The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[aoxa]

Aoxa- I googled ear lobe colors in chickens & the 1st 10 sights say that the color of a chickens ears indicate the color of their eggs.

Hmmmm makes me wonder if there is some truth in it but mutts/mixes are the exception to the rule? I am going to have to look at everyones ears when I get home now

Bingo

 

[lazy gardener]

Aoxa, your EE with the gold laced shawl looks just like my Lacy, though her comb is a bit smaller. She lays a beautiful light blue egg, and she has picked the beards off of both of her sisters. I can't wait until they can get outside into a nice grassy run again.

 

[aoxa]

Aoxa, your EE with the gold laced shawl looks just like my Lacy, though her comb is a bit smaller. She lays a beautiful light blue egg, and she has picked the beards off of both of her sisters. I can't wait until they can get outside into a nice grassy run again.

That was a mutt of all types. She had OEGB in her, Phoenix, leghorn.. she was a mixed bag that one!

 

[lazy gardener]

Pretty, even so!

 

[Scott H]

Quote: I think the unstable surface (tarp plus pdz) would prevent them from hanging out in/on it...

That's true...it is also just big enough to catch poop, no bigger. Not a lot of loittering room. I feel I need to talk more about the Sweet PDZ. It has amazing drying capacity. It really keeps the flies down...they don't like dry poop. There is no smell from the coop. I thought I was going to have to clean the coop a lot because the front of it literally sits on our patio retaining wall. The stuff is wonderful and I highly recommend it. Hmmmm, I should try it for the cat box.....

 

[hotrodflash]

ack! I haven't heard of ear mite in chickens,....and have never ever looked at a chicken's ear canal. might have to take a look next time I am bothering one for something.
AFL, let us know if that might be it! nutstock will work for that too, although the cleaning out the gunk first sounds good.

interesting that you could smell the mites.

It smelled like an ear infection. My nephew had 3 sets of tubes in his ears and had constant ear infections, so I am very familiar with that smell.

 

[Shan30]

That's true...it is also just big enough to catch poop, no bigger. Not a lot of loittering room. I feel I need to talk more about the Sweet PDZ. It has amazing drying capacity. It really keeps the flies down...they don't like dry poop. There is no smell from the coop. I thought I was going to have to clean the coop a lot because the front of it literally sits on our patio retaining wall. The stuff is wonderful and I highly recommend it. Hmmmm, I should try it for the cat box.....

I've heard about the Sweet PDZ from a number of people but never looked into it. Any chance the ingredients are listed on it and you might want to share that info? It may turn out to be worth having on hand to dry things out when it gets too wet or for the litter box as you suggested

 

[Scott H]

It's only got one ingredient, Zeolites, an all natural material.
I recommend granules, not the powder. Way too dusty. As a spot treatment the powder would probably be better.

, aluminosilicate minerals commonly used as commercial adsorbents...

Sweet PDZ .com

 

[Shan30]

It's only got one ingredient, Zeolites, an all natural material.
I recommend granules, not the powder. Way too dusty. As a spot treatment the powder would probably be better.

Sweet PDZ .com

Just did some reading on Zeolites, seems that most non clumping cat litters actually contain zeolites. However there is some concern about inhaling them. Wonder how that works with a cat scratching around in there?:/

Anything that helps dry my soggy world is worth looking into. Spent a couple hours digging ditches last night. Of course now it's sunny

 

[ki4got]

Quote:

It's only got one ingredient, Zeolites, an all natural material.
I recommend granules, not the powder. Way too dusty. As a spot treatment the powder would probably be better.
Quote:

Sweet PDZ .com

zeolite is also used in aquariums for removing excess ammonia... works quite well. crystal cat litter is very similar but nicer looking, as it absorbs a lot of liquids and holds on to anything nitrogenous. (urine, ammonia, etc)