The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[Kassaundra]

Need your advice! I have 2 girls in sick bay in the garage--1 Red Star (7 months) & 1 Faverolle (18 weeks). I ferment my feed with UN/ACV, water, garlic, oregano and alfalfa nuggets. Once a week they get leftover veggies from our local health food store as well as any leftovers from our kitchen.

Sunday night, the Fav was acting droopy, puffed up, sleeping while standing. Her eyes are dull and she had green poop not diarrhea--well formed. She was not eating or drinking much. I'm thinking it's cocci. We've had a lot of wet then hot weather lately which has made the run rather muddy. Unfortunately due to a predator threat, the flock has had to spend a lot more time in the pen. I started her on Corid Sunday night. I've been giving her scrambled egg w/garlic & oregano and a little plain yogurt plus dry feed. Tonight she ate like a pig. We let her outside for some fresh air & sunshine--80's today in Maine! She ran around, ate some grass, squawked a little, still sleeping standing up but acted much perkier than the last 2 days. Any thoughts or advice?

The Red Star was acting lethargic Monday a.m. She stayed on the roost when I opened the coop. When she did go into the pen to eat, she was getting picked on by 1 hen then 2 others joined in the fun. I broke it up and brought her into the garage as well. She is keeping 1 of her eyes closed--the lid looks white.She does open it occaisionally. I can't see anything in it. She does not like me touching it so I'm not sure if it's sore or she just doesn't like me poking at her. The other eye looks good. She also is not standing straight up to walk more like a duck waddle then sits. She has no discharge from eyes or nares, breathing is normal. After doing some research, I'm thinking it could be sinus? I have given her 2 Oxine vaporizer treatments in an enclosed dog crate--last night & tonight about an hour each. Tonight she laid an egg during her vaporizer treatment first 1 since Monday. She is also getting scrambled egg w/garlic & oregano and a little plain yogurt plus dry feed. ACV & Garlic in her water. She pooped while she was outside not much but she hasn't eaten much so...have a **GRAPHIC POOP** picture---does this look like a worm? It was not moving. Again any thoughts/advice are welcome! Thank you!!

To me it looks like a feather shaft?

 

[lalaland]

thanks armorfirelady.

Hey, I have a question about the difference between a drafty coop and a well ventilated coop. The windows in the coop are about roost high, and have those levered windows that you crank open. WIth the 11 new chickens this winter, I need to increase the ventilation, but.....when is it drafty?

 

[RedRidge]

thanks armorfirelady.

Hey, I have a question about the difference between a drafty coop and a well ventilated coop. The windows in the coop are about roost high, and have those levered windows that you crank open. WIth the 11 new chickens this winter, I need to increase the ventilation, but.....when is it drafty?

I'm guessing this is very weather/location dependent.
For instance... my entire coop walls are rough cut lumber with about 1/2" between them... outside walls included.
Inside walls are open/poultry netting from 5' up into the barn isle which is open year round... as in... my center barn isle has no barn door on the north end at all but I do have a barn door on the south end (I simply never close it).
I have a door built of a same thing that stays open year round but I do close it at night when it is suppose to get below 20 degrees.

I run a fan from the barn hall 5' up in the summer if it above 90 for air movement.
In the winter I add some straw and simply close the exterior door at night (as I mentioned, only when it's supposed to get below 20).
All that said... I do not ever put nesting boxes or roosts on my outside walls since the cracks between all the boards create more draft than the interior walls.

I am in TN... not MN... so... take all that for what it's worth.
I have never lost a chicken to cold... or to heat... although I did have several friends who lost theirs to heat here last summer.

We are building new breeding pens this weekend and I have designed them to be almost totally open. Except for the roof it is totally wire except for the bottom 2' on the back wall.
I plan to staple plastic during the winter months on the 2 short sides and will have a drop down tarp on the long sides for "open and closed" at day and night.
This is a free standing unit and I'm a little worried about them being too cold, so I will be playing it by ear and prepared to move them to pens in the large barn if we have some unusually cold weather. I don't want to push the envelope with my best breeders.
I'll take pics as we go this weekend and would appreciate any advice or opinions for refining and putting finishing touches on when the weekend is over.

 

[armorfirelady]

thanks armorfirelady.

Hey, I have a question about the difference between a drafty coop and a well ventilated coop. The windows in the coop are about roost high, and have those levered windows that you crank open. WIth the 11 new chickens this winter, I need to increase the ventilation, but.....when is it drafty?

To me a draft is wind blowing directly on the hens why ventilation allows air to move freely but no wind. My vents on the top of the coop only let air out. The vents on the sides have ridges so wind shouldn't get in easily and they are below the roosts. The tarps on the bottom that are rolled up for warmer months will be put down for the winter and I will put a few hay bales or the bales of shavings on the wind side to block drafts.

Last winter my girls were in their doll house coop and the west side only had plastic in the top half to block wind from blowing on them as they roosted.

It can be cold in the coop just not windy is basically my thought.

 

[armorfirelady]

Those of you who make their own feed where do you buy your fish meal from?

I am looking online and most of the fish meal I found is advertised as being used for fertilizer in gardens. Is it the same or is their an anmil food version?

I cant get it at either feed store near me so I have to find it online it seems

Thanks

 

[delisha]

Delisha,
This is my Gold Laced Wyandotte. She's a hatchery bird, or from a not-serious breeder, but is she even in the same county as SOP? She's about 4 months old in these pictures.

.Shafting of feathers..beautiful shoulders


tail feathers narrow and give the impression of slightly pinched, hock legs and too close together

Nice top line and you can imagine an egg sitting behind shoulders and tail ....good tight wing placement, nice leg color, pretty comb and wattles

As a note to anyone who asks my opinion:
It is my opinion and I go off the SOP. My comments are not negative so do not take them that way. They are for education. she is beautiful and conforms to the SOP some areas. She looks beautiful and healthy and well cared for. She looks like she will have many eggs in her lifetime. That is the most important thing.
The dotte should weight between 7 and 8 lbs. This bird looks delicate and refined. If you could get this bird to a weight of 7lbs she will meet the SOP enough to show and breed.

For example: draw a circle on her body and everything not filled with chest and rear is missing.

Here's a few photos...

Broody mom and 5 week olds:


The 2 black babies are SFH/BA mix.

New SFH Baby 5 wks.
love this baby!!

beautiful

 

[delisha]

Those of you who make their own feed where do you buy your fish meal from?

I am looking online and most of the fish meal I found is advertised as being used for fertilizer in gardens. Is it the same or is their an anmil food version?

I cant get it at either feed store near me so I have to find it online it seems

Thanks

You can make your own...find a fisherman.

slow bake it on low till it dries to a powdery crumble with out scorching it and crush it up..the whole fish..all of it..head scales etc.

 

[RedRidge]

Those of you who make their own feed where do you buy your fish meal from?

I am looking online and most of the fish meal I found is advertised as being used for fertilizer in gardens. Is it the same or is their an anmil food version?

I cant get it at either feed store near me so I have to find it online it seems

Thanks

The local feed store or coop will order it for you... they don't usually carry it, but can get it

 

[mlowen]

[COLOR=FF0000] It is my opinion and I go off the SOP. My comments are not negative so do not take them that way. They are for education.[/COLOR]  she is beautiful and conforms to the SOP some areas. She looks beautiful and healthy and well cared for. She looks like she will have many eggs in her lifetime. That is the most important thing.
The dotte should weight between 7 and 8 lbs. This bird looks delicate and refined. If you could get this bird to a weight of 7lbs she will meet the SOP enough to show and breed.

For example: draw a circle on her body and everything not filled with chest and rear is missing.


Thank you so much! I probably won't ever show her but I was just really curious about her. I have looked at the SOP pictures, but comparing pictures to real life is not my strong suit. I just don't know what I'm seeing, you know? I love this learning thing!

 

[Pozees]

[COLOR=FF0000] It is my opinion and I go off the SOP. My comments are not negative so do not take them that way. They are for education.[/COLOR] she is beautiful and conforms to the SOP some areas. She looks beautiful and healthy and well cared for. She looks like she will have many eggs in her lifetime. That is the most important thing.
The dotte should weight between 7 and 8 lbs. This bird looks delicate and refined. If you could get this bird to a weight of 7lbs she will meet the SOP enough to show and breed.

For example: draw a circle on her body and everything not filled with chest and rear is missing.


Thank you so much! I probably won't ever show her but I was just really curious about her. I have looked at the SOP pictures, but comparing pictures to real life is not my strong suit. I just don't know what I'm seeing, you know? I love this learning thing!

If there's a show in your area, find out if there's someone who would walk the aisles with you and talk through the different breeds and how they look compared to the Standard. If you can't find anyone who can/will do that, go through as soon as judging is done, look at how each one placed, see if the judge marked the cards, and try to understand why they were placed in the order they were.

Another thing you can do is try to find someone nearby who breeds good GLW and ask to visit and learn about the breed. Granted, some breeders prefer not to have visitors, but others enjoy it. Some will at least send pictures of their birds and say what they do and don't like about each one.

The circle Delisha drew is critical to Wyandotte shape, and I only know that because I follow a thread called Chicken State University (CSU) where Wyandottes have already been discussed - so you can look for that thread and search for the Wyandotte pages for more pictures.

I agree that the leap from pictures to live birds is large - I have two SLW juveniles here, and I look and look and look some more, but they are only 3.5 months old so long way to go before I know how they will mature. I saw the parents, and they are knockouts.