Keeping hens and ducks chat.

edwink · 16 September 2016 at 5:32PM

jim-jim wrote: »

I wanted to ask what is the best thing to treat/paint the coops with? Last year we used shed paint from wilko, but after loads of rain the coops always seem damp inside, even when they don't leak. Whatever I use they will have to go back in the same night. Thanks for any suggestions x

Hi

Can't really answer your question I'm afraid so I hope someone else will pop on here to give you a few ideas. I have had a quick look online and most poultry threads mention Cuprinol outdoor colour range. But, I myself would say that could be toxic to hens. I think some just like the outdoor quirky paint colours they have. We painted out hen hotel before our hens went in to the hotel they have now with a water based fence paint and 3 years down the line it has not washed off at all and has been great. I think we used a Ronseal paint from Wickes although I know other stores sell the same.

Edwink x

suki1964 · 20 September 2016 at 11:30AM

Egg production is on the decline now the nights are drawing in and it's not getting light till 7 am

I'm having to disappoint a lot of people who have been buying the surplus all summer. Mind the chicks are 13 weeks old now so it won't be long for them to start - if of course they are hens

Edwink, we have been inundated with double yolkers all year. During peak laying I was getting 4 a week. We even got 4 triple yolkers I won't expect them again. It's apparently not unusual for new layers to lay double and triples

Here's a picture

suki1964 · 25 September 2016 at 10:58PM

Sad times

My first egg bound hen

We noticed on Saturday she was hiding away in the nest box but didn't take much notice tbh

This morning oh woke me to say we had a poorly hen

Poor love was walking crouched and her rear was filthy

So I sat her in a warm bath and squirted olive oil up her vent Separated her and hoped all would be well. Whilst out, travelled to four towns to find Epsom salts.

Anyways home this evening. Another warm bath with the salts. Another squirt of oil up the vent and she's wrapped up lying under the rad in the kitchen with honey water and oiled food

She's drinking some if fed by a spoon but not eating

Vet opens tomorrow at 8.30 so will call then

I try to be 'hard' and think they are just hens, but I do love them to bits really

I'm sat here in the kitchen keeping her company till the morning

Fingers crossed xxx

suki1964 · 26 September 2016 at 10:37AM

Unfortunately she never made it

Her breathing became very laboured this morning around 8, was in the vets as soon as they opened, but as soon as he started to work on her, she threw up so we felt there was no point, it was going to be too traumatic for her, and she is now in chicken heaven

We done what we could for her and at least she didn't spend her last hours alone.

RIP Snowflake

ali-t · 26 September 2016 at 12:11PM

RIP snowflake, so sad when they go

oldandhappy · 27 September 2016 at 7:52PM

Sorry to hear that....we lost one seems like a long time ago although the vet managed to remove the egg the chicken was too shocked I guess...nursed her through the night with food and water but she went also to chicken heaven before it got light.

edwink · 29 September 2016 at 2:52PM

That is so sad Suki to have lost one of your girls. I am sure you helped her the best you could. Always a sad time loosing them. A (((HUG))) for you x

oldandhappy · 30 September 2016 at 5:32PM

Hi Edwink...Just to say our young Hens one is a cuckoo called cuckoo as well haha...she has always layed speckled eggs fro her first one...I noticed also that the young layers can lay some weired shapes and sizes and of course lots of double yokes.
I miss our Call Ducks that are still in UK...and always surprised me that the boys where quiet quackers and the girls are so so loud quackers.....BW Dianne

edwink · 1 October 2016 at 10:03AM

oldandhappy wrote: »

Hi Edwink...Just to say our young Hens one is a cuckoo called cuckoo as well haha...she has always layed speckled eggs fro her first one...I noticed also that the young layers can lay some weired shapes and sizes and of course lots of double yokes.
I miss our Call Ducks that are still in UK...and always surprised me that the boys where quiet quackers and the girls are so so loud quackers.....BW Dianne

Hi oldandhappy

Is that cuckoo as in Cockerel ? Must tell you a story of what happened to us here many years ago. We decided to get some more hens but we wanted to buy some which were all different colours so we could name them easier. So off we went to buy them and on our return named them all. Although we love having the ex batts it was lovely to be able to give the new 6 hens names. A couple of months later we were sitting indoors and all of a sudden heard "C0ck a doodle doo". We listened and yup we heard it again. Went up the garden to see which one of the new ones it was and found it was the ginger and white one. So ok we though we now have a Cockerel.

A couple of weeks later the same happened again but this time it sounded slightly different. My husband said it looked as if we had another Cockerel. So up the garden we went again and waited to see which one it was and yup we had two Cockerels now.

Now this may seem as if I am making this up but hand on heart this is very real and certainly did happen to us. Several days later there was a lot of C0ck a doodle dooing going on up the garden but this time we were working on the veg beds up there. We then realised that the extra c0ck a doodle doo was coming from a third Cockerel. OMG we thought. Two of them had already started to fight over the past week and now we had a third one.

Thankfully we rehomed one with my brother and the other two went back to where we bought them from originally. They were rehomed from their place. So all was good!

We were new living here then and didn't know any of the neighbours so didn't want to chance our luck with having a Cockerel so felt we should rehome them all at that particular time. Many years later and getting to know the neighbours well we did a friend a favour and rehomed a cockerel for her. We checked with our neighbours first and all were fine about it. He is a really good boy and to be honest rarely makes any noise. Love him to bits x

Edwink x

oldandhappy · 4 October 2016 at 4:52PM

Thats a great story and glad they all ended up in a home even if not yours..... We only ever had a cockerel once and it did not work out at all but he started off ok very timid and funny with his bowing down to the girls he would half lay on the floor looking so downtrodden..but he turned into a very demanding so and so...he turned on us also and he was like an actor...he had to go elsewhere and his next home he was ok with two other hens...maybe the ducks set him off...dont really know but he upset the hens and us within two weeks...Cuckoo is a speckled girl and gorgeous..Chickpea is black Madge is White and Henryetta is grey and large and 100% the boss! BW Dianne

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