The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[aoxa]

I used to worry about giving the chicks milk products when they were young but I finally realized that the amount I would give a chick was so small that the calcium issues were really not a big deal. I was judicious about not giving too much, though.

I'll bet Delisha or Mumsy may have some input on the pasty butt issue. I know we've all heard that acidifying the feed and/or water w/ACV helps with that but I don't know if it really does or it it's just something we all believe. Either way, it sure can't hurt for them to have the ACV!

I kind-of have a hunch that it is the kind of feed that is given the birds that cause the pasty butt but it's only a hunch. I know when I was giving a good amount of raw meat to the new-hatches throughout the week I didn't get pasty butt at all. I did get it, however, on my first batch that I gave very little raw meat to. Not sure if that was a factor or just coincidence

I had a lot of pasty butt issues during the very hottest time of the summer with broody chicks. The Pennies. It was in July and there were a few weeks of REALLY hot temperatures for our location. I kept watching them and picking off the poop on some. I don't soak them in warm water.. I just clear the vent. None were 'that' bad.

In conclusion, I think too much heat is a big cause of pasty butt.

 

[aoxa]

The sunny and warm have left for a while. Back to rain, cold, and wind. It's batten down the hatches time around here again.

I had to laugh when I back read all the posts I've missed and saw the discussion about pasty bum. My experience with it has been the opposite of del and others. Chilling was the main culprit in my experience. The worse outbreak I had was a shipment of 80 chicks that came through the post during a cold spell. Many of those pasty bottomed chicks died. I haven't had an outbreak like that since. It seems one Silkie chick out of a batch will get it on occasion but that's it for me. I keep ACV in the water. They get FF from the beginning. I raise the heat source every week until they are feathered out. I think pasty butt can come from any of the things mentioned. Filthy litter, too much heat, too little heat, poor nutrition, too high of nutrition. They are new born's if you will. Babies need intensive care and they are susceptible to extremes.

I lock down the last batch of eggs in the incubator today. I set eight Johnny eggs. Eight fertile and now eight with great air cells. The Genesis 1588 was worth every cent. I am so ready to clear out the house of chicks, incubator paraphernalia, and mess.

All the seeds and starts I planted during the warm spell are now being set in with rain. "Plant and it will grow" is my motto. Time to clean out some more pens and get the compost pile started again for the new season. The rain will break it down quickly and I will be able to fill two new raised beds wanting to be planted.

The HRIR shipped chicks are growing so fast, they need to be moved out of the chick house soon. It's too early but I have no choice. An unused pen in the barn will have to turn brooder for another couple weeks. These chicks look like nothing I've ever raised before. They are such stout little chunks. It's been giving me great pleasure to watch them and the Catdance Silkies grow and thrive. So far these two lines were good choices.

We need some more pictures Mumsy!~

 

[Mumsy]

Mumsy -

How are you going to use all your different breeds? Are the Heritage RIRs and Silkies for breeding and selling hatching eggs/chicks and showing? Are the "Johnny kids" for egg production?

The master plan is based on a ten year projection. My husband and I probably have that amount of good years left that we can still care for our property and chickens on our own.
In the past I wanted everything. Every breed on my want list passed through my hands. I've raised at least twenty five pure bred varieties of LF and Bantam you can name. I loved some more than others. What I learned is this. You can be a chicken collector but never really improve on a breed or variety when you own too many breeds and varieties. To improve a strain of anything takes time and breeding pens. I chose HRIR because they have it all. Meat, eggs, and market-ability. I chose Silkies because of ease of care, market-ability and love-ability (and they brood). I've always wanted to show again but mainly I want to breed to the SOP for both and market extras and eggs.
The Johnny kid males are for table and the females are layers for my daughters. Johnny the Production roo will no longer be used for breeding. This last lot is the end. I will get eggs from the Johnny hens by late summer. The HRIR female chicks will not be ready to lay for some time. Eventually within the next twelve months, only HRIR and Silkies will grace my property.

 

[Pullet Surprise]

It just dawned on me that yesterday was the first year anniversary of the arrival of our chickens. In that year they have produced 923 eggs. Not bad considering they were young and the first egg didn't arrive until July and the "B' team girls weren't added to the flock until October. A whole year and I have managed to keep them alive and healthy and happy.....thanks to this thread and its earlier predecessors. I had had my doubts in the beginning after reading all the "Help! My chicken is sick" threads. It seemed that chickens were dropping dead all the time and the chances of my flock's survival seemed slim. It happens sure, but...if I can keep them healthy, there must be something to this "natural chicken keeping" after all...no doubts here. Thanks to everyone! And Happy Anniversary to Mickie, Bridget, Alice, Maggie, Mary, Nora, Nellie, Katie, Helen, Hannah and of course "His Lordship", "Chuck Morris. (No, I never did get over the naming of my chicken thing...someday maybe) And NO, there won't be an egg shaped chocolate cake, although it is tempting.

 

[Leahs Mom]

Mumsy - thanks!



Pullet Suprise -
My first year was Mar 25 and X2 about the info we've learned here! It's so funny (for me) looking back at how freaked out I was about getting those first chicks thinking I was going to kill them (after seeing some of the stuff and "catastrophising" that's out there!)

I just had a goal - healthy food for us that we could produce ourselves the way that it was created to be fed etc.. Which, of course, requires healthy chickens!


Congrats to you and lot of us that are are either at our first year mark or are nearing it! :yiipchick

 

[aoxa]

The master plan is based on a ten year projection. My husband and I probably have that amount of good years left that we can still care for our property and chickens on our own.
In the past I wanted everything. Every breed on my want list passed through my hands. I've raised at least twenty five pure bred varieties of LF and Bantam you can name. I loved some more than others. What I learned is this. You can be a chicken collector but never really improve on a breed or variety when you own too many breeds and varieties. To improve a strain of anything takes time and breeding pens. I chose HRIR because they have it all. Meat, eggs, and market-ability. I chose Silkies because of ease of care, market-ability and love-ability (and they brood). I've always wanted to show again but mainly I want to breed to the SOP for both and market extras and eggs.
The Johnny kid males are for table and the females are layers for my daughters. Johnny the Production roo will no longer be used for breeding. This last lot is the end. I will get eggs from the Johnny hens by late summer. The HRIR female chicks will not be ready to lay for some time. Eventually within the next twelve months, only HRIR and Silkies will grace my property.

Silkies have to be the easiest chickens to move. Everyone wants them, and they sell for a good price.

My chosen birds of focus are: Mottled Houdans, Silkies, bantam Cochins and Barred Plymouth Rocks.

I do plan on having lots of other breeds as layers. HRIR, Polish (they are hilarious and I can't live without a few around - they were really awesome), Delaware, White Rocks (maybe) among a few others. I would really like to get nice BCMs, but they are hard to find!

I have my barn set up for 6 breeding pens.



Yes six breeding pens. The two larger ones are for silkies and houdans.

How warm would the interior of the barn stay without any additional heat in the chicken part if it was insulated? I'd probably still need heated waterers eh?

 

[lalaland]

Yay!!!!!
Where are you getting your SFH?

The woman doing the hatching is getting them from Papa's poultry. I saw some sfh roosters up north on craigs list.....they didn't have any hens or chicks though.


Originally Posted by amberr


If it is totally secure, you can leave the coop door open for them but....
- .I can't tell from your picture what the fencing is. If it is chicken wire, that won't be strong enough. If it is fencing, how large are the openings of the fencing/mesh/whatever it is?
- not sure how the fencing is fastened to the posts - could a coon rip it off?
- Not sure if the "ceiling" of the run will support full grown coons, assuming you have those in your neck of the woods ( is there anywhere free of coons?)
- how about critters digging under?


You might scan the predators threads to see how predators have accessed other people's chickens. Everyone has local predators, whether they are fox, bear, coyote, coons, weasels, mink, dogs, dogs, dogs, hawks, owls,.....I'm sure I'm forgetting some! oh yeah, skunks. Those are the ones I have in my area. Anyway, figure out what yours are and then for each of them, see now they could or couldn't get into the run or coop.

 

[bluebirdnanny]

Ok Tomorrow (snowing today, alternating with sun) I will start on the protected tunnel run to connect the door of the kennel yard to the door of the coop. They don't line up and are different sizes. Too many escape, easy predator gaps I had to jimmy block with wood scrap pieces. Too cold for me and they keep returning to coop when wind blows. So I think they think it is too cold. Though they were waiting at coop latch this morning only one hopped down... but immediately hopped back up! Wouldn't go in yard/kennel until I took out some fresh organic baby spinach and cilantro greens. Ate some quickly but went back to door of coop.

Turned the light back on and then saw they went out... turned it off and they are back in. So too cold outside yet but too warm inside for light.So now they are hanging out in the screened porch without the light but a plastic wind break stapled on the prevailing wind side, when the sun goes and back out when sun shines. Don't think I will take down the plastic yet.

 

[BlueMouse]

Really worried about my BO hen now. She's still limping, and hasn't laid an egg in five days. Has started to stand with her tail down. I've set up a dog crate with some straw and a roost on the porch, I'm bringing her in, and giving her another good soak in epsom salts. Then putting her in the crate so I can keep a closer eye on her. She's still wallking around with the rooster, scratching and picking best she can, still eating. I'm really really worried that she's egg binding and I'm going to have to make a tough decision which will leave me with a lone bachelor rooster. So far this whole chicken keeping thing has not worked out so great. I have a rooster with bumblefoot, I accidentally killed one hen, and my other hen is looking like she's in big trouble. Thankfully the three cheepers are still alive and well, gobbled down leftover meat and FF this morning, now napping.

Going to go let my son out of time out, put the baby in the playpen, and go catch my hen.

 

[bluebirdnanny]

It just dawned on me that yesterday was the first year anniversary of the arrival of our chickens. In that year they have produced 923 eggs. Not bad considering they were young and the first egg didn't arrive until July and the "B' team girls weren't added to the flock until October. A whole year and I have managed to keep them alive and healthy and happy.....thanks to this thread and its earlier predecessors. I had had my doubts in the beginning after reading all the "Help! My chicken is sick" threads. It seemed that chickens were dropping dead all the time and the chances of my flock's survival seemed slim. It happens sure, but...if I can keep them healthy, there must be something to this "natural chicken keeping" after all...no doubts here. Thanks to everyone! And Happy Anniversary to Mickie, Bridget, Alice, Maggie, Mary, Nora, Nellie, Katie, Helen, Hannah and of course "His Lordship", "Chuck Morris. (No, I never did get over the naming of my chicken thing...someday maybe) And NO, there won't be an egg shaped chocolate cake, although it is tempting.

Silkies have to be the easiest chickens to move. Everyone wants them, and they sell for a good price.

My chosen birds of focus are: Mottled Houdans, Silkies, bantam Cochins and Barred Plymouth Rocks.

I do plan on having lots of other breeds as layers. HRIR, Polish (they are hilarious and I can't live without a few around - they were really awesome), Delaware, White Rocks (maybe) among a few others. I would really like to get nice BCMs, but they are hard to find!

I have my barn set up for 6 breeding pens.



Yes six breeding pens. The two larger ones are for silkies and houdans.

How warm would the interior of the barn stay without any additional heat in the chicken part if it was insulated? I'd probably still need heated waterers eh?

Nice sized barn! I will be lucky if I can afford to make a coop/safe run as big as the end left one! And will have to see about getting electric to it. My three RIR are choosing to stay in the plastic wind barrier coop porch this morning. Jumping down only if they see me coming with some greens. But aren't staying out but a minute or two. Yesterday was so nice they didn't want back in.