Pennsylvania!! Unite!!

[LisaYolkUm]

WOW, how bad is your leg if you might have to put off getting the chickens?? Hopefully you can end up getting them.

haha i am stupid, i totally quoted the wrong bit lol

well its very red and raised..........................last tues I went to urgent care and they gave me antibiotics.
okay wait..........I tripped over a cinder block 2 sat ago
then on the tues after the trip-------------urgent care visit cause I thought it was infected.................
they agreed and said take these antibiotics for 5 days

so on Sunday was the end of the antibiotics.............and on Monday and tues of this week it flared up again
so tues like yesterday I was back at urgent car ( I would go to my doctor but have not had luck getting an appt.........or them on the phone!)

so yesterday they gave me stronger antibiotics and I am to take them more often and for longer.
Well today Wednesday--------its only one day of these stronger stuff............but my ankle hurts when its down............its bothersome............
I am worried it might be a Staph infection............

I don't want to ring up a big bill by going to ER
or sit in ER if maybe a day or two of the good stuff might turn things around
on the other hand.............this is bothering me...............and worrying........................

at this point I am trying once more with a little more antibiotic lotion , an ice pack and being mellow
and seeing if this works

if things don't improve a bit...............I may have to go to ER
maybe in the morning..........night visits to ER are a drag.............

I really don't want to have to have iv antibiotics...................please just let this stuff work already!
I am trying to have some fun here!

geesh!

 

[BirdbyGavin1103]

need ideas,,,put a bunch of chicken pieces in crock pot last night and went to work,,,came home to a very well done chicken (it was on high, thought I turned that down ) anyway as it fell apart taking it out of the crockpot it left behind a very thick and dark stock, looks yummy,,,now what can i put in that stock later today and then go to bed, looking to have a nice dinner when i get up tonight.......not chicken corn soup,,,no more corn for awhile (corn really does pass thru and stays whole,,how nutritious can that be )....

I use broth like that for Chicken and waffles. I just toss in shredded meat, heat it, thicken with some flour or starch and serve over waffles (fresh or frozen) with some kinda veg on the side. Gavin goes wild for it EVERY time I make it.

I'll get the hubby to talk to them tomorrow - he was meant to be home today but had to go out to Pittsburgh and get 2 trucks done *sigh*

Tell him Friday's happen with or without him LOL

OK,.I'm.finally.back.&.1/2.te.freaking.keys.on.my.keyboard.aren't.working.

Off.to.Wal-Mart.to.see.if.t*ey.*ave.a.usb.keyboard.compatible.wit*.my.laptop.

Looks.as.if.I.will.be.moving.over.closer.(not.t*at.I.can.get.muc*.closer).to.t*e.river,.but.still.in.O*io.
To.prevent.*aving.to.move.so.many.birds.at.once,.I'll.be.selling.off.a.good.bit.of.my.breeder.stock.in.t*e.next.couple.weeks.to.make.my.move.easier.&.t*en.rebuilding.later.
If.anyone.is.interested.in.any.of.t*e.breeds.(especially.t*e.ducks).tat.I.*ave.listed.on.my.siggy.or.swap.page.please.PM.me.&.I.will.let.you.know.w*at.I.*ave.available.in.t*at.breed.


I was wondering what happened to you. I was getting ready to message you to check.

Schwenksville, Pa. - looking for my first chickens

Welcome

I have no idea where schwenksville is but welcome to the group! Schwenksville. Kind of a funny name, no?

Half the villages, boroughs, etc in PA are funny names if ya think about it.

I recently picked up some new layers and one of them I thought was a Rhode Island Red. I noticed today that she has been in the nest box for hours. It concerned me a bit so I gave her a pretty thorough look over and didn't find anything wrong. I also realized that I have been getting 1 or 2 eggs a day less than normal. I could not bring myself to believe that a RIR would go broody. Well I learned something today. I think this bird is a New Hampshire Red and they are known to go broody! Who knew?!? I hope that is what is going on anyway. I guess we will see tonight and then again tomorrow morning, if she is still there. If she is, I may stick a couple eggs, other than the golf ball she is sitting on, under her. I don't really want chicks this late in the year but I have never hatched under a broody so I want to try it. Anyone have any input on New Hampshire Reds?

My NH are production/TSC, so I only have one girl that is close true to standard. I'm trying to figure out which boy is closest so he can avoid the trip to "camp." Mine haven't started laying but they've been lovely birds. The girls are calm and somewhat loving. Only one cockerel has been close to aggressive but only when he's hungry (he grabs my dress hems and "pulls" me towards the feed bucket or feed area). Although he did try rushing me today, so he may not be staying as long as I thought.

Welcome! Have no fear, everyone her will be happy to get you twice as many chickens as you think you want.

I wish I had stopped at twice as many...I think I'm somewhere closer 10 times as many as I initially planned... did I seriously just admit that

Candled my silkie eggs my broody is sitting on and they are duds. Stupid rooster wasn't doing his job before he went MIA. Grrr. Now I either have to let them hatch leghorn eggs (which I don't really want any more of) or get some fertile eggs from somewhere else. I either want to get some colorful layers or eye candy (silkies, frizzles, serama, polish). What to do, what to do......

Split the difference and get a few of both.

well its very red and raised..........................last tues I went to urgent care and they gave me antibiotics.
okay wait..........I tripped over a cinder block 2 sat ago
then on the tues after the trip-------------urgent care visit cause I thought it was infected.................
they agreed and said take these antibiotics for 5 days

so on Sunday was the end of the antibiotics.............and on Monday and tues of this week it flared up again
so tues like yesterday I was back at urgent car ( I would go to my doctor but have not had luck getting an appt.........or them on the phone!)

so yesterday they gave me stronger antibiotics and I am to take them more often and for longer.
Well today Wednesday--------its only one day of these stronger stuff............but my ankle hurts when its down............its bothersome............
I am worried it might be a Staph infection............

I don't want to ring up a big bill by going to ER
or sit in ER if maybe a day or two of the good stuff might turn things around
on the other hand.............this is bothering me...............and worrying........................

at this point I am trying once more with a little more antibiotic lotion , an ice pack and being mellow
and seeing if this works

if things don't improve a bit...............I may have to go to ER
maybe in the morning..........night visits to ER are a drag.............

I really don't want to have to have iv antibiotics...................please just let this stuff work already!
I am trying to have some fun here!

geesh!

Hoping the new stuff kicks in before you need to go

.


Wow I don't get on for 2 days and there's 4 or 5 pages....Gavin has been on looking stuff up to figure out what breed he wants to show though.

Welcome to any new people I missed. Awesome pictures everyone, thanks Blarney now Gavin's begging me for a goat...again.

Tweetr the pic from JP is definitely my kids when they see me with the feed bucket. I'm extra careful with my steps, I'm terrified what they'll do if I fall...

 

[tweetr1979]

Tell him Friday's happen with or without him LOL

Tweetr the pic from JP is definitely my kids when they see me with the feed bucket. I'm extra careful with my steps, I'm terrified what they'll do if I fall...

Oh he'll be there - he is really looking forward to it. He would have been home earlier but a lazy ex partner at work isn't doing his job so he is back at the hotel sleeping while my husband is doing his work and won't get home till 2am

Yeah my girls get like that too - I usually get swarmed when I sit down lol

 

[SilkieSensation]

Quote:
Is that all??? Wish I still only had 60-70 birds. Bwahahahaha! I'm up over 200 again with 3 bators running stacked double.

 

[maestro7879]

well lets make a plan.
1.what are your goals ? Eggs
a. what do you want from your birds
1. eggs
2.meat
3. meat and egg

2. what is your set up - Coop with a run. That setup is also fenced in, I also have a large property where they can roam under supervision.
1. free range
2. coop and run
3. pen
4. barn

3. do you want to raise chemical free - I don't know. What are the pros and cons ?

4. do you like eye candy for the yard.- Would be nice but not a requirement

5. do you want to go heritage.or hatchery, - I would say heritage. Why would I want hatchery over heritage ?

this seems like a lot to ask. however a lot of time people get the wrong type birds and get very frustrated and give up.

my main suggestion and a very strong suggestion. NO SWAPS OR AUCTIONS for your birds. if you do this 8 out of 10 you will get problematic birds and are in for a huge heart break.


i do not want to overwhelm you. i just want you to have a great chicken experience.

Thanks for asking these questions. This is exactly what I came here for.
This is the coop I will be using. Second pic is the coop in the fenced in area, I still need to build a door and add more stakes.

 

[BirdbyGavin1103]

Looks great

 

[stake]

Maestro:

I am only about 6mos ahead of you....but here's how I went about it.....1 you have a coop....figure out how many birds you can fit...(then expand the coop) 2. I went to mypetchickens.com to review types of birds...my criteria was: my bear confinement well, friendly, cold hardy, and large foul....most heritage birds will lay 3-4 eggs a week, production birds will lay alot more....I am a bit unsure but it is my understanding that egg production falls off as birds get older....but the fall off is less with heritage birds...then just pick you colors....

Big Hatchery birds are mass produced and won't have good enough genes for show birds...small hatcheries seem to focus more on the heritage/exotic birds and breed for show...

Hope this helps....:

 

[LittleMissPurdy]

**Maesro- Looking good! It is nice to have the area to work with. There are alot of questions most people do not bother to ask them selves BEFORE they get chickens...usually goes "saw chicks at the TSC store..oh so cute, will get me a dozen of each. They get home and start to freak..help me!! help me!!.. because they didn't do 5 mins. worth of home work and the ones to suffer really are the animals." Bruce and alot of others here have helped me so much over the past year. I have even had the the opportunity to meet some of them. I took an entire year to learn/research what I was looking for and how I was going to have things set up. I realize most are not that patient, but in the end, I have birds that are happy, healthy and I am confident. If I have a question, I ask and it gets answered here. The individuals here have even helped me down paths I didn't even know I would travel..hatching eggs, raising chicks and acquiring my CPT license( along with others)...It is an exciting journey! Take the time to learn..ask the questions...have FUN!!!
New to it all too-Danielle

 

[BirdbyGavin1103]

Well it looks like our new Seramas have cocci...they had bloody stool since yesterday. So we had to make a run to pick up corid this morning and started the kiddos on it soon as we got home. They're the only ones showing any sign of it and they're still separated from the flock. We did have them outside in a modified rabbit cage (bottom removed so they could forage), but there was no contact with the rest of the flock. Crossing my fingers this'll work, and kicking myself for not picking the corid up when I was getting the rest of the med supplies...feeling like a bad chicken momma for not having it.

Hope everyone else is having a good day.

ETA: Animal Care Center in Danville does fecals ($16) for chickens, they will send it out if they don't find anything in their exam (not sure about that cost). They also do some work with the flock itself, not sure how extensive their treatments are for chickens (luckily haven't had to use it yet), but they'll do exams at the very least. For anyone in the area looking for a vet that sees animals other than dogs and cats. They also have one or more vets that do livestock (horses, cows etc.) I know they're a wonderful office to work with as well, they've been our vet for almost 30 yrs and have worked with us many times financially in emergencies. The one doctor even went so far as to use his own dog to give my basset blood transfusions when she got into rat poison (interesting fact dogs have at least 13 blood types plus the rh factors). Anyway I figured for anyone near me looking for a vet to possibly help with their flock I'd pass it on.

 

[My peeps]

Having a hard time find fertile eggs for the type of chicks I want. Checked out on here and ebay. Any other ideas? I just need a few for the Broodys to sit on. Silkie, polish, Black copper marans, Easter Eggers.