Consolidated Kansas

[chicken danz]

Y'all don't know how comforting it has been to read that other people have had the drop-dead experience with their own flock. We will, of course, continue to monitor closely to make sure there's not something underlying going on, but I am less frantic about the possibility of bird flu now. I am on-alert and extra-vigilant now, nonetheless.

So, after I dropped eggs off to people yesterday, I fielded TONS of questions about farm-fresh eggs. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE talking chickens to people, but I run the risk of being overzealous (overwhelming) to non-Chicken people who just need basic answers, not a 1-hour dialog on the details. My kids also just roll their eyes when someone asks me a chicken question, like, "Oh, brother. Someone asked a CHICKEN question. Here she goes. We'll be here for a while." With that in mine, I decided to make a question and answer sheet to give to people who buy my eggs. I want y'all to look over it and let me know what you think. If there are any facts that seem questionable or not explained well, please point them out. I tried to make the wording simple enough for a non-Chicken person to understand, while not dumbing it down so much that it is offensive. LOL! I used what seemed like credible Internet sites for the information, as well as The My Pet Chicken Handbook and what I know. The single page has my name and number on it, as well as more-appealing formatting. I couldn't figure out how to just post the word document with my post. It kept saying I'm not allowed.



About Us/Our Chicken Journey
My husband, Travis, and I are native Kansans. We met at K-State and have four children, ages 8-14 (two boys and two girls). Travis has worked in the grain division of a worldwide agricultural company since we graduated from college, and I am a homemaker and home school our four children. We live on 5 acres in north Sedgwick County, between Wichita and Valley Center.
Our family began raising chickens in October 2014 as a 4-H, hobby, and educational project. We started with a flock of 15 chicks that we picked up as day-old chicks at our post office. We converted an old, empty grain silo into the chicken coop, using recycled materials when possible. Our flock now includes around 30 chickens of varying breeds.

How We Love Our Chickens
Our flock’s home is the grain silo-turned-coop beside our house, with a roomy outdoor run attached. We open the pop-door to their run every morning, and allow them to either forage in the run or free-range until dark, when they come back to roost and we close them in the coop for their safety until the next morning. The chickens are allowed free-roam of the coop and run during the day to keep them safe from predators. We only feed our chickens feed designed for chickens, along with kitchen treats that are good for them, like fruits and veggies. Their favorite treats are strawberry tops and popcorn!

Get to Know Your Farm-Fresh Eggs

Are farm-fresh eggs healthier than commercially-produced eggs?
Studies seem to prove that farm-fresh eggs are healthier than commercially-produced eggs! Specifically, farm-fresh eggs were found to have 1/3 less cholesterol, ¼ less saturated fat, 2/3 more vitamin A, 2 times more omega 3 fatty acids, 3 times more vitamin E, and 7 times more beta carotene than commercially-produced eggs.

Why are the yolks of my farm-fresh eggs so dark/orange?
The simple answer to this is that a chicken’s diet determines the color and darkness of its egg’s yolk. The more robust and varied a chicken’s diet, the darker and more orange the yolk color. Chickens allowed to forage on yummy bugs, weeds, and grasses, and who are fed good-for-them veggie and fruit scraps produce darker egg yolks!

Should I refrigerate my eggs?
It’s up to you, but here’s what you need to know. Eggs have a natural protective “bloom” (or invisible covering, if you will) when they are laid. This protective coating seals germs out. This is why the farm fresh eggs you bought from us (and, generally, most farm-fresh eggs) have not been rinsed. Commercially-sold eggs in the U.S., on the other hand, go through a process that removes this coating, which necessitates refrigeration afterward to prevent bacteria from growing. The eggs you are receiving from our farm have been left UNwashed and refrigerated since being gathered from the coop. How you store your eggs after receiving them from our farm is up to you. Just rinse and use!

How long will my farm-fresh eggs keep?
The answer to this question depends on how you choose to store your eggs. The average age of an egg you buy in the grocery store is 6 weeks old. The eggs you buy from us will be 7 days or fewer old. Your farm fresh eggs will keep longer if you refrigerate them. A day of being stored on the counter equals about a week stored in the refrigerator, so if you aren’t planning on eating your eggs right away it is probably best to refrigerate them. The USDA recommends a maximum of 5 weeks in the refrigerator before discarding unused eggs. However, commercial egg farmers have 30 days to get their eggs to the supermarket; the supermarket then has another 30 days to sell the eggs. You do the math. J

What is that spot in my farm-fresh egg?
Red “blood spots” and brown “meat spots” are common in farm-fresh eggs, and do not affect the safety or taste of your egg. Contrary to what many people assume, blood spots and meat spots do NOT indicate a fertilized egg. The red blood spots are caused by the rupture of blood vessels on the yolk or the wall of the chicken’s oviduct during the formation of the egg. A brown “meat spot” is a small piece of organ tissue or a partially broken-down blood spot. It is perfectly fine to leave blood and meat spots while preparing and eating eggs, but some people prefer to remove the spot before cooking.

Ewww! What if I come across a fertilized egg?!
Chances are you’ve eaten a fertilized egg and didn’t even know it! J It is common for people to eat fertilized, farm-fresh eggs. Fertilized eggs do not grow chick embryos unless they are given the chance (the right temperature, and time). We collect eggs daily (often more frequently) and refrigerate them, so the cool temperature completely removes the possibility of embryos forming in our eggs. Rest assured, you will NOT break open one of our eggs and find a half-formed chick!

Why do farm-fresh eggs come in so many different colors and sizes?
Breed and genetics determine the color and size of eggs a chicken produces, and the nutrition of eggs is not affected by an egg’s size and color. Eggs come in white, as well as shades of cream, brown, chocolate, blue, olive, and even pink! Sizes range from jumbo to peewee. The bigger the chicken breed, the bigger the eggs. All eggs start out white in the oviduct, but in some breeds a color is deposited on the outside of the eggs during its journey through the oviduct, creating the pigmented eggs.

Okay, my only comment is that I would eliminate all the stuff about keeping eggs out of the fridge, the bloom, etc etc. Legally you can't sell eggs without being washed, nor can you reuse egg cartons unless they have been covered with your information. It's not that big of a deal because people do it all the time, however in view of all that is going on I would certainly omit that information and make yourself some sticky labels for cartons if you don't personally know the person you are selling to. The government is going to be watching every little thing so cover your tootie.

Ugh. I appears I may be dealing with coccidiosis. My oldest came in reporting bloody poos upon our first egg gathering of the day. I went out and investigated, then did some online searching, and it appears someone is ailing from coccidiosis. I am now thinking that it is possible that my hen that bit the dust last night may have been infected. I also realized, upon researching, that I negated their 1-day-old coccidiosis vaccinations by also feeding them medicated feed.

Sounds like the general treatment for coccidiosis is Corid. Is this standard treatment? Where can I get this around here? Do I need to call a vet, or do feed stores carry it? I hope I can treat them before anyone else succumbs to it or is infected. I am also going to go out and buy a couple of fans to clip to the ladder going up into the silo (pointing down), to promote better airflow and discourage things from growing and multiplying in this humidity. I hate being in damage-control mode!

NO! You have to understand what is truth and not. You don't "negate" the coccidiosis vaccine by feeding medicated feed. Again that's a case of people reading something and not comprehending the meaning then putting it out there improperly. Or even printing the word negate to mean something entirely different. That information gets repeated and you get false information. The coccidiosis vaccine simply creates antibodies against coccidiosis. Just like a flu shot would for you. If you feed medicated feed you aren't changing that at all. All you are doing is medicating which is for no valid reason in most cases.
BUT....a chicken can and still will occasionally get coddidiosis even with vaccination if they are under stress, in poor health, or the vaccine is a different strain than what they were infected with. Plus it only is designed to last for a short period as well when the chick is most susceptible. If coccidiosis killed that pullet she should have been feeling skinny and you could also notice some respiratory issues in your birds as well.
If you ever have questions about the doses on medications you can always call the manufacturer and they will give recommendations that aren't listed on the label. It's handy to have a resource like king Bee quoted handy printed out for emergencies as well.

 

[Deerfield Acres]

LavrisChica and ashncarson, I will look into that book. It sounds really interesting. I did use my chickens this spring to get rid of most of the weeds in the area and fertilize it nicely so I'm headed in the right direction. I just don't want them eating all the produce now, even though I throw them strawberries and what not. We got all the raised beds in and filled in the walkways with woodchips -- where we took the dirt from previously decomposed woodchips. The soil is amazing! That soil was so tired but now I can't pull weeds without big fat earthworms popping out and actually taking off to get away from me. I've never seen so many earthworms in my life in one place. I inadvertently started a vermiculture project when I put in all those woodchips. I thought it would improve the soil and aid in bringing the earthworm population up but this has pleasantly surprised me. My Dad came by today and he was visibly shocked at my garden. He gave me a huge compliment by saying my uncle (my mom's brother) will be jealous! He asked where I got the dirt for the raised beds and I proudly told him we created it over the last couple years with the woodchips. He is impossible to impress but he was impressed. I'm old but it still matters what your parents think. Even though he isn't the parent that tried to teach me about gardening I could see that he was deeply touched that I had taken Mom's vision so much to heart. I'm sure he never saw this day coming.

The chickens are part of that as well. Dad isn't into chickens but he couldn't help but look twice at my 10 lb Buff Sussex rooster and watch the silly ducks in their ponds. We love what we are creating here and any help is great. I will have to check out that book for sure.

Trish44, I absolutely never thought I would see the day either. He actually expressed a liking for the White Rocks!!! I still can't wrap my head around that one.

I am rushing from one thing to the next and wrapping up all kinds of projects. Feels good to be able to get so much done! I may be a little sporadic from now till the reunion on the 27th but I will at least be reading to keep up to speed on what's happening. On the 1st of July, our older 3 daughters will be flying to NYC, picked up and driven to Connecticut. They are staying with a family friend for 3.5 weeks. It's going to be a long 3.5 weeks for DH and I, but they are going to be working in our friend's chiropractic practice, sightseeing, shopping and just making a lot of great memories. Then on the 4th of July we are hosting a swim party for the summer school boarders at school with our DD. I love the craziness of summer but this one is really out of the ordinary for even us!

 

[Grain Gypsy]

@chicken danz , thank you for the feedback on the farm-fresh egg sheet I made for my customers. I do NOT need Big Brother Government meddling in my chicken-raising or small-scale selling of eggs. I found the KS Dept of Agriculture's "Egg Fact Sheet," and I am a little confused about the wording. I cannot tell if, since I have 1-50 hens, I have no obligation to any of the rules, or if I fall under the same rules as those with 51-200 chickens are subject to. Here's the KS Dept. of Agriculture's Egg Fact Sheet for anyone curious.

Well, once I got my head wrapped around the coccidiosis thing, I realized my chicks were vaccinated for Merek's Disease not coccidiosis. Danz, I still don't know about the whole way that coccidiosis vaccine and medicated feed work when used together. There are many sources that say that the medicated feed nullifies the vaccine, but I can't find anything addressing this question (to find the truth) on USDA or KS Dept. of Ag site. I wasn't able to get to the feed store to get the Corid today, but I plan on going and getting some in the morning. I did think, upon feeling and inspecting our dead hen last night, that she seemed a little slim, but I didn't think much of it, because the bird was only 8 weeks old and it was laid out, stiff. Regardless if that was what took her, the bloody poo makes me almost positive we have coccidiosis somewhere in the flock.

 

[KsKingBee]

@chicken danz , thank you for the feedback on the farm-fresh egg sheet I made for my customers. I do NOT need Big Brother Government meddling in my chicken-raising or small-scale selling of eggs. I found the KS Dept of Agriculture's "Egg Fact Sheet," and I am a little confused about the wording. I cannot tell if, since I have 1-50 hens, I have no obligation to any of the rules, or if I fall under the same rules as those with 51-200 chickens are subject to. Here's the KS Dept. of Agriculture's Egg Fact Sheet for anyone curious.

Well, once I got my head wrapped around the coccidiosis thing, I realized my chicks were vaccinated for Merek's Disease not coccidiosis. Danz, I still don't know about the whole way that coccidiosis vaccine and medicated feed work when used together. There are many sources that say that the medicated feed nullifies the vaccine, but I can't find anything addressing this question (to find the truth) on USDA or KS Dept. of Ag site. I wasn't able to get to the feed store to get the Corid today, but I plan on going and getting some in the morning. I did think, upon feeling and inspecting our dead hen last night, that she seemed a little slim, but I didn't think much of it, because the bird was only 8 weeks old and it was laid out, stiff. Regardless if that was what took her, the bloody poo makes me almost positive we have coccidiosis somewhere in the flock.

Bloody poo would make me think Cocci too. You could take a sample to the vet and have a fecal exam done, I am lucky and my vet charges $16. It needs to be a very fresh sample, I get about five or more samplings from the pen floor and put it in a baggie and squish/mix it well before I hand it to the vets tech. They will be able to tell you if it is cocci, roundworms, capillary worms, or cecal worms in the same exam.

What is nice about having fecal exams done is that then you KNOW for sure that you are treating for the right thing.

 

[chicken danz]

@chicken danz , thank you for the feedback on the farm-fresh egg sheet I made for my customers. I do NOT need Big Brother Government meddling in my chicken-raising or small-scale selling of eggs. I found the KS Dept of Agriculture's "Egg Fact Sheet," and I am a little confused about the wording. I cannot tell if, since I have 1-50 hens, I have no obligation to any of the rules, or if I fall under the same rules as those with 51-200 chickens are subject to. Here's the KS Dept. of Agriculture's Egg Fact Sheet for anyone curious.

Well, once I got my head wrapped around the coccidiosis thing, I realized my chicks were vaccinated for Merek's Disease not coccidiosis. Danz, I still don't know about the whole way that coccidiosis vaccine and medicated feed work when used together. There are many sources that say that the medicated feed nullifies the vaccine, but I can't find anything addressing this question (to find the truth) on USDA or KS Dept. of Ag site. I wasn't able to get to the feed store to get the Corid today, but I plan on going and getting some in the morning. I did think, upon feeling and inspecting our dead hen last night, that she seemed a little slim, but I didn't think much of it, because the bird was only 8 weeks old and it was laid out, stiff. Regardless if that was what took her, the bloody poo makes me almost positive we have coccidiosis somewhere in the flock.

Let me try to explain this a little more thorough. All chickens have some form of coccidia in their systems at all times. Some kinds are much more invasive than others. If stress or wet conditions, crowding, poor health, etc etc come into play it allows these coccidia to grow more rapidly. My understanding is that amprolium halts the cycle so the coccidia don't mature and reinfect the birds. They infect the chicken in the small intestine but then are starved because amprolium prevents them from absorbing thiamin. Coccidia oocysts are released in the chickens' poop and then eaten by other chickens and in turn infect them. So starving them in the early stages prevents the further spread and damaging infections. If you do a fecal float you will almost always find coccidia in every bird. It's the infections and lesions caused by them that actually make the bird ill.
If a chicken is vaccinated, part of how it works is that the bird is infected with a milder strain of coccidia. That forms antibodies. Then they poop out the oocysts and eat it and re-infect themselves which increases their antibodies to the disease.
If you give birds a cure dose of amprolium it WILL interrupt the cycle to form the excess antibodies. So this could negate the vaccination for the most part. If you have a preventive dosage as that that is found in medicated food, it will simply reduce the number of ocysts that the bird will poop out. So if medicated feed has any effect on the birds it would be within a matter of about 7 days from the vaccination and won't stop the vaccination from working, but might lower the amount of antibodies the chickens form against coccidiosis. These antibodies don't last a lifetime but a normal chicken will continue to build antibodies through out their life as they pick up oocysts here and there. But the infection from them is the greatest in the first few weeks of life or when a bird gets stressed or worn down. So does this explain why there is so much confusion over using medicated feed negates a vaccination?
I've had birds shipped in that were vaccinated and arrived with a terrible case of cocci due to shipping stress. So nothing is foolproof for sure.
Does this make sense? Biology is my big thing. I constantly quest to learn more and more about animal health.
HOWEVER, many professional chicken breeders prefer their chickens get a case of coccidiosis infection so they will have a resistance to it later on.
I am glad to hear you had merek's vaccination instead. It's much more useful than cocci vaccinations. Mereks is a sad terrible disease.
Well as far as the government goes on eggs, Big Brother can make your life miserable regardless of your individual circumstances. My suggestion was just that if you sell to strangers give them no ammunition to use against you. KingBee pointed that out in the guy who bought eggs on the internet from a flock that tested positive. He almost lost his birds due to government interpretation.
I have less than 50 laying hens that I use for eating eggs, but way over that for breeding. Are they going to differentiate? So much is up to interpretation.
I have noticed that people who sell eggs at farmers markets etc usually are following those rules to a T.
Isn't all this stuff amazing? I really don't mean to sound like a know it all... cause I'm not. I am just totally fascinated by all the stuff that one can learn. And I have had so many acquaintances that have had to learn this stuff by their own terrible experiences. Not to mention all the things that happen here.
@KsKingBee , Speaking of that one of my white peahens was wing down this evening and I searched the pen and found a shelless egg. I mixed up some poultry cell and calcium in a syringe and tried to dose her, but I'm afraid more ran out than got in. I sure hope she comes out of it. I put calcium and vitamin D in their water as well. If I had had someone to hold her while I dosed her I would have done a much better job. I sure hope she pulls through. Those creatures are such an investment after you've put a few years into them. I'd hate to loose one.

 

[coleco]

I found the information interesting and since Danz spent the time to explain i spent the time to digest it. (I used the click if you think this is helpful button bravo!)

 

[KsKingBee]

Here is an excellent thread on shell less and stuck eggs in peahens. You are lucky she passed it, quite a few peahens die from being egg bound and it is hard to pass an egg without a hard shell.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/980241/another-egg-bound-hen

Giving her the calcium gluconate is a good first step.

 

[KsKingBee]

I found the information interesting and since Danz spent the time to explain i spent the time to digest it. (I used the click if you think this is helpful button bravo!)

Yes, it is nice to give ovations, especially when they are helpful. Too many times good advice is not recognized and appreciation not given. I know that I am more prone to share knowledge when it is appreciated by others.

 

[chicken danz]

KingBee I checked the peahen this morning and she appears to be doing just fine. I am so glad I checked them late yesterday. Everyone got a dose of calcium in their water last night just to be on the safe side. I'll be watching her carefully for a while to make sure she doesn't have further problems.
How is QueenBee doing these days. Is she getting better?

 

[chicken danz]

P.S. Thank you for the link @KsKingBee