The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[nova022]

She's about 9 or 10 months, and has always laid great big, thick shelled eggs. She's the only one with this problem right now. The two "sisters" are identical, so I'm not for sure which girl is doing it, but I know it's the same one because of the color of the egg. The shell is just so thin, I think she lays it and then it either gets crushed by the next girl or the layer is cracking it before she leaves the nest. It's happened about every other day, with the middle egg being perfectly shelled and no issues.

I have a 6 mo old Speckled Sussex who's eggs are always a surprise. Her first few eggs were huge double yolkers. Then she settled down to nice large thick shelled eggs. One day she was puffed up and seemed very uncomfortable and really waddled when she walked. After about an hour of this she laid a huge egg without a shell, only yolk, albumen and membrane. It was very squishy. She was immediately back to her old self. Yesterday she laid a torpedo shaped egg about and inch long and about as big around as my thumb. I haven't cracked it to see what is inside yet. She lays her weird eggs where ever they fall. She has only been laying for a month so I guess she will finally figure it out. She is the only one of my flock to do this.

 

[aoxa]

Brilliant

Now..try a new experiment...put about 7 fake eggs in one box and leave at least 7 eggs in at all times..tell me how long it takes for a hen to go broody.(I say under 30 days)

I have done this with a two week max before someone went broody. It's the only way I know to encourage one to go broody. YOU can pretty much guarantee if you have a silkie and have 6-8 eggs in a nest for more than a day that she will go broody within a week.
Thank goodness I have one of the silkies from my super max broodies. Jamie's line of whites has had a lot of that bred out of them.

 

[nova022]

Speaking of broodies, I have a Buff Orpington who keeps going broody in the coop and takes over the nest box that everyone likes to use. I would like to let her hatch some eggs, but I don't want her to keep the others out of the nest box for 21 days. We have built her a seperate pen with a nest box and plenty of room to stretch her legs but as soon as we put her in there she stops being broody. She will lay her eggs in the nest box, but that is it. This is the second go around trying to get her be broody in her pen and not the coop. Any suggestions?

 

[aoxa]

I will only be breeding HRIR and Silkies. Johnny and a few barn yard layers will not cramp my plans. There will be no more barn yard chicks after this lot are processed and or sold.

About nesting places: I have two nests in the layer pen. Phoebe and Edith take turns using the same upper nest and when Judy was laying, she used the bottom nest and went broody in that one too. Now she is sleeping in the upper nest with her four chicks. They are fouling it so tomorrow they will be booted out of that pen. I had fake eggs in other nests in the barn. The three hens never laid an egg in any of them. I have a hunch that hens use instincts to nest in community spots for safety and community egg clutches. With chickens it's all about finding food together, roosting together, and reproducing together. The odds of survival increase for the individual bird when these three things are practiced in a flock.

I knew you would keep Johnny. He's the whole reason you started back into chickens.

I remember when he was a virgin!

The only thing that I think you couldn't leave whole would be the corn if you use it. Del is grinding her feed in the blender fresh for the chicks but doesn't grind as they get older, I believe (am I right Del?).

Yes...it can go rancid shortly after ground. Since I share, I don't have it long but, in my opinion, having it ground even as short as I do isn't optimal. I'm definitely considering purchasing the components and making it fresh now that I have a little more experience.

Del - do you use corn? Can you grind it in the blender?

On whole corn fermented...I've not tried it but it seems to me that it would work as the soaking should soften it up. Has anyone soaked or fermented WHOLE corn? How did it work for you?

Interesting question. I didn't even know you could buy corn whole.

Did I mention I bought heritage organic corn to plant? I hope it's not THAT hard to grow. I do love corn on the cob, as do my chickens.

 

[moomoodiddy]

Speaking of broodies, I have a Buff Orpington who keeps going broody in the coop and takes over the nest box that everyone likes to use.  I would like to let her hatch some eggs, but I don't want her to keep the others out of the nest box for 21 days.  We have built her a seperate pen with a nest box and plenty of room to stretch her legs but as soon as we put her in there she stops being broody.  She will lay her eggs in the nest box, but that is it.  This is the second go around trying to get her be broody in her pen and not the coop.  Any suggestions? 

sounds good to me but if u dont want to start ober with new eggs just move the eggs and her into the new pen during the night and she wiill barely notice

 

[nova022]

sounds good to me but if u dont want to start ober with new eggs just move the eggs and her into the new pen during the night and she wiill barely notice

I don't have fertile eggs yet. Could I move her and the unfertile eggs she insists on hatching and then when I am sure she is broody get the fertile ones or should I get the fertile eggs and let her sit on them a few days before I move her and the eggs?

 

[aoxa]

I don't have fertile eggs yet. Could I move her and the unfertile eggs she insists on hatching and then when I am sure she is broody get the fertile ones or should I get the fertile eggs and let her sit on them a few days before I move her and the eggs?

Do it the way you initially thought. Don't give her fertile eggs until after the move if you can. Otherwise she may abandon the nest and you already have developing embryos, and it's just sad when that happens.

 

[aoxa]

I locked down the HRIR eggs last night. I candled the duck eggs and they don't look even close to ready for lockdown. I think I'll wait until Saturday to lock them down even if they are due Sunday. There is probably a good 1/3 of the shell (excluding air cell) that is spacious. The HRIR eggs had very little move room at lock down. 21/24 made it to day 18! Only 1 early quitter and 2 duds.

Hallus knows how to store his hatching eggs. He collected 3-4 times a day to ensure good hatchability. I am so sad that he is getting out of poultry. He's the one who got me started!

 

[nova022]

Do it the way you initially thought. Don't give her fertile eggs until after the move if you can. Otherwise she may abandon the nest and you already have developing embryos, and it's just sad when that happens.

That sounds reasonable. It would be sad to cause the loss of the developing embryos. How long should I let her be broody before I give her eggs?

 

[Leahs Mom]

Wanted to post a quote from an article on the Omega 6/Omega 3 balance ratios. Just a couple of quotes. You can read the whole article here: http://2footalligator.blogspot.com/...blogspot/coCOY+(Gardening+along+the+creek...)


Some of the issues brought up in the article are why I prefer to sprout as many of the grains the chickens get as possible. There are many research projects that seem to corroborate what is summarized in this article.

Again…do your own research! You may come to a completely different conclusion than I have!



Quote: http://2footalligator.blogspot.com/...blogspot/coCOY+(Gardening+along+the+creek...)