Chickens on the homestead

[NH Homesteader]

Oh I worry about those other germs too! Lol I know my chickens are pretty clean but they're chickens!

Yeah silkies.. They're good at dirt!

Side note- can I ask a chicken health question here? I have a hen with one swollen toe. The rest of her foot is fine, no limping, no bumblefoot signs, good appetite, etc. What are the chances it's something other than bumblefoot? We don't do intensive chicken doctoring here. Sorry chicken, she was due for the stew pot 2 years ago but we saved her because she was pretty (yeah... I know)...

 

[Mini Horses]

She could have a splinter or such in there. I mean, they DO dig up and around everything! I had one with a bump about thumb nail size and a spot in middle on top of foot, where toe connects. It was a sticker of some sort. Popped out when I removed the center dot. Put antibiotic on, 2 days and all gone. Took me a couple days to get her as she was a "black hen" and I have a LOT of those to search thru.

After that I saw a spray on hair color at a Dollar store. Thought about getting a can so I could spray onto the back of any I needed to "mark" to get from the roost.

 

[Hinotori]

I second checking for a thorn or something. I've given warm Epsom salt foot baths. Dealt with bumblefoot way to much as well

 

[Hinotori]

And we have a roof on one of the silkie pens. The white clamps just keep the tarp tight. I put a strip of wide gorilla tape down the middle to reinforce it since that wears the fastest in my experience. I set extra grommets so it ties every foot and moves less.

Leia decided to weight test the edge where the cats like to lay.

I got poles up for the front this evening. No picture of that, it was too dark when I finished. Just need to adjust it, tape and grommet the tarp, then put it up.

It will be 10x20 total.

 

[Swede]

@sumi, hope you don't mind me being nosy but I saw on your profile some rooster called "Xavier". I would love to see pics of him!

 

[Swede]

Blackie's sleeping place! Although the "sleeping" bit is quite wrong. Lol, he sleeps with me!

 

[sumi]

@sumi, hope you don't mind me being nosy but I saw on your profile some rooster called "Xavier". I would love to see pics of him!

I'll message you

 

[Beekissed]

Oh I worry about those other germs too! Lol I know my chickens are pretty clean but they're chickens!

Yeah silkies.. They're good at dirt!

Side note- can I ask a chicken health question here? I have a hen with one swollen toe. The rest of her foot is fine, no limping, no bumblefoot signs, good appetite, etc. What are the chances it's something other than bumblefoot? We don't do intensive chicken doctoring here. Sorry chicken, she was due for the stew pot 2 years ago but we saved her because she was pretty (yeah... I know)...

I agree with Hinotori on the epsom salt soak and then I'd follow that up with a good castor oil massage of that foot and see what happens.

 

[NH Homesteader]

Thanks everyone. We'll try to catch her this weekend and see what we can do!

 

[Beekissed]

Since my hatches didn't go well this spring, I'll be perusing the ads for free and/or cheap roosters and spent hens for winter soup meat this year to augment the ones produced here.

Monday I'll be going after 16 production red hens someone is selling for $30...I'll try to get them to come down on the price, but it's still a great price for that many hens.

She says they are still laying 8-9 eggs per day in that flock, so while they are penned and their meat is cleaned up in flavor, I'll likely be able to get extra eggs there also.

Most PR hens have a nice, heavy carcass, though not anywhere near my WRs and WR mix birds, but still heavier than most production layer breeds.

As the month progresses and even into October I'll be looking for such deals, accumulating free and cheap meat as I go along until I get enough canned up for winter.