The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[countrygirl74]

She was just pecking half interested on the crumble. I took the 1/8 cup of Swiss Chard broth with a bit of olive oil I made her at 6 am and soaked the chick starter. She has been working on it steadily now.

I need to watch that crop now and palpate it every couple hours and listen to her breathing. If she can go 24 hours without coughing and sputtering and keeps eating, drinking, and passing poo, I will call this a big fat *Whew!* I need to seriously consider new litter options for this little girl. The hay is too difficult for her to get around on and shavings are out. All the talk about cost of shavings bales had me shocked. You all have it pretty good. A bale cost me nearly $10 a piece!

Glad to hear she's doing better!

And... x2 on the shavings - it's $9-$12 here, depending on brand and store.

 

[countrygirl74]

Shared on "egg waiting & notes" thread, but wanted to share with you all too...

Yesterday I mentioned that all the big girls need to follow the example of my little white silkie "Cloud", who led the way by giving the first 2 eggs this week, and today my EE "Chipmunk" laid her first egg!!

I got to witness it around noon today and hear her first little "egg song".

It is a tiny little greenish blue one, looks silkie sized. LOL.

She is 21 weeks old today.

 

[Bulldogma]

I'm so happy to hear such great news for both Aoxa and Mumsy!

Mumsy - still keeping my fingers crossed your little girl continues to improve.

 

[delisha]

What a day for good news!

Justine..Mumsy..and Countrygirl!!

Mumsy..how about sand and dirt?

 

[Toast n Jelly]

Wrong thread

 

[Mumsy]

I'm so happy to hear such great news for both Aoxa and Mumsy!

Mumsy - still keeping my fingers crossed your little girl continues to improve.

Thank you. Truly. This thread has proven to me my life line to sanity over the last week. Ups and downs and downs and downs and now ups. I am becoming more opptomistic my little Silkie girl is going to be ok. She ate most of the soft feed I had in front of her face. The proof she is eating is actually seeing it ON her face! Hah! There was about a teaspoon left in the dish so I mixed in natural yogurt and she gobbled that too. She is resting and digesting now. Her crop feels like a semi soft golf ball. All is well. No coughing or gurgling. Poo has happened. I am relaxing a little now.



Judy the Broody is an awesome first time mamma hen. Babies are thriving.



In other egg news....The Catdance eggs near lock down. I broke out another quitter. A Porcelain this time.

I did the seven day candle on the Ron Fogle HRIR eggs. I am astounded! I broke out two clears. One I left looks like a saddle air cell and scrambled yolk and another may be clear but the shell is too dark for me to see. (new candler arrives tomorrow) That leaves SIXTEEN eggs with developing embryos! These came all the way from Arkansas and had to have a stop over off island before arriving to my door after being in a mail carrier all day! I set twenty straight from the box to the incubator same day! WOW! That's better than my own eggs straight out of my barn!

 

[kian]

It's great to hear all the good news!

A couple photos for you to enjoy of two of the babies. They're 5 1/2 weeks old:



This is Marigold, who was sold to me as a White Ameraucana but on the Am thread they told me she's really a White EE. Boy there's something no one has ever had happen huh? I love her blue eyes. And also, I think that, even though she was sold as a pullet, that she's really going to end up being a Marvin.



This is Thunder, a SLW. Also sold to me as a pullet, also think it's a "He". At least the name will fit.

 

[aoxa]

It's great to hear all the good news!

A couple photos for you to enjoy of two of the babies. They're 5 1/2 weeks old:



This is Marigold, who was sold to me as a White Ameraucana but on the Am thread they told me she's really a White EE. Boy there's something no one has ever had happen huh? I love her blue eyes. And also, I think that, even though she was sold as a pullet, that she's really going to end up being a Marvin.



This is Thunder, a SLW. Also sold to me as a pullet, also think it's a "He". At least the name will fit.

You are right on Thunder at least for the gender. The white EE may surprise you. She looks just like my white EEs did at that age. Both were girls.

 

[kian]

You are right on Thunder at least for the gender. The white EE may surprise you. She looks just like my white EEs did at that age. Both were girls.

That would be nice. I have to get another photo... actually I need to get a full body shot of the two EEs. The one above has much better feathering than the other, but the other has a longer inverted v shape tail and I can see single peas in her comb. I would be VERY HAPPY if they were both girls. We're going to keep this SLW as long as possible. Better to ask for forgiveness than permission!

 

[aoxa]

That would be nice. I have to get another photo... actually I need to get a full body shot of the two EEs. The one above has much better feathering than the other, but the other has a longer inverted v shape tail and I can see single peas in her comb. I would be VERY HAPPY if they were both girls. We're going to keep this SLW as long as possible. Better to ask for forgiveness than permission!

3 rows of peas, or just the middle row? You should be able to see the middle row on girls, but boys have raised 3 rows.