Selfsufficientish.com

I'm afraid it didn't go well for my little hen :( I went out the morning after your posts - armed with vaseline, warm water, a towel, an extension lead and a hairdryer!! I couldn't get the anti-microbial shampoo that quickly but I thought I could at least wash away the visible mites and make a start...

Hi darkbrowneggs, I immediately assumed red mite as it's the only one I've heard of!! She is a light sussex, almost 4 years old, she is usually a good layer (about 5 a week) but she has not been laying for a couple of months. She has loads of little reddish brown dots crawling all over her feathers,...

Hi Everyone, I'm so disloyal, I haven't been on the forum for ages, but I have a chicken emergency!!! One of my hens seems to have red mites. I've dusted her with powder 3 times so far, and this weekend I will scrub the henhouse out with poultry shield. But I'm worried about the state of my hen - sh...

Wow, that's very interesting info, thank you. Yes, I would rather have seen her have a quick exit than the bloody mess that I ended up finding in the corner of the run. Oh dear, the thought of other hens pecking at her bum is terrible! They really have no notion of health or hygiene, do they?! Thank...

Thanks for the replies. Not sure if she was egg-bound, eco-mick - I had a look around but couldn't see any sign's of anything stuck in there, but then I don't really know what to look for as I've not got a lot of experience in hen health/death! There was only so much I wanted to pull her about, anyw...

Thanks Susie, I'll take a look at the Calder Rangers - never even heard of them before! I'll see how I get on with just the 3 hens for now, but it sort of feels wrong there not being a fourth one pottering about!

Oh, sorry the pic isn't working - although it's pretty horrible anyway! I didn't want to plonk it in the middle of the post in case people didn't want a dead chicken's bum jumping up at them half way through breakfast. I have also heard before that hybrids don't tend to last that long. Actually, I s...

In a little addition to that post, I've been doing some googling and wonder if it might be coccidiosis? Have ordered some apple cider vinegar to add to the remaining hens' water just in case - it seems to be something that people recommend on some forums and won't do the hens any harm, even if they'...

Hi everyone, Well, the sad day came today when I went outside to muck out my hens and found one of them curled up in the corner of the run, dead as a dodo. Thank goodness my 4-yr old was at her grandparents' house and the 1 yr old is too little to care/notice. But I have no idea why my chicken died ...

Wow, ctrl + has done the trick! Never knew that one.

thank you!!

I'm still not sure it's completely undone whatever it is that I did, though! I have to put it on the biggest setting and the text is still slightly smaller than it used to be! Something strange is afoot....

Ha ha, yes, I see your point! I think vegetarianism is considered pretty 'normal' now, but people will need a little while longer to come around to veganism. Perhaps another 20 years and the 'do you weigh 3 stone?' and 'you'll collapse' comments might come to an end.

Greenorelse, The moment I 'clicked' that it's insane to treat one animal in one way and consider the same treatment unacceptable for another animal, is the moment I decided to turn veggie. My boyfriend was telling me about a programme on tv (Kill It, SKin It, Wear It) where they were skinning a seal...

Another very, very interesting thread, and so many good points. I completely agree that communities need to farm whatever is necessary for their survival. As for me, I live in Kent in 2011 - I do not need meat or dairy, so I don't bother with them. With regards to soy - I'm not a qualified nutrition...

Wow, what an interesting read this thread is! There seems to be a common current of agreement in giving the animal a decent life, as stress-free a death as possible, and minimising waste. Just over a year ago I turned vegan (-ish!). I have become the person I used to laugh at, but I still struggle w...