Blog - Page 3 of 74 - City Girl Farming

04/22/2017 By Kerrie

How to Make a Milk Crate Nest Box

Do you need an extra nest box and in a hurry? Here’s a perfect solution: make a nest box out of a milk crate. It’s the perfect size and only takes a couple of minutes.

Recently, I took in a batch of four new hens that needed to be relocated. That brought my flock up to 15 girls. The new ones integrated into my existing flock beautifully (better than ever before). And all was well…except that my old girls wouldn’t let the new girls lay their eggs in any of the nest boxes. And maybe I wouldn’t have minded so much, except the spot the new girls picked to lay their eggs was the absolute hardest place to reach in the whole coop.

I decided I needed a new nest box on the opposite side of the existing boxes, just to allow everyone to have their own space. But I didn’t want it to take me very long and I didn’t want to spend any money on it. My solution ended up as a milk crate nest box. It’s a big hit with my flock and has actually become the favored box by both my old and new girls. Go figure.

SIMPLE STEPS TO A MILK CRATE NEST BOX:

Take an old crate and laid it on its side.
Cut a small piece of scrap wood to create a ‘lip’ of sorts on the bottom and screw it in with screws (this is to keep the bedding from falling out).

That’s pretty much it! I also lined the bottom with a scrap piece of linoleum (just did it because I had it, it’s certainly not necessary). As well as added scrap wood to the top (because of where I needed to place it in the coop, I wanted to protect the nest box area from stray poo that might fall from a roosting hen at night).

At first, I just set it in the coop on the floor. I put it in a corner, so that two walls of the nest box were covered by the walls of the coop (for more privacy for the hen). The hens liked it fine, but I didn’t like it on the ground (nest boxes should ideally be raised off the ground by at least 15-18 inches). Where I needed to place mine made it difficult to raise it that high. But, I build a wooden base for it out of scrap 2×4’s (I stacked two on top of each other so that it was 8 inches off the ground).

I would like it a bit higher still, but it works great and the girls are happy . Happy girls mean I’m happy too. Less than an hour of work saves me from crawling into the furthest corner of the coop to collect eggs every day. Yay for simple solutions.

04/14/2017 By Kerrie

Medicated Chick Starter? (Pros and Cons to Help You Decide)

There are a few debates in the chicken world. To use medicated chick starter or not is one of them. As with most things hotly debated around the subject of chickens, it’s largely a matter of personal choice. You can decide. But which is the better way? Here’s a closer to look at both sides of the issue to help you make an informed decision.

What is Medicated Chick Starter?

It’s helpful to understand what exactly the ‘medicated’ part of medicated chick starter is all about.

It is chick feed that has an added low dose of Amprolium.
Amprolium isn’t an antibiotic.
Amprolium helps inhibit the protozoa that causes Coccidiosis (which is an intestinal parasite found pretty much everywhere).
It only helps protect against Coccidiosis (which is one of the major causes of death among chicks), but not any other disease or infection common to chicks. And by HELPING, I mean, help. Not prevent. (Remember, it’s not an antibiotic.)
Medicated chick starter works by helping to ward off the Coccidiosis bacteria while the babies grow stronger immunity to it (yet it allows some into the system so that they can build up resistance against it).
It inhibits the absorption of thiamine (B1) in the chick’s system.
Medicated chick starter won’t work unless there chicks have access to Coccidiosis bacteria (ie from the dirt).

Why to USE Medicated Chick Starter

It helps protect chicks from Coccidiosis, which is a major killer among chicks. And the bacteria is pretty much everywhere so there’s no escaping it.
Ease of use. Natural alternatives require more steps and higher level of experience.
If you’ve ever had an outbreak of Coccidiosis, your chicks will be extra susceptible.

Why to AVOID Medicated Chick Starter

It inhibits the absorption of B1, which is essential to the growth of a healthy chicken. Some argue that the inhibition is so minor, no damage is done, others argue that it contributes to things like ‘splay leg’ (a musculoskeletal condition that causes the chicks legs to splay apart and keep her from standing upright).
If the chick has been inoculated against Coccidiosis, the medicated feed won’t add any extra protection.
Coccidiosis is not generally a problem if you’re chicks were hatched by one of your hens and are out in the coop already.
If you want to go ‘all natural’, you might choose other options.

Why to USE Non-Medicated Chick Starter

If the chick has already been given a vaccination for Coccidiosis.
If you want to use natural alternatives.
To allow the chicks to get all the B1 they need.

Why to Avoid Non-Medicated Chick Starter

If the chick hasn’t already been vaccinated against Coccidiosis.
You’re nervous about the potential outcomes of going natural.
You don’t want to hassle with it natural protocols.

Like I said before, which route you decide is largely a matter of preference. Stick to your guns and know that not everyone will agree with you, regardless of where you land. And that’s okay. Once you land on a choice, it will dictate what you do next.

What to Do if You Use Medicated Chick Starter

If you go the medicated route, you should start the chicks on it when you bring them home. However, remember that until they’ve been down in the dirt, the Amprolium won’t be doing them any good. Some suggest that you take the babies out and expose them to the dirt outdoors. Some say they add a bit of dirt to the brooder, others say they take the chicks outside for exposure. Do whatever works for you.

They should stay on the medicated starter for at least two weeks after they begin to live outside.

If you have other chickens, don’t let them eat the medicated feed. If they do, you shouldn’t eat their eggs.

What to Do if You Want to Go “Natural”

Going the non-medicated route just takes a bit more work.

Add apple cider vinegar to the chicks water (1 Tablespoon per gallon) and give them tiny amounts of yogurt with live cultures. This will help them with their immunity and digestive health.
Make sure to keep the brooder clean and dry. The Coccidiosis bacterial loves dirty, wet environments.
Add tiny amounts of dirt to the brooder to expose the chicks to the bacteria in the dirt.
Don’t over crowd the birds. Make sure they have plenty of room to move around.

No matter which way you decide to go, know that Coccidiosis is everywhere. Clean habits are a good prevention, regardless of whether you choose to go natural or not. In the end, neither way is a guarantee, but either way will help keep your chicks save and help them grow up healthy and happy.

Medicated chick starter? Know the pros and cons to help you decide. — Peeking out the brooder window

04/05/2017 By Kerrie

Why Do Hens Lay Rubber Eggs? (and What to Do About it)

Have you ever had a hen lay a rubber egg? By ‘rubber’ I mean a soft egg, without a shell around it. It’s actually a perfectly fine egg, so to speak, it’s just missing it’s tough outer shell. And once in a while a hen lays one. But why?

I have a hen that likes to lay those bouncy rubber eggs when she get scared. All the other times (when she’s not scared), her eggs are normal.

(By scared I mean as in the time the neighbor boy mowed the lawn got between her and the coop, She freaked out. I flagged the lawn boy down, he turned the mower, and Goldie squawked and flapped her way back to the chicken run. Once inside, out popped a rubber egg, where the other chickens pounced on it, devouring it like they were piranhas. It was gone before Goldie knew what happened.)

WHAT CAUSES RUBBER OR SHELL-LESS EGGS?

There are a few different possible causes to why a hen would lay an egg without a shell. Most of the reasons also have simple solutions, so the problem should be easy to fix.

Stress

Stress for a chicken might mean an unexpected lawn boy like for Goldie. It could mean being sick. Or a recent predator attack on the flock. It could also be any number of other factors such as a rough rooster being too active with her, too much heat, barking dogs next door. Anything that unsettles them.

The stress pushes the egg through the cycle too quickly not giving it enough time to properly form a shell around the egg (but the membrane is fully intact).

Solution: Keep your hens in as stress free an environment as possible.

Age

If a hen is young, sometimes her reproductive ‘stuff’ hasn’t caught up with itself. If this is the case, as the hen ages, things should level out.

Equally, if the hen is getting older, they might lay a rubber egg. This is caused because as a hen ages, their eggs get bigger so there is less ‘shell material’ to cover the larger egg.

Solution: For young hens, just wait it out. For old hens (if the problem is large eggs) there’s not much you can do.

Calcium Deficiency

Hens need extra calcium to produce all those shells. If they don’t get enough calcium in their diet, they might lay thin-shelled or shell-less eggs.

Solution: A good way to get this calcium is to make sure your laying hens are on a layer feed. This is a feed that’s been fortified with more calcium for the laying years.

Sometimes, though, just layer feed alone isn’t enough. It’s good to have extra calcium in the coop for the hens to eat. I do this by filling a recycled tuna fish can with a combination of oyster shell and baked, crushed chicken shells. I have it nailed to the side of the coop and they can eat it when they want. It’s not a good idea to add it into their feed. Let them decide when they want/need it. (My hens GREATLY prefer the chicken shells over the oyster shells, but I mix them together just because I don’t have enough chicken shells to keep them in constant supply.) If you’ve never used your chicken egg shells, here’s how you can prepare them.

Vitamin D Deficiency

Vitamin D is essential for hens, just like for us. And just like us, one of the main ways a hen creates enough vitamin D on her own is by having enough sun exposure. Low levels of vitamin D can cause soft-shelled, brittle or thin shelled eggs.

Solution: Add a bit of cod liver oil to their food (like adding it to some oatmeal). A little goes a long ways–there’s a high level of vitamin D in cod liver oil. You’ll know they’re getting too much if their feathers start getting oily.

No Reason At All

Sometimes there’s no reason to explain why a hen is laying a rubber egg. Sometimes weird eggs just happen. It’s nothing to worry about if it only happens on occasion. Most likely it’s just some unexplained thing and it will pass.

ARE SOFT-SHELLED EGGS SAFE TO EAT?

Technically, yes. They’re generally normal inside, they’re just missing a shell. However, the shell is what keeps it safe from the elements. The shell keeps out bacteria and other possible contamination. So, a shell-less egg can be a bit risky ingest (unless you catch it right when it gets laid). Usually I scramble the rubber eggs any hen might lay, and feed them back to the chickens for a nice dose of protein. (I know, some of you will think that’s just wrong. ha. You could feed them to the dog or something, though.)

(Below is a rubber egg after I split it open with a knife to cook the insides for my hens. Nice thick membrane, but zero hard shell.)

The bottom line is, there might be several possible problems related to your hen laying a rubber, shell-less egg. Or it might just be a random thing with no apparent reason at all. In any case, the problems have easy solutions and as long as it’s not happening EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. your hen lays an egg, I wouldn’t worry about it.

03/30/2017 By Kerrie

Make a Dust Bath for Your Chickens

An essential part of chicken health is being able to take a dust bath. ‘Bathing’ in the dirt helps them control pests that might be hanging out on them. Think of it as a natural insecticide.

If your flock is free ranging, they’ll find places to create a dust bath all on their own. A nice patch of loose dirt will do (yes, they WILL use your garden if they have access to it). They’re especially fond of sunny patches of loose dirt.

Once they find (or create) a place to bathe, they’ll burrow in, roll over, fluff their feathers up and do all sorts of strange moves. They work at getting all that dirt up into their feathers and onto their skin where pests might be lurking (the dust will suffocate the bugs).

A nice dust bath is often a group activity, with many hens squeezing into the perfect location. It seems, often, to have a hypnotic affect on them. It’s common for them to swagger when they get up out of the bath like a drunken sailor.

While dust bathing is crucial to your flock’s health, sometimes a place to have one is hard to find (this is especially true if your flock doesn’t free range, or it’s winter and the ground is covered with snow, or if you live in a ‘rain belt’ like me and the winter and spring are a soggy muddy mess with no ‘dry, loose dirt’ to be found.) Luckily, if you have less than ideal conditions, it’s easy to create a space for your flock to bathe in.

What You Need to Make a Dust Bath:

One relatively dry place that the chickens have access to

Dry, clean, loose dirt (free from dirt clots and debris) or fine sand, or a combination (I use both)

A way to contain the dirt (I use the top of an old broken wheelbarrow that I took apart. I’ve seen them made in old tires, etc)

Optional ingredients:

Wood ash (from fireplace or wood stove) is a great addition. The ash is full of beneficial ingredients like vitamin K, magnesium and calcium. It also absorbs toxins.

Diatomaceous earth (use food-grade only) kills pests (see more about DE here and how to use it with chickens) in small amounts. (It can cause irritation to the lungs so some don’t like to use it in the dust bath area. I do include it, but just in tiny amounts and I mix it in really well with the rest of the dirt mixture).

Stir it all together and wa LA! You’ve got yourself a dust bath solution for your flock. They will love you for it.