The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I was hopig to see a few old friends..

I am still kicking folks

Love you all tons

Vicki

I see you are from Wisconsin, hello neighbor.

 

[armorfirelady]

So I figured I would share a story about one of my Peepers (my youngest hens at 2 yo). She decided to venture into my yard when I opened the gate to feed the hens. Unfortunately for her all 4 of my dogs were out at the time & as soon as they realized she was out they came running. I couldn't grab her in time so the dogs got her. When I finally got all the dogs off her she was hiding behind some chairs. I picked her up, & since she wouldn't hold still put her back in with the other hens. With the amount of feathers now in the yard, including one with a piece of skin attached. I was quite certain she would not last long. When I picked her up I did notice there was no blood on me.

Fast forward a week and she is still alive, acting like normal & you would never know the dogs got her except for her missing feathers. I did however notice while watching them eat. that the food she ate was getting all over her chest. I then watched closer & realized it was coming out of her chest !! Apparently her crop (which was bulging & full at the time of the attack) was pierced !! Later that week while trimming the other hens wings, I was able to grab her but she was so upset & flailing so much, I decided to let her go so I didn't stress her out more. I wasn't able to see her wounds.

Its now been about 6 weeks since she was attacked & she started laying again about a week ago. I have no idea how she survived the attack. Never any smell of infection, she dust bathes in the wood ash & continues to prune that area. Other than the missing feathers you would of never know what had happened.

I had another hen in the past get attacked by the dogs, because she ventured out when no one was home, so we had no idea she was out of her area. She lasted less than 2 weeks & that was after stitching her up her chest and using blue kote on her.

Amazing how one survives & the other doesn't with almost the same injuries. They are even the same age. She no longer tries to leave her area now I prefer smart birds who stay inside their electric fence area.

These peepers have slowly been lessening in numbers with their desire to explore outside the safe area. I don't know if its because they are EE/BCM mixes or not but past BCM & EE hens (not crosses) were not so adventurous.

 

[Leahs Mom]

Quote:

I was hopig to see a few old friends..

I am still kicking folks

Love you all tons

Vicki

@delisha

Hey!!!! So good to see you!!!! Hope you are well.... you'll have to update us on what's happening in your "chicken world".

I see that BYC is probably going to be down for as much as a week while they're changing over to a new software. So if you can't post over the next few days don't give up!


I think you've moved since you last posted much. Do you have chickens again?

 

[FridayYet]

Hello, I don't post here much but appreciate all the wisdom you've shared over the years.

Quick question: I'm cleaning my pantry of some old dry goods and was wondering if I could toss any of this stuff to the chickens - Quinoa, Rice, Old-fashioned Oats. None of it is spoiled or full of weevils.

I'm currently on a low-carb diet and by the time I may (or may not) eat these things again I'll buy it fresh. Unfortunately I didn't store it air-tight and it's all probably stale anyways.

Thanks!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Hello, I don't post here much but appreciate all the wisdom you've shared over the years.

Quick question:  I'm cleaning my pantry of some old dry goods and was wondering if I could toss any of this stuff to the chickens -  Quinoa, Rice, Old-fashioned Oats. None of it is spoiled or full of weevils.

I'm currently on a low-carb diet and by the time I may (or may not) eat these things again I'll buy it fresh.  Unfortunately I didn't store it air-tight and it's all probably stale anyways.  

Thanks!

Rice and quinoa should be cooked I believe, the oats can go out with or without cooking.

 

[Leahs Mom]

BYC SITE UPDATE​

Just an fyi for everyone on the thread. You may or may not have noticed that BYC is going to update their software platform for hosting the site. It looks like it will end up being a good deal for everyone. There will be more functionality and stability. However during the change, you will be unable to post on here.

It starts tomorrow (Tuesday 8 May) and could last for a couple of days. If you are behind on posts, you should be able to still read what has been posted, just no comments or new posts until the change is over. The links to access the site won't change, so other than the short period where it is read-only, the change will be mostly transparent to all the users. None of us needs to do anything to prepare for the change.

go here for the official update on what is going on:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1172392/bycs-software-conversion-discussion-information

 

[Leahs Mom]

Here is a little about Quinoa from Kentucky Small Flocks. Their rundown on various grains, protein sources, etc. is good to take a look at as it mentions which should not be used raw vs. cooked, or not at all. Nothing there on rice.


http://www2.ca.uky.edu/smallflocks/Nutrition-Grains.html
QUINOA

Quinoa (pronounced Keen-wah) is a cereal grain that originated in the highlands of South America. It is a unique cereal grain because it is resistant to drought as well as to light frost. It is high in protein (12.2% crude protein) and specifically the amino acids lysine (6.7 % of CP) and methionine (2.9 % of CP). The quality of the protein portion is similar to that of casein. Unfortunately, quinoa also contains a number of anti-nutritional substances, such as saponins, phytic acid, tannins and trypsin inhibitors, which can have a negative effect on performance and survival of monogastric animals when it is used as the primary dietary energy source. Differences in levels of anti-nutritional factors may be found in different types of quinoa that have been grown under different conditions.
Heat-treated quinoa can be included in poultry diets with minimal disruptions to poultry performance.

 

[Leahs Mom]

General Nutrition Lists on Ky Small Flocks

http://www2.ca.uky.edu/smallflocks/Nutrition.html

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Thanks for that @Leahs Mom, I had no clue about quinoa.

 

[Leahs Mom]

Thanks for that @Leahs Mom , I had no clue about quinoa.

You were right @oldhenlikesdogs ... cooked is best on both of them.