Poorly chicken

[Guest]

Another question...

 

The coop/run are on slabs just now - there are lumps of turf in their for them to peck at etc - i clean the slabs every night after they go to bed and every morning i remove any large poos in the poo tray and sprinkle fresh sawdust down - otherwise i notice they step in the poo and drag it all over..it cant be very nice for them.

 

I was planning on giving the coop a good clean out at the week-end too. Should i put something down on the slabs or is it ok for now for them to be standing on these and bits of turf all day?

 

I also meant to say earlier on - they went to bed by themselves tonight (ok..ok..i admit they are getting used to getting a little treat of corn once they are on their perches).

[Plum]

Won't tell you off but you'll soon be posting 'help my hens are so noisy I don't know what to do with them'

 

They have got you wrapped around their claws already. I think it's best just to take something occasionally then they don't make your life a misery and will still become tame just as quickly.

 

Ooops cross posted. I'd put down some woodchip, shavings, horse bedding or something for them to scratch in. Bet they love the turf

[The Dogmother]

A wee bit of corn at night is fine Wendy, just keen any treats to the end of the day to be sure that they eat their pellets or mash.

[Guest]

Got it! These girlies were taking me for a mug - tomorrow is the start of a new day!! NO MORE TREATS EVERYTIME I GO OUT!

 

Pellets and a little corn before bed and that's it.

 

Their pitiful squawlks will be lost on me...

[The Dogmother]

I'll be able to hear them shrieking at you from here Wendy!

 

You can add some beneficial goodies to their pellets - drizzle a wee bit of cod liver oil on and mix it in to coat the pellets, seaweed is good for them as is garlic and mint (the dog loves both too ). Just a tiny bit mixed in. If you want to give treats that aren't too bad for them, then feed dried mealworms or gammarus shrimps - they go wild for those and they're high in protein and low in carbs (you can get those via the link I mentioned on LL).

[Guest]

The dogs get cod liver oil capsules and garlic capsules in their tea, can I squeeze a whole capsule on their pellets - or would that be too much?

 

I will get some dried mealworms tomorrow, the wild birds get them too.

 

I'll lay off all the other stuff!

 

Where would I get gammarus shrimps from?

 

Thanks again for all the advice.

[The Dogmother]

That'd be fine. I buy the NAF cod liver oil (fro horses) as it's far cheaper and decant it into an old washing up liquid bottle so that I can squish a wee bit in.

[Guest]

The girls had some of their pellets made into 'porridge' with a wee squirt of garlic - they loved it. I was reading the FAQs on here last night and realised that they don't have dire rear - I never realised their poos could be so variable! There is weak winter sun hitting their coop just now - both are standing on their ladder sunbathing!

[Chortle Chook]

What lovely pictures of your pretty girls and the location too.

That is the very same house I started with. It is so easy to clean don't you find? I used to put newspaper on the floor under the perch and used to just change the top couple of sheets every day which took no time at all. Then each Sunday I took all the removable bits off the inside for a clean - sounds like a lot but really it was done in about 15 mins and I enjoyed doing it too. I also liked the nice big door on the front - so easy to leave open if you want your chooks to roam. The only embellishment I added (apart from their dishes) was to put a nice stout branch across one corner so they could have an outside perch as well as an inside one for the daytime when they were not out and about. They loved this.

 

I too have a sorbus by the way and all has been fine with my chooks and the berries.

[Guest]

What lovely pictures of your pretty girls and the location too.

That is the very same house I started with. It is so easy to clean don't you find? I used to put newspaper on the floor under the perch and used to just change the top couple of sheets every day which took no time at all. Then each Sunday I took all the removable bits off the inside for a clean - sounds like a lot but really it was done in about 15 mins and I enjoyed doing it too. I also liked the nice big door on the front - so easy to leave open if you want your chooks to roam. The only embellishment I added (apart from their dishes) was to put a nice stout branch across one corner so they could have an outside perch as well as an inside one for the daytime when they were not out and about. They loved this.

 

I too have a sorbus by the way and all has been fine with my chooks and the berries.

 

I do like it and once their full walk-in is done their space will be fine for them.

 

The vet checked the girls over today - both are fit, she said they were a good weight (despite my past overfeeding of treats!!) but we did find a couple of lice on one of them - none visible on the other. The vet suggested that i use Frontline (she uses this on her hens) and has laid some out for me, its not licensed and there is a 7 day withdrawal period..but as they arent laying anyway this is fine. I'm going to also worm them with Flubenvet too, just to be on the safe side.

 

Another question... we are being told that we are to have very low temperatures here in the next few days - the forecasters are saying anything up to -15 - i'm sure i read that i should coat the girls' wattles etc with vaseline to prevent frostbite, i also wondered if i was to put them in a large plastic dog carrier (airline size) for the night, filled with straw and put it in the shed if this would help them survive these really low temperatures? Would it do them any harm to sit in the carrier and not be perching overnight? They seem to get on well together and i've never seen any squabbling between them. Its -5 just now - i've covered their coop in tarpaulin as worse, than the -5 is the windchill - it literally was freezing my mouth until it tingled.

 

Any thoughts?

[Chortle Chook]

The Frontline should do for worms as well as lice. Quite a few of us here secretly use it (according to another thread on this forum).

 

Regarding the very cold temperatures you are about to get up there I would think that the airline dog carrier in the shed would be a good idea. The vaseline is also good as it hepls to protect the wattles and legs too. (I have tried something similar - Boot's foot balm - on my hands when walking the dogs and can testify to the fact that it really works). What I think should be avoided would be any temptation to take your chooks into the house in the severe cold as they would then experience quite a shock when they had to go back out again unless you were to wait well into the spring.

 

When covering over your chicken house, you should make sure that the air vents are not totally covered up. However I remember from when I had a chicken house like yours, that the air vents on your model are vast and I would think they could be partially covered. I have been putting a dust sheet folded over several times over my chook house to act a bit like loft insulation.

[Guest]

I checked at work today and was told to give them 0.1 of Frontline each but also to give them Flubenvet to be on the safe side, i collected both today from the surgery. Why do i have to put vaseline on their legs after putting Frontline on?

 

Also...the Flubenvet says a 6g scoop per 2kg of pellets - i only have 2 hens so was going to put a 3g scoop in 1kg of pellets - i'm guessing the Flubenvet coats the pellets and you feed them only these pellets for the 7 days medication period?

 

I popped into Sainsbury tonight on the way home and got some vaseline, i will coat their wattles etc tomorrow to keep them safe from frostbite.

 

Its currently -7 here - i noticed that they'd both snuggled down into their nests last night so have packed in lots of straw to keep them warm. I couldnt keep their water unfrozen today, it was a nightmare, i eventually sat it on a heat pad and it worked for a while.

 

I think the shed is the best option for them - there is an outdoor utility room but when the boiler comes on the room warms up - i dont want to then have to put them back out in the cold. In the house isnt an option as the little Border Terrier would really like a piece of them.

 

I cant believe we havent even had them a week yet - they are so tame and love being stroked, one sat on my knee today for ages - the other is the fidget, she is the busy one whereas Ginger is the more laid back one.

 

I love them to bits!

[The Dogmother]

I use heat pads under my drinkers in the very cold weather.

 

If you coat the pellets with a drizzle of cod liver oil first, mix it well in and you'll find that the Flubenvet will stick to them.

 

I never use Vaseline on their legs - it gets dirt stuck to it, and ends up all gooey. I just spray them with the Johnsons spray **not licensed for use on poultry in the UK

[Guest]

The girls are now frontlined, wormed and have had their bits (except legs) vaselined. They were soooo good, they just sit there and accept everything.

 

Have I mentioned how much i love them?

[sparkysmum]

Wendy, you're doing brilliantly. Just keeping the hens warm is challenge enough at the moment. Alli xx

[Guest]

Wendy, you're doing brilliantly. Just keeping the hens warm is challenge enough at the moment. Alli xx

 

 

Aww thank you - it has snowed here all day - but they are fine - their house is packed with bedding and both are sitting in one nest tonight, they seem to get on really well.

 

We've spent most of the day at the vets, our little Border Terrier has been really ill. ~The drugs she got seem to be working and she is very slightly brighter.

 

Animals, eh...how'd have 'em?

[Guest]

My girls had an unwanted visitor last night - thankfully due to the cold the coop was covered with thick tarpaulin which i'd tucked tight under the front of the run - this morning it was partly pulled off and have teeth marks down the side - he/she had caught their belly hair on the barbed wire of the side wall and had left a strong scent around the coop. The girls must have had a bit of a panic as there were a few feathers in their bed.

 

Tonight they are safely in the shed (due to the severe cold) and hopefully their new walk in run will be ready soon - we are just going to have to be extra vigilant.

 

I love foxes, i have hand reared orphans in the past, but i would be devastated if they touched my hens.

 

Still no yet...

[Chortle Chook]

Animals are difficult aren't they? I find I can't take sides. Like you I would be so upset if a fox got any of my girls but I can't help but admire a huge dark red one who slinks across the fields round here looking very beautiful indeed. Just shows how important it is to shut up our girls securely well before dusk - rather early these days but role on Spring. Today is the shortest day

[Guest]

Animals are difficult aren't they? I find I can't take sides. Like you I would be so upset if a fox got any of my girls but I can't help but admire a huge dark red one who slinks across the fields round here looking very beautiful indeed. Just shows how important it is to shut up our girls securely well before dusk - rather early these days but role on Spring. Today is the shortest day

 

 

I have a fascination for foxes - they are very, very clever and beautiful, i've seen the one i suspect paid a visit last night, she is stunning with a massive brush..she stops every so often and stares back at me, her amber eyes taking everything in. I know she is looking for food and i know she is probably as hungry as everything else just now too.

 

When i have hand reared cubs i have been amazed at their intelligence - they are so very like dogs in so many ways.

 

It does however bring it home to me that when dusk comes, the girls must be away...to be fair, they do this themselves, but i must alway remember to shut their 'bedroom door. My 13y old daughter just adores them and is so keen to help look after them - she is very switched on at giving them their 'supper' and shutting their door.

[The Dogmother]

She will probably be in cub, so very hungry

 

When you build the new run, use weld mesh, not chicken wire, and create a skirt at the bottom much like on the Omlet run, then put paving slabs on top of that skirt to anchor it down.

[Guest]

She will probably be in cub, so very hungry

 

When you build the new run, use weld mesh, not chicken wire, and create a skirt at the bottom much like on the Omlet run, then put paving slabs on top of that skirt to anchor it down.

 

The panels on the new walk in are already built - the first 2 feet are wooden panels which then go into chicken wire up to 6ft. My friend who has horses has given me electric tape to put around the top of the wooden panel at the 2ft mark - this will hopefully be a deterrent. We have one panel up but due to the ground being solidly frozen can't get the new posts for the next panels dug in yet.

 

The girls seem to spend a lot of their day in the coop - it stayed at -9 most if the daylight hours yesterday - so I can't blame them for staying inside. If the sun is out we go for a wander around the garden which they seem to like...although not for long, as walking on cold snow isn't their favourite thing!!

 

The farmer told me the other day that in early January they have lampers out to get rid of any foxes before the lambs come. I hate seeing foxes shot and she is only trying to survive - but I hope she goes and tries her luck elsewhere!

[Guest]

Mrs Fox was back again last night - the wooden boards holding the covers over the coop were hauled off and she had left a nice deposit (not) by the wall - what she didnt expect was the cans set along the top of the coop, i heard them clatter during the night and let the terriers out to scare her off...it seemed to do the trick - however standing in a blizzard in your jammies and welly boots with a wooly hat crammed on your bed ruffled hair aint a good look....maybe the sight of me was what scared her off???

[chestnutmare]

I feel sorry for the fox at times too, afterall they're only trying to survive. But it's so upsetting when they take a pet chicken... or two... or three... etc etc!

You seem to be doing really well with your hens, Kalico. Re. the frontline, is that the frontline spot on for dogs that you are using?

[The Dogmother]

you're getting into the chicken keeping malarkey then! We all end up out in the garden in our jammies.. or less at times. It's a special chicken keepers fashion code

[Guest]

I feel sorry for the fox at times too, afterall they're only trying to survive. But it's so upsetting when they take a pet chicken... or two... or three... etc etc!

You seem to be doing really well with your hens, Kalico. Re. the frontline, is that the frontline spot on for dogs that you are using?

 

Yes, the Frontline was the spot on - it was what was recommended by the vet - each hen got a tiny amount - i think it was 0.1ml.

 

The WIR is almost finished! My dear sweet husband has spent all day working on it - the door is now on - tomorrow the roof goes on and then a few little finishing off bits - the girls should be running around in it by the end of the week latest.

 

I kind of wish now that i had got 3 hens instead of two - the WIR is going to seem really big for only two (is this how the whole hen obsession begins...???)

 

It would also be PERFECT for a few little but i'm guessing the and dont co-habit My husband did pale slightly when i mentioned the latter..i think he worries about what i might want to add to the zoo next....