Sumatra Hen with Bubbles coming out of her beak

[Resolution]

Quote:

Food IS medicine. What may not seem like food to humans is most certainly food to ground birds, junglefowl for instance.

Bring the free range into the coop versus the other way around.


Useless Trivia # 339720

Junglefowl binge on peppercorns.

Did you know that the average Indian Red Junglefowl eats ~ quarter of a cup of peppercorns per day at the end of the dry season?

Did you know that of 17 Grey JF collected in the wild during the height of they dry season consumed ~ one half cup of peppercorns per day and that these were largely unripened?

Why do you suppose that is?
Could the chemicals within the peppercorns be noxious to certain internal and or external parasites?
Could active chemical compounds and or trace minerals; vitamins; fibres etc. within peppercorns ameliorate the overall diet?
Could beneficial properties of the peppercorn have evolved as a means to attract ground scratching birds-? ( Ground scratching birds being one of the more important seed dispersers of pepper vines/trees).

The genus Piper contains species suitable for studying natural history, molecular biology, natural products chemistry, community ecology, and evolutionary biology.[9]
Crystallized piperine, extracted from Black Pepper (Piper nigrum)

Piper is a model genus for research in ecology and evolutionary biology. The diversity and ecological importance of the genus makes it an obvious candidate for ecological and evolutionary studies, though not surprisingly, most research has focused on the economically important species P. nigrum (black pepper), P. methysticum (kava), and P. betle (betel).

The obligate and facultative ant mutualists found in some Piper species have a strong influence on their biology, making them ideal systems for research on the evolution of symbioses and the effect of mutualisms on biotic communities.

Important secondary metabolites found in pepper plants are piperine and chavicine, which were first isolated from Black Pepper. The piperidine functional group is named after the former, and piperazine (which is not found in P. nigrum in noticeable quantities) was in turn named after piperidine.

The significant secondary metabolites of Kava are kavalactones and flavokawains. Pipermethystine is suspected to be the main hepatotoxic compound in this plant's stems and leaves.

Piperazine was first introduced as an anthelmintic in 1953. A large number of piperazine compounds have anthelmintic action. Their mode of action is generally by paralysing parasites, which allows the host body to easily remove or expel the invading organism. This action is mediated by its agonist effects upon the inhibitory GABA (γ-aminobutyric acid) receptor. Its selectivity for helminths is because vertebrates only use GABA in the CNS and the helminths' GABA receptor is a different isoform to the vertebrate's one. Piperazine hydrate and piperazine citrate are the main anthelminthic piperazines. These drugs are often referred to simply as "piperazine" which may cause confusion between the specific anthelmintic drugs and the entire class of piperazine-containing compounds.

Useless Trivia # 339721

Jungelfowl binge on certain fruits and buds rich in vitamins and fibre.

Did you know that Green Jungelfowl and Sri Lanka Junglefowl are overhunted during the period in time when certain fruiting trees attract the birds enmasse.

Ecologists and Wildlife Biologists have surmised that the birds may crave certain vitamins during certain times of the year as a means to fight against viral loads and increase digestive health. For these reasons, Japanese poultry conservationists as well as commercial poultry scientists have synthesized the nutritional qualities of certain fruits high in antioxidant activity and ascorbic acid to aid as a preventative measure against infectious disease and digestive ailments.

As for placing chickens (versus dabbling ducks or true geese) on a bedding of leaves-

1. behavioral stimulation
2. nutritional amelioration
3. ecologically sustainable
4. readily available and economic to use
5. creates optimal composting material for the sustainable farmer ( which is marketable within the local backyard gardening community)


Why do we try and keep poultry in dusty moldy litter with poor ventilation? How were we convinced to confine poultry in short buildings with low ceilings with poor ventilation?

How did we come to learn that poultry should be fed diets that disintegrate in ambient moisture, ( and also during regular foraging behaviors like bill raking) ; that readily mix with bedding and contribute to the creation of poultry smut?

When were we conditioned to believe that poultry are expendable? Would you sleep one night in your hen house?

Almond = optimal nutrition for a bird that may not be eating adequately; slow to break down ie food that sticks to the crop
Garlic = In test tube studies garlic has been found to have antibacterial, antiviral, and antifungal activity

Garlic, raw Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz)
Energy 623 kJ (149 kcal)
Carbohydrates 33.06 g
Sugars 1.00g
Dietary fiber 2.1 g
Fat 0.5 g
Protein 6.39 g
- beta-carotene 5 μg (0%)
Thiamine (Vit. B1) 0.2 mg (15%)
Riboflavin (Vit. B2) 0.11 mg (7%)
Niacin (Vit. B3) 0.7 mg (5%)
Pantothenic acid (B5) 0.596 mg (12%)
Vitamin B6 1.235 mg (95%)
Folate (Vit. B9) 3 μg (1%)
Vitamin C 31.2 mg (52%)
Calcium 181 mg (18%)
Iron 1.7 mg (14%)
Magnesium 25 mg (7%)
Phosphorus 153 mg (22%)
Potassium 401 mg (9%)
Sodium 17 mg (1%)
Zinc 1.16 mg (12%)
Manganese 1.672 mg
Selenium 14.2 μg
Percentages are relative to US recommendations for adults.
Source: USDA Nutrient database

Cranberry Seed Oil = anti-viral: ideally balanced omega-3 and omega-6 essential fatty acids (EFAs) Oleic acid (omega-9).
Paw Paw = Pawpaw (Asimina) is a genus of small clustered trees with large leaves and fruit, native to North America. The genus includes the largest edible fruit indigenous to the continent. They are understory trees found in well drained deep fertile bottomland and hilly upland habitat. Pawpaw is in the same family (Annonaceae) as the custard-apple, cherimoya, sweetsop, ylang-ylang and soursop, and it is the only member of that family not confined to the tropics.

Paw Paw extract contains (among other active ingredients) acetogenins which modulate the production of ATP** (adenosine triphosphate) in mitochondria of cancer cells. This reduces the growth of blood vessels that nourish cancer cells. It also inhibits the growth of MDR (multiple drug resistance) cells. No other alternative or conventional cancer treatment (except treatments from trees similar to Paw Paw) has shown any effectiveness against MDR cells.

Paw Paw is a cousin of the graviola, guanabana, and soursop trees. However, the acetogenins extracted from Paw Paw are more active against cancer than those extracted from these other sources.

The beneficial impact on the diet of animals (for example turkeys and other ground birds susceptible to fowl pox and other mosquito borne illnesses; external lice etc.) other than humans may be explained in the symbiotic relationship between seed disperser (animals) and fruit tree (paw paw). While we may not be treating poultry for cancer per se, we are certainly being proactive against certain kinds of irritations, ulcers and tumors one observes in the otherwise healthy tissue of poultry maintained on commercial feeds- ones that have been confined in dusty enclosures- their carcasses donated to state universities for necropsy.​

 

[easttxchick]

Ok, so I took your advice, Resolution and mixed up a concoction(in the spirit of the Fall season) consisting of yogurt(as a carrier and to help renew gut flora), dried cranberries, walnuts and pumpkin-good Lord, you would have thought they had never eaten before. So for any of you considering trying this, there will be absolutely no problem getting your birds to eat this-they LOVED it and an added bonus, what they don't eat, you can share with your family!

The more I ponder on this, the more sense it makes-I was brought up in a household of very unconventional parents(not in the hippie sense)-in the sense that we were not hauled to the doctor unless absolutely necessary and the old home remedies were a standard in our house and to this day, my mother who has always been a proponent of natural remedies, at 74 years old, doesn't even suffer from high blood pressure. I, myself, am convinced that a frozen bag of peas is good for what ails you-pulled muscle? Frozen peas. Fever? Frozen peas. Unfriendly ducks? Frozen peas. I mean, how much more homeopathic can you get than that?

 

[Resolution]

Quote:
Peaz be upon you easttxchick.

I grew up on an extremely remote and rural ranch. We could not replace hens. They had to self-perpetuate with the aid of roosters naturally- and what is more, those roosters had to defend the hens against all those opportunistic predators lying in wait.

When things fell ill we had to weigh out culling. I never was aware that an old hen was headed for the stew pot unless she was really old and half dead because the old hens laid well enough and besides, they were part and parcel of the poultry community. That community needed to stay alive in order for the entire flock to survive in perpetuity.

Homeopathic remedies were what were affordable and most ethical.

Antibiotics were expensive and clearly dangerous- as we have so much testimony of today.

 

[kathyinmo]

Quote:
How do you stuff a garlic clove down into the gullet?

Cranassure gel caps? Also stuff this, or do they eat them?

 

[Resolution]

Quote:
I prefer to stuff both down the gullet. This way I know how much they ingested and when.

Hold the bird securely, select a raw garlic clove that will fill up some room in the crop. Slice it like an apple and push these slivers down into the gullet.

Practice with a grape first. Remember, a hen cat swallow a good sized mouse in one gulp so don't wimp out.

 

[kathyinmo]

Quote:
I prefer to stuff both down the gullet. This way I know how much they ingested and when.

Hold the bird securely, select a raw garlic clove that will fill up some room in the crop. Slice it like an apple and push these slivers down into the gullet.

Practice with a grape first. Remember, a hen cat swallow a good sized mouse in one gulp so don't wimp out.

How often do you do this?

 

[Resolution]

Quote:
For a sick bird still walking about gurgling and frothing -one a day- generally at night.

 

[easttxchick]

Athena(the subject of this thread) looks great. No further symptoms have appeared in her or any of the rest of the flock.
I, being the coward that I am, chopped up the garlic clove and put it in the yogurt with the walnuts and dried cranberries-she ate it, so I guess that's what's important.
One thing that has transpired is she started molting yesterday-just what I need as I know that will further stress her out.

It looks like she has realized that it's fall and is losing all of her "leaves(feathers)".
Beyond that, all is peaceful here this beautiful Halloween day at Hawks Haven Farm.

 

[Resolution]

Quote:
If she's moulting you've go to increase her animal protein and animal fat levels by ~ 25-50%. I'd go with 50% for a slightly ill Sumatran.
You can accomplish this with this a can of sardines in olive oil - make sure that there are bones and skin included in that can of sardines.

She should have this every three days and again PULL THE MASHES< CRUMBLE<PELLETS

 

[easttxchick]

Thank you Resolution-I had increased her protein levels already as I had read somewhere that it was important to do that with possible CRD. I actually gave her some tuna in oil this morning and she has been off of regular feed for a few days now.
She acts like she is STARVING even though I am keeping her with plenty of healthy food available(greens, carrots, etc.) and I KNOW she doesn't have worms.
If I hadn't read somewhere that this particular sickness shows very few symptoms, I would believe she was fine. I told my husband this morning that unless you are looking very closely at your birds that they could easily have this and you would never know.