Chickens, and things related

[dooleysm]

I'm only getting about 1/day from my 3 layers right now. They really don't like this heat we've been having. My chicks are about 18 weeks old now. We're supposed to have some cooler weather this weekend, maybe that'll convince some of the chicks to start laying.

 

[Tororider]

I am still getting two and a half a day. The third hen is still not laying in the nest box so I have lost all of those eggs. She sits on top of the feeder where I have a frisbee and brick on top so from where she is sitting the egg must just fall out of her back end a foot and a half to the coop floor and smash. I am hoping to go out there today and find three eggs in the box. They have been laying consistently even through the heat we have had up here, but I am looking forward to the cooler weather starting at the end of the week.

Congrats Tony, I can remember how excited I was for that first egg. Aren't kids the greatest? I love how innocent and spongelike they are.

 

[Tororider]

Well, we got the exterior fence, a 6'x150' roll put up this morning. We have 40'x40' area fenced in, for all of you who figured the math of a 40x40 area having more exterior space than a 150' roll could cover we used the coop to enclose some sides. We have to make a door and we are going to add 2"x6" headers on the top and bottom along with adding a 2' skirt along the whole outside. Then we are going to add aviary netting. Still lots to do, but at least we are getting there. I will try to take pictures next time I go out.

 

[bmac]

It's been a while since I've checked in with my chicken friends so I thought I'd offer a progress report. On the coop, there's been no progress. Once we moved the chickens to the pen, I had a real motivational slump. Weeks and weeks of spending every available hour on building the coop took its toll on me. I decided to take a little break. Well, my little break has become an extended break.

Just as I was motivated to return to work on the coop, I somehow managed to hurt my back. Had a lingering discomfort for 2-3 weeks. Thankfully, all seems well now. Then, its either been other things to attend to, rain, heat or no available help. I need to get the soffits done and then build the pen. The benefit of my delay is that the chickens are staying very clean for the fair competition and I've had no worries about predators with them in the coop. Still, I need to get off of my fanny and get that thing finished.

We've been getting 1 egg / day fairly consistently and we assume all from one of the cochins. Wednesday was the 1st day of school for my kids, so my daughter went out earlier than usual to check on the birds. She came back and said that one of the silkies might be dead. All of the other chicks were up and about, but this one was under the ramp to the roosts and did not move. The light in the coop was still kind of dim at this hour, so she couldn't tell for sure.

Of course, being the optimist, she said "Maybe its just laying an egg". "That's probably what's happening", I replied, knowing that when I went out there after she left to school I would be disposing of a dead chicken.

Well, much to my surprise, when I went to the coop there was no dead chicken. Just another little egg. I called my wife immediately to tell her the news, hoping I could reach her before they got to school. Fortunately, I did and my daughter was very much relieved and had a much better 1st day of school.

So, now we are getting 2 little eggs/day. The silkie's eggs are similar in size to the cochin's, but slightly darker in color.

Toby, the quarentined rooster is still as crazy as ever. He attacked (pecked) my wife's hand the other day when she was changing his water. I "tested" him today (with a gloved hand) and he was fine - stand offish but not aggressive at all. My daughter really wants to show him at the fair next month as he is such a good looking bird. She swears she can handle him long enough to be judged. We'll have to monitor his behavior, for sure.

 

[Tororider]

Glad to hear that you didn't have a dead chicken, its no fun for the kids.

We actually got 4 eggs today, or they layed one later last night after I checked on them. I have plenty now to start giving away, that or I need to start eating more eggs. Probably a little of both.

I am going to build a small tractor/yard pen tomorrow out of 2"x4"s. It will be 3'x6'x3'. The dimensions are because the wire mesh I have left is 3' wide and 6' long is easily manageable and will fit in the back of a pickup easily.

 

[bmac]

Well, now I've got a question. When my daughter when to check for eggs yesterday after school, there was a hen in the nest box. Molly was checking from outside - lifting the lid of the next box. The hen turned her head around and squawked at her, as if to say "Could I have some privacy here?" We assumed she was laying an egg. When I got home from work, I went out with her to see if we had an egg yet. None of us know how long it takes them to do this so I wasn't too worried when she was still there. ruffling her feathers and squawing at me.

However, Molly checked again this afternoon and the hen is still there. Our assumption was that shes sitting on her egg(s) like a good momma. Well, I don't really want any chicks right now (and I thought they wouldn't actually sit until they had several eggs but maybe she didn't read the manual), so I went out with her this evening to retrieve the egg(s). Again, she was rather perturbed that we were in her bubble, but I picked her up anyway. No egg.

So, she's been in the nest box for 2 days with nothing to show for it. We did a visual inspection of her rear end and didn't see anything out of the ordinary (although I don't really know what I was looking for).

Any thoughts on this? Can chickens get an impacted egg or something? I'm at a loss.

 

[Tororider]

Chickens can become eggbound, although I am not sure that a symptom is staying in a nest box, frankly I am not sure it isn't though. Hopefully someone else might have more info. I think she is probably too young to be broody, she could just be really comfortable.

 

[bmac]

It seems as though our hen IS broody. Still on the nest, but apparently healthy. I took her off the nest yesterday and took her outside. She ate well, walked around just fine, etc. We spoke with a guy at church who has chickens and he described exactly what was happening. So, unless we want her to sit for 3 or 4 weeks, he suggested that we block off the nest box for a few days to break her urge to sit.

Interesting.

 

[dooleysm]

I had another 'paralyzed' chicken to deal with on Thursday when I got home from work. Very wierd. One day they're seemingly fine, the next day, sprawled out in the coop not moving. I dispatched of that one the same as the first.

I moved the guineas out to the coop Thursday evening. I've been leaving them in the coop/run and letting the chickens out into the fenced off area during the day. The wife said they can't come out any more since they've been eating her tomatoes. So anyway, I spent the weekend managing the chickens and guineas. 2 of my 19 week old pullets started laying this weekend also. I got 2 tiny eggs, 1 green and 1 brown. Now I'm up to 5 layers. After butchering 3 more roosters on Friday evening, I think I'm down to 1 rooster now.

 

[Tororider]

Bmac, glad to hear that she is just broody and not something else like a paralyzed chicken, which leads me to sorry shawn, that is strange.

I got my grow out/yard tractor done on Saturday. It is 6' long by 3' tall and wide. I put a hinged door on one end and then built a cover to go over half of the top so I can get in through there if I need to. I have been bad about taking pictures lately so I will try to do that today.