Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[BDutch]

Two hours today in a persistant drizzle with the new volunteer. I didn't get around to taking any pictures. I think this is going to work out. The volunteer arrived and we went through a lot more stuff about chickens than was strictly necessary. They would like to keep their own chickens apparently.

I can't explain what a relief having someone stable and sensible with an interest in the birds is. I've stumbled to the field in healh conditions that make my actions plain stupid because I felt a) responsible and b) had absolutely no faith in C carrying out the most basic care and being lied to about what they had done.
I've got a day off tomorrow. The first proper day off since Fret went broody with Mow and Dig.

I’m so happy for you! Have a nice day tomorrow!

 

[Shadrach]

The eldests husband made this cake for a competition at the hospital he works at.

 

[kcan2]

The eldests husband made this cake for a competition at the hospital he works at.
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Wow - looks delish as well as very artistic! My guess is pumpkin-flavored cake?

Congratulations on your day off tomorrow! Very happy that you have someone reliable to trust with chicken duties. A relief!

 

[fuzzi]

The eldests husband made this cake for a competition at the hospital he works at.
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What kind of cake is it?

 

[Shadrach]

What kind of cake is it?

I have no idea. I bet it tastes good though. Both he and the eldest are good cooks which is more than I'll ever be.

 

[lightm]

I recommend sardines, not just any old tinned fish.

Sardines are forage fish - caught from the wild, not farmed. A lot of the fish in the supermarket these days is farmed, which is problematic in all sorts of ways, just like industrial chicken or beef production. The lower down the food chain a fish is, the more likely it is to be healthy. The smaller it is, the more likely it is to be wild and caught in open water. Sardines satisfy both categories. They contain a good amount of protein, all the electrolyte minerals (calcium, sodium, potassium, magnesium, phosphorus) plus some iron, zinc and manganese, plus B vitamins, and the whole suite of essential amino acids.

And besides all that, tinned sardines are available even in small corner shops, and are one of the cheapest fish to buy anywhere, because they are plentiful in the sea. I do not understand why anyone chooses any other type of fish.


Our senses have been hijacked by food processing companies, who have found (just by trial and error presumably) that they can fake the flavours that activate the taste buds, so our body thinks we are consuming something other than what we are actually consuming. Chickens are fooled likewise with commercial feed. It doesn't make either of them healthy or balanced. And although our taste buds are fooled, the sensors sampling through the gut and the rest of the body know we are not meeting our nutrient targets, so we overeat in order to try to reach them. Obesity scientists are very interested in NG studies.

Also, commercial chicken food lacks all the things we haven't yet spotted as important for their health, but which are present in natural foods. A lot gets lost in processing (not least fibre); only some of it e.g. essential amino acids gets added back later in concentrated form. Evolution does not work as fast as modern foods have changed; our biology is fit to work with real food, not ultra processed food.

Great post. Me and my chickens love sardines. Totally agree with your point on sense hijacking.

 

[notabitail]

I have yet to meet anyone who sees me as a hippy.
Lots of the farms had chickens in the house. The ground floorof many of the old farmhouses was for the farm animals and the kitchen. Sleeping and living was done on the second floor.
Quite a few of the smallholdings had chickens living in the trees so my "expensive" coop building was seen as excentric and a waste of money by some.
Most considered me mad for taking a chicken to a vet, including the vet until she got to know me.

I believe in chickens inside.

Yeah. That went well.

 

[Perris]

I would be interested in reading the study that states they split at 30 plus birds

I'll try to find it. I've a feeling it was in one of the books so may take a while - it is so easy to get distracted when leafing through the pages of a good book and quite forget why I'm there!

 

[Perris]

Realized I've cited it before, on this thread no less; here https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...rescued-chickens-thread.1502267/post-27216260
It's Nicol's book on chicken behaviour that you put me on to

 

[BDutch]

One of the benefits I have received from having my flock is getting to know them as individuals. For me the best time to see it is when they roost.

My bantams are housed in a hoop coop, open to the air all around but covered in the back so they can roost in a dry location. Once they are past the vulnerable chick stage I mostly leave them to sort out the roosting arrangements. Didn't happen this evening.

My dh walked the dog, and reported a lot of noise coming from the coop. It's after dark, so I investigated. Martha had about 3' of roost to herself, wouldn't allow the pullets or Dominiques to come near. Hannah was on the ground, trying to get up on the roost after dark. Zacchaeus was making a lot of noise, upset. I inserted myself into the situation.

I moved Martha all the way to the left, then put Silas the 5 month old cockerel next to her, she wouldn't peck him, he's too big. Then I placed the Dominiques in the middle as buffers, pullets to either side. I picked up Hannah from the ground, put her next to head hen Rahab on the right. Hannah moved to the left and started pecking one of the pullets, who burrowed under a Dominique to escape. But I fixed Hannah. I spoke quietly to Zack, and placed him between Hannah and the pullets. You see, Hannah is the groupie, happiest snuggled next to a rooster. Hannah won't peck Rahab, either, so she's contained.

I'll be glad when the hens finish molting, and the pullets start laying, hopefully there will be less drama!

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Do you consider to make a second roost?
Or try something else to avoid this fuss?

I have several hens that don’t allow juveniles in their roost spot either. Another roost spot where they can’t see each other works perfect in my flock, and is a great solution to avoid such stress.