4m x 3m Omlet pen, cube, new auto door still boxed and coop light

[Peaches]

Hello, Peeps

 

I'm a bit down today. Got back from work and Celeste is going around with her beak permanently open and so I'm afraid it's gapeworm (even though I flubbed them all last week).

 

Then yesterday evening a kind neighbour popped into say there's a fox around and it has killed 3 lots of neighbours' chooks (all free-rangers) so I should take care. They were trying to shoot the fox - but then I thought, what if it has cubs and they get left parentless? This fox has just bitten the heads off all the chickens (quite a few) and not really eaten them.

 

So far, not good. Suddenly, it all seems so hard. Celeste had a bloody egg yesterday (but that seems to have stopped today). Priscilla never lays.

 

Sorry, moan moan moan. I was to get some more ex-batts from Hen Rehomers this weekend, but suddenly, I don't think I can face it. Mabel (the dog on left here) still wants to kill my chooks, so I have to arrange free-ranging around her .....

 

Anyone else sometimes feel totally overwhelmed and useless?

[Egluntyne]

Chin up chuck.

 

Celeste is probably feeling the heat. With gapeworm there are other symptoms, such as a harsh cough and constant flicking of the head in an effort to shift the parasite.

 

The fox sounds a nuisance and any cubs would normally be looked after in the pack. They are capable of existing on solids from the age of six weeks, so don't fret too much about that side of things.

 

The biting off of heads seems a bit random and pointless, but in all likelihood, the fox would be intending to come back for the bodies. It is called 'cacheing'.

 

'Urban Foxes' by Stephen Harris and Phil Baker is well worth reading.

[Angus Arran Chooks]

Hiya Peeches

 

If you are looking for a pick me up then this is the place to be - lots of friends with warm wishes.

 

Take some time to yourself and have a little of what you fancy ... (to do you good!)

 

Springers can be really naughty cant they. I have two cockers, one from show stock and one from working. You could have knocked me down with a feather when my boy from working stock buzzed around the garden leadless not taking much interest in the ranging hens and then my girl (show stock) on the lead kept lunging at them - mouth open! I am going to keep working on her. Ronin helped me secure a run away last night and left when told (well hollared at!).

 

Does Mabel respond to "leave it" treats? Maybe the old water skoosh will work with her - that helped with Ronin.

 

Okay, so in an ideal world we would like them all to "play nicely", but as Jasmine is like Mabel (at the mo. I will keep trying) it is in their nature being gun dogs - we may just need to "manage" them.

 

As Egluntine says, chin up (have a bar of choccie or whatever) and keep at it.

Anjx

[Peaches]

Thank you, you lovely wise and kind peeps! I sometimes need to take a "chill pill", but I had family up from London for a few days, then OH's birthday, then a job interview yesterday, and I just got all overwrought. (I know most people would take all that in their stride, but I crumple under pressure )

 

I know I need to work on my dog training a lot more - I used to be so good and consistent, but I've let it slip. Mabel is the sort of dog you could hose down with water and she'd just bounce back, undeterred!!! She is really good at 'leave it' EXCEPT when in hunt mode.

 

Thanks for the fox info, Egluntine - that made me feel a lot better.

 

Yes, this is a good place to crumple.

[poachedegg]

Thought these might cheer you up :

 

[Budgies]

Oh hon, you may be overwhelmed but you sure as heck ain't useless!!

 

Gaping hen - deffo the heat. You might spot her holding her wings away from her body too in a bid to cool off.

 

Sounds like you need to grab a bit of "me" time if possible in the midst of all that!!

[Peaches]

Thanks for the flowers and thoughts, I do appreciate them

 

Iit's dog agility tonight and I just can't face it. So, decided to do some training with Mabel, clicker and sausages and chickens....

 

Not going very well, Mabel on lead, not responding to my commands much, then, whoosh, she got a mouth full of feathers. Noodle is in an absolute state, I can't get any of the chickens back into the run and we have a rogue fox in the area. I'm sat here, too deflated to even blub.

 

Anyone want a springer? see picture to left......

[jlo]

She does look a real cutie but sounds to have a heap of personality!

 

I don't think that you are alone in feeling overwhelmed. I sometimes look through the comments on here and am sure that everyone knows everything and I know nothing. I am sure that things will start picking up for you soon! ((((HUGS)))) in the meantime...(and it ook me about two minutes to type that as I kept getting my caps lock in the wrong position. That is what a numpty I can be!!

[Budgies]

Thanks for the flowers and thoughts, I do appreciate them

 

Iit's dog agility tonight and I just can't face it. So, decided to do some training with Mabel, clicker and sausages and chickens....

 

Not going very well, Mabel on lead, not responding to my commands much, then, whoosh, she got a mouth full of feathers. Noodle is in an absolute state, I can't get any of the chickens back into the run and we have a rogue fox in the area. I'm sat here, too deflated to even blub.

 

Anyone want a springer? see picture to left......

 

I've got a good friend who is like Cesar Millan in female form! When I was stressed recently, she told me off for trying to train my dog - the dog knew I was in a mood and was concerned and not able to focus.

 

You have to be in the right frame of mind to train.

 

It also sounds as though you need to take a step back with Mabel. Go back to her being somewhere near the chickens whilst the chookies are in the run and safe. Mabel must ignore them. If she approaches the run or stares, she gets corrected. If she looks at you, or turns her back or looks away, she gets a treat. It took me MONTHS with my rescue dog - we've had him 18 months and he's only recently been able to freerange with the hens and me present.

 

If I were you I'd have a glass of wine and worry about it all tomorrow!

[poachedegg]

Thanks for the flowers and thoughts, I do appreciate them

 

Iit's dog agility tonight and I just can't face it. So, decided to do some training with Mabel, clicker and sausages and chickens....

 

Not going very well, Mabel on lead, not responding to my commands much, then, whoosh, she got a mouth full of feathers. Noodle is in an absolute state, I can't get any of the chickens back into the run and we have a rogue fox in the area. I'm sat here, too deflated to even blub.

 

Anyone want a springer? see picture to left......

 

 

If I were you I'd have a glass of wine and worry about it all tomorrow!

 

That sounds a great idea!

[Peaches]

Yes. You are right. I need to start with baby steps. Mabel just thought, oh, goody, not only is she giving me sausage, she's got me right next to those tasty chooks so I can take a proper bite....

 

I have drunk the house out of wine (I'm one of those middle-aged women who drinks at home that the government keeps bleating on about ) but that won't stop me .... I'm off to have a jug of Pimms all to myself.

 

xxxxx

[*mummy_hen*]

I know how you feel!!

 

Our ex-batt girls seem to have been going round and round in a cycle of illness (all things that we couldn't prevent) and it gets you down. Each time one recovers...another gets poorly and in the end you just don't know what to do.

 

It does get you down but i think you just need to persevere, especially with the dog as eventually you are bound to crack it! As for the fox, that is a worry - could you put some extra pecautions in place to try and deter them? If you want cost-free solutions, old hair (from the hairdressers) stuffed into the ends of tights tied up around your garden boundary helps deter them....sounds odd i know but my mum has this concealed in trees in her garden and you would never even notice.

Also - get your OH to go outside and 'scent' your boundary, the smell of this also helps deter foxes.

 

Big hugs,

 

x

[Woodcat]

Hey

 

If your worried about her hurting them then why not do the training in a muzzle. That way you have the extra security Don't give up springers are a pain but they are trainable

 

I'm currently have to spend my evening chasing a bloomin fox away from my cats as he goes slightly manic in my garden blusted animals try not to let it get to you though

[karlotta]

I've got two big dogs, and while the older of the two, Lola (who's 5) is an angel with the girls (they even peck bits of dribble from around her mouth!), Martha who is two is still rather excited when they are out. So needed to be supervised.

 

We also have a local fox family - I lost two girls to a fox a couple of weeks ago.

 

The solution? I've beefed up my boundaries and also installed an electric fence to give the girls a nice big free range area - they can now be out from dawn till dusk with zero worry!

 

My dogs were only shocked once or twice each... and forgot about the shock after about 2 mins! While i'd never advocate shock training it does make sense that it will train her too... if you imagine that you dog goes towards the fence, you shout 'leave it' and if she does then you can reward. If she ignores you and touches the fence then she gets a short but harmless shock at the perfect moment!

 

I feel so much more relaxed now everyone can roam about to their hearts content... the girls look so happy to be out of their run all day!

 

Maybe an electric fence might go someway to easing a couple of your stresses - no danger to anyone while you get a chance to sort your cute Springers' training.

 

Hope this helps!

[Ain't Nobody Here]

Can't offer better advice than you've had already but just wanted to say I hope you're feeling better today . I think the electric fence sounds like a good idea - sort out the foxes and your enthusiastic furry friend at the same time!

 

One of my girls was "gaping" yesterday and I was thinking gapeworm, but I think she'd just guzzled a big bit of apple core and was trying to get it down her throat .

 

Have a hug

 

[LittleOwl]

Hi Peaches

 

No advice I'm afraid, as I'm a complete newbie hoping to take possession of a second hand cube on Monday and hopefully some ex-batts soon after if I can find any. Although I so want to keep chickens the more I read here the more I'm aware of how complex it can be, and I must admit that I am feeling a little trepidation (my other half has great faith in my abilities and doesn't seem to hear when I tell him it could get tricky at times!!) - I know there will be tough times and it will be daunting! Add to that the fact we got a new puppy (currently 7 weeks old) 2 weeks ago who is not only boisterous but not well, we have a 7 year old bearded collie who doesn't like him much and the fact I haven't seemed to sleep since Puppy arrived and have certainly not been anywhere except the vets! I too am drinking the house dry of wine and feel no guilt about it!! So, you're not alone and I haven't even got hens yet

 

But the other reason I got in touch is I notice you live in Richmond, and I live just a couple of miles away in Hartforth. So I wanted to say Hello to a fellow Richmondite (or whatever we're called!)

 

Debs

[clootie]

Shame there isn't a North Yorks meet-up in the pipeline, that would most definitely cheer you up !! xxxx

[Peaches]

I would be happy just to meet one other person!! Debs, you are very near - if you want to see chickens in action, just give me a shout and I'll give you the full tour.

 

Electric fence .... suddenly I wish I didn't have such a big garden...

[karlotta]

I would be happy just to meet one other person!! Debs, you are very near - if you want to see chickens in action, just give me a shout and I'll give you the full tour.

 

Electric fence .... suddenly I wish I didn't have such a big garden...

 

 

You wouldn't need to fence the whole garden - you can create a nice big area so they can happily run about, and still know they are safe.

[BocBoc]

Goodness me - sounds like you are at "a low ebb" as my mum says. Deal with one task at a time and don't take on too much at once. Bit by bit, piece by piece - you'll crack it eventually.

 

My girls are suffering with the heat at the mo - wings away from their bodies and beaks open. They like pecking at ice cubes so I've been furiously making them in the freezer to keep up with demand!!

 

As for feeling overwhelmed, I have that feeling about the state of my garden!! The chickens are ruining everything but I don't want them to be shut up in their run the whole time. Hey ho.

 

Chin up Peaches..........and enjoy that Pimms!

[LittleOwl]

I would be happy just to meet one other person!! Debs, you are very near - if you want to see chickens in action, just give me a shout and I'll give you the full tour.

 

Electric fence .... suddenly I wish I didn't have such a big garden...

 

That would be great Peaches, I'll give you a shout when puppy is a bit more settled and able to be left for more than 20 minutes! It would be good to have some mutual support so close by

[debbier]

I haven't got my chickens yet (due end of this month). I have been browsing the forum for some time now, and feel pretty overwhelmed before they are even here!

 

The Omlet FAQ blurb such as "You do not have to worry about noise from your chickens." and "You will be surprised how easy it is to keep a few hens in your garden." seems rather contradicted by some threads on the forum.

 

However, I suspect that problems are far more likely to be posted of on here, so will possibly skew the stats and stick in my brain (which hurts !).

 

There is some common sense advice on the Forsham Ark web site (Fowl Fanciers Fantasies) which basically suggests that beginners could scare themselves silly by reading too much up on what can go wrong. I read that every now and again to give myself a sense of perspective

[Ain't Nobody Here]

If it helps, I've had my 3 girls for about 19 months and have had no major problems at all. The only things I've had to deal with are broodiness, scaley leg mite, a small infestation of lice and some softies. Nothing traumatic and easily coped with .

 

So I think it's right to say that reading too much can freak you out . Most people enjoy keeping hens with little or no trouble so there's no reason why you shouldn't too .

[chelsea]

In answer to your question - absolutely!

 

Funnily enough, I was so low I was going to post the same thing the other day. I have 2 broodies, a poorly hen and combine that with noisy hens its quite a mixture. Somedays I do curse at them under my breath and then in the next instance one of my girls will do something funny which brings a smile to my face. I do love them dearly but they do test my patience sometimes.

 

You are not alone, chin up and keep smiling!

[sandyhas3chucks]

just found this & itr is long, so aologise if already suggested. have you tried the corrector spray. It is only air, but noisey.