Quite Simply, Chook Chat

[elizajay]

I have a warren type hen a year old and she started laying membrane only eggs. They started eating her eggs and recently I have seen very few signs of yolks. The last time I saw any sign of her laying was a few weeks ago and it was a splodgy mess with chunks of solid yolk. I took her to the vet who was mystified, declared her healthy and gave me some Tylan just in case. She remains happy and healthy looking and her sister warren the same age continues to lay well. I have 2 persistent broodies, so from 5 hens I am getting regular large warren eggs and tine bantam eggs from 2 productive hens. Just made blackcurrant and almond cake to use up some of the crop and eggs.

[Glutton4...]

I appear to have come home from the feed centre with six Hens! Rhode Rocks and Beechwood Blues, three of each.

I've always been cynical of the term 'point of lay' but one laid me an egg on the way home!

[Glutton4...]

Errrrm... I seem to have done it again!! Three Sussex Rangers and three Speckledy this time.

Better stop now.

[petal]

Oh dear,you have chickinitus .......... My goodness I am weary. Red mite explosion after we got back from hols. Was recommended dettol and by heck it works. Die die die die! Hate red mite! I managed to catch the lavender pekins , I have an adorable quartet I was given but they have been roaming wild and I couldn't catch the little devils. Today I became vindictive and determined and got them! All in a neat tidy house with pen so I can admire them. No more disappearing under the pumpkin patch! All in all a good day

[Glutton4...]

Do you have a fisherman's net, Petal? They seem to be the only alternative to rugby-tackling chickens! 'Grats on catching the little boogers!

And yes, I do seem to be obsessed!

[RichmondHens]

That's some impressive impulse buying G4 !!!!

I have a semi feral bantam who refuses to live with anyone else and flies out of any enclosure. She will go in a house as long as she has it to herself, fussy little madam! Still she is a good mum and is now broody for the third time this year although having raised two broods I'm not putting any more eggs under her. Hatching has finished for me this year (unless someone turns up on my doorstep with eggs I can't refuse - tee hee). Hatched my last ones last week - 4 cuckoo marans - and that will be that till Spring.

This year's turkey poults are already enormous. Made a large enclosure out of 14 heras panels which combined with clipped wings is keeping them all in nicely. The silly things still insist on roosting on top of the house though, which means I have to hoik them all in individually each night.

[Glutton4...]

That's a big enclosure, RH! My Laydees' covered run is 3 x 2 Heras panels, which is netted against the feed-thieving Jays, Magpies and Pigeons, but the sparrows and Mr.Robin can still get in. Their Coop is in there, but it's a bit small an area for them to be shut in all day, now numbers are up, but I shut them in it at night when I give them their corn, and they put themselves to bed when they're ready.

Have to say, young birds learn very quickly; two of the new ones already join the 'mug mummy' rush when I go down there, and two others are thinking of joining. They all put themselves to bed without any help from me after the first night. Not like Batties/Barnies - they take over a week to get the message!

[RichmondHens]

It won't look so big when all the poults are full grown, believe me! The idea was to make it big enough so they can stay in it through to despatch time. They graze a lot and I didn't want to have to keep moving fencing all the time. I want to keep a patch of land designated only for turkey rearing, so after a lot of thought, this was it. Fenced with heras with a large hen house plopped in the middle. The poults went in there at 7 weeks old, looked tiny to start with but now they are (thinks) about 14 weeks and about 5 times the size. I reckon they will be ready for despatch by end Oct/beginning of Nov and will go in the freezer. Then the pen can recover over the Winter/Spring and I will move new poults into it again in June.

All my chicken enclosures are very large too. The birds all get moved at least twice a year and the ground is rested for at least 6 months. I like my birds to be on grass all the time. Once the ground starts to wear out a bit then it's time to move them. Of course I am very lucky in having lots of land to do it on but it is perfectly possible to do it on a much smaller scale.

Know what you mean about magpies and pigeons, they are a pain here as well. And I have discovered that my cats like layers pellets too!!

[Glutton4...]

Cats!? Really!? Having said that, our old Siamese would eat just about anything (except tinned/pouch cat food). She'd have tried it, had she got the opportunity.

I envy you your land, RH. I wish I'd put my Coop in the middle, so I could rotate the area, but what we have works well enough. Not sure I could persuade Mr.G to move the ruddy thing again!

Good luck with the Turkey poults - ugliest creatures, aren't they!?

[Glutton4...]

I spoke too soon about the new birds being smart. Last night, four of them were so engrossed in scratching around in the grass and weeds, that they forgot to go to bed until after the auto-door had closed. They really moaned at me when I went to put them in - so I told them it was their own fault, not mine!

[Glutton4...]

And the stupidity is still ongoing - trust me to jinx it!

The most stupid four now sit outside, and I have to go and put them in. One roosts on the doorstep, head in, bum out, until the auto door closes, then she jumps in, and leaves the remainder huddled together, outside on the step.

I have taken to leaving the main door open, so they can all go in, and popping down to shut them up just before it goes totally dark. Last night there was only one to go in, as she was happily roosting outside on the step.

Stoopid tarts!

[RichmondHens]

Fun and games G4! My turkeys are getting heavier daily (or at least it seems like it) and as they choose to roost outside lifting them off the roof each night is getting to be a bloomin' nuisance. Hey ho, roll on Christmas!

[Glutton4...]

Ha, ironic that you should post now, RH! I've just come in, soaked, from trying to get them to bed. Four of them were roosting under the house, despite the main door being open. I suspect they went under there to escape the rain.

[jessmorris]

..could you try some light in your coop G4? Just an idea. maybe they don't want to go into a dark place? I've got Perspex over the window so they can see where they are going if you see what I mean. But then most of mine are Orloffs who would rather perch out whatever the weather. Sigh.

[Glutton4...]

OK, very embarrassed smiley time! I discovered the morning after that post that their shed had mites. They're not stupid, I am - not a sign the day before when I checked.

I dusted it so much, that I finished my tub of Diatom, so I went and bought a big bag of the stuff. Job done, chooks happy, egg-count rising!