The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[aoxa]

Mumsy sounds like you are getting a nice hatch, if drawn out. I was only thinking out loud about how you might increase hatch rate when it sounded as if you might only get a few, but things have progressed since then, yay!

Leah's Mom - if you have Oxine, you can make a spray with 1/8 tsp per quart of water and disinfect everything you touched and even mist your birds to help protect or support them. Chances are things are fine and you have nothing to worry about, just one of those things I do since I caused a Marek's outbreak in my flock by mixing hatchery-vaccinated chicks with those hatched here that are unvaccinated. Can you say guilt? I lost several Speckled Sussex and one Rhode Island Red. The vaccine the hatcheries use is a triple vaccine that includes live vaccine for chicken Marek's, unlike the one we can buy and administer ourselves which is only turkey Marek's. The same effect can be accomplished by running poults in the flock or by adding turkey manure/bedding to the coops and runs. Turkey Marek's causes a mild infection we don't even notice, which stimulates the immune system in chickens so that when they are exposed to chicken Marek's their immune systems recognize and fight it. The issue with live virus vaccine is that vaccinated birds shed the virus.

The University of New Hampshire published a paper that says if you have an adult (> 6 months of age) flock of chickens, they have been exposed and are immune, that Marek's is everywhere. Wild birds carry it, and it is transmitted via dander.

Chickens 6 months of age and older are generally immune.

One thing to know about Oxine - out of the bottle it is an antibacterial and fungicide; "activated" with citric acid, it becomes a virucide (sp?), but cannot be used while birds are present, and one must should a respirator when using it.

It kills germs on contact and quickly becomes harmless after that. Once mixed with water it is effective for 48 hours. I keep a spray bottle with me at all times when I am in the chicken areas now. I wash and spray all my food dishes every night, and have been adding Oxine to the drinking water at a rate of 1/8 tsp per gallon. I am about to taper down to every other day to get back to ACV in the water.

I have recommended Oxine to LM as well in a PM. Can't say enough about the stuff! Really does work

Keeps the incubator bacteria in check as well. I use it in the water in the incubator. I have hard water and it smells unless I use bottled water.. so I use oxine in our tap water instead. I also spray myself all over when I return from a chicken show. Rinse boots with water to get all dirt and debris off, spray with oxine. Set. Rinse again. Spray one more time and all is well.

I haven't actually activated it yet.

 

[Pozees]

I have recommended Oxine to LM as well in a PM. Can't say enough about the stuff! Really does work

Keeps the incubator bacteria in check as well. I use it in the water in the incubator. I have hard water and it smells unless I use bottled water.. so I use oxine in our tap water instead. I also spray myself all over when I return from a chicken show. Rinse boots with water to get all dirt and debris off, spray with oxine. Set. Rinse again. Spray one more time and all is well.

I haven't actually activated it yet.

I haven't activated it yet either - by the time I realized what was happening, all my birds were exposed. I love the stuff as well. I've read it can also be used to eliminate odor, so you saying it works in your water underscores that - it can even be used to overcome skunk spray. I'd call that good stuff! Best $25 I've spent in a long time.

 

[delisha]

Mumsy,

I do not think the oil will work on wasps..just bee's

Quote: Go silkies go!!! I am looking forward to pictures

Quote: I just wipe it around the nest with a paper towel and stuff the paper towel down the hole with a stick

Hi all! I'm new to chickens, just got three 10-month old Red Star hens about two weeks ago, but I am ALWAYS reading all I can about natural chicken keeping. No antibiotics or anything else for us. I do make our own anti-bacterial (think Neosporin) salve for my family. If needed, could I use it on the girls? And I am very interested in hearing how much ACV you use in their water. I use it all the time for my family and these girls are family already. It seems that finding organic layer feed around here is darn near impossible and shipping costs will kill ya! Holy cow! I made up some of my own feed yesterday based on some recipes found in a thread on this site and they seemed to like it. Obviously though I don't always have the time to make up batches and would like to have some pre-made organic feed on hand. They are outside all the time, from early morning until they go in to roost, but are penned in. Granted, it's a big area and there is plenty for them to forage but we don't know how they will do free-ranging since they were in a much smaller area before they came to us. I can post pictures later. Any suggestions for the southeast Wisconsin area? Or are any of you around my area?

I live in Southeast WI (Racine CO)
Farm and Fleet carried Nature Wise, I go to Klema's and mix my feed from the bins they have fresh. I free range so i do not buy much feed this time of year.

I'm in Florida where it is quite warm, I've found that the plastic "milk crates" work well because the ventalation is a plus...also no nooks for mites to hide in. I just use a jigsaw to cut one side down leaving a edge about 3 inches high. Fill with hay and they're ready to go!

Great idea

A touch bit off topic. But I have noticed many of you are from the north east. I'm trying my hand at making maple syrup candies. The last batch I made tasted great but did not have the harder outer shell. Any idea how to get the harder outer shell?

Use a candy thermometer and boil to 225 with out stirring. Turn it off. Let sit in the pot, on the burner till it reduces in temp to 210. Stir in your butter till it is dull in color. Pour it on a surface or in your molds.

Quote: i tried it both ways, i had faster growth with the rocks over the cornish. however, i do think the cornish over the rock gives larger breasts. but the growth rate was always slow for me. the cornish roosters are a little more agressive, the hens under then always looked "overused". if you can find a breeder who has bred rocks up for growth and meat, i would get a couple roosters from them.
just so im being straight with everyone, it takes years to breed a cornish rock cross like the one you buy. i have looked and looked and never found true white cornish. that cross is not just cornish and rocks, there is some orpington in the mix and probably a few other breeds. the orpington in the mix has happened more over the last few years, to whiten skin and legs for cosmetic reasons.
another little hint, look for smokey colored white rock chicks. the same gene that makes them smokey makes them stay whiter and more appealing to the eye.
My hens are cornish my roo was a white rock. I am trying Orps this year to try to calm the food aggressive attitude. My hens stomp chicks at food dishes. They don't peck.

 

[loveourbirds]

i did try taking some cornish x rock females from a hatchery and put them under a fast growing white rock. for some reason there is no fertility, the hens lay well. the rooster has been doing his job, so im not sure what is wrong.
i have also wondered about throwing turken into the mix, their skin is known for being thin and cooking up crisp. the lack of feathers could be a plus too. my turkens are far from show quality, but are deep breasted - i dont know what the standard calls for.

its just an idea.

 

[MumsyII]

I have always had a preference for Silkies with vaulted skulls because I've always got females on the ones with it. I love that huge crest. I have non vaulted from both my strains that have huge crests too. I can not tell between my Catdance five month chicks who is vaulted and who is not at this point. I keep it noted in my hatching journal so when I breed, I can keep track. Eight chicks hatched now and six are vaulted. I'll do eggtopsies on any non hatched and make note of each chick that didn't make it. If high incidence of vaulted skulls prevents full hatching from my pens, I will change it up. Like I keep repeating...I think fertility, vitality and vigor are just as important as type.

 

[beccasev]

Mumsy- those wasps looks exactly like what I just dealt with. I detailed what I did a few pages back. On a tablet so I can't really look up the link. Basically, pour some ammonia in the nest while they are sleeping. I also flushed/drowned the devils with water. I ran the hose for about 5 minutes, then a cup of ammonia, then ran the hose again. That definitely worked with little damage to the plants surrounding them.

 

[MumsyII]

Mumsy- those wasps looks exactly like what I just dealt with. I detailed what I did a few pages back. On a tablet so I can't really look up the link. Basically, pour some ammonia in the nest while they are sleeping. I also flushed/drowned the devils with water. I ran the hose for about 5 minutes, then a cup of ammonia, then ran the hose again. That definitely worked with little damage to the plants surrounding them.

The water hose didn't work. Almond oil didn't work. I even poured kerosene between the porch boards. That is one big mess on my porch now and those wasps are really p....off! We can't see or reach the wasp nest. It is under the porch in the ground. No access.

 

[Harpy Hawk]

Quote:
try brake cleaner...works every time

 

[Harpy Hawk]

Quote:
try brake cleaner...works every time

sometimes you need to make a unnatural sacrafice

 

[Sally8]

I don't think I could eat the feet either. Or make broth from them.  As for giving them to the dogs well I understand the reasoning but I cant picture me sitting there watching them walk around with a chicken foot in their mouth 

I have never had broody hens are chicks but I would think she would keep even the new ones all together?  Or did she leave the nest already & these are ones you put in the incubator? 

I don't want to see my dogs walking around with chickens feet in theirs mouths either. Just the picture of the feet....well. I usually make broth anytime I'm cooking chicken but not just to make broth.

Cecilia kind of left the nest. The chicks hatched 1 day apart from each other. These are the eggs I robbed from the Twisted Sisters. After 5 days, she left the nest during the day but would come back at night, so I brought the remaining egg in and put it in the incubator Then I brought 6 or so eggs in from the TS nests. Now they're hatching. I had gotten rid of all my BCM chicks this spring without realizing that I had none for myself, so I'm not that unhappy. Cecilia is the best chicken Mom that I've ever seen.