The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[stonykill]

I've only had burdock root, not the stalk. Am waiting for spring to come so I can harvest nettles, best spring dish ever! Dandelion leaves are just barely starting here - up here the dandelion leaves are pretty small. I remember years ago in Kentucky picking dandelion leaves for salon for my aunt, and in my memory, they were much bigger, more the size of a large bluejay feather.

Violet leaves - I haven't tried that.

And what is wild onion?

violet leaves have a nice crunch to them and make a good salad addition. My grandfather taught me to eat burdock stems. Has to be 1st year, not year 2. Smaller the better. They get stringy as they get older, longer. I have never eaten the root.

wild onion grass
if you did them up they have tiny onion bulbs. I just eat the grass and leave the bulb to harvest more grass again. Have you ever been mowing and hit a patch that smells like onion? That is wild onion grass

 

[zinia8]

Wild onion?
mountain ramps, wild leeks.

 

[Leahs Mom]

SHOUT OUT TO BDM...

Could you possibly find the time to skim through the thread and glean out all the recipes for a recipe section? These sound so good, and there are a bunch of recipes throughout the thread for different brines and chicken cooking methods and a whole bunch of other things.....

I think we need to dub Stony the resident chef

 

[stonykill]

SHOUT OUT TO BDM...

Could you possibly find the time to skim through the thread and glean out all the recipes for a recipe section? These sound so good, and there are a bunch of recipes throughout the thread for different brines and chicken cooking methods and a whole bunch of other things.....

I think we need to dub Stony the resident chef

frugal chef maybe

we also make wild grape jam, spagetti sauce etc. I'm all about cheap

there were 4 or 5 very lean years in the mid to late 90's that we didn't eat any meat that I didn't kill. Deer, rabbits, squirrel, ducks, geese, turkeys, fish. And salads were always wild or from the garden. I so want that simple life again. Doing my best to get back to that.

 

[bluebirdnanny]

PS: What i wrote about FLD is VERY SIMPLIFIED... There is a lof of info and didn't want to dump too much!

"including egg yolks, liver, other organ meats, and spinach in the diet, as well as avoiding polyunsaturated oils and refined foods—especially sugar" is a good start!

Also seems that deficiency in choline and methionine combined with the other issues is huge. Egg yolks, liver organ meats can help this.

TABLE 1. Choline in Selected Foods
Data taken from the USDA Database for Choline Content of Common Foods.USDA Chart
Food Choline (mg/100 g) Food Choline (mg/100 g)

Egg yolk, raw 682 Pistachios 72
Beef liver, pan-fried 418 Chicken, roasted 66
Chicken liver, pan-fried 309 Salmon, dry heat 65
Whole egg, raw 251 Cashews 61
Turkey Heart, simmered 173 Pine nuts 56
Wheat germ 152 Almonds 52
Bacon, pan-fried 131 Macadamia nuts 45
Mutton, roasted 100 Brussels sprouts, boiled 41
Turkey gizzard, simmered 82 Pecans 41
Shrimp, canned 81 Broccoli, boiled 40
Hamburger, broiled 81 Cauliflower, boiled Quote:

Thankyou for posting this!

Okay...I don't have a lot of time in the next few days, but I thought I'd put this one link that has several studies and reading material linked out of it. Of course this is in respect to humans, but there are also several studies with dogs, cats and even chickens! This is one of the "modern ailments" that has risen since the consumption of soy, wheat, various legume seeds and processed vegetable oils began to be "marketed" as healthy. So much of the health of the nation has gone downhill since that time and it's really being directed back to some of these practices and abandoning the "traditional" foods, cooking methods, fermentation, etc.

http://www.ketogenic-diet-resource.com/fatty-liver-disease.html



(Okay...I need to get off the soapbox and go to bed.

)

Now how do I steal (uh acquire) that soapbox smiley???? I love it!

frugal chef maybe

we also make wild grape jam, spagetti sauce etc. I'm all about cheap

there were 4 or 5 very lean years in the mid to late 90's that we didn't eat any meat that I didn't kill. Deer, rabbits, squirrel, ducks, geese, turkeys, fish. And salads were always wild or from the garden. I so want that simple life again. Doing my best to get back to that.

Trying to be more self sufficient like that myself. Number one reason I got the three Chickens from my friend that was moving! But it has become so much more.... the eggs.... watching free range..... dust bath spying.... sitting outside in the sun/shade "supervising free ranging" .... digging worms for them with my little hand trowel... so much enjoyment... I forget to run in for something to eat. Then when they are in 'bed' I come here to learn and on to bed until the contractor for house upgrades gets here... no usually I wake up and roll over to see if it is time to feed the chickens and start the coffee... speaking of which better go to bed. Sometimes I am up first looking out the window to see if they are awake and on the screened porch/feed section of the coop. LOL

 

[TurtlePowerTrav]

Beans, you all have been chatty today. Too many to read and not enough time to read them. Was there anything earth shattering I missed?

 

[delisha]

New to layers got 26 EE's suppose to be pullets 1 big pretty Roo and he has started his duties at 7 weeks should I separate them until 6 months old.

You have a Roo with baby's? I hope not, that can be dangerous for the baby's if he is breeding them. He is too big.

My 3 week olds are off their heat lamp. Will they be okay outside in the coop with the 5 week olds? The older ones stay inside mostly. I toss them out in the enclosed run, which they love once they're out. Our nights are in the 50's.

They can all snuggle together

So I have a question for the group. A friend of mine found one of her hens dead in the coop a few days ago... She took the body to the UC Davis for an autopsy and they came back with obese chicken which made for fatty liver disease??


The chicken was obese and the liver was very friable and fatty. This led to the rupture of the liver which led to the acute death due to internal bleeding. The ovary is usually active, at least in the early stages, and the metabolic and physical stress associated with oviposition (laying eggs) may be factors that induce the fatal hemorrhage. In older birds diet should be closely monitored so that they do not get obese.

They will do parasite screening and get back to her with the results but for now she is worried that she fed her too much BOSS (not sure how much) or too many mealworms or just treats in general? Couldn't this hen just have been genetically predisposed to being fat?? But it does raise the question how much is too much BOSS?? and how do you tell if your hens are obese??

Some breeds are predisposed to over eating. I have Orpingtons. I have them because I have room for them. I know if they are not raised correctly they will die of liver disease and fat issues. I do not feed corn. I do not feed them BOSS.(I have it for my ducks for winter)They will have egg laying issues first.
A few points about knowing if your birds are fat:
Know the breed:
If you know the breed, you can look up what they should weigh.
Know your birds. Pick them up often. Do an exam. The best place to tell if your bird is too fat is by the vent. The vent area should be soft and pliable. You should be able to softly squish it. If it is firm lumpy feeling, you have fat starting. You should be able to feel bones. There should not be that much fat and tissue covering the bones at the vent area. It is better for a laying chicken to be a little thin. Breeders, brooders, chicks and juveniles should not be thin.

Quote: He said its a big roo..

Quote: lol

SHOUT OUT TO BDM...

Could you possibly find the time to skim through the thread and glean out all the recipes for a recipe section? These sound so good, and there are a bunch of recipes throughout the thread for different brines and chicken cooking methods and a whole bunch of other things.....

I think we need to dub Stony the resident chef

x200

 

[delisha]

Beans, you all have been chatty today. Too many to read and not enough time to read them. Was there anything earth shattering I missed?

Just me

 

[TurtlePowerTrav]

Quote:
Haha

 

[CoopChick719]

HOORAY...HOORAY...I'M ALL CAUGHT UP.......until tomorrow!!!!