Claire help here please

:)

This message was edited Nov 4, 2008 6:41 PM

What kind of help? I'm confused!

ok. This is definitely the thread to watch!! I say we hijack it and take it places Ti would NEVER go!!

I feel an obligation to keep it under control. I'm supposed to be helping!!!

You've already answered her every question...see above.

This message was edited Nov 5, 2008 9:52 AM

I actually read the original comment -didn't see any joke or any trauma in it, but if she edited to delete it it's not my place to put it back...could reread the 1st Rosie thread...

Grow you been gone and theres just some things that nobody has an answer for..........

Waitnowletmegetthisstraight.....You're willing to let ME have my little smarty-pants answers for EVERYTHING?? Talk about license!!

ok i had seen 12 reads on this and not a comment so I deleted. I was curious to how you had rescued abused chickens and they started laying, I am desperate or I am going to have to cull alot of eaters. I am doing everything I can think of to keep them happy and content. I have eliminated the drama, i am the only one in the yard with them and there is no change. There is plenty of room for all the birds. Plenty of nesting boxes, actually to many. There is no fighting really among the birds.

Ok I know you said grapes, fruit, cottage cheese? How did you get you girls to lay eggs?

Thanks Grownut.
Tina

Harmony please dont.

How long has it been Ti? Any details to get us going?

3 months on 3. 1 month on the oh about 8 or 9 others that were added.

forgot to say,

Thanks Claire for answering. I am sorry.

Luvs just the last week just seems alot of whatever...............

If you just added in new birds they may just be getting used to one another. I always try to over feed when they've been stressed by anything like that (change of location, new faces etc.) Give it at least another week before pulling your hair out. Or one bag of Kit-n-caboodle.

I am going to say this and it will stop here, the drama and turmoil is over, believe what you want and dont. I will tell you this much, I wont help again unless it is over the computer and it does not cost me money. Now that being said. I am asking help to get these chickens to lay or they are going to go.

I have taken them off of acv and garlic unless I see one not feeling well then I isolate them and treat with said above, I have a hen that is 2 1/2 years old that her nails are so long she his walking straight up, I have her isolated because her back right at the tail feathers are raw actually she is healing and getting better, I just got this bright idea and remembered you had doctored a hen back from death just about. I want to save her, I am going to cut her nails tomorrow if it kills me, as it might since I am the only one here to help or do it.

No new birds for a month now. actually 6 weeks

Well Luvs, hard to say. When I rescued Rosie she was skinny as a string bean. I gave her cottage cheese mixed with oatmeal, garlic, chopped tomato, chopped grapes nearly every day for about 2 weeks. I spent a lot of time just holding her and stroking her and talking softly. I felt so bad for her and what she had been through, I wanted her to feel safe. Every morning she was the first chicken I would tend to, and the last in the evening. Some days I gave her veggie scraps (cooked because she has not much beak so she has trouble with raw crunchy stuff). She began to lay after about 3 weeks. I rescued her because I wanted to give her a good home, not because I expected her to lay. In fact, I was completely stunned when she started to lay. The first couple of eggs, she ate them. Then she stopped. I didn't do anything to make her stop. I figured with her history, if she wanted to eat her eggs, she was entitled. To be honest, it made no difference to me if she ever laid or not. I just wanted her to be safe and secure. Blew my mind when she laid the biggest eggs that I ever saw.

Then, I rescued more recently 5 red something-or-other hens. Maybe red star, maybe cinnamon queen, I have no idea. 2 of them are laying, 3 are not. They appear to be all the same age. Same treatment as Rosie but more veggies because they have regular beaks. Oh, also chick feed (medicated) to prevent cocci.

Right now, I have about 40 hens and I am getting 3 eggs a day - Rosie and the 2 reds. Earlier in the fall I was getting 7 to 8 eggs a day. I think it's the weather. I think they will start again in the new year. But it doesn't matter to me - I love them all and they have a good home here, regardless of their egg production. I know some of the ones I got from my colleague are 7 years old. They are probably done laying. But that's fine, they deserve to live out their golden years in chicken scratching heaven, as much as I can provide it for them.

So why do you have to cull them? Do you want to send them to me? If they are not laying, I will take them. I am happy to host more "elderly" hens. I'm reluctant to take on any more roosters. Are you going to Jacob's Cave in spring? Can you hold them until then? I am a sanctuary for hens in their "golden years" and would love to have any non-layers who just need a warm coop and some scratching ground. :-)

I am not going to cull at least not yet. My babies are not due to lay until end of november at the earliest. I bout 5 hens of which 1 is laying 3 months ago the other one of the 5 is a phoenix and I believe she just started laying and said to only lay 1 a week ughhhhhhh. The rest are the other birds I aquired, I dont even have a clue how many girls there are in that batch but they have been here for 6 weeks. They have had a very pleasant life here in the past 2 weeks. They are getting nice food, bugs, scraps and free ranging. Ok I figured it out, when well wont go into that, but the gate kept being left open so I stopped the free ranging now that I have the control of the gate I let them back out. They had a yard to get out of the coop but I wouldnt let them out to my big yard. Now they have free range once again.

Thanks just had to talk myself into what was wrong. Maybe in a few weeks i will be overwhelmed in eggs

If the birds do not produce they will become food. I love my chickens, I also got into this for food I know where they came from and what is in them.

On a jamie oliver special on chicken abuse they did that kind of thing and rescued like 100 battery hens or something and put them in jamies backyard and they started laying again. It sounded really cool and im glad that real people are doing it as well. Chickens dont deserve to be explioted by comercial egg farms

Boy Harmony, I seem to think that you are not being very fair to all members. And yes there are some jokes on here, but usually not ones that require such comments

We all need to be nice to one another and hold the our tongues sometimes.

Sheila

I took it down and Luvs understands i have already spoken with her all is well and taken care of......

Well, Luvs.. I, for one, look at the threads that have questions.. but I feel I'm too new to answer, so that is a reason for some of the "views" that add up before you get a response. I'm sure there are more who just don't have an answer but do look. I know it's disturbing to see several views and no responses... but it just happens.. and it doesn't mean it's directed at you.. (or me) It happens to me a lot too.. not just on this thread.

I would guess that it's the weather.. It's cold here.. so it's gotta be colder there, right? I see on the egg auctions that hens are stopping laying all over, so I'd think it's just normal. Not to mention the hours of daylight.
I have read in several places that just a strand of Christmas lights can trick them into thinking the season hasn't changed..

If they are older hens... I'd bet they know the seasons well and probably know what to do. Are they cold weather layers? I see on http://www.ithaca.edu/staff/jhenderson/chooks/chooks.html some breeds are good about laying in the cold weather.

On here, when someone is "stirring the pot" you just have to ignore it and not let it get to you. It happens where ever you go and there is nothing you can do about it. You CAN do something about how it affects you..
Easier said than done.. I get all upset and cry at the least lil thing.. so I'm just speaking from experience.. LOL I wish you the best.

I agree with you ZZ the only way i can explain it is i have learned alot about things i wish i hadn't ever known anything about my life is complicated enough as it is.

Now i'm off to greener pastures and friendly people have a nice day all.

I have gotten my feed bill down to about 100 bucks a week now, it was about 160 a week when I had help feeding them. I do know they like things to be consistent. Maybe some of them are just to old to lay. We will see in the next few weeks.

Thanks all

I can imagine it's frustrating to only be able to do the guessing game! It's so much easier when a problem presents itself clearly so there is a solution!
My pickup is doing that... LOL My mechanic says it's possessed. LOL It has random problems that are not consistent and I can guarantee you every time he comes to drive it.. it runs perfect. Nothing to fix... but scary to drive out of town... I just want to know what it is so I can fix it!!!!

Good deal anything to cut a feed bill:)

OMG ZZ I got and old car the same way whenever i say it needs fixin it runs perfect but soon as i sit my butt in the drivers seat it will choke on me LOL

I wish this was an old car.. then it would be easier to fix! It's a lemon 2001 Dodge Dakota I bought from the lot.. I still owe twice what it's worth... and haven't been brave enough to take it camping once.. (in a year) I've had it towed a few times.. etc. There is a short somewhere in a wire that is sending the wrong message to the computer.. so it thinks the transmission is broke... then it thinks it can't idle.. then it thinks it's not supposed to start.. the list goes on...
I took it back to the dealer several times... the fight wasn't worth the stress.. their mechanic lied and said I never brought it in.. then their transmission guy wanted to charge me $350. to fix a part the transmission doesn't even have!!!!!!!!
Yeah.. tell me about the pickup from hell.

This thread just exploded since the last time I looked and apparently I missed some drama that has since been erased -- thank goodness!

Sorry L2G2, I was one of the lurkers. I didn't respond because you were asking for Claires help specifically and I have NO experience with rescues. My girls were all in good homes before coming home with me.

I think you are doing all that you can. Keep things stable, give them some supplemental light, and extra treats like what Claire describes above and I bet you'll start getting some payback from all that feed you're buying.

[side note here: HOLY COW! I can't imagine that much feed! My girls have the same $15 50lb bag that we bought when we bought them back in July. They are just now starting to eat more, maybe due to weather, maybe due to laying...]

+++++{{{{Hugs to all and good egg laying vibes being sent your way Luvs}}}}+++++

Yes, it did explode.. I'm sorry for getting off topic.. Sore subject that pickup is!

I can't imagine a feed bill like that.. I'm sure it works on you when your not getting any returns! With that many, it's got to be hard to "supplement" their feed..

I didn't mention that this thread was directed at Claire.. another reason it wasn't answered by others..

I hope you feel better and get a gob of eggs real soon.

no problem at all thanks

Luvs2garden, besides the regular posters that did not know the answer to your question I am sure there are a lot like me, regular lurkers. This is the first forum I check each day and come back to it several times during the day. Normally I would never have posted, no animals whatsover, have never even touched a chicken, but hate to see you upset by lack of responses. I dd have the urge to post last Friday evening, I wanted to ask opinions of what Claire would bring home that weekend I was sure there would be something. Guess I was right but never thought of sheep. This forum is a bright spot in my day so hope my lurking does not cause any more hurt feelings.

Surreybrit - just curious, if you didn't think of sheep, what did you think I would bring home?! Maybe it will give me a good idea for the coming weekend!

Guinea pigs!

it is ok really no worries, welcome lurker now poster.

LMBO @ wren. Guinea pigs! Is there a guinea pig thread? Wren I had to start the warm baths for the wild birds today There be snow