Chicken Chronicles

[Dawgluver]

I googled spur removal, there's all kinds of YouTube videos and advice. One of the more interesting methods was using hot baked potatoes. You stick them on the spurs, leave them for 10 minutes, and the spurs come off, no blood. Ewww.

Rocky is there just for protection and, um, recreation, right? Not necessary? Hope your interventions work, CW, but he sounds pretty dangerous.

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

I'm pretty sure it's um, recreation.

I have a general understanding of chickens and egg laying. After all they teach all the basic concepts in school. Not having raised chickens, I don't have a practical concept of raising them for egg production...

Just how much interaction do the hens need with a rooster to continue egg laying? Or do they just lay infertile eggs if no rooster is involved? Does the presence of a rooster increase egg laying? (They could interact behaviorally or by pheromones without actually needing um, recreation.)

It seems to me that if you wanted only infertile eggs and if the rooster isn't necessary for that then might be better off not having him around. I suspect there must be some benefit to having one.

I'd like to give a try at raising chickens for egg production some day, just enough for the household. Maybe even raise some for food although I'd have to try that to see if slaughtering them sits well with me. Probably makes no difference as I'm pretty sure I won't ever have enough yard and proper zoning to do it. But everybody has a dream, right?

 

[CWS4322]

I'm pretty sure it's um, recreation.

I have a general understanding of chickens and egg laying. After all they teach all the basic concepts in school. Not having raised chickens, I don't have a practical concept of raising them for egg production...

Just how much interaction do the hens need with a rooster to continue egg laying? Or do they just lay infertile eggs if no rooster is involved? Does the presence of a rooster increase egg laying? (They could interact behaviorally or by pheromones without actually needing um, recreation.)

It seems to me that if you wanted only infertile eggs and if the rooster isn't necessary for that then might be better off not having him around. I suspect there must be some benefit to having one.

I'd like to give a try at raising chickens for egg production some day, just enough for the household. Maybe even raise some for food although I'd have to try that to see if slaughtering them sits well with me. Probably makes no difference as I'm pretty sure I won't ever have enough yard and proper zoning to do it. But everybody has a dream, right?

Roos alert the hens re: having found food (so the hunter for food is the rooster, the gatherers are the hens ). Roos also make sure that everyone goes back into the coop at night. In addition, Roos are supposed to defend the flock re: predators. We got the rooster for that reason--to protect/defend the flock since they would be free roaming. I'm having a problem with chopping his head off--he is a very handsome bird. I am also having a problem with all the marks on my body...and the pain associated with the puncture in my arm. I will modify my attire and behaviour, but, if that doesn't fix Mr. Cocky Rocky's attitude, he's going in the stew pot or maybe I can trade him for two ducks and my friend with chickens will put him in his stew pot.

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

Thanks for the interesting and informative post.

I still don't fully understand the role of the rooster in um, recreation, if you don't need fertilized eggs. (Of course you need a rooster if you want more chickens.)

Do your hens keep laying if there's no rooster involved?

 

[CWS4322]

Thanks for the interesting and informative post.

I still don't fully understand the role of the rooster in um, recreation, if you don't need fertilized eggs. (Of course you need a rooster if you want more chickens.)

Do your hens keep laying if there's no rooster involved?

Yup, they lay without a roo--but who would wake you up in the morning out on the farm without a roo?

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

Well I don't really want to be woke up in the morning, although unfortunately I wake up often before dawn and no roo necessary. I like to think that if I ever slept past dawn it would be nice to wake up without needing to listen to cock-a-doodle roo!

I've enjoyed reading your posts and vicariously living my life of a chicken raiser with no chickens.

 

[CWS4322]

I googled spur removal, there's all kinds of YouTube videos and advice. One of the more interesting methods was using hot baked potatoes. You stick them on the spurs, leave them for 10 minutes, and the spurs come off, no blood. Ewww.

Rocky is there just for protection and, um, recreation, right? Not necessary? Hope your interventions work, CW, but he sounds pretty dangerous.

I googled this as well, Dawgluver, after seeing this post. I think we'll give spur removal a try this weekend. Obviously, it will work better if there are two of us. If there would be a third person, we could take pics! A lot easier, emotionally, than sending him to freezer camp. The "war wound" is much better today. Not nearly as painful or "angry" (red) as my friend the vet would say. Up until now, having chickens was so much fun.

And, Silly Milly has been hiding her eggs in the loft (where the lumber from the sawmill is air dried). Of course her latest clutch is behind a 6 ft x 12 ft pile of oak boards that is parked close to the eaves. I sprained my toe a couple of weeks ago and could not assume the yoga egg clutch gathering position (hurt my toe to do so). Another activity that requires two people--one who is agile enough to dangle off the pile of lumber and retrieve the eggs, the other who can receive the eggs from the agile person because the ladder to the loft is a roofing ladder and I know I would not be able to descend said ladder holding a clutch of 18 eggs. These will be dog eggs, not fit for human consumption. It is hot in the loft...or, maybe they will be used to deter deer from the corn patch. Silly Milly will learn that at the house in the City, there isn't a loft and she'll be forced to lay her eggs in the nest box (where she should have been laying them all along). Gotcha!

 

[taxlady]

I googled this as well, Dawgluver, after seeing this post. I think we'll give spur removal a try this weekend. Obviously, it will work better if there are two of us. If there would be a third person, we could take pics! A lot easier, emotionally, than sending him to freezer camp. The "war wound" is much better today. Not nearly as painful or "angry" (red) as my friend the vet would say.

I'm glad to read that the wound is getting better and that you will be doing something serious about not getting more of them.

How long do you need to keep taking the antibiotics?

 

[CWS4322]

I'm glad to read that the wound is getting better and that you will be doing something serious about not getting more of them.

How long do you need to keep taking the antibiotics?

10 days. And, FWIW, I overslept this a.m.--no rooster to wake me!

 

[Addie]

We had Mallard ducks when we lived in Texas. I let the mother duck build a nest. When her babies hatched, Daddy Duck was right there along with Mama Duck to protect them. Then one day we saw a Water Moccasin slithering away with a big lump in him. We went to count the duckies. Daddy Duck was missing. I would like to think he died protecting his family. We gave the rest of them to friends who had a farm and a large pond for them. They turned into a very large flock. Our friend was able to get another male Mallard.

I got my revenge a few months later. Along with the woman across the street, we killed two Water Moccasins in one day. I just know one of them was the culprit.

 

[Addie]

10 days. And, FWIW, I overslept this a.m.--no rooster to wake me!

He was feeling guilty for what he did to you and decided to let you sleep. And he knows what fate he may be facing.

 

[CWS4322]

We had Mallard ducks when we lived in Texas. I let the mother duck build a nest. When her babies hatched, Daddy Duck was right there along with Mama Duck to protect them. Then one day we saw a Water Moccasin slithering away with a big lump in him. We went to count the duckies. Daddy Duck was missing. I would like to think he died protecting his family. We gave the rest of them to friends who had a farm and a large pond for them. They turned into a very large flock. Our friend was able to get another male Mallard.

I got my revenge a few months later. Along with the woman across the street, we killed two Water Moccasins in one day. I just know one of them was the culprit.

Last time I checked, guarder (sp) snakes didn't eat roosters...we don't have any kind of snake in the vicinity that could eat something as large as Rocky. (Unless you think I could be sneaky enough...). Any snake that would eat Rocky would probably get indigestion! He's one large roo and has lots of feathers.

 

[CWS4322]

We didn't get around to removing Rocky's spurs yesterday--still wearing protective armor when I go outside. Here is a pic of the chicken whisperer with Harriet. She won't hop on my arm, but she does on his.

 

[CWS4322]

Didn't get around to tilling the patch under the kitchen window at the farm--decided to put the chickens to work first. I scattered feed there this morning--only Harriet had followed me that far...she didn't let out a peep for hours! I went out and scattered more...Henny, Penny, Agatha, and Prudence followed me. It took Rocky about an hour to figure out there was another food source about which to crow about! Here's a pic of them working the patch.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

Can we get an after picture to see how they do? That is an excellent pic of Harriet! Love seeing all the pics, gets me a good idea of the girls.

 

[CWS4322]

Can we get an after picture to see how they do? That is an excellent pic of Harriet! Love seeing all the pics, gets me a good idea of the girls.

Sure! it will take them a few days to get the patch down to the bare ground. They are going into lock down tonight until Wednesday a.m., but I'll send them back out when I come back--things to do at the house in the City and still not ready to move them. (And yes, Harriet [and Myrtle] are really that people friendly. Myrtle comes to the kitchen door for a bit a cheese around 3:30 every day...who said you couldn't train a chicken?).

 

[Dawgluver]

They're adorable!

 

[CWS4322]

They're adorable!

I have to agree--even though Cocky Rocky is too big for his spurs! And, lest one think they are spoiled, they are not, they are pampered chickens. Which reminds me, I have some ricotta cheese for them...

 

[Dawgluver]

I have to agree--even though Cocky Rocky is too big for his spurs! And, lest one think they are spoiled, they are not, they are pampered chickens. Which reminds me, I have some ricotta cheese for them...

We know you would NEVER spoil your chickens, CWS! Ricotta is a natural part of chicken diets.

 

[CWS4322]

We know you would NEVER spoil your chickens, CWS! Ricotta is a natural part of chicken diets.

I had to give them s/thing good to entice them to go into lockdown status this early. I've left them with 5 days' worth of feed (they'll eat it all before the end of day tomorrow or Tuesday a.m., I am sure) and 5 days' worth of water. They should be okay until Tuesday evening/Wednesday a.m.