I think I had heard about the no onion too. I have had them to wear they won't eat raw onion and was told that it would make their eggs taste like onion but seeing as how it's about the only thing they won't eat, I don't know. Now cooked onion.....I use onion all the time in cooking and they are getting those scraps and I have not noticed anything wrong with those eggs either.
Christy
The P & L DAILY CHAT THREAD #1 - Anything goes!!!
my chickens eat onions, the green tops i grow for them. but not fruit...
My banties now 'hide' their eggs, since I am letting the 15 + I have left free range. Yes, I am the one who has a full sized chicken laying in her feed! When I find the current nest, they move to another spot. Older banties so I do not expect eggs daily. They find a nice cozy covered spot in the tall grass or in the flower bed. Seems they like to be hidden while laying (although the nesting boxes should have done that for them). LOL
My Peahen covers her eggs until she has enough to set on. But she is VERY protective of them from the other birds, none get near unless she okays. Never heard of a chicken hiding or covering them.....the broody hen just lets them sit where they are laid until she is ready to set; but she is laying too up until that time.
As for scraps, they get what comes off the table. What they don't like, other animals (bunnies, sparrows, etc) seem eat. Read though that certain foods can change the taste of the eggs (garlic, onions). Author (Damerow, I think) advised, try it. If you don't like the taste in the egg, don't give it to them anymore. They just wiped out the leftover watermelon -- pecked right through the rind!
They LOVE cooked eggs. When I found huge nests, if not too old, would boil them up; then mash them shells & all. Why waste food? Just make sure they don't know its an egg they are eating. Otherwise you will have an egg eater on your hands.
Where were you guys in 6 years ago when I was struggling to learn all this?! I don't even know what I remember from the early days! Just when I think I have it figured out -- they go and lay in their food???? LOL
Cheryl
the onion thing must just be an old wives tail i heard so i have never done it well now i know i can thanks granny
Lucky, I don't have Damerow's book, so I can't say it is any author, but whoever said it, "try it, if the eggs taste funny, quit". That is good advice anytime. There are some things they won't eat, so I think that stuff is bad for them. Chickens aren't as dumb as people make them out to be.
About the only thing mine won't touch are orange peels. I think they don't like the taste of them. I have even seen them eat the leaves from a tomato plant that decided to grow just outside their pen. Didn't seem to bother them. This was a volunteer tomato and they didn't eat the fruit, but did eat the leaves. So, go figure.
GG
ok, my little one lays an egg 2 times a day, but the others still aren't laying.
The 1st step to the next batch has begun, the bank has been robbed!!!!! Getting EGGcited once again. Step 2, go to town today and get 2 more "baskets" to use as the brooders in my spare bedroom, for the 1st few days. Then I am hoping I can put them in the brooder outside. They should go in the mail tomorrow.
wonder how long it will take for you to pull all your hair out... lol
Granny......I still can't believe they didn't eat the tomatoes! When we had chickens 8 years ago, they found the garden and ate every single tomato....we didn't get one. : ( So far, our group hasn't found the garden. (knock on wood)
jordonkittyjo.....2 eggs a day....wow, I didn't know they could do that! You would think the others would catch on.
L2G....I can tell you are so excited! Can't wait to see pics of the new babies!
Christy
Its not to bad now that I have them outside in the brooder, actually they really dont need me except once the outside temp is at about 80 I unplug the light pull the quilt off the sides and open up one of the 3 boards on top so they can sun. Feed and water. All takes me about 15 minutes. Then at night change the water and plug the light back on. Now what is going to be fun, is when they get big enough to move to the coop. Taking them one by one and walking about 150 ft to the coop. with probably over 100 birds. this may be a good day to have a family get together and an assembly line going from brooder to coop. I know the grandkids will help nanna, especially if there is some fresh homemade nanna's nanna nut bread on hand.
Oh yea will be some pictures. Im more excited with this bunch hoping to get some good broodies.
lmbo..
You just brought back a very recent memory to me.. I mean my kids are just 3 months old..
I use to take them outside everyday.. you know how long it takes to transfer 29 chicks into a moving tote.. then to the outdoor run.. then back again... oh the whinning... my back hurt.. then they grew and I had to make 2 trips.. then 3... then I split them and the bigger girls stayed outside.... lol
Wonder if that should be in raising chicks 101,,, lol
LOL yea i know. When I got these chicks not even a week yet, the 1st 2 days I had them in the spare bedroom in 3 totes, carried them 3 out to the living room to clean up the totes, transfer the 1st totes to the 4th tote clean the 1st tote then back to the 1st tote get the 2nd tote clean it and so on and so on. That was for the birds. Now the breeder box outside is perfect. Just looked at the weather forecast for the next 10 days Thursday when i should get the birds it will only be 85 for the high. So they will have to stay in the house that day then Friday it will be 96 so I should be able to put them out in the brooder, now my only problem is with the birds i have now, hope they will accept them, IF NOT I do have a plan to separate them in the brooder. I may do that anyway for a few days, that way they can chatter thru a fence and then I can let them all together.
Does anyone know if you can "break" a rooster from being so agressive toward people? I have one that is just starting to chase me down and then jump at me. I had to use a large pitcher to whomp him the other day. He usually only does it when my back is turned or at night when I corral them back to the coop. He will end up in the stew pot if I can't trust him any longer. Tracey
I am sure all will pipe in on this one Tracy.. but I took twitch on a long walk the other day when he was being a real butt... he didn't lung at us but when dh put him down he had an attitiude about him that I noticed right off. I told dh not to move or turn around.. twitch never looked away from us and tried to stare us down and was trying to circle around us.. i had hold of dh's arm and turned him with me to continue facing twitch as he kept stalking us.. (btw, this was a first for him, he just started bullying the girls, but a first for humans) So I told dh we had to catch him.. as luck would have it, twitch got just a little to close a I reached down a swooped him right up... he didn't know what hit him.. lol
So.. I took him for a walk... introduced him to the dog.. told him forst ingredient in the dogfood was chicken by products.., then introd him to teen, told him her favorite food was chicken nuggets, then of course intord him to the cats.. about an hour or so later I took him bake to his yard and set him down where he calmly walked away... seems he's been pretty calm since then.. was even the first to eat from my hand this morning...
I love being the CHICKEN MASTER!
Tracey, depends on the breed. Some are harder to break then others. They need to know you are the head roo, and never lose your top spot in the pecking order... if he becomes dangerous, then find a replacement roo and put him in a pot!
My kids learned the hard way. Now whenever they are around the chicken pen, they go and pick up a rooster and carry him around, reminding him that they mean no harm and also they are BIGGER>..
Thank you all for the responses. I will give him a few more days with me as head honcho, and then see how it goes. I love his morning call, and he is a big copper colored orph so I don't want to get rid of him if I can help it. One of his girls is sitting on a big batch of eggs now so maybe that has something to do with his ornery streak... who knows? But I let my chickens and ducks free range during the daytime so I hate to have my ups or mail person get attacked.....
I am with ya there wool there will be no mean rooster around here so long as i am alive. I will win. I will not ever ever ever run from a rooster again. i have me a nice big stick picked out all ready.
Fed the chicks some leftover breaded fried squash okra and cukes yesterday, there is 1 cuke left today and the fight is on. They were running around like chickens with their heads cut off I could not figure out what was going on, then found the chick that had the last piece of cuke. I laughed so hard I was crying. Who needs a shrink when ya have chickens(my oldest daughter will be a card carrying shrink in a year and a half PHD and all) Now I can tell her I wont be needing her services.
i'm gonna make peach preserves tomorrow. the chickens will be in 7th heaven
Oh I bet so So would I
i'll send you some
Awwwwwwww thanks. You would have thought my chicks had not eaten in a week, I gave them table scraps just now, blackeyed peas,and some grilled squash and potatoes. It was a feeding freenzy.
you think chickens are bad, give my turkeys green beans or squash. they almost run me over
lmao i can see it now, got run over by a turkey.
LOL with you. do you think anyone would believe me?
lol I dont know, would have to look for the hoof prints or wait the claw marks.
this is a picture of lily. she is 3months and 2 weeks old
wow that is a tasty looking bird oh I mean very pretty young lady. I want to do some turkeys but not yet. Gotta build up to that
be prepared- turkeys never stop eating
lol i bet
an average tom will eat 187 pounds of food between he time he's hatched until he matures at 5 months
ouch that is alot of feed, is he ready for the table at 5 months old?
Yeah, turkey's do seem to eat all the time. We let ours out in the evening to free range a bit and they go right back in to eat out of the feeder! We have to close the door on them.
Your Lily sure is pretty....what kind is she?
Christy
At the price I know right now that is 25 lb bag of medicated started crumble at 12.95, that would make it 96 bucks for that one tom. NOPE not for me.
Can toms be mean like roosters?
I haven't had any mean toms, mine have all been very friendly and follow us all over the yard. Anyone else had a mean tom?
Christy
my turkeys are bronze breasted turkeys. all my toms are very docile like the hens. i don't think tukeys know how to be mean
ok i am almost convinced except for the 100 dollar bird at maturity
my turkeys follow me all over, and scratch dirt in my fce when i'm weeding
can you get them to weed for ya?