The road less traveled...back to good health! They have lice, mites, scale mites, worms, anemia, gl

[aaggjg]

Firstly Bobbischicks (hope i got that right) so sorry for the loss of you beloved little silkie cross chick!!

Okay I'm going to try and post my vanished into error land post from the other day.

I have a 8 month old black Orpington who had stopped laying but seemed okay.... I thought maybe she was slowing down as it is winter and didn't think much of it. Well after a week or so and no egg I inspected her and to my horror found mites. I nu-stocked her vent and then I made a fire (in warm weather) so that I could have some ash. I ashed her and applied more nu-stock. When I pick her up she screams like I am going to kill her.... She is a very friendly chicken and used to being held so this is strange... She has picked her rear side bare and it's red and really uncomfortable looking... She has obviously lost her luster and now her face looks a bit ashen to me. She still runs around with the other chickens and comes running at food but is a bit more low keyed then usual. I can only imagine how sore her bottom is poor thing. I changed out the DE laden bedding in the coop and tried to spray diluted Nu-stock on the roost but it clogged both my spray bottles. Ugh.... She has lost a lot of weight and looks a shell of her former self... She used to have the shiniest lushest feathers.... So here is my question what else can I do to help her???

On another note I fed non FF yesterday to see if my hens would react differently as they don't attack the FF like everyone else's seem too.... Well they ate the regular feed with about the same amount of enthusiasm. So there's that .... Maybe I'm just grossly over feeding them with the FF as they don't need as much... Can someone give me an idea of amount of feed you are giving your flock???

I hope all of you in the storm path stay safe!! I had my power out for a day this week after big wind storms here.... I felt so cutoff without my BYC family!!!
I've given up traditional books in favor of this forum

 

[Beekissed]

Quote:
Sounds like you've done all the necessaries, so now it's time to let it happen. Just let the NS and ashes work, maybe recheck her in a day or so(mine scream like they are being murdered with a dull spoon each time I try to work with them

so you are not alone with that) and go from there. Really can't rush these things.

I'd feed the FF and only the FF and I'd play with the amounts given until there isn't anything left in the feeder for them to snack on. When they are hungry, they will attack each feeding like it's their last meal on death row.

Each flock's needs are different, so it's hard to translate over to someone else by just birds:feed ratios. Some breeds are larger, eat more, some are small breeds that eat less. Depending on the seasons and their individual nutritional needs, this is a constant adjustment. For my flock of 13 standard breed, dual purpose birds, I am feeding 3-4 level scoops from a medium sized scoop, once a day. That's it and it sounds like a lot but considering these grains are swollen with water, that would be vastly different if fed dry.

I'd just play with it until you get it right and they are eager for anything you put down and leave nothing of it after a few hours.

 

[Wax Myrtle]

Hey, Bee, dja eat Snowman Soup yet? I have a matching pullet for you. She's shooting out medium brown bullet shaped eggs, and my flock roo hates her. I think he may be a bigot, he only likes red girls.

Anyone have a suggestion for examining a reluctant hen all on your lonesome? I have someone limping for a day longer than I'm comfortable with, and I need to check her over tonight. Hoping for a better, less stressful method than Ye Olde Pillowcase with a foot hanging out. Husband will be unable to help - I didn't pick him for his livestock instincts.

 

[Beekissed]

I just wrap them in a towel, swaddled, and cover their heads and it calms them down a good bit. I can work on the rooster(BIG guy) and the scrappiest hen in this manner, it just takes having all your ointments and equipment laid out and handy for one handed use in case you have to do additional restraining.

He was slated for death this morning but I am going to put it off until all this rain stops...he isn't worth getting all wet for.

 

[35chick4kid1dog]

Hey all! This thread just gets more and more interesting! I have a couple of questions for you Bee (and all the other knowledgeable posters!) -

First has nothing to do with chickens. Have you ever used Nu-stock on people pimples?! This person I know *ahem*

might have a bit of a battle with adult acne. Just curious.

Next is, The run that the chickens run through to go in and out of the coop is down to only about half grass. The ground isn't frozen yet, but Sandy is supposed to give us out first snow tonight (I'm in southwestern Ohio). Would it be a good idea to cover the run floor with straw? I hate to kill the grass, but I know its going to go dormant soon anyway. Straw, even wet, seems better than half frozen mud. Yes?

I'm also wondering if I need to think about heat in the coop at al. I've heard half a million opinions on this and I'm wondering how you do it, or would recommend approaching that idea. Its an 8x8 standard shed that will be sheltering 25 or so birds all winter (10 are heading to the processors in a couple of weeks).

Thanks so much! I'm glad you're prepared - my SIL in VA has already had to evacuate and suspects flooding in their house. Again. Poor thing. Just about the time they're ready to sell they get hit again.

 

[Beekissed]

I don't heat and have never heated a coop...it's just not necessary, especially where we live. Instead of straw, I'd use leaves and a little bit of hay...a little bit. Before you do, though, I'd throw some grass/clover seed down and come early spring, I'd rake all that back and let the magic happen. I'd divert the foot traffic towards another direction until you get your good ground cover back, if possible. Does that sound doable?


Never tried NS on pimples...not sure if the oils and powder would just pack more into those inflamed pores. You could try it and let us know....

 

[35chick4kid1dog]

I'm thinking about it! I don't have any NS, but from reading this thread it's obviously something worth keeping on hand!

I've already tossed down some 'chicken pasture blend' seed on the second run, much as you suggested. I'll have to go raid someone's leaf pile in town - ours have all blown away in this Sandy-born wind we're having. But I think I know where I could get several bags of mixed leaves. I hadn't thought of that before, but I like the idea. They love digging through the leaves under the honeysuckle trees. I just can't rake under there! LOL!

I also was thinking - I have a small bucket I was going to try fermenting feed in. I'm estimating that one feeding would be close to half the bucket. Once its working well, if I removed half to feed the girls each day, and replenished the FF with fresh feed, would 24 hours of fermenting be enough to keep it sufficiently broken down on an ongoing basis?

Did that even make sense? Its how I use sourdough when I am keeping it - make pancakes or biscuits with half and 'feed' the rest to use again the next day.

 

[Beekissed]

During the winter months I'd keep more FF in constant ferment and really leave a lot to backslop, as the temps are cooler and the ferment may be slower, even if the mix is kept indoors.

 

[cbuffy]

I started feeding FF last week. My girls were already in good shape - nice shiny feathers and good weight, so I was just hoping to cut my feed bill a little. I have 9 girls. One was a rescue and has never laid since I got her in April. I track anywhere from 4 to 6 eggs daily. Since adding FF, that's gone up to 7 or 8.

Yesterday I got 9 eggs! Now it's possible one was a late lay from the evening before (although I doubt it, since I moved their tractor and as soon as I got it moved and opened the door they all came in and went straight to roost). I'm interested to see what I get today. I would be happy if the useless one would start laying! (She was marked as a cull, but she is IMPOSSIBLE to catch and when in the coop she roosts all by herself, way up in the rafters...)

They are all loving their FF. I use a standard plastic serving spoon (the cheap ones that come in a bundle at WalMart) and they get 4 heaping spoonfuls both morning and evening. They are out to forage in the afternoon/evening and I move the tractor before they eat down where it is currently sitting. Oh, and I also soak some alfalfa cubes and toss some in there every morning. I actually soak it for my senior horses, but there's some "leftovers" that go to the girls. They clean their tray - get that licked clean look. I experimented a little at first - adding another scoop and another scoop until they were full and walked away. When I replace the feed, it's just less than half a standard horse feed scoop - when I was feeding dry they got a full scoop twice a day.

My eggs are HEAVY. I haven't noticed a larger yolk, but it took B's girls a couple weeks before you noticed a larger yolk, right?

So far - I'm HAPPY!

 

[Miss Lydia]

I just wrap them in a towel, swaddled, and cover their heads and it calms them down a good bit. I can work on the rooster(BIG guy) and the scrappiest hen in this manner, it just takes having all your ointments and equipment laid out and handy for one handed use in case you have to do additional restraining.

He was slated for death this morning but I am going to put it off until all this rain stops...he isn't worth getting all wet for.

Last time I had my lil bantam with the X vent gleet I had her wrapped in a towel really not needed though she is so tiny, but I had the NU stock sucked in the little syringe to shoot up her vent[worked good the first time] well this time I insert and it won't budge so I pull it out and have her wrapped in a towel laying in my lap I am trying to get the syringe plunger to work well it finally did but to this day I do not know where the Nu stock ended up it just came flying out and landed some where other than in my hen. So even best laid plans can back fire. we have had to postpone processing 3 roos till next week because of weather.