***OKIES in the BYC III ***

[Kassaundra]

Quote:
Can you elaborate on "cleaned up at the time they are fed"?

Not left to set around, just feed what the birds will eat all at once.

I thought the grains were supose to soak for 3-4 days? Would that be the same, as far as botulism goes?

 

[poultryand bees]

Question:
For how long after running with a drake, can I safely consider the duck hen to be fertile? Two Muskoveys hens escaped their pen about 7-8 weeks ago and began laying eggs in a common nest. Once one of the hens begain setting the nest, the other duck hen apparently started laying eggs in a second nest. The first duck hen hatched out 5 ducklings this week and I didn't know until today that there was a second nest of Muskovy eggs. The second hen has started setting the second nest and I want to know if the second nest contains fertile eggs, without waiting until they show signs of development when I candle them.

Any suggestions?

 

[nnbreeder]

When you soak grains over a long period like that the water must be changed frequently. Add heat to the wet grains and they will spoil.

I know wheat will soak-up in a very short time and spoil in just a few hours. As you drive by an elevator after a rain that is what that horrid smell is, rotting grain in the bottom of the outside legs and pits. Those are nasty to clean out too, been there, done that. LOL

 

[nnbreeder]

Quote:
I don't know but if you do a search on the reproductive system of a duck it is a real eye-opener. Like if the hen doesn't like the drake he will not be able to fertilize any eggs. The hen has false channels in the uterus that she can send the drake down that are false passages.

 

[janbcoo1]

Sooo, OK. As a complete beginner in raising chickens, please tell me we are doing something right here. We wet down the perimeter of their run and keep a sheet on the open west side so that in the evenings we can wet it down and the girls stay near it. We keep them fed with chicken feed according to their ages and we give them cool veggies and various bugs we catch and keep their water cool and clean and use DE to keep the run itself dryer and to keep the flies down. They have a "flock block" that they peck at occasionally (the bigger girls) and I give them sunflower seeds and other nutty treats (pecans and walnuts when we run out of sunflower seeds). We were thinking we'd try the whole oat thing, but I don't want to make any of them sick or worse. So should we just stick to the cucumber, watermelon and spinich treats and commercial feeds for now?

 

[michaeldaugherty]

[URL]https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/uploads/40710_021_2.jpg[/URL][/img
All my bird's are fed nothing but soakd feed this cock hasnt dropd a feather
Some time i soak it for week's..Befor i feed it to thim ill take some pic's an down load
thim of the feed some time...It sound's like you take very good care of your bird's [[ janbcoo1 ]]

 

[michaeldaugherty]

Buckguy I sold 4 grey bird's to Calvin last week they lookd just alike couldnt tel
one from the other..One had just a biger toppy..

 

[old*cowboy]

Michael that rooster has that 50s look with the slick back hair.

 

[michaeldaugherty]

artsyrobin look's like you have a good roo crop this yr...

 

[janbcoo1]

Thank you for taking time to answer. I really wouldn't know even how to show birds.

We are such newbies ... kind of a "wild hair" thing. (not like Michael's bird, though) - Hubby had a stroke a couple of years ago and he thought chickens might be a good answer to his not having enough to do (he can't talk or string sentences together or even do numbers any more - speech motor aphasia they called it). He enjoys taking good care of them and as far as I can tell, they like him too!

They come to him when he walks up to the run and cluster around him when he gives them treats. He is in process of adding another run of fifteen feet to the front of our 10'x10'! We are going to try to make a few of the auctions around just to meet folks and see what goes on. We had to give up the 3 birds that might have proven to be show material as they were cockerels and the city doesn't allow crowers. So right now we're just raising birds and hoping to get the up to lay some eggs and maybe later on hatch a few. Meanwhile, hope we get to meet you sometime.