OHio ~ Come on Buckeyes, let me know your out there!

[Kraftcrazychick]

So sorry, Kcc! Sounds like a rough time! The undeveloped eggs are still there?? Unfortunately, this is sounding a little predator-y. If you google missing eggs, it's a common problem. Sometimes hens hide them elsewhere themselves, other times they're being eaten whole by something (snakes or foxes opting for an easy meal rather than bothering too much with the chickens themselves). That might explain the beat up chickens. Someone suggested sprinkling baby powder in the area to try to identify the culprit. Couldn't hurt?

The only open spaces I saw in were in the pen and I would say it's a half inch gap between the door and doorway. Did not find any openings in the coop other than the door we've been leaving open in the heat. I did find a small wasp's nest at the peak of the house though.

 

[verrucktes huhn]

gorgeous. Welcome our Golden Comets are amazing as well. How old are yours?

I'm not really sure actually. I was told they were around 24 weeks old when I got them a couple of weeks ago. They are all laying already which is nice. They are very inquisitive and not easily spooked. I weed whacked and mowed around the coop and pen they couldn't have cared less. I have 2 dogs as well, one ignores them, he's old and grumpy though, the younger pup is always over at the run watching them. He's not happy when I make him stay in the house for an hour or so each evening when I let the birds out to forage in the garden boxes.

 

[FlyingNunFarm]

I have 2 roosters both around 26 weeks, or 6 1/2 months, old. One boy crowed and became "a rooster" weeks before the other. I recently started having problems with the second rooster. He seems to randomly pick on the girls. I have 5 girls of laying age and 6 more about to lay. I've seen this roo grab the girls by the comb, while standing in front of them, and pull their head down. Even go as far as shake them like he's trying to rip their comb off! The 2 boys don't fight. Neither are aggressive to me. I don't see anything happening before I hear the poor girl screaming.
What's his problem? He recently started crowing and I've seen him mate with the girls. I wasn't planning on roosters at all let alone 2. I don't want to cull him but I wouldn't want to rehome him and have him be nasty to someone else's girls. Is there a solution to this? Will he be nicer with more girls available?

 

[big medicine]

I've had a few interested days of chicken-dom lately. Agatha, my broody who had her comb ripped off is recovering. I had to catch her to blue-coat her head while she was in the nest box and she screamed murder. I have never had her fight so much to get away.

I candled the eggs underneath her to check on their development and have a mystery. The eggs who were probably days away from hatching are missing! No shells, no yolk, no baby chicks alive or dead to be found. I checked the coop and the pen looking for them or any indication of a predator and found none.

Do you think she or someone else ate them?

Tilda, the leader who I thought was plucking tails is not the main plucker. I put her in a cat carrier for a few days and the Rooster lost the rest of his tail while she was gone. I did find some yolk under her belly when I had her rejoin the flock. I don't know if this means she broke an egg while in the carrier or she is an egg eater. When she joined the flock all she did was lay around and let the others peck at her. She acts like she hurt her foot as she hobbles and her right foot is curled under when I pick her up.

So, I've pretty much solved nothing. No eggs, no plucking culprit, no chicks.

As to your cock bird losing his tail feathers, it is the season. Several of my birds look like they had an unfortunate run in with a weed eater, just natural molting.

Occasionally when a broody has a batch of mixed age eggs and only a single chick hatches, the hen will stay on the nest figuring the rest should be hatching now as well. If the chick stays with the hen it should be ok, but sometimes a rambunctious chick will get away from the hen, resulting in getting chilled and dying, and or eaten by maybe rodents in coop, or the other chickens. Better results will almost always be achieved by having all eggs at the same stage of incubation. I know it seems heartless to discard eggs that are already started and replace them with fresh, but you'll likely end up with more chicks with the later.

Unfortunately both egg eating, and to a lessor extent tail picking, can be a learned behavior that can spread through a flock. Spend some time, and keep a close eye on your birds. If one of your birds shows regular sign of yoke on her, or is seen picking at other birds enough to cause problems, your flock would be healthier and happier without them.

 

[mamatink7]

What is everyone doing to prep coop for winter?? Our coop has plenty of ventilation-not so good if we have ice cold winter this yr.
Our plan is to block roof ventilation with insulation and rest of coop covered in thick plastic.
We really need to make run fence taller and dig deeper for winter protection as well.

 

[dwhitern11]

I have one I will give away, just will not ship. You will have to pick up. I live in Licking county, Utica Ohio.

 

[mamatink7]

I have one I will give away, just will not ship. You will have to pick up. I live in Licking county, Utica Ohio.

hey...that's where we live too what do you have?

 

[dwhitern11]

I have the one RIR ROo and an Easter Egger Roo that I am trying to find good homes for. I ordered all hens from the hatchery and the 3 extras they always put in for loss turned out to be ROO's...go figure.

 

[dwhitern11]

They are 6 months old. I'll attach a pic of each but these were taken about 2 months ago.

 

[dwhitern11]

If they were eaten there should be some evidence of somekind...unless it was a snake who'll eat them whole.