The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[armorfirelady]

Quote: Well last night when my Mom fed her eggs she tore into them. Apparently voicing her displeasure about being secluded still. I had thrown Lucy in with her before I left for work so my Mom didn't need to catch her. It was pouring rain out & she has not mastered her hen round up skills. Tho one of these days I am going to get a picture of her when she is out with the girls....she is like the pied piper of hens......of course the jar of scratch in her hand probably helps lol

Last night after work I palpated her crop and I honestly couldn't feel the stringy/hay matter as I could before. I compared her crop to Lucy's and while not as firm as Lucy's it was close. Today just water & grit & whatever she can scratch up in the run for the day while I am at work. (hopefully not hay lol) Lucy is still in there with her.......its in the low 30s so I figured the 2 of them could spend the day together keeping warm. Lucy didn't get any breakfast since I leave before they are up but she will be fine till 3. I am guessing the run will be thouroughly dug up since she will be hungry

after shoveling, the girls spent the late afternoon in the sun eating mud. I mean, they were chowing down. mud. poop. mud. yuck!!! I guess they've missed dirt this winter? while they ate mud, I made channels to help drain the melting snow away. Only needed a t-shirt in the sun. always good to play engineer. trumpeter swans overhead, first of the season. so despite the snow....it might be spring! going to be in the mid thirties all next week, and tomorrow it might get to 40!!!!!!

Glad to hear the weather is improving.......mine love to walk past their clean water and drink the muddy water they are standing/pooping in

Since we can't have regular herbs growing outside in the winter for the chickens to forage on do y'all have any suggestions of where you can find items fresh besides the tiny packets sold in the supermarket?

I can obviously purchase fresh items like parsley and cilantro in the product section year-round. But if I wanted to get items like fresh oregano, basil, thyme, etc., is there a good way to accomplish that? Does anyone grow herbs indoors during the winter? Have you had good luck with them or are they kind-of pitiful?

I have some herbs in pots & they sit in a south facing window. The lavender, thyme & rosemary didn't last long. The oregano was doing faboulous until of course I forget to water it......my indoor plants live in drought conditions. I seem to forget to water them. Last I checked it was still alive but uts been under drop clothes for 2 weeks now.......my Mom tries to recvive them for me when she realizes they are in poor shape. Hence the reason I have timers on my outside gardens.....twist it on & forget it lol

Beef Blood 'Cheese'...Beef blood, poured slowly into tubs of simmering water with salt and spices. I get the blood from surrounding farms that slaughter their own beef. They save and deliver the blood to me in 5 gallon buckets that I provide. Many of the folks hang their beef in my walk-in...certainly no charge. I get roughly sixty 5-gallon buckets of this 'liver-like' stuff that I freeze.

Thanks for reading...

RON

I also found it very interesting to read on the other thread. Its a great use of everything. I'm still trying to figure out why you call it " Beef blood cheese"........
While I grew up in the country when I was little I have lived in town most of my life but a country girl at heart. When I read what others who actually live on a farm do I always try to see if I could do that as well. Blood & guts don't scare me so I think I could handle it

Thank you for sharing what you do where you live. I try and file it in my brain in case I am able to get my own farm one day

 

[hellbender]

@ AFL...Blood Cheese: Because of it's consistency. It's quite spongy and firm. For lack of a better work, it 'clots' into very thick masses and if you cut into it, it has the appearance of sponge but quite firm. The water used to cook/set the blood is used too.

 

[hellbender]

I did find it interesting!

Do you also save the chicken blood?
Do you cook it for germs or so not to encourage finding their own raw meat? VIA Picking and pecking in the flock.
Do you feed these separate from the FF or do you add it to it?
Is this one of those Cold Weather things? or do you feed this year round?

I would love to raise my own Beef Hubby says no room with 1 acre

Edited to add:
simple knowledge of handling overhead chain hoists and....willingness to get your hands dirty once in a while...

This I can do have helped change many engines in my days!

Everything about the culled chickens is saved. They are ground whole before being pressure cooked. The pressure cooking is for the purpose of essentially pulverizing the bones and I use these components year 'round but in various quantities, according to the weather.

My birds are fed moist food year round. It virtually prevents waste, since they gobble it up with little or no scratching.

In warm weather, I feed it to them cool but they aren't fed the meal 'til they are out from day break for about an hour to check what nature has brought to them in the night, then they come back in about 7AM to get into the 'chow' and start their laying process.

 

[Leahs Mom]

If I lived near someone that was processing the meat products like your are (hb) I would likely see if I could buy some of of it for my chickens.

 

[armorfirelady]

@ AFL...Blood Cheese: Because of it's consistency. It's quite spongy and firm. For lack of a better work, it 'clots' into very thick masses and if you cut into it, it has the appearance of sponge but quite firm. The water used to cook/set the blood is used too.

Thank you.

I agree about the hens like the blood. When I take them out chicken hearts & livers it sort of grosses me out when they drink the blood. Its like I have vampire chickens

And mine also only get moist food/grains. They still try to scratch it but they eat it all so well sometimes I think they lick it clean.

 

[Leahs Mom]

Everything about the culled chickens is saved. They are ground whole before being pressure cooked. The pressure cooking is for the purpose of essentially pulverizing the bones and I use these components year 'round but in various quantities, according to the weather.

My birds are fed moist food year round. It virtually prevents waste, since they gobble it up with little or no scratching.

In warm weather, I feed it to them cool but they aren't fed the meal 'til they are out from day break for about an hour to check what nature has brought to them in the night, then they come back in about 7AM to get into the 'chow' and start their laying process.

What kind of a grinder do you use?

 

[hellbender]

What kind of a grinder do you use?

We have an old Hobart heavy commercial grinder that dad got at an auction in Pittsburgh Pa about 1970.

 

[Leahs Mom]

So I'm curious. Did he do commercial meat processing there?

 

[Scott H]

I have a Brahma hen that has taken to sleeping in the corner on the floor. she also lays her eggs on the floor of the coop.
If I put her up to roost at night with the others she stays all night. She eats with all and ranges with the flock should I maybe lower the laying boxes? they are at 4' as are the roosts.? Or just add a lower level maybe?

Or could this be a sign that something may be off?

IMHO, 4' is too high for a large body like a Brahma to drag herself onto or into. She may also injure a leg or foot hopping down. We have a 4' fence that keeps our Wyandottes in the yard!

 

[tjo804]

Quote:
Thank you I will add an extra 2*4 To my makeover list and make a lower Roost and laying box any suggestions on height?