NY chicken lover!!!!

[rancher hicks]

Quote:
Npip is pretty easy to get. Send me your email address and I can send you the form. All you do is fill it out and send it to the address on the form, Dept Of Ag and Markets in Albany. Then they will call you to set up a time to come out and test. I sent in my form in March and put down april or may for testing. I just got tested last week. I should get my certificate in the mail within 3 or so weeks. In the meantime they give you a copy of your pullorum test plate charge, that shows that you tested negative for pullorum. When you fill out the form, I would put ASAP for the date you want them to come down, maybe they will call faster.


So, anything else I should know about being NPIP? Do they test everything, or just a sample of the birds? And if you're showing, does each chicken you show have to be tested? Are they going to be mad if it rains and the pens are full of mud? Bleh.

Are we still allowed to buy stuff? ;p

I want to be NPIP so I can show, but I dunno if I want to be on the Govt's radar, ya know?

Well I've been busy looking at the picking subject. This is what I've decided. Too much scratch and not enough protein.
So no scratch in the morning and just a little at night. Vitamins in the water and just a tiny bit of bread.

I may redesign my layer feeder to increase the "head" space. Thinking of the PC type feeder. Take less floor space and easier for more hens to eat at once. Plus if I move the nest boxes to the "pop" out kind I could put two feeders in the coop..

Wishing you the best
Rancher

 

[Sachasmom]

I think you can put something on them so they don't pick (Blue Coat?)

I've been trying to get it so I just have to buy ONE kind of feed, rather than a bag for the chicks, a bag for the Quail and something else for the rest of the flock! Because its a royal pain to run out and have to buy all three one week in addition to rabbit feed! So sometimes the flock eats what the chicks are eating. I did notice that the protein on the layer feeds is all different! I don't recall what the milled feed was, but its lower in protein than Purina is. Its about the same price for 80 pounds as it is for 50 pounds, but shouldn't they eat less if the protein is higher? I swear, all they *do* is eat!

Scratch grains are not their fave feed though, I fed them that during the winter, since they were not laying on the layer feed! They esp don't like TS scratch, although the Agway brand they didn't mind! I did notice a difference in the Quail on the Agway Gamebird 26%. They seem to be in better condition and are laying more now too.

 

[rancher hicks]

It would be nice to figure out what to feed them all at all ages. I've got chicks of various ages, and hens that need layer. It's all tricky.

 

[pharmchickrnmom]

Ancona91-- do you have any silkies? I am trying to talk dh into building another tractor and getting some javas. My daughter wants a silkie after seeing one on here. I would like to get chicks instead of hatching eggs. Do you have coops or tractors or both? I have not found anyone here in the east who has javas. Have you heard of anyone? Just moved the girls out to the tractor two days ago and they are much happier with all the room they have. Anyone else know of Javas in the area? I am also looking for materials for a new tractor or coop.

 

[Sachasmom]

Quote:
Yeah, is there like a formula? So much per hen/rooster/pullet? Then I could go okay, six chickens in this pen, they get this many cups. I'm picky about measuring feed, I don't free feed anything. But then I worry am I feeding enough? They all look healthy and lay often, so I guess they're fine, they just mob me constantly begging for food, the ducks/chicks are terrible, I keep stepping on them! It says on the bag when to feed what, just not how much (other than "free choice" which of course means they want you to feed way more than you need to so you have to buy more! )

The highest the mill made was the 21% starter, so I had thought about buying scratch to bump it down for the hens, and soy to bump it up for the quail. Then I worried about the fat/minerals/vitamins, what if it was *wrong* for Quail or hens?

I had just the worst time finding anything to feed the Quail, the highest I could find was the 24% chick starter at TS. People kept telling me I needed to feed a higher protein and I'm like, yeah, so tell me where to buy it???

I guess Purina makes a high protein game bird, but TS won't order it.

You should see the size of my free range meat chickens, LOL They're all ready to do this weekend I think but one runt! Well, I suppose they could go another week or two, but I'm tired of the massive amounts of poo they make! Its funny, because I barely feed them, they spend the whole day eating something though, they're huge! Here I thought they would sit, eat and poop.

My Buff girls hatched out like two chicks, but it looks like they killed them.

I've got one Silkie sitting on like a zillion eggs. I need to come up with something to move broodys to.

 

[peggym]

Hi Will! I'm originally from Nichols NY too!!! Roki Blvd. to be exact. Born and raised Tioga Central school. Small world huh? I'm currently living in Lockwood, or as my address says, but really I'm right off Halsey Valley road. I have 11 grown chickens , 9 hens,2 roos, and16 chicks with a broody sitting on 4 more to hatch in 4 days. I just sold 7 chicks yesterday to a woman from Spencer, she's bought from me before. I probably still have too many chickens but who knows. How's your predator situation down there? I've lost the majority of chickens to bobcats around here. My DH wishes they would at least put a lottery on bobcats here in Tioga County, We seem to be over-run with them. My dad still lives in Nichols on Cole Hill Road, so I'm down there at least once or twice a week. I'd love to hear from you!!!

 

[ancona91]

Quote:
Good(Almost) Afternoon, madsenaccord!!
I only have 2 Silkies that I just hatched out.......a SQ Partridge and a really nice blue....both only 2 days old. But I do know people who raise silkies.....I can ask, if you like. Just let me know. I definitely plan on buying either Java chicks(or eggs)......hopefully this year. I'm on a quest for some quality Javas....the Mottled Javas are really pretty. I don't think anyone has them locally....but I can ask my local chicken group members. I'm willing to give you first pick of any future Javas I hope to have.
They're a really fantastic breed....they don't deserve to be on the ALBC's Critical list. People tend to buy the breeds they're familiar with......Orps, Barred Rocks,etcetera. I'm also going to get more really nice Dominiques.....just waiting for room in the incubator....I already have a waiting list for them. Hopefully whenh I have so-called "free" time I'll be able to make several tractors....some to keep, some to sell. At the moment I have a fair sized barn and several smaller coops.......need more smaller coops with outdoor runs.
Kathy

 

[rancher hicks]

Just want to say, cuz I'm ticked off. If you go to Home Depot be sure to check your receipt if a clerk rings you out for something on sale. I told the clerk that the garden soil rang up wrong and he told me it came out at the end. When I checked my receipt in the car he had over charged me $4 and some change. Really made me mad that I had to go park the car and go inside to get my money. It was a very busy day so I had to wait for the clerk at the service desk. I nearly lost my salvation. Wanted to kick his butt.

 

[pharmchickrnmom]

Good evening Kathy (Ancona91)! Thanks for your reply. How big of a coop would I need for 8 Javas? I live on an acre and our tractor is 4x8 for our 8 chickens we have now. I was thinking I would need the same space. Also--do you have any problems with predators? I have not as of yet. I know I cant keep the bear out but I think the other predators around wont be able to get into the tractor. DH built it like fort knox! I was thinking of building a regular coop and run for the Javas but this is still in the planning stage. May I ask what your coops look like? I would probably want the silkie at the same time as the Javas so they would be my second flock. Not sure how integrating the flocks would go considering that my girls now would be a year old by the time I get chicks. How do you keep your chickens--together or apart? Sorry to be a pest but you have been so helpful! I really appreciate it!

Amy

 

[rancher hicks]

So I went to the show and had a reasonably good time. I did win a nice EGGCARTONS.COM hoody sweatshirt. Which I promptly put on cuz it is so ding dang cold. Learned about NPIP testing and Marans. Got some NoPick stuff from the Eggcarton.com guys. They were really nice and answered all my questions. Gave me a card for free shipping for the month. They ran a seperate drawing for free so my hoody cost me nothing. I knew I'd regret not buying the chicken cookie cutter and I do.
The girl from the Marans club was very nice and I learned some things from her. There are clearly more colors of marans than I could possibly have. I think you'd definitly need a bazillion acres of land and rows and rows of coops. The example of eggs they had were very chocalatey dark and larger than my girls are laying.
Seemed there were lots of breeds not represented. Which is sad. Would have been nice if there were examples of breeds even if they weren't show quality.
I've got to get NPIP tested but I am nervous. Anyone know what happens if you fail or any of the individual birds fail?
What if you have two coops and one coop fails then what?
I wouldn't expect my Dels from speckledhen to fail or the Ideal birds to fail but what about the WNY Dels? Those I don't know about. After you get tested and pass then what? Do you have a closed flock?

Well it was nice just the same.