Surviving Minnesota!

[Bogtown Chick]

Holm have you tried straightening his toes on some cardboard and see if they'll straighten out?

You need tiny strips of vet wrap and thin little triangles cut out of cardboard or mole skin for the soles of the little sandles. It works pretty slick. Unless now those toes are not moveable any more?

 

[holm25]

Holm have you tried straightening his toes on some cardboard and see if they'll straighten out?

You need tiny strips of vet wrap and thin little triangles cut out of cardboard or mole skin for the soles of the little sandles.  It works pretty slick.  Unless now those toes are not moveable any more?

I have tried that before but I cant get it. Its a pain in the butt for me to wrap their tiny toes with my big hands lol. And in the long run I would never keep a bird with foot issues or and other issues like that for breeding. To me it doesnt seem like good breeding practice

 

[Bogtown Chick]

I have tried that before but I cant get it. Its a pain in the butt for me to wrap their tiny toes with my big hands lol. And in the long run I would never keep a bird with foot issues or and other issues like that for breeding. To me it doesnt seem like good breeding practice

Oh for sure Holm. But while you are getting him to roasting size he might be a more efficient forager and such with straightened toes. Can little sis help with her smaller fingers? There's some good photos on a good many threads on here. I bet she could help. The older the bird, the longer they might need to be on though...?

 

[duluthralphie]

I have tried that before but I cant get it. Its a pain in the butt for me to wrap their tiny toes with my big hands lol. And in the long run I would never keep a bird with foot issues or and other issues like that for breeding. To me it doesnt seem like good breeding practice

I feel the same way and it never works for me. I think it helps them learn to overcome obstacles if they learn to forage with crooked toes..........

 

[Bogtown Chick]

I feel the same way and it never works for me. I think it helps them learn to overcome obstacles if they learn to forage with crooked toes..........

The way it sounds it usually works really well. So thought it might be worth the effort.

I've never had to do it but anyways you boys probably know best.

Maybe it doesn't work the best.

 

[Siggie]

found a dead chick

this little one was still a little wet and appeared to have a string of intestines hanging out and stuck to the soft inner lining of the egg shell. I searched BYC and apparently it is a common thing? It's due to the egg not getting turned enough?

At first I thought I had caused the death because I had just got home from work and went out to take the cage off the broodies to give them some room to stretch their legs. Well removed the cage, gave them a handful of veggies/parsley (the flock had theirs in the run) and went to the shed to get them some more chick starter. I was gone for approx. 30 seconds and when I returned one of the broodies was fighting with a barred rock hen...don't know what caused the fight, maybe she went for a chick or maybe she was just trying to eat some of the veggies I had tossed down to the broodies, who knows but after it was over and I got the barred rock out of there I saw a little dead chick laying on the ground just outside the nest box...all the other chicks were around it kind of pecking at it.

Of course I went off the deep end thinking the barred rock had attacked it and that was what caused the fight....then I picked it up and it looked funny. It looked like an umbilical cord coming from it's belly and attaching to the egg shell. I thought it was odd but just decided to put little one in a box and put it in the trash.

I then went to the garage and built the fort knox of cages still thinking the other hen had killed the chick. (the other cage was not very tall and didn't give the broodies any head room to fully stand up) Then I started thinking about what I saw and it just seemed odd so I got on here and searched. Well what do ya know....

I can't even express how much this site has helped me with all sorts of issues that I knew nothing about because i am so new at having chickens.....I am so glad BYC is here

 

[Siggie]

And I had to share a few pics of my special Curly toed Buckeye who is the sweetest cockerel... Sadly he will not have much of a future other than freezer camp...

Oh that poor thing, how sad for him

 

[holm25]

Sorry about the chick Siggie.

 

[holm25]

Oh that poor thing, how sad for him

Yeah. At least I know he will have a happy life. For now he can stay inside and be my pet but eventually he will have to go out.

 

[holm25]

I am about to go make a feed run to L&M and they had a huge batch of chicks come in yesterday. I must gain self control....