The Silver Laced Wyandotte Thread

[tobit]

ah fair enough! mine is very skittish as she was raised by a broody (along with my rooster) and also much faster than the other bantams she doesn't let the rooster mate with her yet i.e. she doesn't squat

 

[islandgirl82]

ah fair enough! mine is very skittish as she was raised by a broody (along with my rooster) and also much faster than the other bantams she doesn't let the rooster mate with her yet i.e. she doesn't squat

She does look to be at least a couple of weeks away from laying. Between not squatting and still having a rather pale face. Even her skittish behavior. I added 5 chicks to my flock this year and 2 were handled from day one. They're about 3 1/2 months old now and I can't get anywhere near them (although the pullet wants to but when she gets close to me, she goes spastic and runs in all directions). The other 3 were 10-12 weeks when I got them and had never been handled before the day I got them. I would hold them, hand feed them, talk to them (my daughter would even read them a bedtime story every night) as much as possible but they were still very skittish until they started laying. It's like a swtch was flipped once they were past adolescence. Now they're the first to come running when they see me, even my Hamburg (and they are a notoriously flighty breed especially around humans) won't let me go far without her. Your girl will hopefully grow out of it too despite being broody raised.

 

[tobit]

Ah thanks, the pale face may become related to a horrible mite problem I have and can't seem to get rid of... thanks for taking the time! It's quite funny the rooster does try mating her (cochin bantam) but she is too fast for him she does seem to spend a lot of time in the nest, although thi could be due to her being near the bottom of the pecking order!

 

[moss farm]

Ah thanks, the pale face may become related to a horrible mite problem I have and can't seem to get rid of... thanks for taking the time! It's quite funny the rooster does try mating her (cochin bantam) but she is too fast for him she does seem to spend a lot of time in the nest, although thi could be due to her being near the bottom of the pecking order!

Try this for your mite problem.

 

[islandgirl82]

Ah thanks, the pale face may become related to a horrible mite problem I have and can't seem to get rid of... thanks for taking the time! It's quite funny the rooster does try mating her (cochin bantam) but she is too fast for him

she does seem to spend a lot of time in the nest, although thi could be due to her being near the bottom of the pecking order!

Is it a recent interest in the nest or has she always taken to them?

She may never take to mating. I've had 2 roosters over the past few years (lost my beloved first to a fox and had an unsuccessful attempt at having another) and my top hen refused to submit to either of them.

 

[tobit]

I think ever since I introduced her (at about 14 weeks) and the rooster to my 3 original hens - the nests let her get off the ground, but she state in them even when only te broody was in the coop. I have diatomaceous earth - this is probably similar to product you linked me, I live in the UK, it was marketed as "smite powder". Well my top 2 hens submit to him no questions, she doesn't although she is from the same hatch as him - they grew up as a pair until I introduced them, I'm not sure that would make a difference though.

 

[islandgirl82]

I'm not sure of the product link but the feed I give to my flock has diatomaceous earth in it and I've never had an issue with any type of parasite. The "smite powder" seems well worth the try though.

If she's not laying yet, she won't be submitting anyway. Does she get picked on a lot by your other hens or does she just avoid everyone?

 

[tobit]

ah okay, does that have any effect on external parasites too? yes im going to give it a go (i tend to dust them from time to time but mainly "puff" some into their dust bath areas so they do it themselves, how can i use it to treat the actual hen house?), the problem is there are so many nooks and crannies in my coop as it is made from recycled pallet wood, i have used wood filler to block off lots of the gaps around the nesting area, i have hoovered away large quantites (this involved partly taking the coop apart) and have used a blow torch as "heat treatment" which also helped to decrease numbers but i never seem to be able to get all of them. my other large fowl coop has no mite problem whatsoever and its only 5 metres away!

yes i know, arent there some individuals that never submit even when they start laying? well she just stays clear of them, occasionally she gets chased away -mainly when food is involved, but she just stays away! i started with an established group of 3 cochin batam pullets, then added her and a cochin bantam cockerel i hatched this spring to the group, i think its just because she is a young bird and the only female being introduced - the cockerel of the same age has no problems and the cochin bantam girls seem to adore him! (except in the morning when his hormones are running high

 

[islandgirl82]

Having the DE in the feed means it's always in their system so any parasites (internal or external) who would bit them, die. DE is more a preventative than a treatment and I've fed the same brand since the start of my chicken keeping adventure so I've never experienced having to treat them for any specific parasites. I do occasionally sprinkle a little food grade DE in the coop before I add the bedding. I know there are people who are very cautious about using it to begin with due to respiratory issues so I've always used it very sparingly.

Yes, some hens will never submit.

I have no experience with bantams but my SLW is far from having a passive personality and no one takes my cockerel seriously...even my youngest pullet whose hatch day was a few days after his. When he charges her with his hackles fluffed up, she just stands there and fluffs up her hackles. When he reaches her, they have a stare down then dart off in different directions. It's quite amusing. He's tried that once or twice with a couple of the older pullets and they chase him down and peck him but he wouldn't dare with my two oldest hens....not yet anyway. He's 15 weeks old today and still hasn't even attempted to crow which is a little surprising because of how often I've read about cockerels much younger than him starting. Also, his father never stopped crowing but his mum (my SLW) is extremely quiet...she chatters a lot but keeps her volume low. It wasn't until my older pullets began laying, that I got to hear the "egg song" for the very first time. So far, he's turned out to be quiet like his mum and I'm hoping he stays that way.

You could try separating the one who picks on her the most for a little while and see if that helps boost her confidence.

 

[tobit]

Ah okay, I don't use eding in te coop as they only reall use it for sleeping! Ah yes I'm aware of respiratory issues with fine dust.

The separation is a good idea, this brought my top hen down to bottom in my other flock a she hatched eggs away from the flock! Well she doesn't fight or stare down she just screeches and legs it!