The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[Mumsy]

Mumsy, sorry about the cockerel. That was weird. I have no input on the cause, and I like you do a lot of research. Love the Silkie pics though. Gonna do a shoot tomorrow of my kids. Some may get baths first.

Hey Trav. It was just about as weird as it gets. I would really like a break from 'weird' to be honest. Research is the only way to go when it comes to trying to make sense of things.

Mikkles: I will probably forget by this fall when they may begin laying. Shoot me a PM to remind me and I will see what I can do.

Friday: Port Townsend is just across the pond from me! I love it over there. I really like your set up for those pullets. Sweet! Yep. It is green and lush here because of the rain. Just the way I want it. I never have to worry about blizzards, tornadoes, drought, wild fires, gang violence, air pollution or insane traffic. When the sun comes out, my little patch of earth on this island is a sanctuary in paradise.

Going to the farmers tilthe tomorrow to sell lettuce, kale, and onions from the garden and pullets from the barnyard chicken pen. Supposed to reach 80 degrees this weekend! *Whoop!!!*

 

[off-grid hen]

So much chicken drama at my house right now! A broody (Bossy the PR )hatched 3 chicks. before i noticed any had hatched, one was on the floor of the coop dead when I went in in the am. I moved her entire nest box with the 2 chicks into the separate chick/broody area. I thought she'd abandon the nest, but she is still sitting on 2 eggs. I stupidly put eggs under her 3days apart. The two rcbl chicks are healthy and strong. Not sure if the other rcbl chick climbed out and the flock killed it, or if it was kicked out by momma, but it was a big chick. This is my first broody hatch, it's very exciting.

Built a pen for the meaties to get them out on pasture. Had some metal conduit and a pipe bender. It is VERY HANDY to have a husband that has what seems like every tool known to man. It now has a tarp over half for shade, and a bigger drinker. The back panel is zip tied on but removable so we can extend the pen if this meatie project suits my liking. If not, I can use it as an isolation area.

Gratuitous beefcake shot of my roo in a very rare pose: resting. He is a good boy. I have given lots of eggs for people to hatch, and he is getting the job done. He is 28 for 30 egg fertility! We will see if he is a good daddy when I integrate the broody and chicks, after she is done with the remaining 2 eggs under her. He is RCBL/GLW mix.

 

[aoxa]

Thank you.

I used a lavender kitty shampoo on them and Johnsons baby powder on their bums. They smelled good for about fifteen minutes. Chickens being chickens.....It didn't last. Hah!

It's been such a long time since I've seen Partridge Silkies. These two don't have any black. I'm seriously wondering if they could be Blue Partridge? The eggs that came from Catdance had 'P' written on these. I assumed it meant 'Partridge'. I would love to breed a project pen of Blue Partridge but have no idea what one of my little cockerels to put with them eventually. I have a Lavender boy and a Blue Split boy. They are both pretty chicks right now. I have no idea which would make the best match with these two pullets. It is a fun fun dilemma to have.

They are partridge. I was told Phyllis was - and she did not have any black. At first I thought she was Blue Partridge, but they assured me she wasn't (Sonoran & PeepBlessed).



Here is Phyllis.


But I did have this girl who they said would be considered Blue Partridge.

Now I have 20 chicks that carry partridge. Hopefully I get a good boy out of it. I have Doc who carries partridge from her father (she is blue with a little gold leaking through her hackles - but hardly any so it's hard to tell). I will use her to try to get back where I was.







I would love to hear your thoughts on her Mumsy She's 22 weeks old here.



Here is one of the partridge chicks resting outside. First day that was warm enough to let them out ALL DAY. From 8 am - 6pm without any heat or monitoring. They are 3 weeks old now.




I am declaring this one a cockerel.



Look who found a june bug!

 

[CoopChick719]

Update on the bait & switch mission that happened in my coop last night. Mama #1 has accepted everyone.

Mama #2 pecks at any chick she sees and this is the one that's already hatched 2 clutches.

So I have taken her & everyone else, except babies & Mama #1, out of the coop. Will be making an enclosure, within the coop, for the new family today because Mama #2 tries to invade the family's space.

Mumsy's gardens are so beautiful I want to live in them!!

I agree with LeahsMom!! I'd have a hard time staying out of them all day & letting all the other chores go.

 

[Alibabe]

Hi all, loving all the photos and reading all posts.

to those Mumsy for the balloon bird, you must have been heartbroken.

Aoxa - I am so loving the new barn! Every day I log on hoping to see new pics, I am so excited for you and Susan.

I thought I would share some photo's of my new kids on the block. 5 of them I bought last week after a fox attacked my others ones. After the fox, I was left with 1 girl - henny penny - who is a champ but need some friends to keep her company.

After seeing a photo on here about a food station to keep food dry - this is my DH effort below



This is Henny Penny who was the only survivor of the fox attack. She really squeezes my heart.





Below is Junior (as in junior henny penny) at the back and Tilly in the front.


Junior and shy Tilly hiding her face


Rosie is so sweet and I think she may be a week or so older than the rest of the new babies that were sold to me as 16 weeks (a week ago). Rosies comb is much bigger than any of the other newbies.




Star





Stripey in front and junior in the back


Stripey with Tilly in the front and Junior just off the right of the picture


Tilly


I wish I could take better picures to show off their colours better but I am no photographer.

 

[cubalaya]

they look nice. interesting colors. here are some of my broody hens with their chicks;


black cubalaya with 2 pure asil chicks


asil hen with her asil chicks

 

[Mumsy]

They are partridge. I was told Phyllis was - and she did not have any black. At first I thought she was Blue Partridge, but they assured me she wasn't (Sonoran & PeepBlessed).



Here is Phyllis.


But I did have this girl who they said would be considered Blue Partridge.

Now I have 20 chicks that carry partridge. Hopefully I get a good boy out of it. I have Doc who carries partridge from her father (she is blue with a little gold leaking through her hackles - but hardly any so it's hard to tell). I will use her to try to get back where I was.

They are stunning! Love love love!

When I visited Catdance Farm, I don't remember seeing Blue Partridge pens. I vaguely remember seeing a couple regular Partridge Cocks in a breeding pen though. Partridge was never my favorite color in Silkies but that's because twenty years ago I had not yet seen a good one. I was not really paying attention to those pens. Now that I see your Phyllis....Well all I can say is WOW! Pretty!

I am loving on my twelve Catdance chicks every day. Out of the twelve I hatched, six boys and six girls. My best guess anyway. The two little Partridge pullets are my favorites. Who would have guessed? Not me. Hah!

Beautiful images Justine. I love them so very much.

 

[Child of Noah]

I love this and I stole it. Is this at your farm?

Look who found a june bug!

This morning I plucked a june bug off my screen door and asked who wanted it. Teriyaki came over and snatched it, then ran to hide from the other girls who wanted to steal it from her.

Thank you aoxa. It is because of this thread and the desire of some here to learn including me, that I will share.

It is so sad and frustrating to lose birds from my flock to these bizarre and unknown reasons. Especially since this bird showed no signs of illness and acted and looked so healthy other wise. It bums me out too that my birds are bug free, in great flesh, and there is clear evidence it was eating and pooping right up until it filled up with air. I've been studying the images and can find nothing weird or unusual in the organs or entrails.

I will post my best images and give a guess of what happened. I believe kassandrau was correct. Something was wrong in or near the trachea or somewhere between it and the lungs though I could not find it. This poor creature was continuing to blow up right up until I ended it's suffering.

I should have been in bed three hours ago, but I was 300 posts behind and glued to the saga of Balloon Chicken. I can't express enough how grateful I am that you take such detailed necroscopy and photographs. If he's always been such a fatty, it is quite possible that he fell (jumped down) and with his weight that could have been sufficient "trauma" to have caused the ultimate rupture.
I hate to sound morbid, but from reading what you have said you seem to have the same genuine curiosity and desire to "know" that stems from love... so I think/hope you understand that is the source of my question.
I wonder did you attempt to inflate the lungs? And if so, at what point (mouth/nares, trachea, etc.)? Using a straw or syringe maybe. That could have isolated a leak that may have gone otherwise overlooked.
I would tend to agree though on your theory of the air sacs. That makes a lot of sense based on how the bird looked. Not that how the bird looked made any sense at all.
Again, THANK YOU so much for the learning experience.
I am so sorry you have been plagued with The Weirdness, but you are also gifted with the ability to display it for the rest of us and follow through with the full results so that everyone can benefit from answers.
If I ever have The Weirdness I hope that I can follow your example of thorough documentation.
And I so love your garden!

Leah's Mom: I love Ms. Sweden!

Okay, obviously I get all lovey when I'm sleep deprived.
Bedtime.

 

[Alibabe]

Lovely pics Cubalaya, I am not familiar with the breed but they are pretty

 

[FridayYet]

Friday, that looks like a nice set-up. How old are your pullets?

Thanks Lalaland, they are about 8 weeks old. Still a long way away from eggs! I bought The Garden Coop plans on-line, had a handyman put up the basic framing and did the rest myself.

Friday: Port Townsend is just across the pond from me! I love it over there. I really like your set up for those pullets. Sweet! Yep. It is green and lush here because of the rain. Just the way I want it. I never have to worry about blizzards, tornadoes, drought, wild fires, gang violence, air pollution or insane traffic. When the sun comes out, my little patch of earth on this island is a sanctuary in paradise.

Going to the farmers tilthe tomorrow to sell lettuce, kale, and onions from the garden and pullets from the barnyard chicken pen. Supposed to reach 80 degrees this weekend! *Whoop!!!*

You are so right - nothing more gorgeous than sunshine on all that green! DH wants to move up there everytime we go up to visit, since we do live in the land of drought, wildfires, smog, earthquakes and an insane amount of people! Hopefully only for a few more years though.

they look nice. interesting colors. here are some of my broody hens with their chicks;


black cubalaya with 2 pure asil chicks


asil hen with her asil chicks

I just love those long necks and upright stance of the game-type birds!