Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[ppruitt]

I do too when it's really hot. I also let it run for a while for them, they all love to drink from it and some like to play splash in the puddles. Scarcely this year with water restrictions.

They are really cute (and I'm not much for cuteness). I can see how people in your country would fall for bunch of fluff sold in stores especially if they walk in there with their kids .

Hello Ppruitt and welcome. Wow, so many little ones... Are you planning to keep all of them ? Or eat the roos ?

Thank you! I plan on keeping one of the roosters. Yes, the rest will go to freezer camp.

 

[townchicks]

I also can't believe that all chicken owners are careless about them. I think many who raise them as pets are very worried about their well being, but have not sufficiently thought about these questions.

I believe you are right. One of the reason's I love Shadrach's threads, is that he brings up these topics. Even if we can't mimic the wild free range conditions we can make small changes to better our chickens lives, based on this model. I'll never be able to have a rooster, though.

 

[Perris]

You've got seven generations before it's considered wise to add a different set of genes.

isn't that idea a hang-over from breeding-to-standard-of-perfection advice, where they're trying to concentrate the genes they want with minimal risk of introducing something undesirable? I think the usual natural pattern is young males or females leave the group and join another one, as they approach sexual maturity. The human conventional version is probably most familiar in the form of matrilocal or patrilocal marriages. And it happens every generation.

I'm very fond of Perris

How kind even though this did follow an invitation to the guillotine!

 

[ManueB]

My youngest and a number of her friends are single parents and yes it does make a difference no matter how much one tries.

Takes a village to raise young.

So sure one good may well be better than two bad. It rather depends on the circumstances and what value judgements one applies.

I think one thing we can all agree upon, is that it's a lot harder to be a single parent than one in a couple, unless you have a very solid support system from friends or family.

My two cents as Single women for years had custody of unrelated children from CPS ..

First job in my early 20s was social worker for the ministry of justice, in a juvenile home for minor offenders and placed teens . I quit after 6 years, I found it emotionally too difficult. It taught me a lot of respect for parents, other family members, adults doing their best to raise children through all kind of terrible conditions. Agree with @Iluveggers you must be good and strong @pennyJo1960.

Total out of subject tax : morning laying drama. Please pray for my ears.

 

[BDutch]

isn't that idea a hang-over from breeding-to-standard-of-perfection advice, where they're trying to concentrate the genes they want with minimal risk of introducing something undesirable? I think the usual natural pattern is young males or females leave the group and join another one, as they approach sexual maturity. The human conventional version is probably most familiar in the form of matrilocal or patrilocal marriages. And it happens every generation.

How kind even though this did follow an invitation to the guillotine!

I’m not sure, but I like to agree. I do think the ‘seven generations before it's considered wise to add a different set of genes’ is only wise for the production of breeding standards for shows. Inbreeding does happen with chickens too. And a weaker health or ‘miscarriages’ (or should I say ‘mishatches’) are very well possible with inbreed.

My personal experience confirms this. Bc 4-5 years ago I bought fertilized eggs from a breeder who visits shows. I had a poor hatch (maybe warm egg-transport/maybe inbreed). And both girls who hatched died last year from health problems. Maybe a coincidence, but my older Dutch (now 7-8 yo) are still in good shape. Except for the ones who died from a predator.

 

[ManueB]

Takes a village to raise young...

I have 4 coops and flocks. I let them intermingle in the poultry yard if I'm not trying to breed certain roo/hens. If I grab a chick, that's lost or wrong side of the fence, and it screams that a predator has them.... the closest hen will try to defend. Doesn't matter if it's even from that flock.....or species ... turkey will defend chicks, and chickens poults.

Actually they are small from malnutrition or having to work hard for a small meal. I and a few of my friends have raised feral chicks and they fill out beautifully in a calm and abundant environment.

I think us humans stand to learn more about ourselves watching other creatures. I read in another blog a gal said she wished she had chickens when she was young as it would have taught her all she needed to know about navigating her way through high school

I can't pretend to understand what goes through a chickens head. I just hope it is happiness when they see me. Even the freeloading ferals lol. I do believe chickens are much smarter than we give them credit for- just my 2 cents.

Yes, the nest and its perfect environment. I had an experienced 1/2 feral broody (who sat on flock eggs) toss out an egg from her nest. I thought she made a mistake so I put it back... twice. Well, the mistake was mine as she stank to high heaven when it exploded right b4 her hatch and I got to do the clean up. That was hundreds of years of instincts I was second guessing. Silly me.

Bless the wild chicken instincts. The mothers often drop them with me to fix and feed. I have four in my top brooder now. The mother showed them my set up and then abandoned them here. She is not the first to do this and it is not her first time either. I will fix them up, feed them and then release at our pasture 3 miles down the road when they are big enough so they can live their best life. I also have 3 ferals trapped to take down to pasture also. They have 24/7 access to water and trees and we throw scratch 2x a day. Not a bag gig.

View attachment 3137632Rejected and beat by mom I was able to capture all 4 by hand, give them some tylan in their water, cooked egg, some crumble and warmth. The wild chickens stress much more than my domestic. Get sicker faster and have many casualties. It is behoove of me to get them healthy and away from my flock.
Chicks raised by me usually stress less than chicks raised by my flock moms. I figure that if my rooster respects me as top dog and food provider I can also be head broody. I raise all chooks very close to each other from day one and I am sure that helps as intro is pretty seamless, though always good to have a nannyView attachment 3137646View attachment 3137645View attachment 3137647View attachment 3137648

Both your settings seem very well suited both for the chickens and for the environment. Many chickens owners would dream of having those conditions .

I believe you are right. One of the reason's I love Shadrach's threads, is that he brings up these topics. Even if we can't mimic the wild free range conditions we can make small changes to better our chickens lives, based on this model. I'll never be able to have a rooster, though.

I was also thinking that maybe quite a few chicken owners who take very good care of their flock are not legally allowed to have roosters. I'm not sure it would be best either from a human or chicken point of view that they wouldn't be able to have hens raise chicks.
But, I also find it strange to post eggs and I don't agree at all with posting live chicks. I believe most people who have chickens would be able to find eggs less than an hour drive away from them.

 

[ManueB]

I always left it to mother hen to decide when to go off the nest with the chicks

I do the same

She should leave the nest on her own

I moved her this morning with the four chicks and the remaining egg. Unfortunately the tiny things I thought were lice turned out to be baby red mites in the coop so I didn't want to leave them there any longer.

I managed to do it under 50 seconds, it was stressful but quick. They seem to feel better in the dog crate outside. She is sitting half heartedly on the remaining egg and letting the chicks eat and do their messy stuff.

She's turned from Nyarlathotep to a sweet and fierce mama hen. She still growls the few times I come to have a look. I bet she's not going to raise cuddly chicks this one. I barely managed to snap one or two picture.

 

[Shadrach]

Both your settings seem very well suited both for the chickens and for the environment. Many chickens owners would dream of having those conditions .

I was also thinking that maybe quite a few chicken owners who take very good care of their flock are not legally allowed to have roosters. I'm not sure it would be best either from a human or chicken point of view that they wouldn't be able to have hens raise chicks.
But, I also find it strange to post eggs and I don't agree at all with posting live chicks. I believe most people who have chickens would be able to find eggs less than an hour drive away from them.

Should one suggest that it is not the geatest idea to keep a large dog in a 9th floor flat left on it's own for most of the day, many will nod in agreement and quickly forthcoming are likely to be tales of shocking dog mistreatment and general ourage and indignation.
Should one suggest that it is downright cruel to keep even a zoo bred polar bear contained in desert condition zoos you'll get lots of support. In fact this very subject closed down the Bristol Zoo polar bear tank.
Mention that the capture, transportation and cage keeping of song birds is a cruel practice (now illegal in many countries) most will agree with you.
Should one even suggest that the keeping of chickens, creatures capable of traversing acres of land, carrying out complex social interactions etc etc in coops and runs with the recent generous allowances of FOUR SQUARE FEET! in the coop and TEN SQUARE FEET! in a run which will be sterile bare earth is cruel and should be made illegal and you'll get verbally stoned to death. Every illogical arguement one can think of will be presented. You'll get the we have the right advocates banging on about government interference. You'll be accused of elitism and told not everyone has the kind of acreage that would enable chickens to forage and carry out natural behaviour. You'll get told that chickens are domesticated and this behaviour or that behaviour has been bred out of them and you're talking nonsense. I've even had the God said I can arguement.

Mention the plight of the Battery hens and lots of people will bang on about how terrible the state of commercial chicken keeping is and then go and do exactly the same in their back garden. Of course, it's all different because they love them.
Thing is, as I've mentioned before an increasing number of the commercial egg suppliers are now providing far better keeping conditions than the majority of private chicken owners are able to.
The chicken doesn't know it's been domesticated. It doesn't know that some arbitary rules for it's keeping have been decided.

I like chickens; this much should be obvious. I would love to keep a few of my own rather than trying to improve the terrible conditons of the chickens I've found myself caring for throughout my life. I don't because I can't provide them with what I consider to be humane living conditions.

I tip my hat and bow to the likes of @TropicalBabies and a very few others I have come accross who put the welfare of the chickens above their own wants even if their circumstances make it easier for them than for others.

 

[Sally PB]

^^ Very interesting, thought provoking post, @Shadrach. Thank you.

 

[Sally PB]

@Shadrach, I value your opinion very highly. (I'm sure many others do too.) So I'd like your opinion on my chicken "set up," honestly, not mincing words.

I have 6 hens. My rooster died a few weeks ago. They have:

-Approximately 47 sf in the coop, which is open all day long, and they are closed in at night. Two nest boxes, two roost bars. Food inside during the day, removed at night so as not to attract animals. I scoop the poop off the poop board everyday. It does not smell in there at all, unless someone has just dropped a cecal poop. The bedding is 4+ inches of pine shavings.

-Approximately 156 sf in the run. The run is covered. Half the roof is polycarbonate sheeting (83% light transmission), so there is plenty of light; the other half has a tarp for shade. Two feed bowls and a bowl of water (removed at night). The ground is dirt with LOTS of organic matter in the form of added leaves and weeds. They have lots of clutter to perch on and climb, to take advantage of the vertical space. The have a dust bath with sand, but prefer certain places that they have made.

I do not free range. There are raccoons, opossums, feral cats, dogs, hawks, eagles, skunks, ground hogs, and possibly coyotes in the area. HPAI is circulating too.

I bring them buckets of weeds during garden season. They get "mash snack" just about every day. (Mash made of their regular food and some water.) Their food is a commercial 20% protein flock raiser crumble. I also give them vegetable/fruit kitchen scraps. They have grit, oyster shell, and crushed eggshells on the side.

What can I do better? Do they have "a good life," or am I deluding myself? All honest opinions appreciated.