South Carolina

[Southern Bee Lady]

Thanks everyone. This started out to be a tiny project but these projects always seem to have a mind of their own. It certainly makes my life a little easier and was a big blessing. It is built on the side of my husbands shop building. If I decide to stop the chicken thing someday, it can be converted to shop use. I even put all the breeder pens together with screws so they could be easily removed.

 

[WestKnollAmy]

Or better yet, when your hubby decides he no longer wants that shop workspace, you can take over the space and add on!

 

[Southern Bee Lady]

Just wanted to caution everyone. I bought a couple of bags of the equine pellets at TSC to use in my brooder. I started losing keets fast. I removed them from the brooder and put them back on towels in a different brooder. I have lost 5 keets and 1 silkie out of 12 total. The pellets smelled like OSB (oriented stren board) that is used in construction. OSB has glues and who knows what used in it. I think the keets were eating the tiny flakes off the pellets. I had only heard good things about the pellets. I usually put mine on pine shavings and have never had a problem. The last batch of keets and silkies (4-6 weeks old) are doing great that were on shavings.

 

[Southern Bee Lady]

Or better yet, when your hubby decides he no longer wants that shop workspace, you can take over the space and add on!

LOL Good thing he does not read these post here Amy.

 

[WestKnollAmy]

I do not use the shavings or the pellets as I have not usually heard good things from any of them.

Because the DD has Guinea Pigs and we had over 100 of them we did go through a lot of shavings. Piggies, being like chicks with their noses right next to the bedding, are susceptible to odors and eating whatever is front of them. We used Aspen shavings most of the time but I still lost chicks even on that. It certainly had to be kiln dried and when we did not adhere to that we lost piggies.
Same with chicks.
Pelleted bedding still had us losing piggies so we had to go back to kiln dried Aspen shavings for them and I have not used shavings on my chicks until they were older, feathered out kids. I lose a lot less chicks, for various reasons but it is worth it to me to use bags and change them every day or two. It gives me an opportunity to see their droppings and clean the plastic brooder with Oxine.

I am so sorry to hear this, Mary. I so hope your babies are out of danger now! It can be scary.
Was it possibly just that brand of pelleted bedding? I would think the kind you use in wood stoves would not have glue since it could be hazardous to humans when burning? But then, I do not know much about the pelleted stuff since we haven't used it very much.

 

[WestKnollAmy]

Quote:
Oooohhhh! I have a feeling you were thinking along those same lines.....

 

[sbshadjr]

Hello SC,

New to site. New to chickens. I am in the planning stage and think I have the winter to clear some land, build a coop and have everything ready be early spring. I am outside Charlotte in the up state and could use your input on good starting breeds in the area and any pit falls I may enocounter in our area.

This site has been most helpful, thanks for any response to my inquires.


sbhadjr

 

[Southern Bee Lady]

Was it possibly just that brand of pelleted bedding? I would think the kind you use in wood stoves would not have glue since it could be hazardous to humans when burning? But then, I do not know much about the pelleted stuff since we haven't used it very much.

Oh my, I did not think about these being used in the stoves. They were the equine pellets that Tractor Supply sells. I would definitely not want to burn these since they had such a strong smell.

 

[RockerHen]

I love my silkies. So photogenic all the time

Here's my silkie/polish mix with his insane foot feathers sticking out from under him. He is 100% attitude! not afraid to challenge everybody and everything! Gets into scuffles almost every day.


Today I let a hen and 8 chicks down to forage for the first time. The turkeys, also out foraging, came over to investigate. The hen decided that these peeping balls of fluff offended her, and pecked one soundly. O.M.G. The (bantam!!) mother jumped ON TOP of the turkey who is like 10 times her size, pinned her head down and pecked, clawed, and generally flogged the surprised turkey until she ran off squalwking. Lesson learned, never get between this hen and her chicks

 

[Moonchild]

I love my silkies. So photogenic all the time

Here's my silkie/polish mix with his insane foot feathers sticking out from under him. He is 100% attitude! not afraid to challenge everybody and everything! Gets into scuffles almost every day.


Today I let a hen and 8 chicks down to forage for the first time. The turkeys, also out foraging, came over to investigate. The hen decided that these peeping balls of fluff offended her, and pecked one soundly. O.M.G. The (bantam!!) mother jumped ON TOP of the turkey who is like 10 times her size, pinned her head down and pecked, clawed, and generally flogged the surprised turkey until she ran off squalwking. Lesson learned, never get between this hen and her chicks

Love the Silkie!