The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[lalaland]

Hi everyone! I've been MIA for a bit (double ear infection, followed by my 7yr old getting Scarlet Fever--strep throat with a rash-- and then me getting a severe case of strep myself! Loads of fun!). I wanted to share this though thought you'd all find it a bit funny:



I just this afternoon found this egg in the middle of my bedroom floor. Notice the teeth marks? Apparently Leah's (my daughter) little dog (terrier/chihuahua mix) went into the run, up the ramp to the coop, into the coop and nabbed this from the nest box, then carried it all the way back into the house and into our room. This is definitely a first.

glad you are feeling better!

that is really funny that the dog went all that way with the egg. My sister had a puppy that would bring baby rabbits (unharmed) into the house, up the stairs and into her son's bedroom where he would stash the baby rabbit. Found them when her 5 year old asked her why she put rabbits under the bed!

 

[salt and pepper]

Thanks for all the help!! I will try my best to keep the flocks separate. Wish me luck!!!

 

[armorfirelady]

Hi everyone! I've been MIA for a bit (double ear infection, followed by my 7yr old getting Scarlet Fever--strep throat with a rash-- and then me getting a severe case of strep myself! Loads of fun!). I wanted to share this though thought you'd all find it a bit funny:



I just this afternoon found this egg in the middle of my bedroom floor. Notice the teeth marks? Apparently Leah's (my daughter) little dog (terrier/chihuahua mix) went into the run, up the ramp to the coop, into the coop and nabbed this from the nest box, then carried it all the way back into the house and into our room. This is definitely a first.

Ahhh so I am not the only one with dogs who crave raw eggs. You fared better than I since the dogs eat the eggs once Lily gets them off the counter. For 5 months they never bothered the eggs then one day they decided to try them and wham !! I have 2 dogs who love eggs........people keep saying they will have shiny coats now

And my guys take them inot the living room to eat them on the rug. Apparently they dont taste as good on the kitchen floor that's easily cleaned up

I now keep them in the cupboard.

Quote: Do you have a link or website where I can read about this. Id like to learn more about it. I understand the rounded feather.pointed hackles theory. But I am still trying to figure out of the males molt again to get the different colors in them ? My EE is white but I have no idea if thats a pullet or roo color lol

I was also looking for info about what age you can sex BCMs & BR. And what age they start laying. I figure September would be the earliest since that's when they will be 6 months old but I figure will be October or November.

 

[starlingdaly]

thats great that cleared it up - I'll be interested to know if they keep their fluffly butts for a good period of time.   I occassionally have had to clean up someone whose stuck poop gets to heavy on the feathers like that - I think once some gets caught, the next load catches, and it kind of repeats itself.  havent done the nustock, just cleaned them up. let us know how long they stay clean an d fluffy!  If it lasts longer than mine do, I'll add nustock to the routine next time.

I had a young silkie get some major poop build up that was turning into a major problem but because her fluffy butt tail was so big and brown/grey, I just did not see it until it was almost the size of a ping pong ball!! I am embarrassed how far it got before I noticed!! But now I know to do a random check for baby silkies because it seems they catch poop easily on their fluff and then their tail hides it!

 

[armorfirelady]

Quote: My 4 big girls have the same problem. I keep telling they need to wipe better........they actually need a trim again. But they hide it well in their fluffy butts

 

[Leahs Mom]

would vineger work?

Just a comment on vinegar... I always say I have 2 kinds of vinegar: 1 for eating and 1 for cleaning.

Someone had commented about the ACV not being used for cleaning. Yes! Raw ACV is the "eating vinegar".

WHITE Vinegar is used for cleaning/disinfecting. I use it quite frequently for that purpose and nothing is going to grow in it.

Just have to know which one(s) you have and what to use 'em for

My little cream Legbars are feathering so fast, and they seem huge.

I hope you'll give us some photos of those at least 1x/week...at least I would like to see 'em

I'd like to see how they look as the grow.

 

[Leahs Mom]

A few more thoughts on the disinfectants:

As far as white vinegar being a strong enough disinfectant for the things you might be dealing with, I don't know. Sometimes it's a matter of how long an item to be disinfected stays in the disinfectant solution. That goes for bleach also. Some germs are just tougher than others!

You might want to to a quick search and see how long a time something would have to soak in white vinegar or bleach for them to be effective at killing certain germs.

Another item that folks use around the farm for disinfecting is hydrogen peroxide.

 

[stonykill]

a duckling finally found the pool. It is the one who's life we saved the other day. Mama chicken was super mellow about it

 

[yellowfuzzies]

i will try this thank you! That is kinda what I thought that she was nesting to hatch. Her eggs have been missing for quite awhile but all the girls are getting to age where everyone keeps telling me they will slow down or stop in production so wasn't real worried over it till now.

Get all the birds on the same day. Make sure you get them from reputable breeders. Have them tested before you purchase them. Do a stool sample on each bird when you get them. Test for cocci and worms. (Those tests are usually reasonable).
I would feed FF, heavy with garlic and oregano. If anyone tests positive for cocci, treat the whole group. If anyone tests positive for worms, treat the whole group. This will mean you do not quarantine. Your treat the group as a whole.
Some breeders vaccine for all diseases. You can go that route.
I do not think you will have problems finding a good breeder that has all of those breeds. I know of a few that have both BR and SLW. I am not sure about the light sussex.
You can do an inquiry right here on BYC.
incorrect cooling after the processing. Chickens need to be cooled for 2-3 days before cooking. I cut that time by brining after 12 hours.

New recipie

5 lemons, halved

24 bay leaves

1 bunch rosemary

1 bunch parsley

1 bunch thyme

1 cup honey
1/2 brown sugar

2 heads garlic, halved through the equator

1/4 cup black peppercorns

2 cups kosher salt

2 gallons water
boil and cool completly
 
place the chickens in a large bucket or cooler covered in ice for 12 hours. Drain off the water and leave any ice, pour the brine on and make sure the chickens are completely covered. Keep them cold in the brine for 12 hours by adding ice in the cooler.
roast or grill


 
Blue eggs can't just turn brown unless they are rotten.  Or perhaps he had not checked on them in a while and those brown eggs belonged to them since they lay brown eggs. Or it could be the birds starved on the nests. If I have a broody getting pale combs I know they have been on the nest to long and I take them off to go eat and drink. Some birds refuse to get off the nest. Both dying on the same day points to predators. I have never heard of a sickness of contaminated eggs killing a hen. However I would be interested to learn more about it if it is a possibility.
There is no way to make sure. You risk your birds by taking care of other birds.
To help prevent it you need to use bio security measures.
Invest in a bio suit and disposable shoe covers. Leave them in a closed container in your car.
Use gloves, use hand sanitizer before, after and during. Take a shower when you get home. Do not ware the same clothing with your birds until it has be laundered.
You are not feeding enough meat proteins
She is prepping for nesting and hatching. Get  a covered tote and put the nest including some of the nesting materials, some of egg in the tote(Mark the eggs). Cut an entrance hole in the tote and place it in your coop. Put her in it. She will stay in the coop more than likely with the nest of eggs. It sounds like she is going broody.
Better to be over built than under built.

 

[stonykill]

just a quick note on quoting. PLEASE make sure you do not include your reply in the quote box. Make sure it is under or above the quoted text. I see it all of the time and it makes it pretty darn near impossible to bother with reading. Not picking on anyone as I have nearly done it myself. Just trying to make things easier to follow