More Stupid Questions... Sorry.

[bluemoon]

As you're probably all aware by now I'm already a little obsessed with my two cockerels (and the girls are arriving at the weekend!) I'm spending my time at work wishing I was on my plot with my boys and reading my chicken books as a substitute when no-one's looking. Anyway, yesterday I was reading an awful American one (not a bad book, but largely irrelevant as they do things very differently over there) Anyway, it was on about oyster shell and grit and the other books I'd read said that chickens got all the grit they needed from scratching outside, but this one seemed to be saying that grit and oyster shell were two different things and the shell was for calcium and the grit for substitute 'hens' teeth'. I'd always thought that oyster shell was just given to chickens who were largely confined and couldn't find their own grit so hadn't bothered with it because Coco and Elvis have a run. Naturally I went to the nearest pet shop, bought some oyster shell and put it in a rather good hopper that I'd made from a 4 pint plastic milk bottle. I put it in with the boys last night.
At home afterwards though I read that part of the book again and it I now think that it was saying that only hens need oyster shell because they needed the calcium for their egg shells and that grit is the little stones they pick up. Now I'm confused, and worse when I went up to let the boys out this morning they'd kicked over my cool hopper and scoffed the lot. So, what's the difference? And will a fair old quantity of it have harmed my lads? (they seem their usual selves this morning).
Also, I've only had my boys for a week at 7.30pm(ish) tonight, and during that time we have had absolutely no rain. It rained heavily overnight though and more is forecast. You'd have to see my run to know what I mean, but there's a bit we call the porch just outside the pop hole and this morning we draped a tarp over it so that the boys had an area that was outside, but protected (yes, it is starting to look like a shanty town). Thing is, if they do get a good soaking would they be OK going up to roost wet through?
Told you they were stupid questions.

[TEB]

I started off with grit and oyster shells, grit for aiding digestion and shell for egg production, but have stopped doing this at least 9 months ago, with as far as I can see no noticeable difference to their egg production or issues with eating/breaking down food. I dont provide any shelter (outside, some areas are shaded naturally) from the elements and the birds are well able to cope with a soaking/roosting wet.

[Flummery]

Mine (new, as you know) have a shelter under the house and are n it now as the wind is blowing a hooley. They do at least seem to have the sense to come in out of a storm! It's not raining though. Don't know if they'll just stand in it and watch!

As to shell and grit, they will absorb calcium from the shell but not the grit. The grit grinds the food. Your boys shouldn't come to any harm though. They oyster shell will also grind up food but will eventually dissolve. It depends on how much area they can range over too. I would think they would soon deplete a small run of any suitable small stones.

[Eyren]

I give my girls a few handfuls of mixed grit (grit and oyster shells), mixed in with their own dried and crushed eggshells, every so often - they free-range a lot in summer, but I reckon they must have stripped my little garden of a large proportion of the suitable-sized stones by now (I've been keeping chickens for nearly three years). That said, a bag of mixed grit from the country store lasts me at least a year, so they don't eat much.

I covered my run during the recent snow, otherwise the pekins were very unhappy about leaving the eglu - not surprising since their legs are feathered (and therefore not scaly) all the way down to their toes! Also, IIRC, chickens' plumage isn't waterproof like ducks' is, so it's not good for them to get soaking wet - and mine aren't always bright enough to come in from the rain

[Snadger]

If feeding chooks with Layers mash or pellets it is supposed to have all the calcium they require for egg production. The cockerels would be better on growers pellets though I would think?
Mine get sand which they eat copious amounts of and this supposedly lodges in there crop and helps them grind the likes of mixed corn which they get a couple of handfuls of in the evening.
The oyster shell is supposedly added calcium and probably glucosamine for there bones and to help with egg shell production!

[lynda66]

up to now the boys have been on layers pellets with extras like everything they will eat lol they only really need grit for grinding up seeds and grass, so they've always had some grit periodically as well as whatever they pick up in the garden, thing is you can't really give them different stuff when they are with the girls, so basically just leave em to it, they don't need oyster shell but they will eat it if they like it ....

when it eventually rains they will go in the house or under cover they don't like rain .... and are quite clever for chooks lol (maybe something to do with em living in the house) .... so if they have cover they will be fine

[bluemoon]

Thanks Everyone. The overdose of oyster shell doesn't seem to have done them any harm, lol! Last night we allowed them out of the run for the last half hour before bed. OH and I had to double dare each other, but they were fine and didn't run away, fly away, get eaten by a fox, decide to roost at the top of a tall tree, trash the neighbouring plot or disappear through a gap in the fence never to be seen again. In fact they just wandered around, ate buttercups and then helped OH with the digging, presumably at this point they were looking for worms and bugs, but seemed to pick up a fair amount of small stones too. They quite happily returned to their run as soon as I produced the tupperware container that contains their bedtime oats. When the girls arrive they will all be in a very large run to start with that, at the moment, is well covered in grass and weeds. I was going to build a small raised bed type thing and fill it with sand so they could dust bathe. If they eat the sand too then all well and good. I'll refill the hopper with oyster shell for the girls, but this time I'll tie it to the wire mesh outside so it can't be knocked over. They've been eating layers pellets and lots of extras because that's what they're used to, they particularly enjoyed Sunday lunch (pork! lol)

[lynda66]

lol see i told you they were well trained ..... have left son in charge of mine while i'm away for the week and he was also in a panic about getting them in ... till i sent him out with a bowl of food pork is their second favourite ... after chicken (and peanut butter on toast) lol .... and the extra protein is good for the girls for egg laying ... they've always enjoyed 'helping with the digging

[bluemoon]

Beef tomorrow. They particularly like their Yorkshire puds, dunno if it's because they're living on the right side of the Pennines now.

[lynda66]

Beef tomorrow. They particularly like their Yorkshire puds, dunno if it's because they're living on the right side of the Pennines now.

nah its cos they are chickens and they'll eat anything

[bluemoon]

We've just tucked them up for the night, bumped into the lottie president as we were leaving and erm... applied for another plot so they can have one each if they reach the point where they are no longer friends. Obsessed? Moi?

[lynda66]

lol you could just have put a fence between them

[bluemoon]

That would be way too easy and just so not good enough for my lads. Anyway, if OH didn't regularly have 200 square metres of brambles to deal with what would he do with himself? I'm doing him a favour really!

[lizzylemon]

That would be way too easy and just so not good enough for my lads. Anyway, if OH didn't regularly have 200 square metres of brambles to deal with what would he do with himself? I'm doing him a favour really!