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Sally Thompson
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 Posted: Fri Jul 18, 2008 6:25 pm Post subject: Beginner>s questions |
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Well at last I have started my new addiction <g> with two Jubilee Orpingtons
who arrived on Wednesday and are settling in well and already causing endless
amusement. Now my real questions start in earnest! Some of them will no
doubt sound very silly to begin with, but there is so much conflicting advice
out there.
I want to create an area for a dust bath for them. I am told I can put wood
ash there, and also fine sand, and any old dried potting compost. Does that
sound about right? My main question is, should the dust bath be covered or
not?
Secondly, I am feeding layers pellets in the morning and wheat in the
afternoon, which is what the breeder advised (he said give wheat rather than
mixed corn). For the layers pellets, he told me to fill up one of those
feeders which has a central container which sits in a kind of saucer and just
let them feed at will. I can>t help thinking that the pellets get rather
damp if I do that, although the feeder is under cover (but not in the hen
house). Would it in fact be better to just put out what is needed for the
day?
--
Sally in Shropshire, UK |
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Jill
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| Posted: Fri Jul 18, 2008 6:25 pm Post subject: Re: Beginner>s questions |
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Sally Thompson wrote:
[quote]Well at last I have started my new addiction <g> with two Jubilee
Orpingtons who arrived on Wednesday and are settling in well and
already causing endless amusement. Now my real questions start in
earnest! Some of them will no doubt sound very silly to begin with,
but there is so much conflicting advice out there.
[/quote]
Glad to see you are getting so much fun from your new babies.
[quote]
I want to create an area for a dust bath for them. I am told I can
put wood ash there, and also fine sand, and any old dried potting
compost. Does that sound about right? My main question is, should
the dust bath be covered or not?
[/quote]
Yes if its going to get wet.
;)
Otherwise its a mud bath.
Seriously, there are few parts of the UK which are so dry as to provide a
dry dust bath all year around.
The wetter it is the more the birds need a good dry place to re-condition
their feathers.
[quote]
Secondly, I am feeding layers pellets in the morning and wheat in the
afternoon, which is what the breeder advised (he said give wheat
rather than mixed corn).
[/quote]
Yes
but pellets should be ad lib and NEVER outside.
The feeder should be inside always. A hopper should be hung / fixed at head
height so they cannot scratch in it and waste it.
This is because
- the food can get wet - spoil, and gets wasted, mouldy food can cause
botulism
- food outside attracts rodents - its a falacy that chickens bring rodents
in, its bad husbandry that does and that is mainly having feeding outside,
especially at night.
- food outside attracts wild birds - which bring diseases, mites and other
conditions. and feed is too expensive to be feeding them
- Food indoors means they start the day before they are let out with a good
crop full of the best food which is the pellets.
wheat should be only a scatter - what is completely cleared in 5 -10 minutes
and no more. probably only an ounce a day per bird.
Its not good nutrition, but is useful for warmth and feather condition.
This time of year when there is lots of great bugs seeds and greens out on
range then they really do not need it at all and for young growing birds its
not useful food at all.
I would prefer to leave it until September time when the temperature gets
chillier and the weather gets wetter.
Mixed grain should only be fed in the UK on days when it is so wet and cold
that its the extra three jumpers and thermals before you start. Its great
central heating for chickens but otherwise causes many more problems
nutritionally.
[quote]Would it in fact be better
to just put out what is needed for the day?
[/quote]
No - they should not be limit fed.
Enjoy -- looking forward to seeing pics of your beautiful babies.
--
regards
Jill Bowis
Domestic Poultry and Waterfowl Solutions
Herbaceous; Herb and Alpine Nursery
Seasonal Farm Food
http://www.kintaline.co.uk |
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Sally Thompson
Guest
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| Posted: Sat Jul 19, 2008 12:27 am Post subject: Re: Beginner>s questions |
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On Fri, 18 Jul 2008 18:54:06 +0100, Jill wrote
(in article <6ec3dbF6dk3pU1@mid.individual.net>):
[quote]Sally Thompson wrote:
snip[/quote]
[quote]I want to create an area for a dust bath for them. I am told I can
put wood ash there, and also fine sand, and any old dried potting
compost. Does that sound about right? My main question is, should
the dust bath be covered or not?
Yes if its going to get wet.
;)
Otherwise its a mud bath.
Seriously, there are few parts of the UK which are so dry as to provide a
dry dust bath all year around.
The wetter it is the more the birds need a good dry place to re-condition
their feathers.
[/quote]
Right. That>s vaguely what I thought, but couldn>t find an answer anywhere.
They are hanging out under the hen house when it is raining (when is it not
raining?<g>) but the head height isn>t large and I think from what I>ve read
that they would like a good-sized area to have fun in. We will sort that
over the weekend.
[quote]Secondly, I am feeding layers pellets in the morning and wheat in the
afternoon, which is what the breeder advised (he said give wheat
rather than mixed corn).
Yes
but pellets should be ad lib and NEVER outside.
The feeder should be inside always. A hopper should be hung / fixed at head
height so they cannot scratch in it and waste it.
This is because
- the food can get wet - spoil, and gets wasted, mouldy food can cause
botulism
- food outside attracts rodents - its a falacy that chickens bring rodents
in, its bad husbandry that does and that is mainly having feeding outside,
especially at night.
- food outside attracts wild birds - which bring diseases, mites and other
conditions. and feed is too expensive to be feeding them
- Food indoors means they start the day before they are let out with a good
crop full of the best food which is the pellets.
[/quote]
Jill, thanks as always for the excellent advice - and for giving clear
understandable reasons for that advice. I haven>t snipped the advice so that
it helps anyone else finding this thread. So many web sites say "do this",
"do something else" and for the beginner that can be confusing where no
reason is given. We have rushed out and rigged up something temporary in the
hen house so that they have a nice feed in the morning, and will buy a more
suitable feeder tomorrow that can be fixed on the wall.
[quote]
wheat should be only a scatter - what is completely cleared in 5 -10 minutes
and no more. probably only an ounce a day per bird.
Its not good nutrition, but is useful for warmth and feather condition.
This time of year when there is lots of great bugs seeds and greens out on
range then they really do not need it at all and for young growing birds its
not useful food at all.
I would prefer to leave it until September time when the temperature gets
chillier and the weather gets wetter.
Mixed grain should only be fed in the UK on days when it is so wet and cold
that its the extra three jumpers and thermals before you start. Its great
central heating for chickens but otherwise causes many more problems
nutritionally.
[/quote]
OK. I have only given a slight scatter - about a handful between the two,
which they seem to devour. I will limit it severely, and perhaps weigh it to
check.
[quote]Enjoy -- looking forward to seeing pics of your beautiful babies.
[/quote]
How did you guess? I let them out the first morning and the first thing I
did was take a photo<g>. They are very pretty and their fluffy bottoms
remind me of can-can dancers, especially when they are heads down and bottoms
up (the usual posture for chickens, I have realised).
--
Sally in Shropshire, UK |
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Jill
Guest
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| Posted: Sat Jul 19, 2008 12:43 am Post subject: Re: Beginner>s questions |
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Sally Thompson wrote:
[quote]On Fri, 18 Jul 2008 18:54:06 +0100, Jill wrote
(in article <6ec3dbF6dk3pU1@mid.individual.net>):
Sally Thompson wrote:
snip
I want to create an area for a dust bath for them. I am told I can
put wood ash there, and also fine sand, and any old dried potting
compost. Does that sound about right? My main question is, should
the dust bath be covered or not?
Yes if its going to get wet.
;)
Otherwise its a mud bath.
Seriously, there are few parts of the UK which are so dry as to
provide a dry dust bath all year around.
The wetter it is the more the birds need a good dry place to
re-condition their feathers.
Right. That>s vaguely what I thought, but couldn>t find an answer
anywhere. They are hanging out under the hen house when it is raining
(when is it not raining?<g>) but the head height isn>t large and I
think from what I>ve read that they would like a good-sized area to
have fun in. We will sort that over the weekend.
[/quote]
We made half hoop "car ports" for a line of breed pens.
A parked up trailer will do
Or an old door on tree stumps which you can drape clematis and honeysuckle
all over.
[quote]
OK. I have only given a slight scatter - about a handful between the
two, which they seem to devour. I will limit it severely, and
perhaps weigh it to check.
[/quote]
We all like our carbs !!!!!
That does not mean they are all good for us.
Mind you the response to the scatter reflex is really interesting.
We get lots of visitors here and they get a pot of feed to give the birds.
Many of the visitors will give us great detail about the unsuitable things
they feed their birds that the birds simply "love"
And the explanations are all so detailed about how these birds really could
not live without all the unhealthy things.
They then get exactly the same response out of our birds feeding them from
the pots.
In the pots is layers pellets, and in each house is ad lib layers pellets.
It is not what is being fed that causes so much desire -- its the scatter
reflex.
[quote]
Enjoy -- looking forward to seeing pics of your beautiful babies.
How did you guess? I let them out the first morning and the first
thing I did was take a photo<g>. They are very pretty and their
fluffy bottoms remind me of can-can dancers, especially when they are
heads down and bottoms up (the usual posture for chickens, I have
realised).
[/quote]
AND --- where are they ?
;)
--
regards
Jill Bowis
Domestic Poultry and Waterfowl Solutions
Herbaceous; Herb and Alpine Nursery
Seasonal Farm Food
http://www.kintaline.co.uk |
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Sally Thompson
Guest
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| Posted: Sat Jul 19, 2008 2:30 am Post subject: Re: Beginner>s questions |
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On Fri, 18 Jul 2008 20:43:34 +0100, Jill wrote
(in article <6ec9qhF6emq3U1@mid.individual.net>):
[quote]Sally Thompson wrote:
On Fri, 18 Jul 2008 18:54:06 +0100, Jill wrote
(in article <6ec3dbF6dk3pU1@mid.individual.net>):
[/quote]
[quote]Enjoy -- looking forward to seeing pics of your beautiful babies.
How did you guess? I let them out the first morning and the first
thing I did was take a photo<g>. They are very pretty and their
fluffy bottoms remind me of can-can dancers, especially when they are
heads down and bottoms up (the usual posture for chickens, I have
realised).
AND --- where are they ?
;)
[/quote]
Well since you insist :-)
<http://s230.photobucket.com/albums/ee301/sallycatlover/hens/>
(Not the best quality because taken on my phone.)
--
Sally in Shropshire, UK |
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Amy Blankenship
Guest
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| Posted: Sun Jul 20, 2008 12:22 am Post subject: Re: Beginner>s questions |
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" Jill" <news@NOSPAMkintaline.co.uk> wrote in message
news:6ec3dbF6dk3pU1@mid.individual.net...
[quote]Yes
but pellets should be ad lib and NEVER outside.
The feeder should be inside always. A hopper should be hung / fixed at
head height so they cannot scratch in it and waste it.
This is because
- the food can get wet - spoil, and gets wasted, mouldy food can cause
botulism
- food outside attracts rodents - its a falacy that chickens bring rodents
in, its bad husbandry that does and that is mainly having feeding outside,
especially at night.
- food outside attracts wild birds - which bring diseases, mites and other
conditions. and feed is too expensive to be feeding them
- Food indoors means they start the day before they are let out with a
good crop full of the best food which is the pellets.
[/quote]
I made a feeder out of a plastic bucket that once held about 10 lbs of
baking soda by cutting holes out of the sides so chickens can get their
heads in. Since it is wider at the top than the bottom and has a lid, even
if the wind blows rain into my coop the feed doesn>t get wet.
Just as a FYI, botulism only grows and produces toxins in anaerobic
conditions (no air), so if your hens can get your heads into it, it is
unlikely to have a thriving botulism population. Note that it is not the
botulism itself, but the toxins the bacteria produce, that cause problems.
Not that this means you want to have wet feed lying about--this is dangerous
for other reasons--but you shouldn>t be afraid of that _particular_
organism, since it can>t grow in the conditions we>re talking about.
HTH;
Amy |
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Sally Thompson
Guest
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| Posted: Sun Jul 20, 2008 2:01 am Post subject: Re: Beginner>s questions |
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On Sat, 19 Jul 2008 20:22:13 +0100, Amy Blankenship wrote
(in article <56rgk.4051$bN2.1608@bignews9.bellsouth.net>):
[quote]
" Jill" <news@NOSPAMkintaline.co.uk> wrote in message
news:6ec3dbF6dk3pU1@mid.individual.net...
Yes
but pellets should be ad lib and NEVER outside.
The feeder should be inside always. A hopper should be hung / fixed at
head height so they cannot scratch in it and waste it.
This is because
- the food can get wet - spoil, and gets wasted, mouldy food can cause
botulism
- food outside attracts rodents - its a falacy that chickens bring rodents
in, its bad husbandry that does and that is mainly having feeding outside,
especially at night.
- food outside attracts wild birds - which bring diseases, mites and other
conditions. and feed is too expensive to be feeding them
- Food indoors means they start the day before they are let out with a
good crop full of the best food which is the pellets.
I made a feeder out of a plastic bucket that once held about 10 lbs of
baking soda by cutting holes out of the sides so chickens can get their
heads in. Since it is wider at the top than the bottom and has a lid, even
if the wind blows rain into my coop the feed doesn>t get wet.
Just as a FYI, botulism only grows and produces toxins in anaerobic
conditions (no air), so if your hens can get your heads into it, it is
unlikely to have a thriving botulism population. Note that it is not the
botulism itself, but the toxins the bacteria produce, that cause problems.
Not that this means you want to have wet feed lying about--this is dangerous
for other reasons--but you shouldn>t be afraid of that _particular_
organism, since it can>t grow in the conditions we>re talking about.
HTH;
[/quote]
Yes it does, Amy. At the moment we have a plastic container nailed to a block
of wood inside the hen house until I can get something more permanent after
the weekend. I noticed one of them tonight went to bed and had a little
munch before bedtime, so they obviously have no difficulty with that
arrangement at the moment.
My (well, their) first egg today! Break out the champagne :-)
--
Sally in Shropshire, UK |
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