Things You Wish You Would Have Known?

[islandgirl82]

I just moved my chickens to a really secured shed but their isn't really any light to speak of. I've had two young chicks die this week. I think in the dark they were trampled by the older ones. I moved my little ones to a small chicken tractor. I don't really feel that they are really secure from predators in it though. I knew it was only a matter of before a predator got in the coop though. I plan on making bigger, more secure coups. I'm going to keep free ranging the guys but putting the gals in a tractor. I know what it's like to lose so many. Once my flock went from over 60 to less than 20 birds due to a couple of stray dogs.

If your shed is more secure, could you put some windows in it? And once you do that maybe divide off an area for the young chicks so that they're not getting trampled or bullied?

 

[lcertuche]

Actually it is a borrowed trailer that has been reconditioned into a chicken coup so we can't really do much since its not ours. I wish it was because it is like Fort Knox. Even a heavy locking door. We can only use it until we get our others done. My sons and I have been tearing down the old one, a really hard and hot job. I have most of the materials to make new accommodations. I just need to buy nails and wire fence nails and have the time. My son is 13 and really good at building things. We've been researching hoop coups and think we have some doable plans. Also a permanent barn combination chicken coop where the old coup stood. It didn't take long for me to realize the one we were using wasn't going to work, pretty much and hour after we put our chickens in and they started escaping. We only moved on this property a few months ago and decided to get the chickens since there was the coop ready to go and we wanted to get rid of the ticks, not to mention eventually some eggs. So far I have a half dozen pullets and about 12 young roosters. The roosters will go into the freezer come cooler weather. It's just one of those "I wish I had known moments" after years of not having any chickens I had forgot how clever they are, lol!

 

[plynneb]

I just spent the last 3 days reading through this thread

I have learned many things! And now I am motivated to further my chicken first aid kit.

But, the only things I can say I am surprised at are the #*@$ dust! How in the world do those buggers create so much dust?!?!? And chicken math

Decided I want chickens, went to tsc to buy said chickens. I'm thinking 4. I get there, they have 7 bantams left. All it took to convince me to take them all was, "You want all of them? Might as well, they're tiny and cute!" Yep. I want them all.

2 weeks later, after learning my birds are eye candy, I decide that I want egg layers and man those olive eggs are so cool! Yep, 3 more chicks. And now I see all those pretty birds and I think, well I want more pretty birds. So, I have the fuzzy butts coming in 2 weeks!

I got the chicken math!

 

[harley587]

I just spent the last 3 days reading through this thread

I have learned many things! And now I am motivated to further my chicken first aid kit.

But, the only things I can say I am surprised at are the #*@$ dust! How in the world do those buggers create so much dust?!?!? And chicken math

Decided I want chickens, went to tsc to buy said chickens. I'm thinking 4. I get there, they have 7 bantams left. All it took to convince me to take them all was, "You want all of them? Might as well, they're tiny and cute!" Yep. I want them all.

2 weeks later, after learning my birds are eye candy, I decide that I want egg layers and man those olive eggs are so cool! Yep, 3 more chicks. And now I see all those pretty birds and I think, well I want more pretty birds. So, I have the fuzzy butts coming in 2 weeks!

I got the chicken math!

Hi plynneb

This is a great place to learn. I'd say, you are hooked, line & sinker!!

 

[plynneb]

Thanks, I've been lurking around since I acquired my chicks 2 months ago. I have really learned a lot!

 

[realsis]

One very big mistake i wish i knew early on was the effects that a live vaccine can have on your flock. Im not talking about Mareks vaccine. Although Mareks is a live vaccine, it is NOT the actual virus. The other vaccines wich are live ARE the actual virus. Theory being that they give the flock a small amount of virus, and immunity kicks in, fights the virus, and your flock is immune. What i didnt know is what happens if your flock CANT fight off the virus! I learned a very sad and hard lesson that year and lost my ENTIRE flock. Needless to say now, the ONLY vaccine i give is the Mareks vaccine!!! Such a hard and awful lesson. Such a tragic ending!!! I learned the ONLY vaccine they really need is Mareks. No problems with that and it protects the flock! Not potentially kills them!!

 

[Coop de Grass]

I just moved my chickens to a really secured shed but their isn't really any light to speak of. I've had two young chicks die this week. I think in the dark they were trampled by the older ones. I moved my little ones to a small chicken tractor. I don't really feel that they are really secure from predators in it though. I knew it was only a matter of before a predator got in the coop though. I plan on making bigger, more secure coups. I'm going to keep free ranging the guys but putting the gals in a tractor. I know what it's like to lose so many. Once my flo.ck went from over 60 to less than 20 birds due to a couple of stray dogs.

Can you section off a part of the shed for the little ones? You could use a baby gate, or even jerry rig some chicken wire.Also as a temporary solution you could put up one of those "tap" lights that run on batteries. Last suggestion, a solar light?

I feel for you, I lost 8 chicks last week to a raccoon. My fault because I didn't get down there in time to close them up.

Good luck.

 

[Jensownzoo]

One very big mistake i wish i knew early on was the effects that a live vaccine can have on your flock. Im not talking about Mareks vaccine. Although Mareks is a live vaccine, it is NOT the actual virus. The other vaccines wich are live ARE the actual virus. Theory being that they give the flock a small amount of virus, and immunity kicks in, fights the virus, and your flock is immune. What i didnt know is what happens if your flock CANT fight off the virus! I learned a very sad and hard lesson that year and lost my ENTIRE flock. Needless to say now, the ONLY vaccine i give is the Mareks vaccine!!! Such a hard and awful lesson. Such a tragic ending!!! I learned the ONLY vaccine they really need is Mareks. No problems with that and it protects the flock! Not potentially kills them!!

Unfortunately, not completely accurate so let me explain.

Vaccines against viral diseases are three basic types: "killed", "modified live", or "recombinant". I'll explain what that means, but there aren't commonly used vaccines anymore that are just "live"--meaning that small amounts of disease-causing virus are injected into the individual.

(1) Killed vaccines are the whole virus, killed in some fashion. It is possible that some virus escapes being killed, but extremely rare. Unfortunately, this is the weakest vaccine and usually requires an immune-stimulating booster (an "adjuvant") to create protective immunity. One example of an adjuvant used in the past is aluminum.

(2) Modified live is the live virus, but disabled in such a way that it can't cause disease. This type of vaccine is very effective at stimulating the immune system because it uses the whole virus, but there is a rare chance that a random mutation will give a virus particle back its virulence.

(3) Recombinant vaccines are made by taking a small bit of the virus that is capable of stimulating the immune system to produce antibodies against it, then inserting the gene for producing that bit into cells/bacteria that are capable of mass-producing it. This is the safest, most targeted version as the whole virus is never used and therefore can never cause the disease.

---------------

Okay, that covered the types of vaccines, but now let's talk about the Marek's vaccine. Except...there isn't THE Marek's vaccine...there are many versions!

Three potential things can be included in a Marek's vaccine. One is the similar but harmless-to-chickens Herpesvirus of Turkeys (HVT). This is similar enough to the Marek's Disease Virus (MDV) that it can stimulate a mild immune response when used in a vaccine given to chickens. So, this was the first vaccine used against MD. Unfortunately, over time it became less and less effective as the virus developed resistance, so then a non-pathogenic (can't cause disease) strain of MDV was added to the vaccine. And then in some even more resistant areas, a modified strain of pathogenic MDV had to be added. So, you have vaccines that can have HVT, MDV (non-pathogenic), or MDV (pathogenic) strain in them...or some vaccines actually contain more than one strain.

So unless you know which particular Marek's vaccine was given, you won't know what type of vaccine (killed, modified live, recombinant) it was or what strains it contained. Although I don't think there are any recombinant MD vaccines available...too expensive.

-----------------

Okay, this all pertained to viral vaccines. Bacterial vaccines (such as tetanus, Lyme's) are handled differently and vary widely. And I can't bring myself to think of the "vaccine" against coccidiosis as a vaccine...it really is inducing a low-level version of the disease instead of just simulating it.

 

[5Sons Coop]

I just spent the last 3 days reading through this thread

I have learned many things! And now I am motivated to further my chicken first aid kit.

But, the only things I can say I am surprised at are the #*@$ dust! How in the world do those buggers create so much dust?!?!? And chicken math

Decided I want chickens, went to tsc to buy said chickens. I'm thinking 4. I get there, they have 7 bantams left. All it took to convince me to take them all was, "You want all of them? Might as well, they're tiny and cute!" Yep. I want them all.

2 weeks later, after learning my birds are eye candy, I decide that I want egg layers and man those olive eggs are so cool! Yep, 3 more chicks. And now I see all those pretty birds and I think, well I want more pretty birds. So, I have the fuzzy butts coming in 2 weeks!

I got the chicken math!

 

[Lisa Wood]

I just moved my chickens to a really secured shed but their isn't really any light to speak of. I've had two young chicks die this week. I think in the dark they were trampled by the older ones. I moved my little ones to a small chicken tractor. I don't really feel that they are really secure from predators in it though. I knew it was only a matter of before a predator got in the coop though. I plan on making bigger, more secure coups. I'm going to keep free ranging the guys but putting the gals in a tractor. I know what it's like to lose so many. Once my flock went from over 60 to less than 20 birds due to a couple of stray dogs.

We have two windows and the door, so theres alot of light in day time. My husband just cut the big window right into the coop after he THOUGHT he was done. However, at night they get a night light. I have an old lamp that I can shine into screened window.
Last night they would not get in coop because I had not yet turned light on and I quess it was spooky! They STILL would not enter because light was not in the regular spot!? So after I figured all this chicken stuff out and got it right, they entered the coop. They are picky and demanding! But they are also so so funny.
Lisa