The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[countrygirl74]

We have a nationally published author among us! LoanWizard has a little piece in the June/July 2013 Mother Earth News in the article: "Start a Work-From-Home Business." I was reading my new Mother, last night, and as I reading "Internet Food Sales" it sounded really familiar. Then I got to the "Shawn Dostie Coshocton, Ohio" and sat up straight and said out loud "I know him!!!" I startled my dog a bit.
Nicely written, Shawn, and I hope the business takes off and you can live your dream!

My subscription ran out last month!! Great job though - getting featured!!

Everyone was right when they say food is the way to a chickens heart! lol Ever since I started feeding fermented feed, my birds have slowly gotten more social. Now, I have birds who would freak out if I was just in the pen, and now they'll eat out of my hand! Still don't like getting held, but are sooo much easier to be around. Oh, and their droppings don't smell anymore!

I must be cheap. I dig for worms for my birds for treats

They hang around my feet when I dig and really enjoy this. I also dig them up for chicks and the silkies who are penned in the garage right now.

We do too! I have a whole section of our yard that is tore up from me and my hubby digging for worms. They wait right at our feed to see what we turn over for them - lots of yummy earthworms! The girls will come running if they see me with a shovel.

 

[Shan30]

Has anyone succeeded or does anyone know if it is possible to get rid of scaly leg mites without removing all the DL? Would DE do it?

The idea of bagging and removing or trying to burn it all is very daunting.

I wonder if the broody teams is something to watch out for. Mine too had a "helper" who turned out to be pure evil.

 

[starlingdaly]

Oh god, you guys have me so worried right now with all the sister broody stories! I have two hens (1 silkie, 1 bantam mutt of unknown background) that have been diligently sitting on 5 guinea eggs together and one BCM egg that is still not sure if it wants to develop. TODAY and tomorrow is hatch day and I heard three of the eggs tapping and cheeping this morning so I expect chicks by tomorrow sometime. But now you have me genuinely worried about the behaviour of the broodies! Not to mention there is a turkey hen in an adjacent nesting box who I can just imagine will get jealous (she's a jealous bird in general!) and try to steal the babies or kill them! She has been known to steal eggs before..
I have an incubator going inside with 18 eggs in it. I could move them in for the remainder of their hatch just in case...

 

[Leahs Mom]

Could you possibly separate the turkey to a different area? (Move at night after dark.)

 

[starlingdaly]

And in reply to what my setup is:
It's a very large dog crate with hardware cloth around the bottom half with partially expanded pine pellet bedding. Heat source is Brinsea ecoglow brooder on middle height. I use an Ottlite bulb during the day to simulate daylight. Water is in a human food grade plastic bottle with one of Avian Aquamiser's waterer 'nipples.' Food is in a stainless steel dog bowl that everyone can reach. I really don't think feed is my particular issue because it is the same mixture I have been using for over a year now which consists (in no particular order) of shredded coconut, millet, sesame seed, einkorn, flax, nyjer, crushed raw pumpkin seed, quinoa, short grain brown rice, crushed sunflower seed, grit, and a tiny amount of DE.
I offer that free choice as well as sprouted wheat and rye. I also give raw ground beef and egg yolk a few times a week to ensure a quality source of protein.
I put blankets over the cage at night on three sides to guard against drafts since we do leave our windows open at night.

Oh, the water contains a vitamin supplement and a drop of oregano oil and ACV. I was adding garlic extract (new as of this year) but I stopped in case it was giving them anemia since it can do that with other animals.

My quarantine cage is much the same but the food dishes are jar lids and the heat source is a ceramic bulb.

So far the thing that made the biggest difference was removing the garlic extract from the water. Since then, the ruffled chicks have started looking a lot less ruffled.
Some of my bigger chicks that never had any symptoms are almost ready to be transitioned to full time outside life with the big flock. Until then, I do take everyone on outings outside when it's warm and sunny AND I'm home (which is less often than I'd like).

So it really beats me what the **** is going on with these babies.

 

[starlingdaly]

I actually have tried that and unless i leave her outside the coop at night in a box, she always finds her way back in, and until I stopped moving her, she would end up on top of my broody sisters clearly making everyone uncomfortable and worrying me that she was going to ruin the eggs. I'm considering breaking her broodiness. She might be more trouble than she's worth!

 

[Bulldogma]

And in reply to what my setup is:
It's a very large dog crate with hardware cloth around the bottom half with partially expanded pine pellet bedding. Heat source is Brinsea ecoglow brooder on middle height. I use an Ottlite bulb during the day to simulate daylight. Water is in a human food grade plastic bottle with one of Avian Aquamiser's waterer 'nipples.' Food is in a stainless steel dog bowl that everyone can reach. I really don't think feed is my particular issue because it is the same mixture I have been using for over a year now which consists (in no particular order) of shredded coconut, millet, sesame seed, einkorn, flax, nyjer, crushed raw pumpkin seed, quinoa, short grain brown rice, crushed sunflower seed, grit, and a tiny amount of DE.
I offer that free choice as well as sprouted wheat and rye. I also give raw ground beef and egg yolk a few times a week to ensure a quality source of protein.
I put blankets over the cage at night on three sides to guard against drafts since we do leave our windows open at night.

Oh, the water contains a vitamin supplement and a drop of oregano oil and ACV. I was adding garlic extract (new as of this year) but I stopped in case it was giving them anemia since it can do that with other animals.

My quarantine cage is much the same but the food dishes are jar lids and the heat source is a ceramic bulb.

So far the thing that made the biggest difference was removing the garlic extract from the water. Since then, the ruffled chicks have started looking a lot less ruffled.
Some of my bigger chicks that never had any symptoms are almost ready to be transitioned to full time outside life with the big flock. Until then, I do take everyone on outings outside when it's warm and sunny AND I'm home (which is less often than I'd like).

So it really beats me what the **** is going on with these babies.

I'm just wondering about the ACV and the metal of the nipples. Could this be causing a toxic reaction? I've always heard you can't use ACV with anything metal??

 

[Leahs Mom]

I smell like a wet chicken

Been raining all day and they're out there standing around in the rain, watching my husband plant the garden. Just a light rain but they're all soaking. They seem to be picking at themselves a lot (probably just because they're wet) but I was wondering it there were any buggies in there.

So I picket one up to look. Wish I had waited till they were dry!

 

[Leahs Mom]

starling -
Now this is just my opinion and not expert by any means. But I think I'd remove everything from the water and just give them fresh, clean water.

I, personally, have always had a little "twinge" when I hear about folks putting things in their water source on a regular basis. I know lots of folks do that. I just have this thought that they NEED water, but if there is something in it, they HAVE to drink it and can't reject it if it's bothering them. It forces them to have to take something in.

I like giving plain water and figuring out another way to administer other things. Unless there is a demonstrated need for a medication that I need to force.


So...again, just me personally, I would remove the stuff from the water. If you want to give some ACV you can put a tiny bit in their feed. Oregano oil is very strong. I know because I took some when I had a cold and a teeny bit will about gag you. I have mixed some of it into fermented feed on occasion, but usually just mix in fresh or dried oregano rather than the oil. If I do use the oil, it's probably about 1 drop in about 3/4 gallon of feed and that seeed almost too strong.

 

[aoxa]

I don't want to consume this thread with pictures of my rebuild, but it's hard to contain my excitement. Hope you guys don't mind.



Anyway.. today the front siding has started going on. Rod said he estimates next week (Wednesday) he will be done. That is dependant on the subcontractors (Electrician mostly). Under the two front windows to the right and left we will have pop doors. I got to thinking.. I don't want to think about the goats coming in through the sliding door and eating the feed.

For those of you who have goats.. would this just be wishful thinking? Would they still get in through the pop doors? Trying to size them out so they are too small for the dogs (except Chloe) so hoping that will keep the goats out as well.

They are going to share a pasture, but not the same part of the barn. What should I implement to keep goats out of the feed troughs?