The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[midnightroo]

Leahs mom, I can't help, but there does seem to be something red on the leg in one of the photos, the single leg shot. Do you have a container that you could put the chicken in outside like a dog crate? Sorry and good luck.

Sorry delisha, I was so excited about seeing all the baby chicks and getting an incubator too perhaps, but now I am scared. Hugs

 

[loanwizard]

Question for any of you that have geese.
I bought a pair of young geese about 6 months ago. The dogs got one, but the other has been fine, although very stand offish. She/he lives with the hogs, fraternizing very little with the chickens.
Carla will yell out goose goose out the farmhouse window and the goose will answer from the barn or pond, wherever it is.

Well, a couple days ago I reached out to pet her and amazingly enough, she let me. I petted her for maybe 5 minutes or so.... next day.... nope, not gonna happen.
2 days ago, she let me again and actually squatted, and spread her wings a little, not like flight but sort of flattened out for me.

I wondered if maybe that was proof that she was a female and was squatting for me as her "loin Gander" lol!

This morning I walked out to the barn and she ticked off the beagles (yes the ones my step son tore down their kennels "by accident") by stealing their area in the hay bales.
She is busily making a nest and covering herself with straw.

To this date, I have never seen a goose egg from her. I have no idea if she is male or female, or how long it takes them to mature to egg laying.

I am assuming she is a female and is either has never laid before or is going broody. Might see about finding her a gander. Thought i would post here for anyone with experience before I googled.

I had some mallards before, but they never got past the predators. The last one laid on 20 some eggs for over a month before some predator nailed her, poor thing.

Is it too late to try to find a gander somewhere? Do they mate for life? Are their eggs any good? I assume large and strong flavor?

Thanks in advance.

Shawn

 

[Pullet Surprise]

BUT...IT'S COLD OUTSIDE!
If I bring her in to soak the feet, how will that affect her when I put her back outside in cold weather? Would y'all advise coming and going from those extreme indoor to outdoor temps?



OH...One more photo of my husband holding chickens so I can examine. Behold the Best Man in the World:






Still not sure I found the source of the blood drops.

I think I would bring her in and soak just the feet ASAP...I would do it in a part of the house that was the coolest and make sure those feet were good and dry before putting her out again, probably keep her in the coop for the day. But that is just me. I know that the sooner the soaking begins, the better.

 

[armorfirelady]

Leahs Mom- The one time I found blood splatters was from a hens comb that had already scabbed over before I found it. Some nustock on for a couple days & healed it right up.

While her feet are def swollen is there a roost above the one where you found the blood splatters? I only ask because it doesn't look like the splatters were walked on or were made from her walking on the plank?

I bet you could take her in to soak her feet for a little while and apply some nustock with that vet gauze and put her back outside? Wasn't there a mention on an old thread we were on that there is a gland (hole) in that area of the foot? Maybe it became impacted and that's why its swelling?
I think daily soaks in epsom salt and some peroxide were used and then nustock if I remember correctly. I think it was tried to remove impaction as well?

Good luck & keep us posted as how she is doing please

Delisha

so sorry for the loss of the silkies but thank you for posting the pics

 

[Mumsy]

Well...I didn't want to get out of a warm bed this morning. My sweet husband got up and made a pot of coffee. I could hear him rummaging around the house. I REALLY didn't want to go deal with the incubator today.

I got up, drug myself to the kitchen, he met me with a cuppa, (love this man) and then he said, "I told you so Go look in your incubator and listen."

I said, "Four pippers peeping!?!"
del and my husband were right! Delayed, not dead!

All the action is coming from Phoebe eggs. Nothing with the Edith eggs in the cage. Very possible my Grandson will get to name chicks later this afternoon.


@ del: That is just heart rending about the Silkies. You are right. Those are the smallest Silkie embryos I've seen for fully formed. By sharing your experience, you have educated many many people. Your experience with shipped Catdance eggs was the driving force for me ordering the Genesis.

For those of you afraid to incubate...Don't be. It is hard sometimes with some incubators and can be challenging faced with unforseen circumstances. But mankind has been doing it for thousands of years. Sometimes broodies leave a nest and kill all the eggs too. S.... happens.

Hatching chicks in late winter is how you get a bird old enough to peak for late summer, Fall, and winter shows. Silkies and some other varieties are slow maturing. Spring and Summer chicks hatched out by a broody wouldn't be ready in time. That's why I'm doing it. My Johnny egg chicks are for my adult daughter to raise as her first chickens.

Got to go make cookies now for my Grandson. The day is not going to be a bust after all.

 

[Ashdoes]

Oh Delisha that's really awful about your Silkies. I'm sad and they weren't even mine.
Mumsy, very excited you're getting some Johnny babies!
I know everyone keeps saying all the incubator talk makes them want to hatch, so i thought I'd post a link for you all.
http://www.metzerfarms.com/LiveHatchingVideo.cfm. My daughters are obsessed with this cam...we start watching Friday night, and by Sunday they take over my iPad.
Last night my husband and I picked ducks! 4 Runners, and two each of Black Swedish, White Crested and Welsh Harlequin. We have them set to arrive right after he gets home. Yay!

 

[loanwizard]

Well...I didn't want to get out of a warm bed this morning. My sweet husband got up and made a pot of coffee. I could hear him rummaging around the house. I REALLY didn't want to go deal with the incubator today.

I got up, drug myself to the kitchen, he met me with a cuppa, (love this man) and then he said, "I told you so Go look in your incubator and listen."

I said, "Four pippers peeping!?!"
del and my husband were right! Delayed, not dead!

All the action is coming from Phoebe eggs. Nothing with the Edith eggs in the cage. Very possible my Grandson will get to name chicks later this afternoon.


@ del: That is just heart rending about the Silkies. You are right. Those are the smallest Silkie embryos I've seen for fully formed. By sharing your experience, you have educated many many people. Your experience with shipped Catdance eggs was the driving force for me ordering the Genesis.

For those of you afraid to incubate...Don't be. It is hard sometimes with some incubators and can be challenging faced with unforseen circumstances. But mankind has been doing it for thousands of years. Sometimes broodies leave a nest and kill all the eggs too. S.... happens.

Hatching chicks in late winter is how you get a bird old enough to peak for late summer, Fall, and winter shows. Silkies and some other varieties are slow maturing. Spring and Summer chicks hatched out by a broody wouldn't be ready in time. That's why I'm doing it. My Johnny egg chicks are for my adult daughter to raise as her first chickens.

Got to go make cookies now for my Grandson. The day is not going to be a bust after all.

I am glad to hear about your success. I know a lot of people fear incubators for the reason of climate control. I don't worry about anything but humidity but that is because that is the area I have difficulty with.

Keep in mind that a broody hen DOES get up from her nest now and again. When this happens the temp goes down.
Now this next statement is just me and what I consider common sense that I may or may not possess.
A temp spike in the first 15 days might cause embryotic death, but somewhere along the line that embryo become a viable living creature and I find it difficult to believe that 20 minutes of a 5 degree hot flash will kill a chick. What if the broody choses to nest in an area with hot sun part of the time and goes to get water for 15 minutes. Wouldn't the direct sun cause a heat spike?

Anyhow, glad things are working out. I typically hatch between 19 and 23 days. I've never kept the eggs past 23 days. I figure if you are a lazy chick.... too lazy to get out of the egg... I don't need to support you. My chicks have always worked.

 

[SallyinIndiana]

DH just got home..He is the sweetest man on the face of the planet..he ran me a bath..told me to go relax..he is out plowing the drive..and told me I can order the incubator and more silkie eggs.

yay, I showed my DH some of the more costly incubators last night. I'm hoping if I show him the pricy ones for long enough he will let me get a economical one before next spring.

Thanks PG... great advice. Another way to get that protein is to just get some ground beef or venison (or whatever meat you have access to). Then you know it's all meat.

and it would smell so much better than canned cat food.

Well...I didn't want to get out of a warm bed this morning. My sweet husband got up and made a pot of coffee. I could hear him rummaging around the house. I REALLY didn't want to go deal with the incubator today.

I got up, drug myself to the kitchen, he met me with a cuppa, (love this man) and then he said, "I told you so Go look in your incubator and listen."

I said, "Four pippers peeping!?!"
del and my husband were right! Delayed, not dead!

All the action is coming from Phoebe eggs. Nothing with the Edith eggs in the cage. Very possible my Grandson will get to name chicks later this afternoon.


@ del: That is just heart rending about the Silkies. You are right. Those are the smallest Silkie embryos I've seen for fully formed. By sharing your experience, you have educated many many people. Your experience with shipped Catdance eggs was the driving force for me ordering the Genesis.

For those of you afraid to incubate...Don't be. It is hard sometimes with some incubators and can be challenging faced with unforseen circumstances. But mankind has been doing it for thousands of years. Sometimes broodies leave a nest and kill all the eggs too. S.... happens.

Hatching chicks in late winter is how you get a bird old enough to peak for late summer, Fall, and winter shows. Silkies and some other varieties are slow maturing. Spring and Summer chicks hatched out by a broody wouldn't be ready in time. That's why I'm doing it. My Johnny egg chicks are for my adult daughter to raise as her first chickens.

Got to go make cookies now for my Grandson. The day is not going to be a bust after all.

what a great way to start the day.


for those of you that are doing gardens, are there any plants that the chickens will weed around and let grow to produce food? I think someone mentioned that their chickens did not touch the tomato plants. I found some veggie seeds that most likely will not grow because they are old. But it would be cool to see them grow especially if i did not have to weed around them. I was thinking of tossing them in the chicken run one night in May after the chickens were all asleep so they could not eat them before I had them covered in dirt.

 

[armorfirelady]

I know everyone keeps saying all the incubator talk makes them want to hatch, so i thought I'd post a link for you all.
http://www.metzerfarms.com/LiveHatchingVideo.cfm. My daughters are obsessed with this cam...we start watching Friday night, and by Sunday they take over my iPad.

I think I am as bad as a kid.....I keep checking back to see if one has piped yet.....i got dibs on the one in the middle with the darker white are as the first to hatch lol

 

[kian]

Delisha I am so sorry about the Silkies.

Mumsy I am so happy for you!


This chicken thing is a real roller coaster sometimes isn't it.