Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[Perris]

I guess it's snake root. Ageratina altissima
I also need to get rid of it according to this article.
https://www.wqad.com/article/news/l...ther/526-ae911032-d04b-4360-983e-5783d22b3228

Apparently it's poisonous to mammals but birds can eat the seed and spread it.

ETA it's has a white flower that is one of the last to bloom
Bees like it

I couldn't access that article, but the PFAF entry says it's killed people who've drunk milk of cows that have eaten it. So it looks like your chickens are choosing wisely

 

[Molpet]

not sure about that ID. Cf. https://pfaf.org/USER/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Leonurus+cardiaca for picture inc flowers; does it look like that when it blooms?

No doesn't look like that exactly. Not red. I believe they are a light color flowers against the stems. I will have to think about it.
I know they are perennial and difficult to dig out.

 

[HiEverybirdy]

further to https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...rescued-chickens-thread.1502267/post-27615740
we've had some great responses regarding nutrition; does anyone have anything to offer on the natural remedy front? Worthington is of the opinion that there's a natural coccidiostat in greenstuff but confesses to lacking lab results to support it.

If I recall, it's Jeff Mattocks of Fertrell who says chickens can fight intestinal worms by ingesting certain kinds of plant fiber that make the gut inhospitable.

He's a big proponent of ranging and says he's never had to chemically worm chickens because they self medicate naturally. That caught my ear back when our first chickens kept coming up with intestinal infections due to roundworms (according to fecal analysis at the vet).

Mattocks' discussions on podcasts were motivators to start letting our chickens range more (this thread has been another). Their big, protected yard contains diverse soil conditions, moss, delicious invertebrates, and plants, but there's a whole world outside the fence they seem extremely interested in taste testing, most likely because it's essential to their health.

Mattocks isn't a source I can vouch for since I've never asked where his science comes from, and he's promoting products for Fertrell (good products, IMHO), but he presents a lot of thought-provoking concepts that shake up traditional feeding approaches. His audience tends to be breeders who make their own feed mixes.

 

[HiEverybirdy]

Tax: Merle Hagbird (BYC Calendar Mr. March 2024) just being handsome on the last day of his month of international fame. His saddle came in so nicely this year.

 

[Molpet]

If I recall, it's Jeff Mattocks of Fertrell who says chickens can fight intestinal worms by ingesting certain kinds of plant fiber that make the gut inhospitable.

He's a big proponent of ranging and says he's never had to chemically worm chickens because they self medicate naturally. That caught my ear back when our first chickens kept coming up with intestinal infections due to roundworms (according to fecal analysis at the vet).

Mattocks' discussions on podcasts were motivators to start letting our chickens range more (this thread has been another). Their big, protected yard contains diverse soil conditions, moss, delicious invertebrates, and plants, but there's a whole world outside the fence they seem extremely interested in taste testing, most likely because it's essential to their health.

Mattocks isn't a source I can vouch for since I've never asked where his science comes from, and he's promoting products for Fertrell (good products, IMHO), but he presents a lot of thought-provoking concepts that shake up traditional feeding approaches. His audience tends to be breeders who make their own feed mixes.

Now that you mention worms...
I have antidotal on red cayenne pepper powder and worms. Until last 2023 spring I had seen one round worm in poultry poop, and that was around late fall 2015. Sometime in winter 22 before 2023, I wasn't using red pepper because the cost had gone from a dollar a lb to $3 lbs. . plus shipping... I was using 75lbs a year.
When I started up again in the spring there suddenly were piles of worms under the roosts.... and in a week there was none and hasn't been any since. I did cut down to 3 times a week instead of daily last year.

 

[Sally PB]

I have antidotal on red cayenne pepper powder

Do you just sprinkle this on their feed?

 

[Molpet]

I ferment their feed... I add a heaping quarter cup to 2 gallon of dry feed and then add water.

Do you just sprinkle this on their feed?

 

[BigBlueHen53]

I ferment their feed... I add a heaping quarter cup to 2 gallon of dry feed and then add water.

A heaping 1/4 c of red pepper flakes? Is this one feeding, for how many chickens? And then how long does this set before you feed it? (I have not fermented feed before). Thanks. I have 26 chickens.

 

[Molpet]

A heaping 1/4 c of red pepper flakes? Is this one feeding, for how many chickens? And then how long does this set before you feed it? (I have not fermented feed before). Thanks. I have 26 chickens.

I have around 70 chickens and a couple dz turkeys. I go through 4 five gallon buckets made with 2 gallons of dry feed. Depending on forage availability.
FF FAQ a byc member wrote up.
https://tikktok.wordpress.com/2014/04/13/fermented-feed-faq/
I believe it was a 1/4 teaspoon of RP per chicken.

There's a bunch of threads on RP, here's one with some links to studies
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/how-do-you-feed-your-chickens-red-pepper-flakes.1567625/

 

[Molpet]

I have around 70 chickens and a couple dz turkeys. I go through 4 five gallon buckets made with 2 gallons of dry feed. Depending on forage availability.
FF FAQ a byc member wrote up.
https://tikktok.wordpress.com/2014/04/13/fermented-feed-faq/
I believe it was a 1/4 teaspoon of RP per chicken.

There's a bunch of threads on RP, here's one with some links to studies
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/how-do-you-feed-your-chickens-red-pepper-flakes.1567625/

This is what I buy, they have smaller sizes and it's gone down in price.
https://www.webstaurantstore.com/regal-bulk-ground-cayenne-pepper-25-lb/102707846.html