South Carolina

[foxygoober]

We've been so busy!!!
Hubby is working on a pen for the turkeys- we were given poles from a traffic gate and we had some chainlink left behind from the previous owners- so that is going to make the frame.

Last week we found out we're expecting again-guess what makes me nauseaus . . . . . . .chicken!!!!

 

[DickGJ]

Quote:
Congratulations on your announcment...sorry the chickens make you nauseous. Hopefully being around the turkeys is a little better! Looks like you already have a little gang of "farmhands", so...are you going for your fourth boy?

 

[WestKnollAmy]

Expecting again? Bless your heart! I have trouble with one child, I am sure you have your hands full with 3! But they are a blessing and I am sure you all are awesome parents. You will have some great strong sons to help out around the place and maybe you will get a little girl this time and get to dress her up. I did love that about having a girl. There are so many clothes for little girls but not as much for little boys. However, boys are totally adorable in jeans, little boots and a button up shirt.

Talk about dressing up...I hatched out a duckling yesterday out of eggs for a friend and put it in the brooder with her chicks. They started laughing and pecking at it's feet until they turned bright red, not from blood. So I took masking tape and made it some "shoes" around it's cute little webbed feet though they still lay flat. He didn't keep them on but the day but it kept the chicks from pecking at the feet and now they are fine with them. Too funny to see shoes on the little bugger.

I got to use my truck yesterday for the feed store and farm chores. It is great to have a truck again!

 

[WestKnollAmy]

I want to tell you all something really funny. Okay, not so funny as very interesting. Or maybe you won't find it interesting.......

I hatched out Cayuga ducklings along with some chicks. I left them together to grow up in a brooder and for the first 2 weeks forgot to put Niacin in their water. Ducklings have to have Niacin to help their legs. Thinking I had better get my act together I put some in the waterer one night in the brooder and the next morning found one of the Cayugas dead.
Thinking I really had messed up I moved the other Cayuga out of the brooder and into it's own cage because ducklings do not need as much heat as chicks. No brooder light for it but it cried for friends so I moved 2 of the Mottled Javas over with it and it was happy. I also measured out the Niacin every day and made sure I had the right amount for the duckling. Well, the other day I took the ducklings from the GLW and put them in with the Cayuga and put the Javas back in the chick brooder. The Javas in with the Cayuga were 3 times the size of the ones left in the chick brooder!

Now I put vitamins A-D-E, Pro B and other vitamin/mineral supplements in my brooder waters about 4-5 days a week but have never done just Niacin (B vits). And never every day for chicks.
Can you believe that Niacin every day would make chicks this big? Obviously some the of vitamins I have been using are very lacking.

I think I am going to start taking Niacin! I want to grow up big and strong. Obviously my B6 and B12 are not doing squat for me!

 

[Joycats]

Quote:
Now that is very interesting - how long did the Javas get the Niacin? I have never added Niacin to my ducklings diet. The chick starter has Niacin in it and shouldn't it be enough? I hesitate to add vitamins to the water because it can go bad so fast. I learned this with my canaries and finches. It's much safer to add powdered vitamins to the food or just adjust the diet so they don't need supplements. With the heat in the brooders, I was always afraid to put vitamins in the water. I am having a problem with my chicks, mostly bantams and especially silkies. I am losing them daily, one by one and I can't determine what the problem is. Now I have chicks being raised under hens outside with no issues. So is it possibly the vitamins they get from the sunshine? Could it be the grit they get from scratching in the dirt? This is a new problem for me, I don't usually lose chicks once I get them hatched.

 

[Joycats]

Quote:
Congratulations!

 

[brandyk81]

I just started my flock this year...half from Amy (Wyandottes and EE's) and half from Rushlane Poultry (Brahmas and Marans). I started thinking though, that I don't have any white egg layers. I don't really want a white leghorn, but if that's all that anyone has, I'd probably settle. Does anyone have suggestions on "fun" white egg layers? Then, does anyone have any of these chicks (sexed ladies) for sale? Let me know. Thanks!

 

[WestKnollAmy]

The Javas were with the Cayuga for 2 1/2 weeks.

Since I rearranged the brooder room my older chicks are jumping over the floor brooder barrier and going outside. I try to be careful and watch with the older birds. I usually dig up grass clumps with dirt and put in there for them anyhow but I suppose they are restless with this pretty weather. They certainly seem happier.

I used to not add vitamins to the water and use shavings. When I switched from shavings I also added vitamins to see if I could perk them back up and have been doing it ever since.
Ducklings need more niacin than comes in some of the chick starters. I did not add it last year to my first group of ducklings and they did do well just on Williams feed but this year I have invested so much with the Sand Hill and Holderreads that I am adding niacin for strong legs. I noticed this morning one of the Saxony has a bow in one of it's legs. I hope it will straighten out but it isn't limping, at least.
I did add it some to my second group of ducklings last year and they did just as well as the first group. I would think there could be repercussions to the extra niacin but I haven't found the info .....that I can trust.

I lost a few chicks with that cold spell last week. Intelligent me left the window open. Even with heat lamps they got way too chilled in the brooder under the window and I found them dead and lost more within the week. The ones on the other side of the room are doing well but now it has gotten so hot in the brooder room they are panting and that is long after I turn off the heat lamps on the little babies. Most of my brooder tubs no longer have lights on them at night. Last night was balmy to me! However, I like a little light one them because then they eat the clock around. They don't do that under hens though.

Joy, has the sex link hatched out any chicks? Is she caring for them?

 

[Joycats]

Quote:
I love my white leghorn eggs! They are HUGE eggs and very small birds. I only keep a few because I like to add that one white egg into the carton. It makes the other colors really look bright. The polish cresteds lay white eggs but they are a medium sized egg. The blue andalusians also lay medium white eggs. AND the La Fleche hens lay white eggs too. Unfortunately, I don't have any pullets for sale right now. I have a few white leghorns but would only let them go to place a rooster.

 

[Joycats]

Quote:
Thanks for the info Amy. The chicks I'm losing are between 1 and 3 weeks old and I still have them on paper towels. They just stop thriving, start to lose weight and I know somethings wrong but haven't found anything to help yet. I've used the vitamin/electrolyte mix in the water and it doesn't seem to make any difference. If this were my canaries I would call it "going light", which means they're sick but I don't know how to help them. I do have one finch drug that seemed to help the canaries and I've considered giving it to a batch of chicks to see if it helps.

And YES, the black sex-link hatched 4 beautiful muscovy ducklings! She's still mean as the devil and won't let me near them. She looks at them like they're not exactly normal but she still loves them. I'm impressed with how devoted she is. I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it myself. I also have 2 more duck hens on eggs, if anyone thinks they might want some mallard ducklings. I have 8 in the yard already and the other 2 ducks are sitting on about 18 eggs each. I also have a total of 13 muscovy ducklings now and 2 more muscovy ducks are sitting. AND I picked up my sebastopol gosling yesterday. I have to tell you these are the sweetest goslings ever. They run to me, want to interact with me and they look at me like they know exactly what I'm saying when I talk to them.