Worried about silkie

This is my first broody,I am worried about her she has been like this for three days,I thought she was dead so dh went in two nights ago and touched her and she really took at his hand so I know she is alive LOL.If she would turn around I would try to feed her something in a bowl.Since Sat. I have only seen her out once.Do I worry or this normal?The other two are in there with her but outside most of the day,the other little hen gets in there with her sometimes and she does not move or grow at her.

This is the silkies coop,you can see her still in her bucket

My ee`s and golden comets are getting so big,love them ee`s they are not friendly but are so cute

Look at those cute faces

Babies are getting so big

It's normal a Hen will get off maybe twice a day to eat and drink she will stay off say 20 to 30 minutes then go back on the nest.
She probably is coming out to eat early in the morning before you get up mine always come off just at the break of day.
Hens hold their poop all night so they don't poop in the nest and she really has to go every morning if you know what i mean LOL.
Then she is hungry and thirsty then a little flapping wings and stretching and back on the nest.

Your babys sure are getting big and so pretty {:~)

ok THANNKS, no need for me to worry then.

Since it is so terribly hot here we have taken some cool water and offered it to our broodies. They don't get off the nest too often and I worry they may get too hot. Sometimes they drink the water, sometimes they don't, but they know when they need something and will get up.

It's true Green! they will eat and drink when they desire, other than that they do not want to be disturbed. When disturbed they are really grumpy as DH found out.LOL

Smedge: I have always said you are a very smart lady! Making the water available is the best we can do. After that it's up to them.


OH Green! Your girls are looking great! You Rock. Hay

I`m so glad we don`t have the heat you do smedge,its 81 here today the warmest its been this summer but such a nice breeze then it goes down in the 50`s at night.

Oh Green 81 sounds delightful. This is one of the hottest summers we have had in a long time. By that I mean up in the 100's for so many days with no rain. We always have hot summers, some are just a bit more tolerable than others. And 50 at night....your daytime high is our low right now.

Poor animals! It must be hard on them.

If she's been there 3 days, I predict she'll be there for about another 17-19 days, and then you will hear some peeping!!! It's funny that she has her back to you. Most of my broodies have been side-on or facing forward. She's a cutie! Is she hatching just her own eggs or some of the EE eggs too?

Not her eggs had to go get some silkie eggs from the guy I got her from.I won`t have ee eggs untill september or october.

Finally she was turned around this morning so I could see her face.What could I offer her that she would eat,I bought cottage cheese and yogurt but I can`t remember what it was that you feed chickens.

I usually put a little pile of cracked corn or mixed scratch seed in with my broodies. I also feed cottage cheese, and I often mix in some rolled oats or chopped tomato or something like that.

Tried to cottage cheese and rolled oats and she did not eat that and neither did the other two,thay are really picky little creatures aren`t they?My other hens would anything except banana peels which I found out a while ago that they are not good for them anyway.I do put scratch in the pen.

Wow, that surprises me. All of mine are crazy for cottage cheese. My llamas love banana peels - I hope they are OK for them.

Well she has her back to me again and facing the inside of the bucket,guess she does not want to look at anyone.

CMoxon, I'm sure they will be fine.
Our chickens have been getting banana peels, at least one a day for 4 years, and they love it.
I think a Chicken knows what is good and what isn't.
We have bushes around the yard with all kinds of different berries on them, orange, red, black. It seems the chickens know what ones are eatable more then humans do.
And if you have free range chickens, well they are going to eat a number of things you don't even know about.

True for free range llamas too?

LOL, the last sentence most certainly!

Yes, for all free range things........LOL
If you have 20 acres that you are going to let cows or llamas, or chickens free range on, would you go through it all with a fine tooth comb to make sure there was nothing there that they might eat that they can't have? I don't think so....LOL

Recently I read somewhere, that someone said, that earthworms are not good for chickens. But you just try to stop them from eating them ;-)

Good grief, if that were the case, I should have a lot of dead chickens, which I don't!

Earth worms are the reason chickens have worms it's the eggs and the same for beetles and grasshoppers.
I learned this when i first got chickens when i was looking up worming chickens.
I don't worm mine they never touch the ground so no chance of them getting the worm eggs.

http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/vm015

Did you know that my vet said dogs get worms from swallowing fleas
http://www.dog-health-guide.org/typesoftapewormsindogs.html

It is interesting--most animals naturally live with a certain parasite load. Theoretically all dogs have round worms--but a healthy adult's immune system keeps them inactive. When the mother dog is pregnant her latent infection becomes active and the puppies are infected through the placenta. Which is why you always worm young puppies--even if none of the adult dogs around them seem to have worms.

So, as Harmony's link says, most chickens have parasites and mostly it is a matter of looking for indications that for some reason the balance between the chicken and the parasite has been upset in favour of the parasite. Which is more likely to occur when the animal is under some kind of stress.

Another intersting thing I learned is that Marek's is extremely rare in chicks that are raised by broodies. Apparently something about their immune system is influenced by being with their mother--I think it may possibly be that they are in some way colonized by her microflora and that gives them the edge.

Has anyone heard about this?

You know that's an interesting point because I read about how in fact many people live with a certain level of parasites. I mean, I know we all have those little microscopic mites on our eyelashes and stuff, but apparently they think there are more gut parasites than previously believed, but most of the time they don't cause any problems. Some people advocate deworming humans. Seems weird, especially in what we consider to be "developed" countries, but supposedly a valid point.

I call my worm "Wilbur."

Hi Wilbur!

I don't know about routine worming--except in overcrowded or otherwise substandard conditions.

Wait, where do I live?

It seems like every time we attempt to the vark the dahlia in natural systems we get in trouble....eventually.

“Yet man is born unto trouble, as the sparks fly upwards”

Hey Moxie are you familiar with the Canadian Band: Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra and Tra-la-la Band?

Can't recommend it, cause I've never heard it...but I love the name.

Hi Catscan! (that was Wilbur)

No varking. Ever. Except for those tops of official buildings - dome things.

I am not familiar with said band of the silly name. I don't know if I could even listen to their music seriously, given the name. Really? Seriously. Now, the Canadian Brass....they play good stuff!

Seriously. They are VERY SERIOUS. Being a hippie ain't what it use to be:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E0bj2IYlblI&NR=1


Ummm. Apologies for hijacking--thought I was on the other thread....I'll just skeedaddle off.

My chicken addict friend Sean is having similar Silkie broodie issues. I keep telling him all will be well....

This message was edited Jul 13, 2009 10:38 PM

Uhm....well, I don't like admitting that they're Canadian really....errrr....if you played that around a broody silkie, she might fall over and die. It's not good for inspiring spinning....

Happy silkie thoughts.

On the Broody hen and chicks topic i know my chicks raised by their mothers are much happier and healthier than my brooder chicks.
They also seem to be more social as they have learned from their mother who and what to trust.

I also decreased the amount of coccidia by useing nonmedicated feed i buy at tractor supply.
My theory on this is that the medicated effects their immune system in a negative way kind of holds the coccidia at bay.
The theory of useing medicated is it allows them to be exposed to small amounts of coccidia so they build resistance.
I find this to be just theory and thats all IMHO
Therefore and i have seen this time and again when i would switch them from medicated to layer there was always one or two sometimes more that came down with coccidia.
Since stopping the medicated i have not had one case of coccidia in 2 years and believe they do better letting their own immune response handle the small amounts of coccidia they are exposed too.
Then there is no sudden reaction to me changeing the feed and they don't have any adverse reactions at all.
I recently switched my adults to a all organic feed with fabulous results less poo and they eat less i was filling their reel feeders once a day now it's every 2 days

CMoxom, Interesting that you mentioned parasites in humans. That's exactly what my BF said when it was mentioned about earthworms not being good for chickens.

Oh, that link also said to use insecticides to control insect populations. We won't do that when we know the chickens might get them and eat them......learned from the poisoned mouse ordeal.
Just like I won't use spray for flies or spiders in the house. One of my cat's likes flies and another one likes spiders......YUMMMMY

I've read that even the CDC says Americans are carrying around two pounds of parasites each. As far as them being harmless, I don't know. Hulda Clark, who made the herbal parasite recipes fairly famous, believes these parasites cause cancer and most other diseases. Remember that weird story of the woman that was having headaches and they found a huge worm in her brain? I know that's gross. Sorry.

Ok, enough with the parasites for a second, I want to talk about baking soda. Someone said you could kill roaches by feeding them a mixture of half powdered sugar and half baking soda. I guess the powdered sugar attracts them and the baking soda kills them. I'm trying it on some weird brown insects in my front yard. They are everywhere at night, ugh, so creepy.

Ok, now back to human health, I was also reading that maple syrup and baking soda 3/1 parts heated and eaten would kill cancer. That cancer feeds on sugar, and I guess the presumption is the baking soda kills cancer cells. I know this sounds bizarre. I don't know, but I'm trying the maple syrup and baking soda and see if it helps lupus. Baking soda kills fungus too, btw, and some doctors believe that these immune diseases are fungal.

Um, I know I am way off topic, but I can talk chicken. The silkie looks fine, don't worry. Mine did the same thing this year. I decided not to order more hatching eggs because it was just too hot and I didn't want to see them suffer sitting on eggs. Poor things. Glad it's not too hot there. Enjoyed the pictures too.

Don`t have to worry about the heat here this year,IT IS 49 DEGREES THIS MORNING!!!!! It will go up to low 70s I hope today

This is rediculous I have to put a coat on to go mow the lawn!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 61 degrees

LFJ - wow! 2 pounds of parasites! Now there's a weight loss tactic! Rid myself of my 2 lbs of parasites! Tee hee!

I'm fascinated with the baking soda/sugar prescription for roaches. That is really interesting. I wonder if the baking soda reacts in their gut and makes gas (you know, like when kids make fake "volcano" eruptions with baking soda and vinegar and stuff). Maybe that is what kills the roach? I had not heard of this tactic but it sure is interesting.

I also had not heard about the maple syrup thing. Those things scare me a little because sometimes people are really desperate for cancer "cures" and they will do all kinds of crazy things to try to get well. Sometimes people publish these bizarre things and it gets out of control. I suppose the positive thing is that maple syrup and baking soda are both edible so at least it can't hurt.

Also see this: http://www.cancertutor.com/Cancer02/Kelmun.html

Wow green, 77 here today.........Nice :)

Just stopped by and saw the thread.. i havn't had a brooder yet.. how is your baby doing?

She still has her back to me in her bucket,I have not seen her out but she must come out in the early morning.jjconcepts I see you live in Milford CT I lived there when I was a kid for four years,we lived right on the beach,I went to Pumpkin Delight School,is it still there?Sometimes I miss living there so bad,I lived there from 1961 to 1965.