Getting rid of red mites

I was scraping droppings from my coop the other day when I noticed a single bright red mite. This is enough to set off the alarm bells for me as an infestation can be hard to get rid of and, left untreated, will lead to a loss of condition in the hens, a reduction in egg production and, eventually, death. Luckily I always have this 'OMG - get rid of them NOW' response and I've never had any problems with them affecting my chooks. My methods are a little time-consuming, but worth it.

First, I take all the parts that aren't screwed together out of coop - roosting bars, droppings tray, nesting box floor and nesting box dividers. This ensures that many of the nooks and crannies that mites can hide in are revealed for cleaning.

I pressure-wash each item and leave it to dry. I then attack the coop house with the pressure washer and make sure the entire inside is thoroughly cleaned. I tip the coop up to clean the inside of the roof and leave the little buggers no place to hide.

Once the coop and parts have dried, I then rub DiatomX into the roosting bars (the mites run along the bars and get to the chickens by running up their legs and infesting the arse region!) and liberally spread the powder on all the parts.

Before putting the coop back together, I also treat the earth beneath the coop with DiatomX.

When I've done this, all the parts are re-assembled and I puff more DiatomX in the coop, making sure it gets into all the areas that are prone to hide the nasty crawling killers.

Once the coop is clean and treated, I check each chicken for infestation. Just pick the chicken up (maybe by taking them out of the coop one by one at night if they are tough to catch) and check their feathers around their bum. mites love this area and it's obvious to see if they are there. DiatomX can be dusted onto the chicken itself to stop the mites.

Finally, the chickens dust bath is dusted with DiatomX. It's the easiest way to get the chickens to douse themselves, and it's proved to be a winner for me. Fingers crossed, no infestations so far, and all I use are water and DiatomX, both totally natural and low-cost. And my coop also gets a well-needed wash!

Pebbles and the Coop

Poor little Pebbles. She was very confused about going into the coop as the others were scaring her and pecking at her. I was in my bedroom and could her her plaintive little tweets outside. The cute little thing was wandering the garden and trying to look for where her nursery coop had been, and there was no sign of Ken.

I had to throw some corn down outside the coop so Ken would come back out and then stand in Pebbles' way so that she couldn't run away - all whilst softly telling her it would be ok.

Eventually Ken kicked the others out of the way and returned to the coop, with a tentative Pebbles following her. She will probably have a bit of difficulty getting in every night until she gets a bit bigger and can stand up for herself.

But, hey, that's chickens! They sort themselves out very well, in the end...

Pebbles is growing up

Well, amazingly Ken the hen has gone back on the lay, eventhough Pebbles is only 5 weeks old today! She usually gives the chicks she hatches at least 6 - 8 weeks before she shies away from them and they have to find their own place in the flock.

So, in celebration of this event, I've packed away the 'nursery' cage until next time she gets broody and popped both of them into the main coop with the others. We'll see what happens tomorrow. Hopefully they will both adjust overnight and Pebbles is so laid back, I don't think she'll have a problem following 'Mum' into the big coop tomorrow night.

Pebbles is a boy?

Just had a lovely little cuddle with Pebbles the chick. S/he's four weeks old now and quite cute. S/he has some of her father's buff (ginger) colouring coming through the grey and it's very pretty, but there is a worrying ring of colour around the neck that may mean she is a he! Ooooh dear.

Grace loves my neighbour!

She is such a food-slut! My next door neighbour gave her some bread and vegetables today, and earlier this evening she tried to fly over the wire fence between the houses! She nearly made it and was hanging on about three quarters of the way up... all for love of him, or his food? It's like the Milk Tray advert in reverse...

Hatching eggs

I love it when Ken the hen goes broody and I can pop a fertile egg or three underneath her. It takes such a short amount of time to hatch an egg (21-23 days depending on the breed) and it's always so exciting when they come out. The chick grows a special little sharp point on their beak to help them as they crack open the egg. So you normally see little holes appear as they crack their way around the top of the egg until it finally pops off.

Sometimes people get impatient and try to help the chick along by also cracking the egg, but this can lead to disaster! The chick needs to spend the time going through the process to build up its' strength, and it's also connected to the egg. If you crack in the wrong place, you can sever an essential connection and kill the chick.

During the first few hours out of the egg, the chick feeds on the egg remains and dries its little feathers out. It will need to be under a brooding lamp or a broody chicken to keep it warm and safe. Then, once it's all dried out, a beautiful fluffy chick will appear and work it's way straight into your heart!

Make sure you put water with a low-lipped dish for it to drink from. The hen will show them how to do this, or it might wander over to it by itself. If you have hatched from an incubator, you can dip the chicks beak in the water and it will get the hang of it. I usually put a little dash of 'live' Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) in the water to help it along. It's a great pick-me-up for chickens of all ages. Scatter around some Chick Crumbs, and they're all set to start growing :)

No more brooding for Hannah

The naughty girl has managed to eat her egg! Well, one of them did during the night. Admittedly I did get up late and it was raining all day yesterday, so perhaps they got hungry. But still, no more broodiness for Hannah until she's a little older.

Grace gets the OBE for services to the Egg Industry ;-)

Grace doesn't get as much attention as the other chickens. My big 'fluffy bums' are spectacular and tiny little Ken the hen tends to catch the eye, but Grace is the true powerhouse in the egg department. She's not as big as the cochins, but her eggs are always bigger and her yolks are the best colour. If I open the back door she's the first to arrive to see if there is any food, and she's often still out searching for tasty morsels long after the other chickens have gone to bed. She lays at least 6 eggs a week - every day when I used to allow the birds onto the field at the back of the house.

So today I'd like to celebrate Grace the Light Sussex. She knows what I want - eggs - and she really goes the extra mile to make sure they are the biggest, best tasting eggs she can possibly make; every day.

Hannah is broody! T- 17 days

My beautiful Blue Splash cochin has decided to take the plunge and go for the 22 day marathon sit-in. She's just got the one egg, and has been sitting on it for approximately 4 days. The baby's due date is 28th June-ish.

The best chicken advert ever....

THE most adorable use of a broody chicken I have ever seen. And what a beautiful girl!

Another broody hen?

I think Hannah has gone broody. She's been sitting on an egg for a day now, and she ran out of the coop this morning for a quick feed and dirtbath - which is classic behaviour (as the egg cannot be left for longer than a few minutes). So we could have another Pebbles in about 22 days! It depends on whether she sticks out the three weeks or not - many hens abandon the egg after a while.

LATER: Spotted the little minx happily pottering in the garden and found a stone cold egg abandoned in the coop. Ah well. I guess she doesn't have the staying power yet!