people with house chickens

[calichicken]

Elsie's bath time! I used an all natural puppy shampoo.

LOL...so cute!!!
Pic #1......Bubbly stuff tickles my belly!!!
Pic # 2...Ahhh the life!!!
Pic #3...WAIT!!! Wheres my poof???

 

[PBGGG]

The chicks over there have an underground going - "Hey, go over to PBGGG - they'll take better care of us!"

With that kind of irresponsibility you've got to wonder if they ever routinely worm or treat their flocks for lice/mites.

LOL yeah. They have a bunch of them come over every year- and every year its a different group. Last year it was Rooster Cogburn (who I am 90% died over there because they don't know how to take care of frostbite) and a few hens, and now its Rooster #2 and about 5 hens and 7 chicks that come over now.

Hi PBG,
I had one too that got pecked nby a hen before Icould save her. she is huge today, and also is a he.....Crickett But yeah she had a lot of skin removed

Oh wow! Glad he is ok!

 

[Sylvester017]

Elsie's bath time! I used an all natural puppy shampoo.

After a Silkie bath we use janitorial duty absorbent paper towels (they're larger and thicker than kitchen paper towels) then use a hairdryer to blowdry our chickens. Our Silkies especially love to feel the blowing warm air. One Silkie will actually tap on fans or blowdryers asking us to turn it on for her!

 

[auntphibian]

I have been offered a silkie chick and I see that they do better in cold weather indoors and a lot of people make them "house chickens". While I think that is adorable and would love to have an indoor chicken, I have my rescue parrots to consider.

If the chicken has been properly quarantined before being introduced to the parrots, since there would be no way to keep them apart, do I need to be concerned about spreading something to the parrots. They are my children and I lost 2 in the past year due to their past homes, I could not bare to lose any more of them because I was stupid.

Anyone have knowledge on this? Going to check with out vet, too, but thought someone might have experience here.

Also, is there any innoculations or medications that I need to give the chicks while they are young. I have the 5 outside and want to protect them from the wild bird diseases.

Thanks!!!

 

[Crickett]

I personally have never had any problems with wild bird diseases, but perhaps I've just been lucky? You may want to ask on the raising chicks forum, or perhaps the diseases one?

 

[PBGGG]

Got TWO more chicks from the neighbors today.. these guys were alone in the woods (not together, found them separately). We're now up to 37 birds, total.

 

[Ponyfeather]

PBGGG obviously these chicks are searching you out for a safe home. It does perplex me that the hens are hatching these babies but not mothering them it seems.

Pancake has been extra sweet lately though extra naughty too. She sat with me, well she stood I sat and read. Whole time she was standing pressed up against my side as I pet her while reading. Also she hasn't pooed on me in forever, just a bit ago she hoped down from the table she stood on watching me on my laptop and ran over and pooed away from where we are. Though she hasn't got back up on the table. I haven't been trying to potty train her but I think I could get her to potty train herself. Since she seems to poo in one area consistently.

Her naughtiness is wanting my toast, well my food in general she has to go up while I eat because she keep trying to help herself to my food. Before I could eat with her running around, not she wants what I eat. We discovered she 'acts out' when my mom is chicken sitting. Doing stuff she doesn't with me, getting into/on top of thing she knows she isn't allowed on with only my mom around. Then stops when I get home.

 

[Ponyfeather]

I have been offered a silkie chick and I see that they do better in cold weather indoors and a lot of people make them "house chickens". While I think that is adorable and would love to have an indoor chicken, I have my rescue parrots to consider.

If the chicken has been properly quarantined before being introduced to the parrots, since there would be no way to keep them apart, do I need to be concerned about spreading something to the parrots. They are my children and I lost 2 in the past year due to their past homes, I could not bare to lose any more of them because I was stupid.

Anyone have knowledge on this? Going to check with out vet, too, but thought someone might have experience here.

Also, is there any innoculations or medications that I need to give the chicks while they are young. I have the 5 outside and want to protect them from the wild bird diseases.

Thanks!!!

I think you might want to call your avian vet and ask about this, if they deal with chickens even better. They should know what risks are involved and if quarantine is enough to protect your parrots. Or if the chick could carry something that won't affect it but might affect the parrots.

 

[Sylvester017]

I have been offered a silkie chick and I see that they do better in cold weather indoors and a lot of people make them "house chickens". While I think that is adorable and would love to have an indoor chicken, I have my rescue parrots to consider.

If the chicken has been properly quarantined before being introduced to the parrots, since there would be no way to keep them apart, do I need to be concerned about spreading something to the parrots. They are my children and I lost 2 in the past year due to their past homes, I could not bare to lose any more of them because I was stupid.

Anyone have knowledge on this? Going to check with out vet, too, but thought someone might have experience here.

Also, is there any innoculations or medications that I need to give the chicks while they are young. I have the 5 outside and want to protect them from the wild bird diseases.

Thanks!!!

I am so glad to hear you have an avian vet. I love mine who happens to love chickens! - rare these days as so many people say they have vets that are reluctant to treat chickens.

You sound like an over-worrier about her birds like me. I've learned to relax a little more after having backyard chickens the past 3-1/2 years. When we first got chickens it was two Partridge Silkies and a month later rescued a White Leghorn. Within a month we graduated from limited free-range time to totally free-range the whole day. Almost immediately we had to give one Partridge back when it crowed. We then took in a Marans pullet and the 3 hens did well free-ranging on hot days, rainy days, cloudy days - didn't matter - they all loved the outdoors. I have one Silkie that stays in the pen on rainy days but another Silkie that loves to go splash in the puddles with the LF. Silkies are different in appearance from hard-feathered fowl but they are all chicken at heart - love to forage, love to free-range, love to be in a flock. The only thing they can't do well is fly but they can really jump high. Silkies lay nice-sized eggs (1.25-1.5 oz) about 5-6x/week when not moulting or broody. My two Silkies love to sit out their broody time or moulting period in the nestbox (about 3 weeks if broody and about 6 weeks if moulting). It takes anywhere from 2 weeks to 2 months for them to start laying again. Had one Silkie that took 6 months to restart laying again. She's a good layer at 5-6 eggs/week. Silkies are hardy little birds for all their fragile appearnce.

My only concern with Silkies is to not mix them with assertive aggressive dual purpose LF. Silkies are good with gentler breeds like Polish, Araucanas, other bantams like Cochins or Faverolles or Ameraucanas or EEs, Breda, possibly gentle Crevecoeur. But I wouldn't mix Silkies with large RIRs, NHRs, BRs, BOs, 'Lorps, SLW or GLW, Marans, Sussex, or assertive Mediterranean class breeds like Legs, Ancona, Andalusians, Minorcas, Black Spanish etc. As chicks these breeds seem to get along but at full maturity the bigger breeds will pick on or injure Silkies. We had to re-home two Leghorns who were sweet birds but took advantage of chasing and pulling out the crests of the Silkies. The Marans did a full-on attack on a Silkie pullet and was rehomed immediately. The only LF that plays nice with the Silkies is our Blue Wheaten APA Ameraucana. A 2-lb Silkie doesn't have an equal chance in flock politics against LF over 5-lb. I wouldn't mix Silkies with wilder temperament type fowl either like Fayoumi, Dandarawi, Jaerhon, Brakel, Campine or any Gull-type breeds like Westphalian or Groningen.

I asked my feed store about innoculations like Marek's for chicks and he said he had a high incidence of mortality from shipped chicks that were innoculated. Since he stopped ordering the vaccinations his chicks arrived from the hatchery in much better health. Strange but he said he lost more to vaccinations because the other chicks would peck another chick to death from the innoculation wounds and since the incidence of Marek's was zero in his hatchery chicks he discontinued it. There is more than one strain of Mareks so there's still no guarantee a chicken will not catch some form of Mareks anyway.

My vet is always my ultimate advisor. We've taken one Silkie to him 4x this past year. From vet visits alone we figure her eggs cost us about $4 each LOL!

 

[Sylvester017]

Got TWO more chicks from the neighbors today.. these guys were alone in the woods (not together, found them separately). We're now up to 37 birds, total.

Nice of the neighbor to supply you with FREE chicks!

Are they mixed breed or are they an identifiable breed? Usually yellow chicks are White Leghorn and golden colored chicks can be Buff Orps, RIRs, or Red Sexlinks. Have any ideas? What are you doing with the cockerels?

It's nice that you can rescue these guys before the predators like cats, dogs, or hawks get them - such a cruel way to die. It's puzzling that the mother hen isn't watching them unless she's been attacked and gone. These little rescues don't look that old either. Have they started their juvenile feathers yet?