided on a breed that I'm going with - Marraduna Basque also called Euskal Oiloa. I believe they're called basque for short. They're a rare Heritage dual purpose breed. They have all the traits I'm looking for friendly, non broody, good foragers and lay big brown eggs. Placing my order with Sandhill preservation tomorrow along with some blue copper marans, Buckeyes, black ameraucanas and dorkings. Oh chicken math!

Nice! I considered Basque as well, think someone here has a couple.

 

[rancher hicks]

Aargh! His temperature went up again....and I'm congested and coughing. Do the no crow collars really work? Maybe I could get one for chick....good luck with your breeding and new chickens ruby, and Pyxis, I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you. I'm moving my chicks downstairs to the basement bathroom. I fear they have outgrown the rabbit cage. I'll take the cage down, but leave the doors open so they can come and go in the bathroom area. I'd like them the sleep in the cage, on the roosts there. I'll need to put in a light on a timer though, because it's dark there.

Please don't wait to long to see the doc. Things have a way of evolving to something worse.

Hope everyone feels better soon,

 

[Devona]

Thanks rancher. If he doesn't kick the temperature by tomorrow, I'll take him to see the doc. Maybe I should go to mine as well. I've been getting an egg every day from one of the two hens I bought the other day, except for the two days after the storm, and I suspect that's because we kept them locked in the dark shed all of Saturday. It probably upset their internal laying clock. So three eggs before the storm and one today. I really didn't expect any at all. I think they're what you call pullet eggs? They're kinda smallish. Nice little brown eggs. This cough is ridiculous. I think I have a sinus infection.

 

[Sweetpea3829]

Hello again guys!

Still battling our rodent issue in the coop. Pretty sure it's a rat, but man alive, we can not catch this thing. Came real close with a snap trap baited with bacon, but when the trap discharged, it got caught on the bottom of the wall that divides my coop. So close and yet so far.

We have a live trap in there now, but so far, the critter has avoided it.

Still no eggs from my layers, too.


What brings me here tonight is a foot issue on one of my hens. We call her Sickie Chick. She is just a very odd bird and was ignoring the food on her side of the coop, while fixating on the food on the other side of the dividing door.

She got so weak, she couldn't jump up to the bars and was pretty lethargic. So I moved her to the bantam side and she has done much better.

Two days ago, I noticed that the long toe on one foot was curled. Never had been before. Her foot is pretty swollen and smells...kind of like propane gas. Sounds like bumble foot, but there is no obvious sign of injury, no black spot, etc. Some of the skin is flaky on the bottom, and a couple of her toe nails are reddish. Any ideas? Bumblefoot wouldn't cause the toe to curl, would it?

 

[rancher hicks]

Devon, I only say what I say because DW and I both got sick during the holidays. I had a sore throat so skipped a party on a Sat. but on Wed. felt better and went to the store but within a short time didn't feel good. Doc said what I had was probably bacterial then turned viral or vice versa. I was knocked down. He said "you almost ended up in the hospital".

So be safe.

Everyone else, my Marans aren't laying and I wonder what's wrong. Even the two EE's in the coop aren't laying. They are usually my some of my best layers. Let them out for a bit today it was so nice. I'm watching their poops. Not as good as I'd like to see. Cleaned the coop a bit. Frozen of course but took the top piles off and raked out the shavings. I think it might be best to pile the shavings high at the beginning of winter and then just take the top layer of poop off and stir things up a bit.

 

[rancher hicks]

Hello again guys!

Still battling our rodent issue in the coop. Pretty sure it's a rat, but man alive, we can not catch this thing. Came real close with a snap trap baited with bacon, but when the trap discharged, it got caught on the bottom of the wall that divides my coop. So close and yet so far.

We have a live trap in there now, but so far, the critter has avoided it.

Still no eggs from my layers, too.


What brings me here tonight is a foot issue on one of my hens. We call her Sickie Chick. She is just a very odd bird and was ignoring the food on her side of the coop, while fixating on the food on the other side of the dividing door.

She got so weak, she couldn't jump up to the bars and was pretty lethargic. So I moved her to the bantam side and she has done much better.

Two days ago, I noticed that the long toe on one foot was curled. Never had been before. Her foot is pretty swollen and smells...kind of like propane gas. Sounds like bumble foot, but there is no obvious sign of injury, no black spot, etc. Some of the skin is flaky on the bottom, and a couple of her toe nails are reddish. Any ideas? Bumblefoot wouldn't cause the toe to curl, would it?

Can't say for sure but I suspect an infection. In either case it won't hurt to stick it in some peroxide and soak it a bit. You also might want to give her some antibiotic of some kind.

As for the rat or chipmunk you might also want to try a sticky trap. I use everything in my arsenal of weapons. I catch mice in the garage with mouse, stickies and rat traps. Try to find where it's burrowed in and stir things up.

 

[Chicken girl 15]

Hello again guys!

Still battling our rodent issue in the coop. Pretty sure it's a rat, but man alive, we can not catch this thing. Came real close with a snap trap baited with bacon, but when the trap discharged, it got caught on the bottom of the wall that divides my coop. So close and yet so far.

We have a live trap in there now, but so far, the critter has avoided it.

Still no eggs from my layers, too.


What brings me here tonight is a foot issue on one of my hens. We call her Sickie Chick. She is just a very odd bird and was ignoring the food on her side of the coop, while fixating on the food on the other side of the dividing door.

She got so weak, she couldn't jump up to the bars and was pretty lethargic. So I moved her to the bantam side and she has done much better.

Two days ago, I noticed that the long toe on one foot was curled. Never had been before. Her foot is pretty swollen and smells...kind of like propane gas. Sounds like bumble foot, but there is no obvious sign of injury, no black spot, etc. Some of the skin is flaky on the bottom, and a couple of her toe nails are reddish. Any ideas? Bumblefoot wouldn't cause the toe to curl, would it?

if you can find where it's coming in put a brick over it. I had to brick the inside of my coop all the way around.

 

[Sweetpea3829]

if you can find where it's coming in put a brick over it. I had to brick the inside of my coop all the way around.

Slowly, we are bricking up his holes, lol. Unfortunately, he is thoroughly inside the coop and I don't think he's doing much outside wandering. Can't figure out what its eating, though. We have all chicken feed covered at night, and I see no evidence that he's coming out during the day.

This summer, my husband is going to dig out around the whole coop and bury steel mesh down and out. We really should build a new coop but...not this year.

 

[Devona]

Could it be eating your eggs? You say you don't have food out, but it must be eating, and since you don't see eggs...... Maybe it's taking them to its burrow and eating them there? Leaving the shells underground.