Washingtonians Come Together! Washington Peeps

[KMHunter]

OK so something just dawned on me and I thought I would share.

Last yer at Monroe Kim was talking about how cute Silkies are and she might like to get some. Well I directed her to a couple good breeders. Now IF my memory serves me correctly By the time Kim was ready to leave she had bought Silkies.

Now this year Kim was SHOWING her silkies and guess what REVENGE !?!?!? I ended up coming home with 4 Silkies from Kim.

I didn't buy silkies at the show, but a few months later I bought eggs to hatch. But yes, between you and my oldest DS, you got me into silkies. It is a SICKNESS! Worse than just being chicken crazy. See, you can keep more of them in a smaller space.

CR, I am not after revenge.....I look at it as sharing the wealth!

And if you don't get any girls out of those 4, I will definitely have some later this summer to share!

I won't be on for a while, I am on vacation as of today and I am unplugging. See you soon!

 

[TacomaFarms]

Quote: What I have read on several threads is a minimum of 20' space between flocks and quarantine areas. Less means more chance of airborne diseases spreading. Ideal is inside away from everyone. Also wash hands good between handling the two flocks, to avoid physically transmitted stuff
FYI I have heard of some diseases that are airborne and can spread up to 1/2 mile away. I don't think that would be very common but just an FYI.

Also technically for bio-security to work one should do a complete change of clothing and shoes and actually even shower too between different coops. And don't forget the hat on yer bald head etc.

This is what I have read/heard/followed. The chances of spreading something is slim if you purchase high quality birds from certified breeders, however, that is not always an option. It is a risk you must decide to take, or not. It could go smoothly, or you could end up replacing your whole flock. I am a firm believer based on my experience to have a good dose of amprolium around JIC, to CYA. I integrated a nomad into my flock, so there was no quarantine period (I came home and the darn bird was dust bathing next to the coop waiting to be let in), come to find out MY birds were sick. Antibiotic treatment! All are alive and kicking laying.

Quote: Have a wonderful vacation!!! We'll be sure to keep posting so you have a TON of posts to read when you get back.

 

[mikeyb]

This is old news, but still needs to be heeded.

http://www.snopes.com/crime/fraud/juryduty.asp

http://www.fbi.gov/page2/june06/jury_scams060206.htm

 

[fire pirate]

Had a silkie egg goin on day 28 everyone else hatched. Finally did an eggtopsy... It didnt have Feet!!! Ever see this? It wasnt alive either but had furry look? I think one of my girls had an alien.

 

[fire pirate]

I cant get pics to load

 

[pips&peeps]

Is anyone interested in the scarves I posted about before the WFF show? I can mail them. I have more colors also....

I will post later.


https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...together-washington-peeps/14140#post_10656827

My original post.

 

[CarolynF]

FYI I have heard of some diseases that are airborne and can spread up to 1/2 mile away. I don't think that would be very common but just an FYI.

Also technically for bio-security to work one should do a complete change of clothing and shoes and actually even shower too between different coops. And don't forget the hat on yer bald head etc.

Quarantine is a subject that gets discussed a lot and I see it kicked from one end of the spectrum to the other. I read an account of one person that has the newcomers at the opposite end of the farm, he does the change of clothes, sanitizing, attending to the regular flock first, etc.. Then there are those that don't quarantine at all and haven't had any issues. There were a few posts on this thread last week, I think, where people were talking about how they bend the rules when they get birds from trusted friends. Some people say keep them 50' apart, others say 10'. And now we know the germs can travel a half mile! It could be a flock down the road that makes our birds sick. agghhh. Biosecurity is a nice word and fits into the mentality of today's world -- on paper. But is it achievable in the realities of our day to day lives? Who came up with the rules we repeat? Were they proposed in a paper presented at a conference of commercial growers, or perhaps breeders of rare and endangered species? Then thru the magic of the internet, spread far and wide to the masses? Perhaps modified a bit along the way to make a point, and then re-quoted and spread further? I so often wonder about things like this. (I know of a well known "fact" where this exact thing happened before the internet, and the mis-information is still be quoted, published, and taught as gospel. And it's flat out wrong. But that's a whole other, very interesting, story.)

We have birds in our flocks that get bugs, infections, etc. without having had a newcomer in the group. We watch them every day to see if they are healthy or sick. And we deal with the problems if and when they arise. So It seems like there should be some middle ground that is practical, achievable, and works a majority of the time. I know.... it's not 100%... but is anything ever 100%? And I have a feeling that taking a bird that is healthy and cramming him in a cage all by himself for a month could stress him/her so much that it would weaken his immune system so he gets sick when he wouldn't have otherwise.

Personally, I don't have the resources or the stamina (for lack of a better word) that it would take to isolate a newcomer for a month the way I technically should. I don't have a farm with multiple buildings, I don't have multiple secure pens and runs. I don't have what it takes to do it "right", but I still want to add new birds from time to time. I need to find the middle ground... where is it?

 

[Sudsy Chick]

Is anyone interested in the scarves I posted about before the WFF show? I can mail them. I have more colors also....

I will post later.

I love my scarf, it is beautiful and well worth the cost

 

[RainMom]

Did someone forget to tell the weather gods it's spring?

We've got 2 to 3 inches snow on the ground and it's still coming down in BIG FAT FLAKES here! (very pretty, but hey- is is spring or not?)

My forsithia bush had just popped open yesterday, before it began snowing:

 

[fikeyismybaby]

Would a german wirehaired pointer or a boxer be a better breed to have chickens with.