Table for 5 please!

[rick]

Just sharing this as I have had an interesting week researching nutrition and home made feed. I wanted to look into ways of cutting down Teabag's involuntary calcium intake as she probably wont lay again (I know many people say that layers is good for all hens but I just wanted to see what was possible - I’ve been trying out a formula so if anyone’s interested be keen to share notes but have to say good commercial layers is guaranteed and a darn site cheaper!)
Anyway, while trawling around I came across a link to this post on backyardchickens and its a real gem!

http://www.backyardchickens.com/t/140469/farmers-helper-poultry-supplements

and in there, along with some great pictures, is a recommendation to feed on a low table with a tablecloth! Yes, you guessed, muggings tried it out and I have to say I think there’s some sense in the idea. The cloth gets covered in spilt food really quickly and all that was going into the auboise never to be seen again. One mistake I did make though - you have to roll the cloth up, shake it out somewhere else (like into the bin) and then unroll it again on the table - I billowed it out over the table like you might in the house and it caused a major freak out!

 

[Marigold]

That's a really useful link, Rick, mist interesting, lots of food for thought there. I certainly agree about the emphasis on not feeding on the ground. Mine use a Green Frog feeder, fixed at their chest height,which dispenses pellets gradually into 3 ports, adjustable for different rates of flow, and their evening mash is served on a large plate placed on a tall concrete block (cast in a washing-up bowl) and they all gather round and quickly clear it. However, Nutmeg has the knack of riffling through and picking out the little bits of corn first, and flips lumps of mash right out on to the floor. Haven't tried a tablecloth but I don't think that would help as she's apparently in training for the shot putt Chicken Olympics.

 

[dinosaw]

Just wondering how you are managing to cut down Teabags intake without doing so for the other chickens Rick?. I can see the logic in the tablecloth, I used to put a big sheet of ply under my feeders and use a dustpan and brush during the days when I used to feed mash, when I moved over to pellets I stopped doing it as I found that wastage dropped off massively so stopped bothering. Would imagine a tablecloth would get wet, dirty and smelly very quickly.

Personally with regards to flock management I think the simpler the better. Provide as much space as practical, allow to free range if possible, worm every six months, sanitise the run on the last day of worming, feed layers/growers rations plus small amounts of greens and avoid the myriad expensive supplements on the market.

 

[Marigold]

Totally agree with your last paragraph, Dinosaw, - would only add, ventilate coop well, and clean it out as often as possible - only takes 2 minutes a day, and in winter particularly, with them in it up to 15 hours overnight, you can collect much of the poo easily in one go.

 

[dinosaw]

Yes forgot about that Marigold, I suppose when you get into the habit of doing stuff you just take it for granted that others do the same.

My Thuringians have decided to go for the full ventilation maximum height option for roosting. They have taken to roosting on the beams of the run now they have found they can get up there, they look very cute at night all huddled up together. I'm leaving them to it if thats what they prefer (I've been here before with chickens), they've been bred to withstand the cold and they have a windbreak in there so they have been fine. Mrs D took this photo on her phone, I will try and get a better one when I can make it up to them hopefully next week.

 

[rick]

Posted on the train home but think I lost the signal maybe so apologies if I end up saying things twice.

They look chuffed up there dinosaw! Open sided sure gets full ventilation and with a wind break (I’ve got neighbouring boundary fences close on all sides) they seem quite happy. Of course it helps if they don’t discard their duvet at the coldest point of the year!

The green frog feeders sound really good Marigold, will have a look at them because, and in answer to your question dinosaw, I’m still offering as much of the smallholder layers crumble that they want (their favourite so far.) But I’m also offering half rations of home made, low calcium, mix with freely available oystershell. Its been interesting to see the consumption of crumble go down and oystershell go up. Im in no doubt that they are properly regulating their own calcium levels.

Yep, the cloth has got pretty grubby since the weekend. Its going in the wash tonight! I do agree that the simplest necessary is best but I also feel that I’m pushing the boundaries of acceptable space while keeping the quality of the conditions as high as I can and although some of my experiments have been on a learning curve (lights are a bad idea!) I think it does get a bit more complicated/laborious the closer you get to 2 square metres each total with no access at any time to full free range.

Last night I found a single Cappilaria egg in Blaze's sample - that’s after 3 months and the tolerance for that worm is supposed to be zero. I’m going to see if it turns up again in the next sample or in anyone else’s and then worm. But then if I didn’t know I wouldn’t worry about it for another 3 months and I’m not suggesting that anyone’s hens that look as good as those lovely Thuringians are any the worse for that

 

[dinosaw]

Rick, I wrote a long winded post and then when I tried to submit I found it had logged me out, I can't face rewriting it in full , so in brief here it is.

We've all been there with regards to having too many chickens.

Try digging over the run at the end of worming and blitzing with Stalosan to delay reintroduction of the larvae, the rub is of course your using one chemical to prevent overusing another.

If your hens have been fine so far before you started doing worm counts, the worming regimen you were using will most likely still be efficient.

Re worrying. I totally understand that you need to be happy with what your doing, if the worm counts give you that reassurance then all power to you.

I like reading about your chicken experiments.

 

[rick]

I'll try to keep it real! No Gothic 'experiments.'

Would Stalosan be good for cleaning down brick and block paving? How long do you have to leave it before moving back in?

 

[dinosaw]

Yes, it's a powder which is effective on contact and as long as you move the birds out while you are sprinkling it is fine to let them back in immediately after, they may freak out for a while as it is red, some of my chickens aren't bothered, others spend half an hour considering whether they will die if they walk on it. We used to jokingly refer to it as the red dust of doom. Here is the blurb on it.

Stalosan® F is an alternative and unique way to improve sanitation standards, reducing the disease level and increasing both living conditions and feed conversion rate.

Broad spectrum hygiene powder, destroys worm eggs, coccidial oocysts, fly eggs and larvae. Anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, anti-viral. Highly absorbent and will help to reduce the ammonia smell created by the chicken's droppings. (FSF Note: Stalosan is a disinfectant-type powder and will not directly kill Red Mite or Poultry Lice, for this we would suggest the products on our Red Mite Eradication section).

The regular use of Stalosan® F will lower the risk to a minimum. Stalosan® F can be used for all domestic animals and pets and can be added, while the animals are present in the stable. There are no harmful effects to humans. Stalosan® F has been on the market for more than 40 years, and no side effects to animals or humans have ever been reported. The product is very economical in use.

 

[rick]

'Red dust of doom', I like it!
I asked a friend who runs a farm what they use. Industrial steam jet wash apparently - blows whole dried on cow pats away and sterilises at the same time!

 

[dinosaw]

I can imagine if you had a large area to do that steam cleaning would be a quicker cheaper method, Stalosan isn't especially cheap after all. Of corse a benefit that stalosan has is that it can be sprinkled into aubiose and will mix with any nasties therein and continue to neutralise some of them.

 

[Marigold]

Blows away any stray chickens as well, I should think.
(Calculate average weight of a hen compared with a cowpat, making allowance for progressive dehydration of cowpat, and then calculate water pressure needed to lift each a standard distance/height above the run floor ..... Could be one of your research projects, Rick?)

 

[rick]

Oh that was funny!!!
Would that be Angus or Friesian I wonder? And compared to a hen before or after eating bread pudding?