The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[armorfirelady]

Stony- we have been hearing at work about all the rain there........I agree we dont need anymore rain. We have had major flooding here as well. I would be more than glad to send it west for others to have.


On a good note this morning....................

The big girls actually let the tots near them to enjoy some breakfast with them. Its the first time they have been this close without being chased off.
I still keep the tots food in their safe house only they can get to it and not be bothered. Roosting at bed time is still interesting but the girls do eventually let the tots in lol


Question for those who have had chicks before. I know not to give them layer feed till they are laying. I try to only give the big girls enough so that there is none left for the tots to eat. The tots are currently on grower/starter. Do I keep them on this until they start laying? The protein level is high, I believe 21%. I know its to high for the big girls but they do have a little when I dump the tots left overs in the am.

Any advice is certainly welcome thanks

 

[aoxa]

Stony- we have been hearing at work about all the rain there........I agree we dont need anymore rain. We have had major flooding here as well. I would be more than glad to send it west for others to have.


On a good note this morning....................

The big girls actually let the tots near them to enjoy some breakfast with them. Its the first time they have been this close without being chased off.
I still keep the tots food in their safe house only they can get to it and not be bothered. Roosting at bed time is still interesting but the girls do eventually let the tots in lol


Question for those who have had chicks before. I know not to give them layer feed till they are laying. I try to only give the big girls enough so that there is none left for the tots to eat. The tots are currently on grower/starter. Do I keep them on this until they start laying? The protein level is high, I believe 21%. I know its to high for the big girls but they do have a little when I dump the tots left overs in the am.

Any advice is certainly welcome thanks

That's high for grower/starter. My starter is 18%. I feed unmedicated starter to everyone. Never, ever do I feed layer. I have strong feelings about layer. Just not a fan of it. It is not good for any bird that is not producing, and that includes broodies, roosters, molting hens, older hens out of lay and young birds not yet in lay. It is only suitable for the hen who is laying eggs regularly.

I feed starter to everyone and offer oyster shell for those hens that need it. It's just easier that way.

Your older hens are less likely to have problems with the additional protein than the chicks would with too much calcium.

 

[mikkles]

question...I have oyster shell available at all times...no one eats it...how do you get them to?

 

[aoxa]

question...I have oyster shell available at all times...no one eats it...how do you get them to?

If they don't eat it, they don't need it

They don't need a whole lot of it either way. Just keep it available if you don't feed layer.

I just toss mine on the ground.

 

[mikkles]

OK. ours is in a dispenser type deelly that Mike made for me! Grit on one side, oyster on the other.....I can tell it doesn't get eaten cuz the levels don't seem to be going down! lol Soooo another question...guess I'm full of them today...after a hen's been broody and starts to lay eggs again, does it take a bit for their eggs to be "normal" kind of like a new laying pullet? Got one from my broody (she never got chicks as she squished them as they were hatching!) it's a lil on the "funky" lookin side...the shell is kind of bumpy (almost looks like the cottage cheese cellulite on my thighs! eww!) she didn't lay like that before, they were always nice and smooth and regular looking..it also seems a bit bigger than she used to lay..

 

[aoxa]

OK. ours is in a dispenser type deelly that Mike made for me! Grit on one side, oyster on the other.....I can tell it doesn't get eaten cuz the levels don't seem to be going down! lol Soooo another question...guess I'm full of them today...after a hen's been broody and starts to lay eggs again, does it take a bit for their eggs to be "normal" kind of like a new laying pullet? Got one from my broody (she never got chicks as she squished them as they were hatching!) it's a lil on the "funky" lookin side...the shell is kind of bumpy (almost looks like the cottage cheese cellulite on my thighs! eww!) she didn't lay like that before, they were always nice and smooth and regular looking..it also seems a bit bigger than she used to lay..

Yeah she'll work the kinks out again

Normal for them to start darker than before, as their reproductive system got a break.

 

[groverlvchx]

That's high for grower/starter. My starter is 18%. I feed unmedicated starter to everyone. Never, ever do I feed layer. I have strong feelings about layer. Just not a fan of it. It is not good for any bird that is not producing, and that includes broodies, roosters, molting hens, older hens out of lay and young birds not yet in lay. It is only suitable for the hen who is laying eggs regularly.

I feed starter to everyone and offer oyster shell for those hens that need it. It's just easier that way.

Your older hens are less likely to have problems with the additional protein than the chicks would with too much calcium.

Aoxa, I'm interested in what you feed your flock when nobody is broody or raising babies (like wintertime). Do you still stick with starter all the time or do you switch to grower after the chicks become juvies? What about All Flock feed? My flock is mixed and I had them on layer last winter (didn't know any better). I want to do better this winter. I just started last fall with some juvies and now I have a rooster, 9 hens, 7 juvies, 9 chicks, and two of my hens are still setting on nests of eggs that are due to hatch any day now. This is so much fun!! But all my chickens are together and though I supplement with fresh garlic and wheat fodder and whey and ACVwM, and they have grit and calcium in a trough in the coop, I want to choose the best prepared "kibble" for them. Help?

 

[aoxa]

Aoxa, I'm interested in what you feed your flock when nobody is broody or raising babies (like wintertime). Do you still stick with starter all the time or do you switch to grower after the chicks become juvies? What about All Flock feed? My flock is mixed and I had them on layer last winter (didn't know any better). I want to do better this winter. I just started last fall with some juvies and now I have a rooster, 9 hens, 7 juvies, 9 chicks, and two of my hens are still setting on nests of eggs that are due to hatch any day now. This is so much fun!! But all my chickens are together and though I supplement with fresh garlic and wheat fodder and whey and ACVwM, and they have grit and calcium in a trough in the coop, I want to choose the best prepared "kibble" for them. Help?

I always have chicks it seems. I have broodies in the winter as well. I always feed starter 18% protein. Non-Medicated. I would feed an all-flock, but they don't have it at all here. Four feed stores in my area and none of them carry an all-flock.

If you can get an all flock, and it's reasonably priced - that is a good option. I don't feed grower now because here it is too low in protein (15-16% - which is too low for chicks). I fed grower all last winter with no issues at all.

Ideally I would like to do whole grains and grind my own, but the options for grains here are very low. The recipes I find online look great, but I can't locate half the ingredients.

 

[uglychickens]

a town an hour away from me washed away because of the rain. NYS does NOT need any more rain.

Well maybe we need to start a supply chain? The north gets too much the south needs it, we should be distributing for cost to places that need it BAD!
The scimatics for something like that would be far from modern mans abilities tho. For we are way to ingrained with the idea of money for it to work.
Just my rambling

 

[bbdal]

So what does everyone do for worm/parasite prevention? We don't particularly want to use meds. We ferment feed so they get good bacteria. Would garlic, cayenne, and de be sufficient to keep birds healthy?