The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[lalaland]

Congratulations lalaland! What is the carrot and garlic feed for the chicks?

thanks.
I saw this recipe for chicks, and posted it a few days ago here. I have to go find it, it had garlic, grated carrot, some cottage cheese, I think oregano - maybe something else, and you feed it to chicks along with all the chick feed they want. It was billed as a worm preventative/immune booster.

 

[lalaland]

you might sneak a candling on those eggs. if they're dudds then taking them out will get her up and moving sooner, so she'll teach those chicks to eat and drink.

I might try that tonight - was going to last night but was too tired to wait for dark.

Guess what? this morning i woke up to another chick, I think it might be from a sulmtaler egg - I felt under her and could only find two eggs and a broken shell. She was getting mad so I just pulled out the broken shell and let her be.

Also, here is a dummy move: I had water for her, obviously. But I realized she wasn't getting up and she was showing chicks how to eat, but the waterer wasn't within reach. So I moved it close to her and she drank and drank and drank. I felt bad that I hadn't figured out she wasn't getting up at all, not even when I wasn't there. Poor baby!

 

[Leahs Mom]

I'd let that momma stay there until she's satisfied. She'll leave when she's ready and I wouldn't take the chance that one would be at term and die because of her leaving.

I also wouldn't worry about food or water for those kiddos until about 3 days pass. By then, she'll get up and feed them. But if you start feeding them earlier, she'll know the babies need to KEEP eating and drinking after they've started and she'll be more likely to abandon the nest to take care of them. That's not a good thing if there are still live eggs ready to hatch.

God has created that 3 day window in there where they can survive w/out food and water for just such a time as that.... Knowing that not all the eggs would begin incubating at the same time there is a "window" of time in there to cover.

 

[Leahs Mom]

Oh...and I see that you were putting food and water right near. Now you need to keep it there or she will have to get up to feed them.

And she WILL leave the nest before long!

 

[lazy gardener]

Chicken math question here: I have 27 6 week old chicks and 5 hens. After harvesting the meat birds, and all of the roosters except for one, I'll be left with 13 young pullets and one cockrel to add to the existing flock of 5. My current coop is a cattle panel affair, 2 levels with the top level being 4 x 8, 2 nest boxes and almost 8' of perch. The bottom level is 8' x 12'. I'll be building a new coop this fall. I also have a 3 x 6 and a 6 x 7 tractor. All the birds will be finally enclosed in their electronet enclosure as soon as the weather cooperates, so I can get the garden planted without the help of the chickens. The little bit of interaction between the older and younger chickens has been amicable so far. I'd like to allow the chicks to move into the lower level of the coop to make management easier, and also to get the pullets integrated into the laying flock early.

I hate to keep the chicks closely confined, but realize that the smaller pullets will be prime pickings for hawks. Recommendations sought regarding keeping the youngsters in the tractor with a bird netting over a segregated part of the electronet run, vs allowing them to integrate with the hens, and risk hawk predation. I know there's no correct answer, but feedback and experience appreciated. If I allow the chicks to fully integrate with the older gals, I'll need to do some serious wing clipping as the Doms and especially the RCBL are on the flighty side.

 

[Leahs Mom]

I personally have decided that I'm going to keep my young'uns in a hawk-protected area longer than I used to. Maybe as long as 4-5 months.

My younger birds were broody raised and I let her out w/them pretty early...way earlier than I prob. should have. That was with 2 different broods. But I had decided to keep them more protected for the next batch. And now I have 3 kiddos w/no broody mom so they'll be the group that gets stuck longer.

 

[lazy gardener]

Thanks for the input LM. In some ways it would be easier to keep them separate until the new coop is finished, then put the youngsters in there first.

 

[aoxa]

more than a thousand chicks....thats overwhelming. What are you at now? are you selling most of them? i hope...I know you have a big beautiful barn but not that big

Oh no. I only held back around 50? I am not sure the exact number, but they are all in the baby barn and have so much space. I am selling those ones as sexed, and all have been pre-paid. I sell them as soon as I can tell the genders usually, but some of my breeds are really hard to tell early on! Like Silkies, Houdans and some of the Buckeyes can be tricky.. those pea combs...

I have some I kept 100% for me. I picked 5 Naked Necks I will keep. Two Blue Barred, two black and one white. I have grown out some cockerels I will replace for next year's breeding for the Blue Silkies, and a nice Buckeye cockerel with a good pea comb. My male does not have the best comb, but you can only start with what you have - and he is exceptional otherwise.

I kept back ONE Mottled Houdan who is the cutest Mottled Houdan I have ever seen. I haven't kept back any Barred Plymouth Rocks yet. I will breed my own replacement girls this summer and use this year's breeding hens in my laying coop except the best girls. I must improve my heads. Bigger heads wanted

HOORAYY HOORAYYY!!

Congrats on the hatch, lala!!

I was at work when mine hatched. I ran into my boss' office and said, "I gotta go...I've got chicks!!" Thankfully it was a Friday and only and hour before my normal quitting time. Loved seeing those little beaks & heads pop up from under Momma's feathers!!

Loved hearing those little clucks of momma to the babies!!! And I didn't know my little Sizzle could make herself look that big when the other girls were trying to investigate the babies!! It was like a cat puffing up to twice it's size!

HOLY MOLY!!!!! You've got such a great setup for that kind of operation!! Barn envy here!!!

DAGNABBIT!

Thanks Coopchick!

 

[aoxa]

I'd let that momma stay there until she's satisfied. She'll leave when she's ready and I wouldn't take the chance that one would be at term and die because of her leaving.

I also wouldn't worry about food or water for those kiddos until about 3 days pass. By then, she'll get up and feed them. But if you start feeding them earlier, she'll know the babies need to KEEP eating and drinking after they've started and she'll be more likely to abandon the nest to take care of them. That's not a good thing if there are still live eggs ready to hatch.

God has created that 3 day window in there where they can survive w/out food and water for just such a time as that.... Knowing that not all the eggs would begin incubating at the same time there is a "window" of time in there to cover.

It's crazy, because SO MANY people worry about leaving chicks in the incubator 48 hours after they hatch.. I do.. I always do.. I don't have the brooder ready until the 21st day and have had chicks hatch on the 19th... Yet some people are in such a rush to remove them.. You don't need to.. They are meant to survive without food and water for 72 hours

 

[CoopChick719]

I finally bought the book "Backyard Foraging" to help me identify some of the plants. I have to carry a book around to compare. There are tons of books like this if you google "edible plants". ETA: When I look at the photo it reminds me of chickweed....but I can't tell from a photo.

Thanks LM! I knew there was something else I thought it could be but couldn't renemeber. It was chickweed. I'll google chickweed to compare.

...

ok, took a break from laying on the ground with my head in the coop watching the broody. she and I both snoozing a little. 5 chicks Babies are still in feathers, but peek out. Too funny!! Your post made me laugh!! I don't know about you but if someone had told me 10 years ago that I would lay on the floor of a chicken coop watching chicks under their momma hen, I would have said, "Yeah right! Have another one!"

it looks like some species of bacopa... often a true aquatic many can live in boggy areas and are very wet tolerant. this is an aquatic version of bacopa for comparison... Thanks for the info, ki4got. This always grows near our porch under the drip edge & the hose spigot. I can't remember if it ever flowers or not. this one is Bacopa Caroliniana

...

They finally made their appearance! 5 so far we think! We are all giddy with excitement! After my 12 yr old son saw them, we spent the next couple of hours watching them peek out from mama's feathers. Congrats on the chicks, joyful keeper!! Such cute pics!

Act innocent blame it on the chicken, he can't get mad at the chicken!!!! lol

BAHAHAAAA Good advice!!!