YO GEORGIANS! :)

[sanchabird]

Yes, washing them shortens the eggs "freshness time", but the Ga Dept of Agriculture stressed that in the class, that eggs being sold away from your home must be washed.

The egg is laid with a protective coating called "the Bloom". It keeps moisture in and air out of the egg. Once it is washed off, this barrier is gone and the egg starts to get older faster. As the egg loses moisture thru the shell, air is drawn in to replace the moisture.

When you wash fresh eggs for eating, the water temperature should be warmer than the egg.

For my personal eggs, I don't wash them. And, if someone comes to my house to pick up eggs, they can ask for unwashed eggs and no license is required. (If you sell the eggs away from your home, you need a license)

I don't wash my personal eggs either unless they're muddy/poopy etc. but I didn't know about selling them. I only sell about 4-5 dozen eggs a month though because I only have 4 girls.

Thanks. Does anyone know if DE works just as well? I'm more comfy with it and already have it, but wasn't sure.

I use DE in my coop and in the dust bath mud. I know it kills bugs but it also works really well for keeping the coop dry.

 

[christine9]

Thanks! I found the garden/chicken dust at TSC but was scared. I use DE in my coop already so I'm just more comfy with is as others have said. I'll try it first and then move on if need be.

I was most worried about the eggs. I can't be tossing eggs unless I HAVE to!! I need my girls! LOL

Just got my "chicken health for dummies" in the mail. Says DE is effective for external parasites but not very effective for internal.

 

[sanchabird]

Question: How do you offer Grit?

If they are chicks and not getting any chicks, they don't need it. If they are older birds you can just offer it in a dish. I keep oyster shell in a feeder, but they haven't touched it because they free range.

Sevin dust: you just dust it on and it won't hurt the chickens?? Or eggs?

I cleaned up a girl with mud butt a few weeks ago, but last night I noticed the lice have come back

I feel HORRIBLE. And like a bad chicken mom.

Don't feel horrible! We have all had something happen in the time we've kept chickens!

 

[GAFarmGirl87]

ok, you can determine sex in chicks in a variety of ways. 1. Vent sexing them of course 2. Feather sexing them......mainly hatchery chicks - If you have been mixing chickens, or have been hatching your own for a while, you may lose the ability to feather sex your chicks because you may not have kept your slow feathering roo and your fast feathering hens. 3. Color - auto sexing - males will be one color and females another 4. Feather grow-out rate. In Hatchery chicks, the males grow out slower than the females. This is because the hatcheries breed their parent birds that way so they are able to feather sex them at birth. Watch this video:

This shows you what to look for in 1-3 day old hatchery chicks. So when you go get your chicks from TS or where ever, feather sex them yourself! Very easy to do! 5. Leg size

I also thought of something else everyone was asking.....say you got 6 of the same chick from TS and they start growing out differently.....as in size. Think of these chicks as humans and think, "Are all my sisters/brothers the same size?" I have 4 sisters and we are all so different (same parents, too!) that you wouldn't know we were sisters! I'm short and dark headed and my sisters are all blonds and fair skinned! Well, chickens are like that too! I have had two of the same batch of chicks mature, one at 25 weeks and one at 34 weeks! Same parents! So, just remember, they are all individuals and will grow as differently as we do! Aren't genes fun????

This is great info!! Thank you kindly!

 

[biologynerd]

Flowerbh,
Lol at the 3rd caption from the bottom of ur pics hhahahhaa ur awesome. Ducks are so cute but man do they poop a lot compared to chicks I don't think I could deal with that unless it was outside...

 

[GAFarmGirl87]

Question: How do you offer Grit? 

I put some in the feed. They also have access to sand, which they sometimes eat as grit

Thanks. Does anyone know if DE works just as well? I'm more comfy with it and already have it, but wasn't sure.

DE works well for me. I sprinkle it in their nest boxes, and their sand box. I dust the chickens with it every so often. I also put a bit in their feed once in a while (fermented feed, that is)

 

[GAFarmGirl87]

Don't feel horrible! We have all had something happen in the time we've kept chickens!

X2

 

[carcar80]

I put some in the feed. They also have access to sand, which they sometimes eat as grit
DE works well for me. I sprinkle it in their nest boxes, and their sand box. I dust the chickens with it every so often. I also put a bit in their feed once in a while (fermented feed, that is)

Thanks. Yes, I do use it already *around* the girls.. Just wasn't sure how effective it is on *existing* problems?

I'm gonna give it a try..

 

[carcar80]

What is fermented feed and why do we feed it?

 

[Chickie Momma]

DE is a wonderful earth friendly pet friendly and wallet friendly product ! I also use it as a regular dewormer every 4 months in their feeders. The dust baths in it prevent all kinds of bugs, but even so once in a while you get mites/lice. I returned from Michigan a month ago and my lgbreed layers were covered in mites and had lost a significant amt of weight too. I sprang into action immed. Bathing in flea shampoo, then spraying with premethrin spray. You can buy premethrin for horses and dilute to 10% spray for chickens. Concentrate on the vent, underbelly, and under the wings. Keep warm until dry. Clean coop area and spray with premethrin solution to kill the mites. In 10 to 14 days eggs may have survived could hatch so dust within 5 days of initial treatment and again at 14 days from initial treatment with DE heavily but do their entire body, not leaving out their head and neck. Remember DE isn't toxic. I also dusted the bedding I put in the coopafter I sprayed. Everything looks good so far.