Silkie thread!

[vebyrd36]

That is great ur first Silkie baby.

 

[RockerHen]

Is that a dogloo dog house? I am thinking of splitting my run in half and putting two small coops in for two pair or trios next spring. I like the idea of plastic so it can be washed and sanitized easily and thoroughly. Especially if there is a mite or lice issue.
I would love to know what you think.
You have cold winters, right? They ok in there in freezing temps?
Do you provide heat at all?
I live in the PNW so if they do great in your area it that option would be fine here for sure.

Kim

Yep, it's a dogloo. Painted it red just for fun. I actually got the idea from this thread as I saw someone had their silkie nest box in a dogloo house, and I had an extra one laying around. I also like the idea that I can bleach it out/spray it out, unlike my wooden houses.
Here in SC the winters are usually mild, but 2 winters ago it was really cold for several weeks, with negative temps at night. I've never provided any artificial heat for my birds. I do wrap their houses/runs in plastic sheeting in winter to help keep the wind off and insulate them. I've never lost any birds to cold. I've actually had a hen go broody, hatch chicks, and raise them during the months of December/January by herself, with no heat lamp, and all the chicks were fine.

 

[tiki244]

congrats woo hoo!!!

 

[ChickSter99]

Chickster I hate swaps. I rarely go and wish I hadnt gone today. I doubt if I could deal with an auction at all. I just tried to weed out the birds that i thought I could not use in my breeding program the best I could. I have advertised on craigslist and been able to 'screen' the people somewhat I want to sell to and it is much better that way.
Today was a bad day. I sold one pair of bantam leghorns only and then later walked around and found out that the person who got them had chickens that were in very poor shape. I feel so bad for my poor leghorns chickens but is too late to do anything. I am vowing to not go to any more swaps or auctions. Then I lost $20 somehow on top of it.
I did get a pair of buff silkies though but am still sick about my poor leghorns.
cinersga it is exciting. Mama will probably sit pretty tight while they are hatching and afterward for a day or so. I am sure she will do a good job though. When I first started using an incubator I was just too nosey and wasnt good for the chicks hatching. It is very hard to just sit on your hands and watch them hatch in an incubator. lol At least for me. Im

I'm so sorry about your leghorns. It's not your fault. There was no way you could have known in advance what the other person had as far as living conditions go. You can't help that, but I understand. I would feel the same. Our next auction is next weekend. I really didn't want to advertise on Craigslist because of the people that weren't really interested and just want to waste time or some other nonsense. I don't know what to do. Hubby says grow the roos & eat them. I couldn't imagine eating our pets (unless we have a super mean one). I do have way too many though. I may just have to build another pen. That would probably make me feel better, but hubby would not be happy.

 

[mystdogs]

WooHoo!! My first silkie chick!!!

Congratulations

 

[KMHunter]

Quote: That is great! I am also planning on wrapping the run in plastic to keep the wind out. I must have read below the wrong avatar. I thought you were from like Wisconsin or somewhere like that, where winters get really cold. SC is definitely not that cold. We get below freezing here for a couple of days here and there, maybe a week at the longest. I think I am going to start keeping my eye on Craigslist for them. Thanks!

 

[1chicken fan]

KMH ~ I'm thinking YES, you're in trouble and you're an enabler! Quick join the first Chick 12 Step Recovery group ASAP.

 

[KMHunter]

Quote: If I said I was sorry.....I would be lying.

I will look into that Chick 12 step recovery group right away! OR, maybe after I have hatched a few more babies. Yeah, that's it....

 

[tiki244]

Here are the two I got today. I just spent the last couple of hours doing his feet. Seems he has a bad case of scaly legs. He must be older than I thought too from the look of his feet




Thanks Chickster~ I have a lot of extra roos but have thinned out a bit. I have decided that if I need to get rid of any more I will either 1)butcher them for dog food or 2) advertise till I find a really good home for them. (like do a little adoption questionaire) I wish I could keep them all, but space and my budget guide my decisions. Good luck with your rehoming efforts / roo pens.

 

[aoxa]

OMG, so that's what I did wrong! Now I know why I'm on my third hatch already when I only planned on hatching a few birds for laying. I totally get it now! 

I'm with you here! I hatched non-stop from my first time setting April 13th to now. We went from 36 when we moved here, to over 150. Good thing I have a huge barn! We plan to sell some at the swap (mostly boys - though some mixed girls most likely). I think we will still be around 100 for winter.

Here are the two I got today. I just spent the last couple of hours doing his feet. Seems he has a bad case of scaly legs. He must be older than I thought too from the look of his feet
Thanks Chickster~ I have a lot of extra roos but have thinned out a bit. I have decided that if I need to get rid of any more I will either 1)butcher them for dog food or 2) advertise till I find a really good home for them. (like do a little adoption questionaire) I wish I could keep them all, but space and my budget guide my decisions. Good luck with your rehoming efforts / roo pens.

they are so cute Tiki! Is scaly legs not highly contagious? I have 3 birds with it (my own for over a year) just noticed it a few weeks ago, and they've been treated and it has worked wonders, but none of the others show any signs. I'm constantly looking now that I've seen it. Two came from the same place (they are brother & sister) and the other is a silkie - and hers was the hardest to notice. I got her last October and she didn't have them when I inspected, loused, washed and blew her dry.

What I did was put sevin with some olive oil and lathered their feet up. Worked great!