The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[SallyinIndiana]

Okay I have a question I keep meaning to post but forget when I get Infront of my computer ... So phone post it is. I have a lavender Orpington who from time to time really does a deep intense squat to poop. She really stands and bears down hard. I keep expecting her to pop an egg out in the middle of the yard but nope just a poo. Sometimes she stands in this position for quite awhile. It seems odd. Has anybody seen this behavior before??? Her vent looks normal .... Slightly messy but barely. She's been doing this on and off for months. Any thoughts??

Can chickens get constipated? maybe she needs to drink more water?

 

[aoxa]

These are the two I think are males as well, thank you I don't want to part with the wrong ones.

That silkie looks like a girl to me.

 

[Meinertzhagens]

Hello all. I LOVE this thread. I started by reading the first 100 or so pages and realized that was taking a really long time, so then I read the last 20.
I am a newbie. In fact, I have no chickens yet. I want to educate myself as much as possible before I get my babies.
I am a teacher and incubating my first eggs in the classroom right after spring break. I have also ordered chicks for the week of the scheduled hatch date.
I am very into the natural way and have started to question whether having my mail order chicks vaccinated was the right thing to do. I ordered from McMurray and got both the marek's and coccidiosis vaccines.
I thought this was a good idea as my neighbor has free ranging chickens who roam into my yard and I would also like to free range my chickens. I am pretty sure her's have not been vaccinated and she usually picks up the $2 chicks from the feed store each spring.
I have also been toying with the idea of vaccinating the chick's I hatch for Marek's.
Sorry for the long-windedness!!
What are your thoughts?

 

[TeaChick]

ROFL we have power tools as well as some air tools and an air compressor... they're all MINE! got a chop saw, skil saw, cordless skil saw, table saw, 2 different cordless drills, the air compressor and pneumatic toe nailer, framing nailer, finish nailer, crown stapler and cutoff tool... the 4 things I use the most are the chop saw (for 1x2, 2x4, etc), the cordless circular saw (for cutting plywood), the cordless drill (screwdriver) and the crown stapler (for hanging wire).

Yeah, I don't do power tools. I don't really like anything that plugs in; I like plain, old fashioned hand tools: saw, hammer, ax.

I'm boring that way, I guess.

 

[ki4got]

Quote:
if I had to do it with hand tools, it wouldn't get done... it's hard enough just toting the already cut lumber into place, let alone doing anything else much to it...

 

[TeaChick]

if I had to do it with hand tools, it wouldn't get done... it's hard enough just toting the already cut lumber into place, let alone doing anything else much to it...

I just have a very few chickens (10) and I work with materials that are already on the property from previous projects done by previous residents (so everything is already cut and all) or with other materials I'm able to get for free (such as pallets).
I use the ax and hammer to take apart some of the pallets and use those boards to fill in the gaps in other pallets to make solid walls for the North and windier sides of the coop, and sheet metal roofing for the roof, etc. Stuff like that.
It would be easier if I had a saw, but I'm not really running behind on anything b/c of not having power tools.
If I had more chickens or I was hatching huge numbers of chicks at a time, then I wouldn't be able to keep up w/o something either. =)

 

[TeaChick]

Hello all. I LOVE this thread. I started by reading the first 100 or so pages and realized that was taking a really long time, so then I read the last 20.
I am a newbie. In fact, I have no chickens yet. I want to educate myself as much as possible before I get my babies.
I am a teacher and incubating my first eggs in the classroom right after spring break. I have also ordered chicks for the week of the scheduled hatch date.
I am very into the natural way and have started to question whether having my mail order chicks vaccinated was the right thing to do. I ordered from McMurray and got both the marek's and coccidiosis vaccines.
I thought this was a good idea as my neighbor has free ranging chickens who roam into my yard and I would also like to free range my chickens. I am pretty sure her's have not been vaccinated and she usually picks up the $2 chicks from the feed store each spring.
I have also been toying with the idea of vaccinating the chick's I hatch for Marek's.
Sorry for the long-windedness!!
What are your thoughts?

I'm awed by your persistence in reading the first 100 pages!!! and the last 20!!!

I didn't do any research before getting chickens, and it has cost me. So, kudos to you for doing your homework.

I didn't and don't get any vaccinations. I got my original flock from a feed store last March; they're just layers, and I am breeding them to hatch more layers, but they're just barnyarders.
I free range, but my chickens don't get into the neighbors' yards. I only have a few chickens (10) and plenty of space for them to range.
I think you're doing great so far!!! (better than I did, at least). =)

Oh, and

 

[lazy gardener]

if I had to do it with hand tools, it wouldn't get done... it's hard enough just toting the already cut lumber into place, let alone doing anything else much to it...

Agreed KI. I don't have the body strength to mess with hand tools. But, give me a power tool, and I can somewhat keep up with others!

Hello all. I LOVE this thread. I started by reading the first 100 or so pages and realized that was taking a really long time, so then I read the last 20.
I am a newbie. In fact, I have no chickens yet. I want to educate myself as much as possible before I get my babies.
I am a teacher and incubating my first eggs in the classroom right after spring break. I have also ordered chicks for the week of the scheduled hatch date.
I am very into the natural way and have started to question whether having my mail order chicks vaccinated was the right thing to do. I ordered from McMurray and got both the marek's and coccidiosis vaccines.
I thought this was a good idea as my neighbor has free ranging chickens who roam into my yard and I would also like to free range my chickens. I am pretty sure her's have not been vaccinated and she usually picks up the $2 chicks from the feed store each spring.
I have also been toying with the idea of vaccinating the chick's I hatch for Marek's.
Sorry for the long-windedness!!
What are your thoughts?

Welcome to BYC. Good place to get an education! RE: vaccines: My preference is not to use them. there are 6 strains of Mareks, and to my knowledge, only 3 used in the trivalent vaccine, and perhaps only one used in the vaccine your chicks will be getting. Mareks is every where, and only immune compromised birds get sick. Now, that's only my opinion. I have a similar opinion re: coccidiosis vaccine and medicated feed. No matter what you choose to do, there will be those who do the same, and those who do not, all with valid reasons.

Now, I'll tell you what I prefer to do: Give the chicks a superior diet with probiotics and early exposure to local soil, and start them on Fermented Feed early so they have a healthy gut.

 

[ki4got]

Quote:

(my name is Karen btw...

its in my sig)

Hello all. I LOVE this thread. I started by reading the first 100 or so pages and realized that was taking a really long time, so then I read the last 20.
I am a newbie. In fact, I have no chickens yet. I want to educate myself as much as possible before I get my babies.
I am a teacher and incubating my first eggs in the classroom right after spring break. I have also ordered chicks for the week of the scheduled hatch date.
I am very into the natural way and have started to question whether having my mail order chicks vaccinated was the right thing to do. I ordered from McMurray and got both the marek's and coccidiosis vaccines.
I thought this was a good idea as my neighbor has free ranging chickens who roam into my yard and I would also like to free range my chickens. I am pretty sure her's have not been vaccinated and she usually picks up the $2 chicks from the feed store each spring.
I have also been toying with the idea of vaccinating the chick's I hatch for Marek's.
Sorry for the long-windedness!!
What are your thoughts?

Welcome to BYC. Good place to get an education! RE: vaccines: My preference is not to use them. there are 6 strains of Mareks, and to my knowledge, only 3 used in the trivalent vaccine, and perhaps only one used in the vaccine your chicks will be getting. Mareks is every where, and only immune compromised birds get sick. Now, that's only my opinion. I have a similar opinion re: coccidiosis vaccine and medicated feed. No matter what you choose to do, there will be those who do the same, and those who do not, all with valid reasons.

Now, I'll tell you what I prefer to do: Give the chicks a superior diet with probiotics and early exposure to local soil, and start them on Fermented Feed early so they have a healthy gut.

I agree (and welcome!)

I prefer to develop natural immunity and resistance to whatever they will be exposed to by early exposure. chicks hatch with some immunity from the egg which carries them for 2-3 weeks then when that's gone they have nothing. unless they are exposed to things early on while the egg-immunity is still active. then they will develop their own immune system that will carry them through life.

I do this by giving them dirt from the yard with oat grass growing in it (the greens are another vitamin source they will learn early too) as well as bedding from an adult pen mixed in with their own. I also mix ages of chicks frequently, with older chicks teaching the new ones how to 'be a chicken'.

I feed fermented feeds and use medications only when absolutely necessary.

 

[Triple Willow]

Thank you guys for the response about sawdust. We have several sawmills around here and a couple companies that trim trees and chip up the limbs. I've been buying pine shavings but I believe I am going to see if I can't find some free stuff. I didn't want to put sawdust down and end up killing my birds. Thanks!