The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[Toast n Jelly]

BDM ... Let me quess, all those props come from your daughters doll house...right? lol Lovely chickies!

 

[Bulldogma]

I just laughed when I saw those pictures..how creative. The kids must love picture day. All that doll furniture. You should try a Cornish on it..lmao
I have all those feathered feet now too...wonder how long they are going to look pretty in all of this slop...

I should set up a scene with the doll furniture and all the Barbies to make it look like Tanker (my BIG Cornish girl) is Godzilla marching through town and leaving only devastation in her wake...

 

[Bulldogma]

BDM ... Let me quess, all those props come from your daughters doll house...right? lol Lovely chickies!

Why, yes... yes they did! LOL. It was a great excuse to play with the chicks this morning.

 

[armorfirelady]

Here are the DW's kids after their first bath/blow dry

What are the difference between the black pullet (who I find hard to see which end is which with all those feathers lol) and the blue pullet? To me they both look black in color the blue just seems a little lighter in color?

They are cute regardless

 

[Arkansas81]

What do you guys think of this barn? Just a bit bigger.



http://blog.mcmurrayhatchery.com/2011/09/29/chicken-coop-photos-and-description-from-maria-beason/

Someone has asked us to take images of the loss. I have documentation, but didn't think anyone would ever want to see it.

What is everyone's experience with Black Copper Marans? I want to know how they forage. How well they lay. What their personalities are like, etc. I am considering adding them when we rebuild. I have always wanted dark eggs.

i have a rooster-jasper. LOVE HIM!!!!! he is sweet, protective, crows very little. he is in with my hens and other roo-emmett. i wish i had some hens-i would die for some chocolate eggs! jasper forages just fine, and he is wonderful watch chicken, he usually sounds the alarm first. i hope that you can add some, i hope to have some hens this year.

 

[Elliemae 77]

BCM's are nice little birds. Good free rangers, some are quiet, some talk a lot. They don't lay as well as a barred rock but still 4-5 eggs a week....even in winter. They are friendly, but not lap birds like an Orp. Roosters are BEAUTIFUL, and very gentlemanly. Lost mine to neighbours Rotts. I would definitely get them again.
Hope this helps.

Aoxa, love that barn pic! I agree, bigger is always better when it comes to barns

 

[armorfirelady]

I just laughed when I saw those pictures..how creative. The kids must love picture day. All that doll furniture. You should try a Cornish on it..lmao
I have all those feathered feet now too...wonder how long they are going to look pretty in all of this slop...

I should set up a scene with the doll furniture and all the Barbies to make it look like Tanker (my BIG Cornish girl) is Godzilla marching through town and leaving only devastation in her wake...

Now that would be funny and worthy of the calendar

 

[delisha]

http://environment.about.com/od/healthenvironment/a/superbugs.htm
http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news...-20/antibiotics-animals-human-meat/54434860/1
http://www.peasebrookfarms.com/index.html?entry=medicated-chick-feed-don-t
http://www.urbanfarmonline.com/urba...hatching-medicated-chicken-starter-feeds.aspx

http://www.fmi.org/docs/media-backgrounder/antibiotics.pdf?sfvrsn=2

I do not want to start a huge discussion about is antibiotics used in animal feed or not..I am going to suggest to those who are concerned to do some reading.

70% of antibiotics brought into the USA are put into animal feed. They are listed under different names. Please see the links I have provided and you can read some of the names.

 

[armorfirelady]

MB your birds are beautiful! I got a half dozen buckets of free manure a few weeks ago for my gardens and my girls thought it was the best thing in the world lol

 

[Ashdoes]

So, if I get manure, I can just dump it into the chicken run?