The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[delisha]

@delisha

If you could do this over again, how would you have handled it when you found that he wasn't getting enough food.

I really do not know to be honest. Each situation is different. I knew something was wrong with this bird. He should not have been this thin. He weighed about 5lbs and was 6 months old. That is skinny for an Orp in my coop. He could have survived just fine at that weight his whole life. But something was off.

Quote: His crop was full..and firm, filled with fermented feed. He had not been dead long. The contents were not frozen. It was not gas..it was a huge amount of feed he simply could not process. I should not have made so much available to him.

Justine,

I am so glad you culled that blind chick..i was going to PM you and give you the business. I am glad they are being re-purposed. I feed the snakes too.

 

[CoopChick719]

Also had to throw this one in there for fun.

This is adorable!! My 5 pound Pom, Molly, wanted to smell the feathers off last years chicks.

Right out of high school, I went into the Army, serving 3 tours in Vietnam. Yes...I'm 'crazy' but that time served in the military provided me with as much education as the nine years I spent at WVU but with different emphases.

In South East Asia, I developed a strong empathy for my fellow human being and saw what politics can do to our world. I have never failed to vote after that portion of my education.

After a year of rest in Central America, I entered WVU and nailed down the finer points required to speak and act on behalf of others.

Oddly enough, the time spent in the first 'class room' helped to defray the costs of the second level...Strange world.

Thank you for your service, hellbender! Most of the men in my family have served. I have much respect for those who volunteer to serve. Proud to say my son is in the National Guard!

Also thanks for liking my Mr. Sandman parody! Saw the dr. today--she said I probably bruised my ribs when I landed on top of the waterer. Just keep doing the ice, heat, ibuprofen routine.

I've had a migraine all day, so the storm will be pretty bad and arriving here soon!

I hear ya chikenscratch that happens to me too! Feel better soon!

Coop chick: Re the red legs, I think what you are seeing is hyperpigmentation that builds up when a bird is not laying, but otherwise is getting good nutrition. Did they take a winter egg laying break? You'll notice when a chicken stops laying, that her legs and wattles/comb/facial red areas are a bit faded. Then, over time, her legs and wattles, comb, face increase their pigment. and the leg coloring can actually go past yellow into the orange/pinkish/reddish tints. Then when she starts laying, that pigment will gradually fade out again. Of course you notice this in the girls with the light colored legs. Not so much the slate and black legs.

Thanks LG--I will stop worrying. Yes, some of the girls took a break this winter. I'm getting about 6-8 eggs a day out of the 14 girls.

luckily I'm not a carpet kind of person I have polished cement floors with radient heat. but the floors do stain with oil, so I have some very prominent oil stains in a pretty obvious area. oh well! thats what living is for. the rag rugs still reek of nustock, though, even after two washings with borax and soda.

I agree the red streak in the legs isn't a problem. I've always throught it was hormonal but can't remember the source of that info.

and Scott, that was a great pic with your dog and hen on the steps!

Bummer on the oil stains, lala! And the smell just lingers!

Great pics, Scott! We doggysat for one of DH's former supervisor's standard poodles. We just loved her! Smart as a whip too! DH hasn't worked for that company in 11 years but decided to stop by because he was in the area. The dog was at the office that day. She heard DH's voice and ran to him and put her paws up on his shoulders like she used to do--barking & kissing him! He really does have a way w/animals.

 

[misbhaven]

Update..on my chick with the curled toes. He recovered he can use the foot and toes I give them some scraps of wood and an empty papertowel tube he roosts fine although his hatch mate is 50% bigger he sleeps under her wing she is going to be a good momma. Those two chicks are very gentle even at 4 weeks they cry when they see my 4 yr old wanting petted. ............
I feel for those with migraines. ,I get them also along with fibromyalgia flares when weather changes

 

[lalaland]

I really do not know to be honest. Each situation is different. I knew something was wrong with this bird. He should not have been this thin. He weighed about 5lbs and was 6 months old. That is skinny for an Orp in my coop. He could have survived just fine at that weight his whole life. But something was off.
His crop was full..and firm, filled with fermented feed. He had not been dead long. The contents were not frozen. It was not gas..it was a huge amount of feed he simply could not process. I should not have made so much available to him.

Delisha, I'm trying to make sense of this. Your pic of the crop did show a really extended crop....I'm just curious why you are thinking that is what killed him and not the heart.

I have a rooster I worry doesn't get enough to eat, when I check his crop it is never really full. he is very gamebird in shape, but is the jr roo and not always able to eat freely. Especially in these days with -40 windchills, I don't open the coop because he will get chased outside. he is the one struggling with that danged frostbit comb. If I had known what this winter was going to be like, I wouldn't have risked having him in the same coop. live and learn.

 

[aoxa]

I really do not know to be honest. Each situation is different. I knew something was wrong with this bird. He should not have been this thin. He weighed about 5lbs and was 6 months old. That is skinny for an Orp in my coop. He could have survived just fine at that weight his whole life. But something was off.
His crop was full..and firm, filled with fermented feed. He had not been dead long. The contents were not frozen. It was not gas..it was a huge amount of feed he simply could not process. I should not have made so much available to him.

Justine,

I am so glad you culled that blind chick..i was going to PM you and give you the business. I am glad they are being re-purposed. I feed the snakes too.

The only reason I questioned NOT culling was because of Susan. She is so soft hearted and felt attached instantly. She cried when we culled him.. But it was the right thing to do, and I don't regret it.

 

[delisha]

Quote: OK,

I needed to get weight on this bird since I was giving him to a friend. I let him get out of condition. (my fault) I had checked him a week ago and knew he was thin, but though it was because others were not letting him by the feed. My solution and plans were to cull the extra cockerels at the first chance. I picked up one of the cockerel that were a few weeks younger than him and they were heavier. I stopped worrying I was not feeding enough. I just figured he was a wimp and was not food aggressive.

I made the decision to bring the bird in the house to feed. Give him an opportunity to eat freely with out any birds harassing him. He was delighted to eat and I let him. It was a bad decision on my part because I let him eat too much. You know those glass bread pans? I filled one of those up with FF and gave it to him. I thought if i gave him a pan a day for two weeks he would put on a solid 2lbs in two weeks. It was also wrong because of the temp difference. It was -10 degrees outdoors and 55 in my basement. that is 60 degrees difference. I over fed him and placed him outdoors. I doubt he could move very well.

I am not sure his heart blew out because of what I did, or he was thin and not eating because of his heart. It is a horse a piece. He had a little fat on his body so he was not starving. His other organs were normal but his upper intestines were enlarged and stressed. I double checked for worms and did not see any, but that does not mean anything. His intestines could have been enlarged because of the excessive feed.

 

[lalaland]

OK,

I needed to get weight on this bird since I was giving him to a friend. I let him get out of condition. (my fault) I had checked him a week ago and knew he was thin, but though it was because others were not letting him by the feed. My solution and plans were to cull the extra cockerels at the first chance. I picked up one of the cockerel that were a few weeks younger than him and they were heavier. I stopped worrying I was not feeding enough. I just figured he was a wimp and was not food aggressive.

I made the decision to bring the bird in the house to feed. Give him an opportunity to eat freely with out any birds harassing him. He was delighted to eat and I let him. It was a bad decision on my part because I let him eat too much. You know those glass bread pans? I filled one of those up with FF and gave it to him. I thought if i gave him a pan a day for two weeks he would put on a solid 2lbs in two weeks. It was also wrong because of the temp difference. It was -10 degrees outdoors and 55 in my basement. that is 60 degrees difference. I over fed him and placed him outdoors. I doubt he could move very well.

I am not sure his heart blew out because of what I did, or he was thin and not eating because of his heart. It is a horse a piece. He had a little fat on his body so he was not starving. His other organs were normal but his upper intestines were enlarged and stressed. I double checked for worms and did not see any, but that does not mean anything. His intestines could have been enlarged because of the excessive feed.

thanks for explaining more. I know so little about how bodies work,and wasn't understanding how you were figuring it was the big meal that did him in. So many factors!

 

[delisha]

I hope it helped..

Over eating kills..not only humans..but animals..his distended crop and over worked intestines showed me that his poor body was working so hard to take care of all of that food. His heart might have exploded because of the additional stress from the work needed to process that food.

 

[Leahs Mom]

You did say that none of his internals were frozen - or beginning to freeze - by the time you found him?

One thing I had wondered was if the blood vessels, organs, intestines, etc. may have begun to freeze and were enlarged because of that process.

 

[delisha]

You did say that none of his internals were frozen - or beginning to freeze - by the time you found him?

One thing I had wondered was if the blood vessels, organs, intestines, etc. may have begun to freeze and were enlarged because of that process.

No he was still a little warm to the touch..so he had not been dead for long..He was still very pliable and limp..I was not really sure if he was dead until I brought him back into the house.