The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[TeaChick]

I pretty much agree with this. I think it is the hormones as you state.

One exception, though. If the "guy" is a cockerel, I think he might just mate anything - hormones or not - based on his own hormone level! Especially if there aren't any adult ladies to put him in his place.

I remember thoroughly enjoying when "Mister", who was in a hen house with Six 1 year old hens and 3 girls his own age, was just coming into his "maturity". What I most enjoyed was when he'd approach the ladies and they'd tweak him in the comb

One time I saw him get on the landing bar in front of the nest boxes and look in to see what one of the elders was doing. She reached out and grabbed his comb and wouldn't let loose. Sorry...but I found that funny in a sadistic sort of way I guess.

Then....the poor boy hurt his leg. By that time the elders had realized he was "Mister" and were submitting...mostly quite happily. He had status being the only Mister around even though he was younger than everyone by almost a year. Then he hurt his leg and he couldn't "capture" them. If they didn't submit he was out of luck. It actually was a good thing because it put him in a place to realize they could very easily say "no" and it also taught them how to say "no".

Ah.... Boys....

Thanks.
Yeah, that sounds funny. (maybe a little sadistic, but eh).
Sorry he hurt his leg; glad he's still able to mate.
My roo is a month younger than my year old hens; the pullet is the same age as the hens, she just didn't start laying before the cold weather and shorter days, so I'm waiting...waiting...waiting. I'm afraid she's hiding eggs somewhere that it wouldn't be safe for her to go broody.

I was thinking of doing a wild rice and sausage stuffing, sounds better than stove top. LOL

Yes, quote is acting flaky!
Thanks for the info on birds and breeding and laying. =)
I like the idea of wild rice and sausage; I don't like bread stuffing.

 

[Leahs Mom]

Quote: Good advice to set a cut-off date. A lot of that will depend on the weather as I'd like to see what happens after it's been in the 40's for a week or so. Maybe by end of March.

I know my birds LOVE kale....but they won't touch spinach

I'm also going to overseed an area with chickweed.

have you planted your own?

I think you're asking about spinach there. No, I haven't. Just given it loose and I imagine that they might prefer picking their own.

 

[lalaland]

Hey Leah's mom, it sounded like you were going to seed chickweed? or were you just putting spinach in where chickweed currently grows.

I'm wondering if you were seeding chickweed where you were getting the seeds....

 

[lalaland]

duh. i goggled, and of course found chickweed seeds for sale. who knew? not native to north america but....it is prolific where I live.

http://www.egardenseed.com/Chickweed_Seeds_p/0161.9.htm or for cheaper:
http://www.cherrygal.com/greenschickweedheirloomseeds2010-p-10194.html

second source reminds you that it is very very invasive and will reduce grain yields by 80% so to be sure to harvest fully.

think I will get some and add to the run.

 

[Leahs Mom]

I also have purchased various things from this place:

http://www.wildgardenseed.com/index.php?cPath=55

But they don't list any now. I was hoping to get it in bulk rather than the little packets and I remember noting a place that sold it and I can't find it now.

I was thinking of putting it in a grassy area that's where they range that is just a grass area and will never be used for planting other items. Just to add to the grass mix.

 

[ChickChickChicky]

What would be the best and easiest thing to plant for chicken fodder? Going to to be in covered planting boxes in their run so they can't eat to the ground and scratch it up.
Having trouble deciding what would be best...

Easiest thing to grow that your chickens will love is collard greens. They do fine through the heat of summer (unlike spinach) and can take the cold too. I usually grow it and cut off leaves (starting at the bottom of the plant) to throw to the chickens, they do LOVE them. I like collard greens too so it's really a win-win situation. Something else they really love is pea vines, if you grow peas be sure to give the chickens the vines as soon as you're done harvesting.

 

[armorfirelady]

Last year I grew beet greens, kale, parsley, oregano, basil and lavender. The beet greens & kale ended up covered by pumpkin leaves and stayed cool enough to grow thru to the fall. I just kept cutting them back when they got big. The girls finished them off when they were moved into the veggie garden. That's what I am going to plant in the herb boxes I am making for the hens this year.

 

[Leahs Mom]

I've been noticing lately that many processed food items have propylene glycol in them. This includes human and animal food items, vitamins (including vitamin drops/drenches routinely used for poultry and sold on farm store shelves), etc.

This is somewhat disturbing to me as I work in an industry that uses these chemicals and they are definitely not something that you would want to ingest. In fact, propylene glycol is one of the glycol products that is used in anti-freeze (along with ethylene glycol which is very toxic), paints and other chemical products.

So...I did a little looking around and decided to post a few quotes on propylene glycol just to raise awareness on the NATURAL Chicken Keeping Thread about this item.

I encourage you to read the labels - especially on vitamin preparations, food/feed bags and other items that you may be either feeding or using around your chickens. It is one of those things that I think we should all think long and hard about before giving these items to our animals - or ourselves.



On to the quotes:

​

on the FDA's investigation into contaminants in chicken jerky dog treats from China, one of the findings was the presence of undeclared propylene glycol in a dozen tested samples.

The recalled VitaKitty treats were suspicious for the presence of high amounts of propylene glycol, an additive that keeps food soft and chewy. This compound is actually antifreeze. Propylene glycol is considered less toxic than ethylene glycol and is used in newer automotive antifreezes. The FDA has approved it for use in dog food, but I do not recommend feeding food containing propylene glycol to any animal.

The FDA has banned propylene glycol in or on cat food because it can cause a serious blood disease in kitties known as Heinz body anemia. This disease causes the destruction of red blood cells. Symptoms include fever, sudden weakness, loss of appetite, dark colored urine, pale mucus membranes in the mouth, and skin discoloration.

From the MSDS

It is also interesting to note that the FDA considers propylene glycol "GRAS" (Generally Regarded as Safe") to be used in food and cosmetic products. However, there is plenty of evidence that adding this chemical to your food source would not be a wise thing to do.

This is one of those things that I choose to avoid for myself and my animals.

 

[Leahs Mom]

Last year I grew beet greens, kale, parsley, oregano, basil and lavender. The beet greens & kale ended up covered by pumpkin leaves and stayed cool enough to grow thru to the fall. I just kept cutting them back when they got big. The girls finished them off when they were moved into the veggie garden. That's what I am going to plant in the herb boxes I am making for the hens this year.

That's a great list!

Quote:
I didn't realize collard went throughout the whole summer. Thanks!

 

[armorfirelady]

I can't wait till I get my taxes back so I can order seeds & buy some bricks at my fav reuse place to start putting the cold frames together. I'm hoping it helps getting things started earlier easier. Especially since an article in the paper said it's going to be a cold spring because the lake is 98% frozen. I have a feeling those cold frames are going to be setup for awhile :/ I'm hoping when they are done as cold frames to use them as a place for cukes, squash and pumpkins to grow up to keep them off the ground. But it really needs to warm up so I can get them covered with wore & plastic. I can't do it in the house they are to big.

LM thanks for the article. Did you see dr oz yesterday? I was flabbergasted by the potato info. I will def be growing more of my own potatoes this year or buying organic. And the other atomizes he had were good also.