The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[delisha]

Glad you got some good advise about your early hatched chick. I have never had a chick hatch out with out all the yolk absorbed. Your chick looks big, so, it might be OK. Incubators are horrible to chicks sometimes. It can be very frustrating.

 

[aoxa]

Yes. That is splay leg and is common in early hatched chicks. Unabsorbed yolk is also the result. You can't do much more than you are for the chick. Keep notes on this one. The band-aid hobble should work but you will need to watch it carefully. Taking that off with olive oil will help from injuring it further. Keep notes and watch how this chick develops. This is not genetic so you don't have to worry about breeding it but it may never be show quality. If that doesn't matter to you then no worries.
I had trouble with too high humidity this last hatch as well. Nothing natural about incubators and they can be a real pain in the pa-toot to get just right. Keep good notes on what you did so you don't repeat it next try. I'm thinking that chick will be ok because you jumped on it right away with the hobble.

I have had to hobble quite a few chicks because I never put proper footing in until this fall. It was terrible. I had a hard time hobbling silkie chicks, but had great success with one Easter Egger and 2 bantam Ameraucanas!

As long as you watch the chick doesn't flip over and can't right itself and that it can get to food and water, the hobbles will work.

 

[TurtlePowerTrav]

So my birds are all digging the FF now. Been putting about 6 cups split into 2 dog bowls for the big kids and about a cup and half for the chicks. The chicks that used to go though a quart waterer a day have now taken 3 days to drink it down and prolly have one more before I need to fill it. And they are growing like weeds. I got them some chick grit and the orphan LF chick had to teach the Silkies that it is needed to eat. I have whole grains in the FF now so they needed the grit. Boy they fight over the BOSS in the feed. It snowed a little here in Oregon again today, that is 4 days so far this fall/winter and we usually only get that much all season. The worst is yet to come, Feb is when we get the most snow here. But I will take it over the 6-8 inches of rain we got for Oct. and then again in Nov.

 

[pigeonguy]

I put the pictures on the Sussex thread & 2 different people say pullet

because it doesn't have enough comb or waddles......

I really thought you would get more responses here. I am using pigeon sexing techniques for chickens and it probably doesn't work but I wanted to guess anyway.

 

[delisha]

Quote: Not a lot of guessing because pictures are not good for guessing.. that chick is hard to tell...I would say....cockerel with those pictures

 

[chickiemomy]

Quote: I just looked it up - it's saturday, 3/16 - one day 9 am to 2 pm ---- sounds like maybe a late lunch or early dinner after the show, since it ends so early -- would be in order?? I've never been to this show, since it took until last May for me to convince my dh to 'allow' chickens in our backyard! (he was worried about smell & noise - but has become a convert of sorts) It would be fun to connect with other BYC'ers - meantime I'll put it on my calendar, in case I get distracted between now & then - always a possibility. I live only 15-20 minutes from the fairgrounds.

It would be great to make connections with local breeders, for when chicken math hits. Unfortunately I lost my first chick last Thursday to --- I'm pretty sure --- a coyote. Mid-afternoon - 20 feet from the house. S/he snagged her from some brush cover & carried her off thru brush towards our private road. Did not hear a peep - found a pile of feathers & feather trail (felt like mantracker) when I went to 'lock them up' at 3-ish - dog was inside with me when the attack occurred (he thinks I'm his responsibility). And altho she wasn't at fault/far from home -- my prediction was right - it was Blondie, the GSL 'where's the food' & 'caution to the wind' chick that was taken. I've since put in some temp fence to keep the remaining flock from potentially dangerous areas when out foraging. A predator COULD still get one, but it would have to cover bare ground, then go over, under or through a 4 foot tall ORANGE (very attractive) plastic construction fence. They've been very secure in covered run & coop - foraging was the most dangerous time for them. I thought I had daylight, and not so many hours out loose -- on my side. I was more worried about the bald eagles living next door. Lesson learned the hard way.

Long story short -- now down to 5 - may find a reason to add a few to the flock - if not this coming spring, the spring after - & it would be good to know local breeders. Hope to meet up with you et al then!

-- look forward to meeting fellow BYC'ers - would be fun

 

[delisha]

I posted pictures of chicks on here, the chick had wattles that were already coloring, however they were small wattles. I took pictures, and was told by many and one in particular made a comment about hatchery chicks and 16 weeks of sexual maturity. (My birds are not hatchery, however it is not pure either) that it is a pullet and should start to lay soon. It was 16 weeks at the time. ..It is a cockerel I believe. I am still not sure. It is now about 24 weeks old. It acts like a cockerel sometimes.

 

[pigeonguy]

This is a change of subject but for years around here (since before I was born) ichthammol drawing salve has been used for wounds that have gotten infected. It is used on all of the animals and
If a cow, pig, sheep, goat, dog whatever got in infection in a wound a big glob of ichthammol was put on and an old rag tied around it and a few days later all was good. I got a couple infection at times and the same was done to me. Smells terrible and we wore it to school but I don't remember any of the farm kids that did not smell of it at one time or another. So no one payed the smell no never mind. I used it on my kids and will use it on they're kids too or whatever gets hurt.

IMO It has way different uses than nu stock though and it is thick like grease and does not separate.

I get it at tractor supply.
Miss Lydia supplied me with this link. Hope this is ok.
http://herbs.lovetoknow.com/Ichthammol_Ointment

 

[aoxa]

I posted pictures of chicks on here, the chick had wattles that were already coloring, however they were small wattles. I took pictures, and was told by many and one in particular made a comment about hatchery chicks and 16 weeks of sexual maturity. (My birds are not hatchery, however it is not pure either) that it is a pullet and should start to lay soon. It was 16 weeks at the time. ..It is a cockerel I believe. I am still not sure. It is now about 24 weeks old. It acts like a cockerel sometimes.

Delisha, can we see pictures here?

you have to learn who to listen to on here. A lot of people just don't know how to sex a bird by look. There are a few people that are really good at it. I think I'm quite good at photo sexing them. I actually find it easier to spot boys in my own flock after taking images.

 

[kacklinkelly]

I am so glad you posted about ichthammol ointment. My father raised us using that as well and haven't been able to find it in the regular pharmacy. My adult son was asking me where to find it recently. I am heading to tractor supply asap

. I never know what I'm going to learn on this website.