Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[TropicalChickies]

I think your mild tropical climate lends itself to being ideal for the various parasites. Moderate to warm humid temps, lots of vegetation and abundance of wildlife... at least here, we get a lot of dry periods and the occasional cold days, to help.

Absolutely. Thank you for understanding that. The same visitors who marvel over the spectacular bird diversity are often the same ones to comment, "It's beautiful here, but I don't think I could get used to the bugs." Not only are there ridiculous numbers of lice, mites, and sticktight fleas present in our climate, we humans endure clouds of bloodsucking mosquitos, midges, biting gnats, and ticks. And then there are other insects that bite to inject their eggs under your skin and causes a flesh eating disease called leishmaniasis -- which I and everyone else who lives here has had at some point.

Thankfully, we don't have malaria or yellow fever at our altitude, but we do have dengue as well as species of hookworms that carry extremely dangerous strains of bronchitis and pneumonia. One of our precious pups died at 20 months old from hookworm carried pneumonia. All of our animals are on deworming schedules, but still ... Parasites exist for a reason. And that reason is to control overpopulation of other species. Like us, and our chickens and our dogs.

Interestingly, people in lowland tropical areas belonging to indigenous tribes and nations have much lower incidences of parasite borne infections, or, when infections are present, they are seldom as serious as when new settlers contract them. But the same indigenous people are much more highly susceptible to serious and fatal outcomes from contracting viruses and/or bacteria. For example, while smallpox killed about 3 in 10 Europeans at the time of "New World" colonization, it killed 9 out of 10 natives. Acquired immunity only explains this partly -- it turns out that human immune systems can evolve over time to combat the pathogens most present in their environment. For indigenous people living in warm humid conditions, that's parasites. For Europeans who were basically living in their own sewage and excrement at the time, resistance to bacterias was high, but many succumbed to parasites once here in South America.

At any rate, I do the best I can for the chickens in my care. They have great coops for lowering the rate of infestation, great diets, and an incredible buffet of bugs and plants to forage all day every day. I have to accept they are going to get parasites and try my best to eliminate or at least manage the ones they get.

Not all the bugs are bad of course. Here's some of the more benign and interesting looking ones I've snapped pics of recently:

 

[TropicalChickies]

I have no experience with sulfur, but just wanted to chime in with what I did experience lately just in case the sulfur doesn't work for you. I used a powder product containing Eucalyptus Citriodora on my pretty heavily infested chickens and it seemed to have worked. https://www.flytesofancy.co.uk/products/battles-poultry-red-mite-powder-500g

I patted the powder pretty liberally on their underside, tail, under wings, and neck area. It is a very fine powder which puffs up into the air easily, so we got the chickens after dark, took them out of their coops, and treated them on a table outside where they wouldn't be confined in an environment full of dust in the air.

We went back to reapply just over a week later since I heard the eggs hatch and the cycle starts over. During the reapplication process we didn't find a single adult louse on any of our 25 chickens (all of whom were infested before), and we didn't find any lice eggs sacs on any chickens except one (who is our biggest chicken so might not have been able to reach her vent area to preen them off her feathers). We found SO MANY eggs sacs the first time round, so it seems to have worked very well. I had also read that applying oil to the egg sacs at the base of the feathers will prevent them from hatching. We sprayed a bit of eucalyptus citriodora oil on our big chicken when we inspected her the second time around, just to be sure.

It has been a few weeks since then and they all seem normal. I should check them out one more time just in case, but overall I am very happy with how it turned out.

Thank you for sharing this. I don't think I could find this product in Ecuador - but eucalyptus trees are very prevalent in the highlands. I'll bring some back the next time I go up to the sierra and maybe I could make an extraction. But I'll definitely ask one of my friends in the Global North to bring some the next time one of them visits. I'm sure others in the UK will be interested.

 

[fluffycrow]

Absolutely. Thank you for understanding that. The same visitors who marvel over the spectacular bird diversity are often the same ones to comment, "It's beautiful here, but I don't think I could get used to the bugs." Not only are there ridiculous numbers of lice, mites, and sticktight fleas present in our climate, we humans endure clouds of bloodsucking mosquitos, midges, biting gnats, and ticks. And then there are other insects that bite to inject their eggs under your skin and causes a flesh eating disease called leishmaniasis -- which I and everyone else who lives here has had at some point.

Thankfully, we don't have malaria or yellow fever at our altitude, but we do have dengue as well as species of hookworms that carry extremely dangerous strains of bronchitis and pneumonia. One of our precious pups died at 20 months old from hookworm carried pneumonia. All of our animals are on deworming schedules, but still ... Parasites exist for a reason. And that reason is to control overpopulation of other species. Like us, and our chickens and our dogs.

Interestingly, people in lowland tropical areas belonging to indigenous tribes and nations have much lower incidences of parasite borne infections, or, when infections are present, they are seldom as serious as when new settlers contract them. But the same indigenous people are much more highly susceptible to serious and fatal outcomes from contracting viruses and/or bacteria. For example, while smallpox killed about 3 in 10 Europeans at the time of "New World" colonization, it killed 9 out of 10 natives. Acquired immunity only explains this partly -- it turns out that human immune systems can evolve over time to combat the pathogens most present in their environment. For indigenous people living in warm humid conditions, that's parasites. For Europeans who were basically living in their own sewage and excrement at the time, resistance to bacterias was high, but many succumbed to parasites once here in South America.

At any rate, I do the best I can for the chickens in my care. They have great coops for lowering the rate of infestation, great diets, and an incredible buffet of bugs and plants to forage all day every day. I have to accept they are going to get parasites and try my best to eliminate or at least manage the ones they get.

Not all the bugs are bad of course. Here's some of the more benign and interesting looking ones I've snapped pics of recently:

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I LOVE praying mantises

 

[TropicalChickies]

I found this recipe for a spray that is mostly referenced as being effective against mites, but garlic and vinegar was referenced in this article for use against lice

Garlic contains a lot of ... You guessed it ... Sulfur! That's why it's often touted as a remedy for sour crop and other yeast infections.

 

[Shadrach]

No way you can convince me thats its nice to live in a plastic house for my chickens because I know it isn’t nice for people either. The only advantage I see is the more easy mite control and cleaning.

Well, I tested exactly this out as you should recall from earlier in the thread.
I had three coops available, one prefab wooden coop, one very small purpose built coop suitable in my opinion for a broody with chicks, but up to five hens had roosted in it in the past and the current recycled plastic coop. For a couple of months at least all 20 chickens had the option of roosting in any coop. The change over wasn't instant, especially with Henry and those who roosted on the roost bar in the old prefab coop run, but eventually all 20 chickens voted with their feet and moved into the recycled plastic coop.

You may not like the idea of plastic coops but the little experiment mentoned above proves that at least 20 chickens (the entire populationin fact) chose the plastic coop in preference to the other 2 options.

Experience and evidence; I know they're a real fecker when one basis ones arguement on an untried predjudice.

I had the same kind of unreasoned resistance to the house I designed in Catalonia. I was told repeatedly, nobody would want to live in a hole in the ground. Of course, when these people experienced what a hole in the ground could be, their view changed. Just about everyone who visited my house in Catalonia loved the place.

Plastic houses may well become an option for people in the future. A recycled plastic shell properly designed would make an excellent drop in a hole and cover with earth type build.

 

[TropicalChickies]

wow! lucky you! Do you catch a glimpse of some of them sometimes? Do any ever join your flock, as Coed the pheasant sometimes does mine?

Yes, I'm starting to learn more about the different bird species and what they actually are. I even downloaded a book on birds of the Cloudforest. Juan and I call them by our own names after the sounds they make -- the laughing bird, the alarm bird, the supersonic bird .

A few weeks ago, we heard a tremendous screeching in the forest and the dogs ran to see what was going on. We followed them and found a mot mot (pictured, not mine) that had been attacked by a hawk. It was wounded but the wound looked quite superficial so we carefully brought it in to treat it if possible.

I'd just like to relate that handling a truly wild bird is whole nuther ballgame. It was clearly terrified and close to going into shock. Juan held it while I quickly located the wound and applied cicatrizante. I was terrified the poor bird was going to have a heart attack. We put it in an outbuilding with a dark cloth over the doorway to try to let the bird rest. Fortunately a few hours later, the bird recovered and was able to fly away.

We've since seen the mot mot around -- or we like to think it's the same one -- in the trees on the perimeter of the food forest.

 

[TropicalChickies]

Well, I tested exactly this out as you should recall from earlier in the thread.
I had three coops available, one prefab wooden coop, one very small purpose built coop suitable in my opinion for a broody with chicks, but up to five hens had roosted in it in the past and the current recycled plastic coop. For a couple of months at least all 20 chickens had the option of roosting in any coop. The change over wasn't instant, especially with Henry and those who roosted on the roost bar in the old prefab coop run, but eventually all 20 chickens voted with their feet and moved into the recycled plastic coop.

You may not like the idea of plastic coops but the little experiment mentoned above proves that at least 20 chickens (the entire populationin fact) chose the plastic coop in preference to the other 2 options.

Experience and evidence; I know they're a real fecker when one basis ones arguement on an untried predjudice.

I had the same kind of unreasoned resistance to the house I designed in Catalonia. I was told repeatedly, nobody would want to live in a hole in the ground. Of course, when these people experienced what a hole in the ground could be, their view changed. Just about everyone who visited my house in Catalonia loved the place.

Plastic houses may well become an option for people in the future. A recycled plastic shell properly designed would make an excellent drop in a hole and cover with earth type build.

I would live in a recycled plastic house without reservation. A wood house in the jungle is not nicer for chickens, or humans. The amount of treatments and chemicals needed to control termites is absurd -- and the termites win anyway! I'm so sick of scrubbing mold and mildew off anything wood here. The "ecowood" (compacted recycled plastic) product we are using now is so much easier to keep clean.

 

[Shadrach]

Three hours today. One and half hours this morning and the same this evening with a nap at home inbetween. Mostly dry but windy with 35mph gusts. The chickens don't like the wind.
Roosting was more peacable this evening, problably because Fret took them in a bit later and Henry and Carbon had settled.

I can't say I felt any better today but I didn't feel any worse either.
It's my eldest's 40th birthday today. On Tuesday she and her husband are off on holiday for a week as part of the celebrations.
I walk right past their house when I go to catch the train which I did tonight. It was a very strange feeling walking past while the rest of the family were gathered in the house and I couldn't walk in and join them. Obviously, still being infectious the last thing they need is to find I've passed Covid on just in time for them to fall sick on the plane.
Double tear jerker when speaking to her on the phone she said she wanted me to be at her birthday celebrations more than anyone else.

Anyway, we'll get together when they get back from holiday and make up for it.

 

[tranquiliti]

Three hours today. One and half hours this morning and the same this evening with a nap at home inbetween. Mostly dry but windy with 35mph gusts. The chickens don't like the wind.
Roosting was more peacable this evening, problably because Fret took them in a bit later and Henry and Carbon had settled.

I can't say I felt any better today but I didn't feel any worse either.
It's my eldest's 40th birthday today. On Tuesday she and her husband are off on holiday for a week as part of the celebrations.
I walk right past their house when I go to catch the train which I did tonight. It was a very strange feeling walking past while the rest of the family were gathered in the house and I couldn't walk in and join them. Obviously, still being infectious the last thing they need is to find I've passed Covid on just in time for them to fall sick on the plane.
Double tear jerker when speaking to her on the phone she said she wanted me to be at her birthday celebrations more than anyone else.

Anyway, we'll get together when they get back from holiday and make up for it.
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[Perris]

That's a real shame over your eldest's birthday; but I'm sure you'll both make up for it later when she's refreshed from holiday and you're over covid. And you'll be able to enjoy 1-to-1 time instead of having to be nice to lots of other rellies at the same time

has your pullet got a little crest developing there?