Red Laced Cornish X and project talk (pics p. 8)

[SteveH]

Bad news Steve, do you live near running water?

Yes, I'm in the Mississippi River bottoms, about 1/4 mile off the river, and there's a creek running across the back side of this place. It's been a flood year [the river was held by the levee system, but every creek backed up and overflowed], and biting insects always seem to reach plague populations around here after a flood or wet spring. I've been cleaning the area of fallen limbs the owner has ignored for several years, and then mowing. In the process, I've had to pull a bunch of ticks off me; either 4 or 5 were deer ticks [I've lost count] and one developed a rash last week. I called the doctor as a precaution, although it had not developed the bullseye indicative of Lymmes Disease. He insisted I come in, and after looking at the bite, he decided I should go on antibiotics for two weeks. That was a good thing, because the halo appeared around it last night. [The night before I went to the doctor, I fell asleep reading under the lamp on my headboard, a bug flew inside my ear, created quite a problem for me, so I was glad to go have that taken care of.

] I was going to report the bullseye today, but the chicken catastrophy postponed that.

My bug zapper burnt out last week, I don't think it kills many gnats and sure doesn't kill ticks, but the mosquitoes are starting to get bad also. Last year, if I ventured out on this property after dark, I would be covered in mosquito bites in a few minutes. The bug zapper put an almost complete end to that problem.​

 

[Jared77]

Steve you gotta build some bat houses. It makes a difference. I put them up on my property and welcome them to hunt my property. You can buy them prebuilt or you can get the plans off the net. Regardless you gotta get some up.

 

[NotAFarm]

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x2!! We have two on the east side of our barn that has our coops. They return early each Spring and do a great job with the sketters!

Steve, Sorry to hear about your loss....now wish we had waited one more week to meet!

 

[bockbock2008]

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Sorry you've been sick, but glad you're better.

This wasn't a really great day for me. I went out to feed my chickens and gather eggs, to find what looked like two thirds dead and more dieing. I grabbed three dead and headed for the state lab, only about 30 miles away. More of those that were healthy when I left died while I was gone.

It'll be a few days before I hear from the lab, but it was buffalo gnats. Since we traded some chickens, I called my neighbor to warn him I was having problems. He called back to report the buffalo gnats were driving his brooder chicks crazy and two or three were dead; and that people in this area have lost entire flocks to them before. He said they crawl in their beaks though the nostrils and get in their airways. He was putting up a fan to blow the gnats clear of the brooder. Another aquaintence called his cousin, who reported previous problems and claimed chlorine bleach spayed in the coop repels them. I saw them on my dead and dieing, but thought they had gathered on them after they went down.

Of 52 birds, I lost 45, including every pure bred and all but one of my project birds. I'm left with 2 EE hens, 4 ISA Brown hens, and a white Ameraucana/CX pullet; one ISA is not healthy. I've dusted the survivor's bodies with Sevin, and hung glass containers of chlorine with holes punched in the lids in the coop and breeding pen/tractor.

I do have 14 chicks inside that hatched last week, and 42 eggs in the bator.

It looks like I might be in the same trouble you are. My husband just called to tell me 10 of my cornish x are just laying there dead. We are next to a creek and only a mile or so away from the Ohio River so we have been in the midst of water for the past few months too. I'm going to call him back and ask him to mix up some bleach and spray it around until I can get home to evaluate. ANymore info anyone has on this, please let me know!!

 

[NevadaRon]

Wow Steve that is horrible! I can't even begin to imagine your loss; those Dark Cornish you had were some of the most awesome birds I've ever seen. I live about 1/2 mile from the Carson River but thanks to the high desert climate here insects of any kind are rarely a problem. I'm very allergic to mosquitoes which is one of the reasons I live here.

 

[WhiteMountainsRanch]

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OH NO! So sorry to hear that Steve!!!

Let us know if there is anything we can do to help!

Horrible!!!

 

[Totalcolour]

Steve, I'm SOOO sorry for your chicken losses. I would send hatching eggs, but I only have mutts and a few EE's (my purebred adults are crossed with other purebreds, but it still makes them mutts). I would be more than happy to send you some of these if you want them.

Kathy

 

[KatyTheChickenLady]

STEVE!!!!

OH NOOOOO! That's horrible horrible horrible . . . are YOU ok???? Do you need anything? You need to move to Idaho!!! How are your dogs? I'll start collecting eggs for you, just let me know when you're ready to get going . . .

 

[NevadaRon]

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LOL!!!

 

[SteveH]

Another EE died today. The good news is that I had not counted dead chickens, just the hand full of live ones and subtracted from what was supposed to be there. Two had escaped the big uncovered pen and were hiding from the gnats. A blue Ameraucana was under the edge of a lumber pile and did not know how to back out; the sport white Freedom Ranger hid under a junked jeep at the other end of the building.

The dogs and I are OK, this may be a subspieces that prefers birds. They do drive me crazy bumping my face, eyes, and ears but don't bite. After inhaling some and getting a scratchy throat and hoarse voice, I wear a mask if I venture into some areas. I put a high velocity fan blowing out of the big doorway of the partially open front of the coop. The chickens only took minutes to discover that they could get relief by standing in front of it, otherwize they have to hide in dark nest boxes or the darkest corner. The gnats seem to loath darkness, but love tall grass; the loan survivor from the portable pen is back in the dry pen. I replaced the bug zapper with a new one, but the gnats don't go into it. I also bought a large tiki lantern and a gallon of citronella oil, just in case.