I know! I had visions of chicks on the postman’s little motorbike. I think the moving house thing has scrambled my brain – that last post was a reflection on me not you.

They DO NOT POST chicks — they use a courier service, quite a different thing!

I’ve had 4 girls start laying this week! All hatched in December and laid within days of each other. 1 blue 🙂 1 green 🙁 1 toffee 🙂 one white 🙂

Anyone else have new pullets providing breakfast?

No you can’t post live birds in Australia.

Silkies are notoriously hard to sex– best to Purchase after they begin to either lay or crow (& the crow late so don’t assume because a 12 week old isn’t crowing it must be a pullet).

No – incubators and brooder boxes are cruel; but if you had a broody hen to hat h and raise them I’d ve more than happy to supply fertile eggs.

Vickie: I’d be giving them whole linseed from a week old and bandsaw dust from the butcher frm 2 weeks of age; and depending on how many you’re getting at the moment maybe the occasional scrambled egg.

Bron: 🙁 always a sad and shocking thing to find one dead.

Give the chicks plenty of protein so they’re feathered up as thick as possible when winter hits.

Gotta love chicks; gotta hate foxes!

Not oats Mummyjas!!! Go for pollard for now ( inexpensive and 15% protein).

I have to admit I’m stunned at the number of people feeding oats — particularly in winter!

Oats are a ration used to artificially bring on moulting – DO NOT FEED CHOOKS OATS IN WINTER they need all the feathers thru can get!

Thanks all for the feedback — confirms my…[Read more]

Easy to fix… Buy a Dine-A-Chook feeder (a proper one not a copy) and mount it quite high off the ground; don’t place any food on the ground; use a feed that the chooks don’t pick through (just a basic pellets — at least until the the mice move away). Keep feed bags in sealed containers.
If the food source disappears so will the vermin.
The…[Read more]

Cg– I bet it has too many toes. Yes? It’s a silky cross cross cross.

Lmd80 it’s a pullet — the cockerels feather pattern is quite different.

CG (sorry calling you Cheeky Girl sees creepy and wrong) — I bet it has too many toes. Yes?

Good fertility but bad hatch rate — I’d suggest an issue with the mother’s nutrition.

That “wild type” down (brown stripy) will most likely grow out silver laced — I know that hard to believe but the feathers will be nothing like the down colour.
I wouldn’t say the hen smothered the chick — probably just exhaustion from the hatch.
Good hens feed their chicks beak to beak for between 3 days and 3 weeks , that’s partly why I…[Read more]

Vickie did that hooster ever crow or lay? It’s too old for it to be a Mareks tumour they usually show up as leg issues at 18-24 weeks. I’d put a description and pic on backyardpoultry.
I had an interview with a journo from the Weekly Times today, she’s writing a feature on my designer backyarders — it was clear by the end that she thinks I’m bonkers!

Eggs have a film coating to prevent bacteria penetrating the egg — I don’t think covering the eggs in dye is a good idea, it’s important never to wash an egg you intend to set.
If the hen is a first time mum she might be anxious about being in with the flock. The main reason to separate is the need for different feed (it will work out very…[Read more]

How old is the one with weak legs Vickie? Could be Mareks.
Are the feathers loose? Did it have a mild respiratory condition at 3- 8 weeks that seemed to clear up?

Vickie she’ll leave the nest before the eggs 3 days behind hatch — optionS would be:

1. put them in an incubator at day 18 (then try to put them back with the hen once they hatch).
2. Take the early eggs out now and set the ones you really want.

Does this seem like too good a bargain to be true?

http://www.mychickencoop.com.au/chicken-coops/premium-chicken-coop

Is it possible it got to some rat bait? That causes large bruises like that. Sometimes rat bait can be in amongst straw bales.

I have zero experience with ducks but if I had to guess I’d say it’s the last egg in her cycle and she’s ready to sit.