What did you do with your flock today?

[ChicksnMore]

Oh! Thank you all! I had a lovely birthday. Not my shark adventure though, that's not until next year.
We reunited our pigeon friend with her keeper. They were overjoyed to see each other, made my heart melt
I thought we were going to stay overnight in a bnb but DH had arranged a week away in a Landmark Trust property. They save historic buildings from ruin then let them out for holidays. We've stayed in several over the years and they're always a joy to stay in. DH chose Poultry Cottage for us this time. Check out the PDF, they kept their chickens in style in those days! At the end of the PDF, there's a photo of the poultry house at Welbeck Abbey. I grew up pretty much on that estate and I had no idea what that was!

Kurby22, the scrap coop is looking amazing, btw. Did you get the results of JoJo's necropsy?

ChicksnMore, those chicks are so pretty, got a few surprises in feather patterning coming there, methinks And Magic is just stunning! What variety of peafowl is she?

Tropical Babies, such kind words. Not sure I'm deserving but thank you!

Gammas Bearded Babies, how's Lizzie today?

I found a couple of old pictures of the sand tiger I dived with. Here she is in all her toothy glory...

I can just see hubby's face if I asked for a poultry house bigger than what we live in That Welbeck Abbey one is stunning in size and looks! The house it belongs to must be truly colossal.

Magics an India blue loud pied. Was expecting her to be a silver pied but she colored up heavy.

I bet that was a welcomed reunion to see!!!

Lizzy is a little better thank God! And yall for all your advice and help!!!
She actually ate some mash with the crushed calcium I got and the tylan50 I was able to get (last bottle in town). And God put 2 men chicken lovers in my path at both places I went to and they were so understanding and helpful! Helped me have renewed faith once we finally got home! It took so long I just knee she'd be gone by time we got back.
But she wasn't!
This morning she ate a little bit of scrambled eggs! Sure hoping she continues to improve!!! And her poo was back to normal! Strange hun?
I've got a few that have runny kinda poos then normal and they are acting fine.
Could it be the fermented feed I'm doin?
I don't let it ferment that long...usually 24 hours or so then use little from that each day to make the next days.
I'm gonna keep her in again today and tonight to monitor and make sure she's eating, drinking and acting normally.
Thankfully our weather is supposed to be warmee today...if it hits 60s n sunny I may let her out with others for free time. Then bring her back in.
I'm just unsure what's really going on with her.
All of mine are newer layers since October and November. I'm puzzled by the shell-less eggs and her not layin...but then the d'uccles stopped layin for another and have started back so

Fingers crossed she's over the hump and glad you have some warmth. I've never used fermented feed...it's too hot here for outdoor ferments to go well usually. We do a lot of fermenting, but indoors. Temp has a huge effect on fermentation. Heat speeds and cold slows, with 68° being ideal. 24 hours at your temps shouldn't be bad though. A sniff test should tell you. Healthy ferments have a sour but good smell. If it smells unappetizing then your starter grain might have picked up a bad yeast or bacteria over time. Think of the difference in smell between buttermilk, yogurt, sour cream etc and spoiled milk.

 

[Gammas Bearded Babies]

I can just see hubby's face if I asked for a poultry house bigger than what we live in That Welbeck Abbey one is stunning in size and looks! The house it belongs to must be truly colossal.

Magics an India blue loud pied. Was expecting her to be a silver pied but she colored up heavy.


Fingers crossed she's over the hump and glad you have some warmth. I've never used fermented feed...it's too hot here for outdoor ferments to go well usually. We do a lot of fermenting, but indoors. Temp has a huge effect on fermentation. Heat speeds and cold slows, with 68° being ideal. 24 hours at your temps shouldn't be bad though. A sniff test should tell you. Healthy ferments have a sour but good smell. If it smells unappetizing then your starter grain might have picked up a bad yeast or bacteria over time. Think of the difference in smell between buttermilk, yogurt, sour cream etc and spoiled milk.

Yeah I do it inside the house at 68°...then they gobble it up in no time.

 

[Shetland lover]

I bet that was a welcomed reunion to see!!!

Lizzy is a little better thank God! And yall for all your advice and help!!!
She actually ate some mash with the crushed calcium I got and the tylan50 I was able to get (last bottle in town). And God put 2 men chicken lovers in my path at both places I went to and they were so understanding and helpful! Helped me have renewed faith once we finally got home! It took so long I just knee she'd be gone by time we got back.
But she wasn't!
This morning she ate a little bit of scrambled eggs! Sure hoping she continues to improve!!! And her poo was back to normal! Strange hun?
I've got a few that have runny kinda poos then normal and they are acting fine.
Could it be the fermented feed I'm doin?
I don't let it ferment that long...usually 24 hours or so then use little from that each day to make the next days.
I'm gonna keep her in again today and tonight to monitor and make sure she's eating, drinking and acting normally.
Thankfully our weather is supposed to be warmee today...if it hits 60s n sunny I may let her out with others for free time. Then bring her back in.
I'm just unsure what's really going on with her.
All of mine are newer layers since October and November. I'm puzzled by the shell-less eggs and her not layin...but then the d'uccles stopped layin for another and have started back so

So great to hear Lizzie's doing better. I honestly think getting them eating is half the battle in helping them heal. If i have any that won't, I can pretty much guarantee I can persuade them to eat scrambled or finely chopped boiled egg, sunflower hearts or sunflower butter. Ferdy  loves oat milk. He drinks it from a syringe so I know I'll always be able to get some food and meds down him. Another thing they all like is low or no sugar baby rusks soaked to baby food consistency. Not massively nutritious but it's a starting point and a great vehicle for getting vitamins or meds down them.
I ferment food too, on a very small scale over 24 hours like you describe. It's the only way I can get them to eat the pellets in their food!
It took mine a little while for their guts to adjust to the change in diet. Runny poops, if they're otherwise normal in colour and smell, aren't necessarily an indication of a problem. For instance, Gladys first poop this morning wasn't as solid as usual but she's fit as a fiddle. I add a product called Digesti-health to their feed once a day. I started using it when I had the ex-batts as their poops were often sloppy. It's a miracle worker and I wouldn't be without it now.

 

[PopoMyers]

We had perfect clear weather this morning and I never would have guessed we would get another deluge of rain, but we did and are. Chickens are quiet for once lol. Nice to hear rain instead of chickens yelling for a change. Guess the rain has surprised us all.
Was able to set df arbor this morning, pick oranges and juiced a bunch, yum. Finally picked another soursop. View attachment 3393968View attachment 3393965View attachment 3393971View attachment 3393972
Poured the left over mixed cement into saved containers to make more chicken pedestals and then cleaned my favorite part of our yard. I'm hoping we can form a pad and use the blue rock and opened bag of Portland cement for the outside shower. Been waiting for a looooong time to do that. Love my summertime showers out there.
Waiting out the rain so I can go collect eggs. WITH the fairy egg my count was 15 yesterday.

Oh my! Hawaiian navel oranges are the best! Haven't had one in so long we all need a vacation to go visit you!
As far as feed goes, we don't have Kalmbach locally here. I've been using Purina Homegrown Mixed Flock, since I have young, older, and cocks. Have also used Dumor layer pellets and crumbles, and Producer's Pride layer pellets and crumbles, if the Mixed Flock is out of stock.

 

[PopoMyers]

At least they are remaining flexible I hate when I have 4 hens waiting and screaming at one girl in one nest box when there are 8 other empty boxes. It is all a great big wonderful Easter egg hunt in the end

For sure. Have had the same scenario here. We have 5 boxes in the main coop, one cat litter box in the other, which is by far the favorite...what will happen when all 14 girls lay on the same day? Think there's going to be a lot of squawking this summer. They haven't chosen to use the 2 middle boxes, yet!

 

[5Australorpasaures]

Weekly bedding change in the brooder. Taking advantage of a string of nice days for some outside maintenance on existing coop. Some bottom rot on door trim and some caulking and a sanitation with a diluted Clorox spray. Getting some more day olds the end of March so going to have the coop ready for the first batch to make the move to a bigger brooding space. Some more Blk Australorps.

 

[PopoMyers]

I bet that was a welcomed reunion to see!!!

Lizzy is a little better thank God! And yall for all your advice and help!!!
She actually ate some mash with the crushed calcium I got and the tylan50 I was able to get (last bottle in town). And God put 2 men chicken lovers in my path at both places I went to and they were so understanding and helpful! Helped me have renewed faith once we finally got home! It took so long I just knee she'd be gone by time we got back.
But she wasn't!
This morning she ate a little bit of scrambled eggs! Sure hoping she continues to improve!!! And her poo was back to normal! Strange hun?
I've got a few that have runny kinda poos then normal and they are acting fine.
Could it be the fermented feed I'm doin?
I don't let it ferment that long...usually 24 hours or so then use little from that each day to make the next days.
I'm gonna keep her in again today and tonight to monitor and make sure she's eating, drinking and acting normally.
Thankfully our weather is supposed to be warmee today...if it hits 60s n sunny I may let her out with others for free time. Then bring her back in.
I'm just unsure what's really going on with her.
All of mine are newer layers since October and November. I'm puzzled by the shell-less eggs and her not layin...but then the d'uccles stopped layin for another and have started back so

Yay for Lizzie bouncing back! Shell-less and soft shelled eggs have happened to mine at the beginning of their laying, as pullets, and after a molt, as their reproductive mechanisms get working into a good rhythm, and work out kinks. Stress can cause them to stop, among other things. Good job catching Lizzie's uncharacteristic behavior. Any behavior other than normal always warrants investigation and observation, and quick action, as our other keepers suggest. We have such a great group of very knowledgeable people.

 

[PopoMyers]

Well, I tried to do the multi quote reply thing, but they all went away. Not being on here daily means a lot of pages to catch up on. Excited for the new incubator, and new eggs to hatch! I know nothing in this department, other than letting my hen brood some last summer.
Extra eggs? Yes, by all means, do sell them. At least it will offset some, if not all, of your feed and bedding expense. Ours are much fresher and better than any at the store, and at the moment, even less expensive. I have a few regular customers, and my girls are just keeping up with the demand. Sometimes they are spoken for before they're laid!

Here's another reason to have roos/fertile eggs. According to a Mother Earth News article/experiment back in 1977, fertile backyard eggs, refrigerated unwashed in airtight containers, were in good, edible condition for 7 months, slightly longer than the unfertilized ones.

Refilled the treadles, and have found they will last a week, now that the rats cannot get any. Yay! Haven't seen any of their activity, so I believe problem solved. That is until I start putting straw down for mulch in the garden. They come back to dig for the wheat berries. I ended up returning the plank traps. No mole yet, but one has moved down to the neighbor's driveway below.
Retrieved 15 eggs yesterday, will go out shortly for today's when I close the coop. The run is slowly drying out, and the covering is keeping the rain out. I have a little decorator that will bring branches into the coop, so I've had to police branches from the yard run after the pruner came.
One of my hoses that connect to the automatic water bucket has sprung a leak in the connection, not a simple gasket replacement. Meanwhile I had to reconnect the other hose from across the yard until I can replace the connector. The annual hose maintenance is coming.
I got grossed out today, when I found a bowl and a bucket, which had gathered rainwater, had also a bunch of hatched, wiggling roundworms in the water! This was just after it recently rained a few days ago. Anyone else seen this before? There must be tons of eggs in the soil for that to happen. (There had been a little dirt in each) Anyways, thinking it's time to worm them again. They are all still being normal, no noticeable poop problems. What have you found to be the easiest way to worm them? I have fenbendazole and Valbazen, which I used to inject a dose into to a bread cube, but have my little hogs end up with more than one when they all rush me for the "treats"., or the one with it doesn't eat it fast enough and another takes off with it. We are not on "you can pick me up at anytime" terms, and of course Cock E won't have it. So, no syringe down the hatch. In waterer, or in feed? Some other trick?

 

[PopoMyers]

Agreed! My DH is a trooper. Bless his heart. I do get mad at him for being so accident prone, I guess that is how my fear translates. Though can not help with the eyes and shingles ... slowing down and paying better attention would serve him well. Well, he is my klutz and a keeper despite his (many) injuries

Shingles, not good at all. My dad also got them in his scalp, and would flare up. The sensitivity and pain never really went away. Have you all of age gotten your shingles vaccines?

 

[TropicalBabies]

Shingles, not good at all. My dad also got them in his scalp, and would flare up. The sensitivity and pain never really went away. Have you all of age gotten your shingles vaccines?

Ya know, I have not.