Okies in the BYC The Original

[buffalogal]

I think it depends on what you want and/or expect from your birds. When I've had fall and mid winter Broodies, I always just let 'em do their thing as long as there's an extra dog crate or something to put her in to keep the other birds from laying in her nest. I've not lost any Broody raised clutches to the cold; occasionally a chick gets picked off by something, but even in freezing weather, you'll see that Mama with her barely feathered chicks running all around at her feet. When they get cold, they snuggle. Give her a place out of the wind to bed 'em down at night, and she'll manage.

Over time, you're selecting for early maturity, fast feathering, fast moult, and cold weather, short daylight laying; basically, natural laying ability. I don't heat or light my coop, and I won't have one of those annoying yard lights, so once we turn off the porch light, it's pretty much pitch dark out there. Unless I've been keeping records and know who started laying early, I consider eggs after the second week of May hardly worth setting if I'm trying to improve production(*). It's been my experience that it's those very early and very late hatches that will give you the most eggs over the lifetime of the hen.

(*) If I'm trying to increase numbers, I'll set almost everything, but the birds that will be staying at my house are preferably hatched between October and March.

 

[CityClucks]

Loved the Jingle Goat Kids video - thanks to "I've forgotten who originally posted" for sharing the link.

Al - glad you and the neighbor are safe!

I am not getting the egg production you all are - most of my flock has decided to molt now that it's cold.

Okla-Doodle-Wayne - thanks to you and Brenda for the Christmas card

 

[OkieChickenDad]

Went out this am to open the chicken door and...nothing. So I went to the people door and there were my 2 girls (Punkin is on loan 2 blocks down) still on the roost. They did the usual good morning dad cooing, and Gerty had to get her belly rub, but then they went back on the roost. Happy, yackin' away...but aint coming out of the condo this morning. Its not even freezing? The other day when EVERYTHING was frozen they were all over me to get out...chickens

 

[CityClucks]

Hey OkieChickenDad - are you in Oklahoma City? I have added you to the Okie Roll call listed in my signature, but am not sure where you are from...

 

[OkieChickenDad]

Quote:
I'm in Moore

 

[Sooner]

Quote:
I find this very interesting!! Thanks for your thought on this, is there anywhere I can read to learn more about this???? I may consider if for my laying flock once I know more considering I have now had two or three that decided they want to go broody although I won't let them because I am out of places to put them & don't have time to build coops right now.

 

[averytds]

Hmmm, I hadn't thought about it that way buffalogal.



As to the invomec/ivermectin/sp? I came home from the store with the pour-on and had to hunt up all the dosage info then. It's the same med as what's used in Heartguard just in a much higher concentration. Some dogs have a specific gene that makes it deadly, but it is used extensively in dogs without that gene off label in pretty high doses for mange. The oral is the most recommended and the easiest to get info about. If/when I buy it again, it will be the oral. Any questions, just ask as I now know way more about the stuff than I ever intended.

We treated all of ours when we did our most recent PT testing since we had to handle them all anyways. I would be interested in hearing about the hog feed, especially since alternating wormers is recommended.


Egg production here is almost nothing. The bantams indoors are laying, but nothing from our LF inside or out. I put it down to a variety of reasons. We have some molting, some that to my knowledge haven't started yet, cold, less light and the possibility that they are and we just haven't found where.

 

[freezefamilyfarm]

Thanks for all the interesting topics to read.

I am finally beginning to feel like its Christmas. Josh broke his nose and messed up his face by falling in the parking lot at school Friday and its been crazy from then 'til now, but today I am at work, listening to Christmas music and doing crafts during "speech therapy". It is nice to come to work and relax! Merry Christmas everybody!

Oh and he gets his nose "set" Friday. Anyone been through that?

 

[Buckguy20]

Quote:
Well Teach at $35 per bag ( at my feed store) I am gonna hold off on the hog wormer for now but I might try and do it in the spring.

 

[rodriguezpoultry]

I've had good luck using the SafeGuard Goat wormer. It's in a small bottle.

You get a 3cc syringe (no needle) and fill it up 3 times with water and put into a small container. Add 3cc of the wormer and mix well. 1cc down the throat of Largefowl .5cc down the throat of bantams. I haven't lost a bird yet on it and it works fast.


Edited because I forgot to say what I added the wormer to...my bad!