Hey.... Lets keep Chickens..!

Gigervamp

So sorry to hear about Chucky, Ljonski.

ljonski

http://www.flickr.com/photos/60275660@N03/?uploaded=2&magic_cookie=4dcf04ae4d432c41e5c73e31f1945034

Here is a picky of Stoogy today and what remains of Stoogys egg that she laid this morning. I think magpies had some of it for lunch - what do you think ?

Stoogy is pretty contented today with no less than i and a half gardens to roam and she is now top hen ( she was probably bottom for 3 years)
I will see how it goes for getting her some friends. with the next rehoming not till late June, me and Stoogy can have some great fun together - unless of course she gets down in the dumps with no other Chicken to play with .

Gigervamp

I'm having a problem with magpies egg eating. One of the girls has taken to laying in the duckhouse for the last couple of days and it's easy to see the egg from outside. Consequently, I've found the egg shells after the contents have been eaten and they look pretty much the same as the one in your pic.

RacyRed

I get jackdaws doing that if one of mine lays in the open.

Sorry to hear about the hen losses, it is awful when that happens.

HeatherintheHills

Stoogie looks a real sweetie! Thanks for posting the pic.

Giger, love the new vids

Gigervamp

Here's todays video. After filming that, I held onto the chicks while hubby cleaned out the coop and Petal was enjoying a dustbath. Here's a pic of the chicks being held.

Their wing feathers are really getting long now and earlier I watched the black one foraging and having a little sunbathe in the sun coming through the coop door.

HeatherintheHills

Oooooh! The chick pics are making me broody. I'm hoping my little bantam girl goes broody soon. I want chickies too!

ionahenor2

wow Giger haven't they grown quickly. love the new hose, did you make it?

Well the 2 day memory seems correct. Poor little Digger has been inside for a few days and today when I took her outside the other 2 flew at her.:eek: Lettie who was bottom chook has now elevated herself to 2nd in command, the little madam. Not sure what to do now, so I have brought her in again.

Shortie

I think I have my first vets trip tomorrow (well Mr shortie does as he isn't in work tomorrow)

I've had today off and spent time giving the coop a thorough clean out. All seemed fine. I went back later in the afternoon and one on my chooks can bearly put weight on one foot.

I had her up and had a good look at her feet - one is very swollen (she can't bend her toes) and it's feeling very warm. I really hope I've not trodden on her foot and broken it while I've had my head inside the run as this little lady had a habit of winding herself in and out of my legs, or sitting on my feet while I work. I can't see any broken skin to suggest she's trodden on something that became lodged..

She's eating and drinking just fine, and she got herself up the ladder into the coop somehow... the foot doesn't seem as warm now but I will see how she is in the morning

No idea if my vet looks after livestock normally but he's sooo good normally, and he runs his own wildlife charity when the vets is shut, taking care of injured local wildlife so I hope he can help! He's sooooo compasionate too but he doesn't do work he deems unnecessary and I do worry he'll tell me it's kinder to put her down (my understanding is that chooks are really fragile and one upset can be the end of them? )

Has anyone here had similar and is this a major problem for this chook or will she be okay and I'm over-worrying?

Gigervamp

Guess what? We've got more!

The other day when I went to check on the broodies I heard cheeping. Looked in the coop and the broodies were all sitting there completely ignoring the little chick wandering around the main part of the coop!

I quickly grabbed littl'un and brought it down to the house were we have our broody pekin and her one chick. When she heard the cheeping, as I was opening the door to the box to put the littl'un in, she ran to the front and attacked my hand as I popped it in! She obviously thought I'd stolen her chick (even though it was right next to her)!

Anyway, it took a little while for the new chick to get underneath her, but she took to it right away. So now, she's looking after 2 chicks that are a few days apart in age.

She is fiercely protective of the chicks which makes it hard to clean out the box. There's always a bit of a drama transfering them all to another box and then back again!

Petal on the other hand, is quite a laid back mother. She's ok with us picking her chicks up and she likes to have a bit of a break by having a lengthy dustbath, some tasty grass, a bit of exercise and a poo without the kids watching! :rotfl:

This hatching chicks lark has been quite an experience. And we've still got another few days to go before we find out if the silver sebright eggs and the indian runner eggs hatch.

I'm a bit worried, after seeing the complete indifference of the broodies to the chick, that we might have to set up a brooder for any others that hatch.

But that's not all!

At the weekend, we went to the Royal Welsh Spring Fair at Builth Wells and came back with 3, 8 week old grey silkies and another orpington.

Still thinking of names for the silkies, but the orpington is named (Big) Bertha. She's lovely! So placid and cuddly!

Videos:
Meet Bertha (and the chooks)

2 week old chicks out for the first time

15 days old and up for adventure