The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[OohLaLa]

Congrats Jen on the eggs here is to many more

Well yet another night with my girls mucking around instead do getting in the coop. I went out to yet again gather up their feathered behinds to put them in and found them huddled and not happy on their porch against the closed door. Okay so at least they were close tonight.

 

[holderh]

Ok! So I bathed everybody and for the time being the ones with the vent gleet got some antifungal cream.....i found about 7 that I think may have it...but only 2 look like the picture i posted. I will keep treating like you said. I plan to seperate them to make things easier on me and to get this cleared up.....I checked for lice and mites and evrtbody was clear except for my rooster and he was crawling with them....so I dusted him really good with woodash and if that doesn't do the trick I will use something else....when i was looking him over I noticed his rear end and belly was as red as his comb...its like its been sunburned but he has all his feathers ...is this normal for roosters or could this be irritation from the lice or something else all together? I also checked there legs over good but wasnt sure about this ones bottom foot...its not a sore just puffy...shes a barred rock.

 

[Kassaundra]

Fantastic!

Perhaps you were remembering that about straw... Straw is hollow in the center and mites and other nasties can hide in there. I don't know about any problems with hay. I think hay is generally fine to use as long as it's not moldy.


Kassaundra - these pictures are fabulous! Would you give me permission to use them in my blog when I do an article about chickens needing meat proteins?? And how would you like to be credited? Just as Kassaundra, or otherwise?

Thanks, yes you can use them and Kassaundra it fine. My full name is Kassaundra Tamplen.

 

[Eggcessive]

Congrats Jen on the eggs here is to many more

Well yet another night with my girls mucking around instead do getting in the coop. I went out to yet again gather up their feathered behinds to put them in and found them huddled and not happy on their porch against the closed door. Okay so at least they were close tonight.

Have you tried locking them in their coop for up to a week, 24 hours a day? That will usually get them used to coming in at night. Also I make sure their is a light on inside the coop that goes off when they are on the roost after fully dark. Mine don't all come in until dusk--right now in Ohio at 8:15 PM. There are always the girls that come in early to get the best spots on the roosts LOL.

 

[Eggcessive]

I just used a wooden dowel and pieces of 2 x 2's and a bag of the black small pipe plastic attachments. Simple and cheap. Please excuse the mess, anything you use you may want to coat it in some non toxic paint to make it easier to clean. I need to sand this one down to get rid of the poop and give it a fresh coat of paint for the next batch coming next week.



All 13 of my chicks roosting - the roost worked great. They went from this to branch roosts and 2 x 2 roosts with no problem.

That is a very cute picture!

 

[Eggcessive]

Ok! So I bathed everybody and for the time being the ones with the vent gleet got some antifungal cream.....i found about 7 that I think may have it...but only 2 look like the picture i posted. I will keep treating like you said. I plan to seperate them to make things easier on me and to get this cleared up.....I checked for lice and mites and evrtbody was clear except for my rooster and he was crawling with them....so I dusted him really good with woodash and if that doesn't do the trick I will use something else....when i was looking him over I noticed his rear end and belly was as red as his comb...its like its been sunburned but he has all his feathers ...is this normal for roosters or could this be irritation from the lice or something else all together? I also checked there legs over good but wasnt sure about this ones bottom foot...its not a sore just puffy...shes a barred rock.

That's a pretty good picture of bumblefoot, a staph infection that is pretty common from stepping on sharp rocks or jumping from high roosts. You can soak the foot in epsom salts a couple of times a day, and then perhaps attempt to cut it open and get out the yellow cheesy core. After that, put some neosporin ointment on it and wrap it up with vet wrap or duck tape to keep it clean. There is a how to on "The Thing."

 

[holderh]

Oohlala: I love love love your coop! I want to do something similar in the next week or two with my run.

Delisha: thanks for all of the help! I thought I was doing what they needed by providing food, water and free ranging.....and letting them be chickens ..i do try to keep it natural ...my dh doesn't think much of worming eithei thought it was worms that cause the problems some are havingr but when this started up ......I've really been disheartened....thanks for all of the info. I will defiantly be using ff and yogurt, and uacv , other probiotics as well as a real waterer.

 

[Bulldogma]

Thanks, yes you can use them and Kassaundra it fine. My full name is Kassaundra Tamplen.

Wonderful - Thank you!

My lavender orpington started laying last Sunday and she layed 6 eggs in 7 days!!! So excited - they are a pale tan/pinky colour. My BCM and Blue Copper Maran both started squatting for me today as well. The BLRW has started getting a comb and pinking up. Even one of my EEs has started to get a comb! Rainbow eggs....

Congratulations!!

 

[holderh]

Oohlala: I love love love your coop! I want to do something similar in the next week or two with my run.

Delisha: thanks for all of the help! I thought I was doing what they needed by providing food, water and free ranging.....and letting them be chickens ..i do try to keep it natural ...my dh doesn't think much of worming eithei thought it was worms that cause the problems some are havingr but when this started up ......I've really been disheartened....thanks for all of the info. I will defiantly be using ff and yogurt, and uacv , other probiotics as well as a real waterer.

 

[delisha]

Ok! So I bathed everybody and for the time being the ones with the vent gleet got some antifungal cream.....i found about 7 that I think may have it...but only 2 look like the picture i posted. I will keep treating like you said. I plan to seperate them to make things easier on me and to get this cleared up.....I checked for lice and mites and evrtbody was clear except for my rooster and he was crawling with them....so I dusted him really good with woodash and if that doesn't do the trick I will use something else....when i was looking him over I noticed his rear end and belly was as red as his comb...its like its been sunburned but he has all his feathers ...is this normal for roosters or could this be irritation from the lice or something else all together? I also checked there legs over good but wasnt sure about this ones bottom foot...its not a sore just puffy...shes a barred rock.

If you found lice/mites on your rooster, every one has them. They all need to be treated..looks like wood ash baths for all. Neem Oil on roosts.
Sue can walk you threw how to treat that bumble foot. Looks like possible leg mites too. Neem oil every ones legs.
His bottom is red from yeast and being chewed on.