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A Frizzle chicken named Elvis. 
Inveigle fucked around with this message at 08:27 on May 16, 2013 |
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May 16, 2013 08:23
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| # ? May 15, 2024 21:42 |
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OMG Elvis is adorable. Best chicken name EVER.
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May 16, 2013 18:44
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New game for the dog "Stare at chickens."
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May 16, 2013 19:54
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Errant Gin Monks posted:New game for the dog "Stare at chickens." The one way to make a Border Collie eternally happy without buying a flock of sheep and some land in Scotland.
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May 16, 2013 20:12
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I was able to grab a few quick pics of Colette the mom. She had another hatch out for a total of 6 chicks!   
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May 17, 2013 03:12
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Bantaras posted:I was able to grab a few quick pics of Colette the mom. She had another hatch out for a total of 6 chicks! Ahhh! This is just too adorable!  Errant Gin Monks: Your new coop set-up looks great! You should provide a pad for the dog to lay on so he'll be comfortable watching over the chickens!
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May 17, 2013 04:01
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Inveigle posted:Ahhh! This is just too adorable! I would never be able to get her back inside if she was comfortable there. When they go to bed at night she looks just devastated.
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May 17, 2013 04:56
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Chick pics! They're in their awkward adolescent phase: Q in the back, Riker in the front  Lola  Dodo (with Riker in the back)  Gotta go fast!
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May 17, 2013 20:36
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Does pecking happen in any size flock/any conditions, to some degree? It seems like my 3 wyandottes all get pecked some amount, because they all have fluffy short not quite grown in feathers near the base of their tails, and none of the other chickens have that. One in particular was hen-pecked pretty heavily over winter during a week we had to keep them all locked in the coop because it was just too drat cold. She's still bald back there. Wyandottes are wimps, apparently. (compared to Buff orps and White rocks) Should I consider getting rid of a bird or two? Could they be too cramped? I think their coop is technically on the small size floor space wise, but it also has a nice high up perch, and their run is huge, about 5-6x the size of the coop, and now that the weather isn't freezing it is always open to them. I don't really want to have to get rid of any, but I don't want anyone getting hurt badly from a bully.
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May 18, 2013 15:08
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My husband's boss had some feather-picking problems and she attributed them to a lack of protein. I don't know if that's what's going on with your flock, but maybe add some yogurt or extra bugs/worms to their diet for a month and see if it helps?
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May 18, 2013 18:13
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I narrowed the hen pecking down to one aggressive hen in my coop. I purchased some bumpa beak bits and it fixed the probelm.
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May 19, 2013 03:12
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I do give them occasional protein treats, usually meal worms either live or dried, and they get table scraps sometimes and usually at least an hour of free range time a day in the yard to forge whatever they'd like. I know a couple in particular I've seen peck the other girls. Those beak bits look so uncomfortable though  Might be worth getting to try on days they need to be kept in the coop though (once the weather gets cold again)
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May 19, 2013 03:45
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If they are getting plenty of protein (watch to see if they eat the feathers they pull, that's a sign of a possible protein deficiency), then I'd put it down to a nasty bad habit learned over the boring winter and possible overcrowding. Try giving them other things to peck at besides Wyandotte rear end. Things that take time to eat such as a cabbage on a string, raw corn on the cob, one of those big seed blocks--all of these entertain and help redirect pecking. Rearrange their coop every so often if possible to switch things up a bit for them, give the Wyandottes places to duck behind and escape bullies, things to jump up on, etc. If you can toss them a flake of alfalfa hay or turn over a shovelfull of dirt or two to scratch through once in a while, it helps keep them entertained. My chickens also enjoyed having a mirror (curbside find, an old mirrored closet door) in the garden to gaze at themselves in. 
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May 19, 2013 07:16
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Following my post in the Chickam thread, I's sorry to say Boo died peacefully in her sleep. She had sixteen and a half months of freedom as a retired garden hen.
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May 19, 2013 07:26
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spookygonk posted:Following my post in the Chickam thread, I's sorry to say Boo died peacefully in her sleep. She had sixteen and a half months of freedom as a retired garden hen. Awwww I'm sorry Spookygonk  , you're awesome for giving these hens a chance at crapping on everything you love like any regular chicken <3.
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May 19, 2013 07:46
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spookygonk posted:Following my post in the Chickam thread, I's sorry to say Boo died peacefully in her sleep. She had sixteen and a half months of freedom as a retired garden hen. Awww. So sorry to hear that. You gave her a great end to her life though.
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May 19, 2013 09:08
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Velvet Sparrow posted:If they are getting plenty of protein (watch to see if they eat the feathers they pull, that's a sign of a possible protein deficiency), then I'd put it down to a nasty bad habit learned over the boring winter and possible overcrowding. I did see one eat a feather awhile back, was probably a month or two ago. We did give them a giant seed block in their coop over winter when they were being jerks, that did seem to help. I wanted to put some more entertaining things in their run for them, it is pretty much just bare dirt now, although they do have a chair in there to climb on. I'll try and give them more protein and see if that helps. I'm sure being out more helps too, but it just seems like it is taking forever for their feathers to grow back.  It is frustrating when friends/visitors always ask what is wrong with the one who has the bald patch.
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May 19, 2013 16:16
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spookygonk posted:Following my post in the Chickam thread, I's sorry to say Boo died peacefully in her sleep. She had sixteen and a half months of freedom as a retired garden hen. So sorry for your loss Spookygonk, you gave her a great life! I hope her fellow chickens are doing okay.
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May 19, 2013 16:31
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My aunt posted a bit of a sad story today. A few days ago, a flock of crows attacked one of her hens and the dozen chicks she was mothering. My aunt called for them that night hoping that some had escaped and were hiding, and the next day, and the next night, and nobody turned up, so she assumed the crows had killed them all.  Last night they heard frantic peeping, and this is what turned up:  Apparently the chick spent the rest of the evening in my cousin's hair. 
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May 20, 2013 20:24
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RazorBunny posted:Last night they heard frantic peeping, and this is what turned up: Awww. Poor scared cutie! Did the mama hen get hurt too? I hope you'll consider buying a chick (or two) from the feed store so she'll have a buddy to grow up with. Otherwise she'll be lonely! Crows can be jerks. 
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May 20, 2013 21:48
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I have finally thought of names for my little ones. From left to right: Dumpling, Tetrazzini, Noodles and Fajita. (Pronounced properly Fa-jee-tah.)  Also caught my hen masquerading as a rooster's terrible pubescent imitation crowing on video finally: http://smg.photobucket.com/user/rupert42/media/chickens/PilotCrows_zps7ad0da7c.mp4.html
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May 21, 2013 14:43
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Inveigle posted:Awww. Poor scared cutie! Did the mama hen get hurt too? I hope you'll consider buying a chick (or two) from the feed store so she'll have a buddy to grow up with. Otherwise she'll be lonely! Not my chickens, but I imagine my aunt will get some more babies to keep this one company. She's an experienced chicken keeper. From the sound of it, mama hen is gone too
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May 21, 2013 14:57
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Photo collection showing a really fantastic mobile chicken coop. Evidently the dad of the guy who took the photos created the coop design as he built it. There are no drawn plans of this coop. BTW, the coop was stained red (evidently bored chickens will often peck off paint).   Imgur photo album here: http://imgur.com/a/ghWD4#AOzfpRu Inveigle fucked around with this message at 12:53 on May 22, 2013 |
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May 22, 2013 02:52
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My Mum tells me she's decided she's going to get chickens - and bees - once the pond in the back garden is filled in. I'm envious - my Bay Area apartment complex doesn't allow chickens. She's in the southern UK and looking at an Eglu. I'm worried about foxes and other scavengers, especially since the run on the Eglu isn't pinned down. Anything I could/should suggest? P.S. please post more chickenpicz and/or chickenstoriez.
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May 23, 2013 02:35
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My bro and I started building our coop today, completely ignoring that annoying poo poo y'all call plans and safety precautions. I gave my brother a challenge in designing this, because I wanted to make a coop that was roomy enough for a small flock but also could be built inexpensively and use materials efficiently. We came up with a 4'x4' triangular prism design that uses only two sheets of plywood. Using the magic of basic geometry, we're managing to make up plans as we go that kind of make sense. I've never built anything more complicated than IKEA furniture, and he only has slightly more experience than I do. Considering we have been mostly working with a circular saw, power drill and a carpenter square in terms of precise tools, I consider this to not be a total disaster so far. I'm really proud of us for not loving it up too badly today. We built the base and got the triangular walls cut, which was the scariest part for us since we were fully expecting to gently caress the cuts up, but everything's fitting together so far. Lessons we've learned today: drill pilot holes, you dumbfuck, and don't mark with red sharpie- when you inevitably get it on your hands you'll think you're bleeding. My goal is to spend under $100 on the coop- today I spent about $60 on a bulk of the materials. I still need to buy caulking, a sheet of plexiglass, the hardware and some stain. I found roofing(?) vents that already came with mesh screening on the backside to keep out small critters so I'm using those for ventilation. I'll be using leftover shingles from when my mom had her roof reshingled on the slanted sides so that knocks some cost off. I'm still deciding on what to do about a run, because the backyard is secure from larger predators, we might have issues with feral cats and opossums. I've considered everything from using cattle panels to dog runs. In the first building picture, you can see what our fencing situation looks like: 6' tall vinyl fencing with some fugly lattice paneling. It's not predator proof in the least, but keeps some predators (and the neighbor's shih tzu) out of the backyard.  gently caress your fancy saw horses. Our sawhorses are a portable work table that we found in the garage from a former tenant and a stool with bricks on it. I promise it's more square in person, it looks really janky from a distance.   The excess wood piece here between the top point of the triangle and the edge of the board will eventually become a ramp for the chickens to use to get in and out of the coop. The twine was a failed idea to mark the angles easier, but it helped us visualize how the board would look cut.  Safety precautions? What are those? (I'm fully aware that we're being dumbasses with the lack of safety protection here but hey, no missing fingats)  Meanwhile, my girls are growing like weeds:    The larger two (RI Red and Black Star) I think hatched on April 29 and the younger three hatched on May 13th.
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May 23, 2013 05:40
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ChickenOfTomorrow posted:My Mum tells me she's decided she's going to get chickens - and bees - once the pond in the back garden is filled in. I'm envious - my Bay Area apartment complex doesn't allow chickens. The Egglu run has an outer flange that stops things digging under it, but I wouldn't recommend one. For the price, you can get a much better run and coop will hold more chickens.
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May 23, 2013 14:26
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Pro-tip for those building coops: bedding will accumulate in front of and behind your door; build it off the floor/ground, so you can always open it easily, especially in the winter.
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May 23, 2013 15:08
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ChickenOfTomorrow posted:P.S. please post more chickenpicz and/or chickenstoriez. I have chicks!  They are slightly disgruntled because I was cleaning their box. It's funny, they walk right up and look at me through the lid of the brooder box but the second there's no lid between us OH GOD SHE'S GOING TO EAT US. Also I'm a big softie and have been giving them bread to peck at with and now they practically beg for it. My 19 month old son loves looking into the box and calling them duckies. If I don't seal their food bag he'll grab a handful and try to feed them by dropping crumbles on their heads. I'll post the setup and coop in progress when I get around to grabbing my memory card. (Edit: Oh, they're Silver-Laced Wyandottes for those curious (at least I hope they are, they didn't exactly come labeled when my friend ordered a bunch of chicks and included them).) Lyz fucked around with this message at 18:41 on May 23, 2013 |
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May 23, 2013 18:39
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Lyz posted:I have chicks! Wow! Those chicks are gorgeous! Such a pretty color (for now anyway). Give them half an ear of raw corn. Once they figure out it's food, they'll love it! 
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May 23, 2013 19:23
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Haaaaay, guess who now has an orphan duck? This guy! We were on our way to lunch (we're on vacation this week) in downtown Portland, and on Hwy 26 the cars started stopping and slowing, while a mama duck decided it was a great place to lead her babies. She got spacked 3 of the babies made it off the highway into the tall vetch/grass/prickers, and one was in front of my car, which I stopped in the middle of the highway (gently caress ya haters) and rescued. Another woman stopped and got the mama, but she was dead. We searched for the other ducklings for half an hour and couldn't find them. I caught the one in front of my car after I got him shooed off the road. An ambulance stopped (!) and helped out with a towel to put the caught duckling in, and some stuff to help wash the blood off the lady who got the mama. So we stopped at our favorite feed store on the way home and I got an Ameraucana chick to keep him/her company. Not sure how old the little dude is, but he seems healthy enough. Obviously kinda stressed out at the moment, but we've got chick feed and water for him. Any suggestions? He's a mallard. I turned the cam back on. http://www.ustream.tv/channel/lynza
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May 23, 2013 21:22
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That's a wild duck...you're getting into a whole different thing, now. Check your local laws to make sure everything's dandy, and then I'd start positively reinforcing the poo poo out of your presence.
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May 23, 2013 22:42
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Lynza posted:Haaaaay, guess who now has an orphan duck? The duck has borked your cam, BTW. Got any pics to post? I can't see it to see how old it is, but new ducklings should not be exposed to water to swim in for the first week (I think) because they haven't developed the waterproofing of their feathers yet. Check it out further online with duck people who KNOW, though. Like unprofessional said, start doing a lot of positive reinforcement--start in slow, small bites at first, ending on a high note. Talk at the same time to get him used to your voice. I've found with chicks it's best to just carry on your normal activities so they get used to things like normal human noises and movements right from the get-go. The folks on the backyard chickens forum may be able to help you out with duckling advice, here's the duck section: http://www.backyardchickens.com/f/42/ducks Good on you for rescuing the little guy, no matter how it turns out!
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May 24, 2013 00:02
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He seems to be doing OK so far. He's freaked out, not surprisingly. He really doesn't like the chick - so we went and got another chick for the first chick (OH GOD CHICKEN MATH). Those two are doing great! They're tearing around in the big plastic tub thingy stealing worms from each other. I now have the duck in my sweatshirt, Chido-style. He's still and quiet, so I think he's asleep or just not freaking out. He's about maybe 8 oz? He's not super big yet.Pics: and His little bill is so clean and shiny, it almost looks fake.  And here are the two Ameraucana ladies: 
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May 24, 2013 01:53
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Edit: NM. I realized you have more!
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May 24, 2013 02:05
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We moved our chickens on Monday. Everything went great. They weren't thrilled about it but only one of them even skipped laying an egg the next day so it can't have been too stressful. Thanks for the chicken moving tips!
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May 24, 2013 04:05
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Lynza posted:He seems to be doing OK so far. He's freaked out, not surprisingly. He really doesn't like the chick - so we went and got another chick for the first chick (OH GOD CHICKEN MATH). Those two are doing great! They're tearing around in the big plastic tub thingy stealing worms from each other. LOL! Chicken math! Cute chicks and duck. I was watching the duck on the cam and he's running around in the box. Ducklings sure are adorable, but it's too bad that adult ducks are such poop machines. Do you plan on releasing him when he gets old enough? Do you know what breed of duck he is?
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May 24, 2013 04:35
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He's a mallard. My husband has wanted to raise ducks for a while now, I just don't know whether doing it from a wild (terrified of people) single baby duck is quite how we envisioned it. Yesterday we went to get him duck feed (which is wild game bird feed for anyone interested) and all they had was a 50lb bag. :| So we have 50# of it now. He hisses and strikes when I get near him. I've taken to just letting him "bite" - it doesn't hurt at all - and then gently touching him. Once I touch him, he stops trying to kill me. I had him in my sweatshirt for an hour or so last night and he pretty much hunkered down and went to sleep. I was kind of petting him through the shirt to get him used to it. No idea if it's working yet, it's still too soon I think. A fellow goon has a farm where he has goats and ducks and he's offered to bring the duckling up there. I may give that a shot if he is still terrified in a couple days. I don't want him living in fear.
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May 24, 2013 20:13
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Well, it is a wild animal. Have you thought of giving it to a wildlife rehab place? They may even have other orphaned ducks of various ages for him to interact and recoup with.
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May 24, 2013 20:51
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So it rained really hard today and I was wondering how my hens would take their first rainstorm. Turns out the coop and run are pretty nicely water proof, but that didnt stop them from walking toward where the water was falling in with the wind and standing there getting drenched staring at the sky and shaking their heads. What a bunch of idiots.
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May 24, 2013 22:34
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| # ? May 15, 2024 21:42 |
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Just for the record, it's not considered ethical to ever release the duck at this point, as it's been with domestic fowl and exposed to whatever pathogens they might have that wild populations don't; not saying you would, just putting it out there. Ignoring the biting and hissing - reward it when it stops doing it and relaxes. A reward to start with could be as simple as taking a step back or going away for a bit.
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May 25, 2013 02:31
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