Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[ChaosMom]

I try to avoid to buy plants from the regular garden centres. The growers use a lot of poisons to keep them bug free. Even on the native wildflowers that are supposed to be bee-friendly the growers spray lots of poisons . NOT bee-friendly at all when newly planted.
The only bee friendly plants to be trusted from the garden centres, are the ones that are meant to eat.

So glad we have an organic garden centre at a 12 km distance.

Spoiler: ”Bee friendly under the microscope”

The bee-friendly plant under that microscope

Research by Pesticide Action Network Netherlands (Pan-NL), and previous research by Greenpeace from 2017, shows that many of the plants in chemical garden centers contain pesticides. This also found means that are prohibited. The Inspection Service therefore brought fourteen different plants with bee-friendly logos to the laboratory. Garden plants such as lavender, aster, daisy and skimmia, which are often sold at garden centers as bee-friendly, were all examined for the use of pesticides.

Neo-nicotinoids

Chemical pesticides were found on eleven of the fourteen plants; agents that are precisely intended for the extermination of insects. The amounts of chemical pesticides ranged from very low to relatively high. No less than six plants also had traces of neo-nicotinoids. These crop protectors attack the brain and nervous system of the bee, which causes paralysis and eventually causes death, according to British scientist Dave Goulson.

source: Inspection Service of value in the Netherlands : keuringsdienst van waarde (NL)

Yeah, I don't buy from the chains and big box garden centers. There are two family-run garden centers here that carry a lot of organically-grown stuff. Most plants I raise from seed, but natives are often really slow from seed, so with them I cheat!

 

[Chickin Fairy]

Well, here we are. This seemed as good of a place as any to tell my story and ask some questions to those of you who have rescued birds before.

I caught wind of a wild flock of (mostly roosters) Ayam Cemani/Australorp mixes up in the UP of Michigan. I connected with someone Saturday who helped me to catch some to bring home. There are about 15 roosters and maybe 3 hens left. It breaks my heart but with AI and the distance to the place, a lot of rescues aren't getting back to me.

I brought home 2 hens and 2 roosters. They are gorgeous. I have them in my isolation coop/run but I have never rescued adult birds before. I treated them all for Scaley Leg Mites (soaked them in an Epsom salt bath and then dipped them in veg oil) and sprayed the coop down with a peremethian-based spray. There is also some DE in their bedding and in the run (I don't particularly like DE, but I decided to use it this time).

My question is how often do I repeat the SLM treatment. They are pretty wild and don't come to me for treats, although I've been working with them. I had to net them to treat them before and I really don't want to traumatize them like that again. I will try plucking them off the roost to dip them in oil, but wondered if anyone had any advice on best ways to build trust with them?

Also, when I introduce them to my flock in a month or so, how do I do that? They can see each other right now through their separate runs, but I can free range a little here. Do I let them all out a little later in the day and let them choose where to roost? I could add them to my existing flock at night, but the only roost I have access to there is the lowest rung.

Pics for tax! There are a few here of what I suspect is SLM, but if anyone can confirm, I would be grateful!

 

[ChaosMom]

Not a bit of help for what you're asking, but I had to reply -

They are lovely! That blue in the roosters' tails! And the feathering on that one hen's back is fascinating.

Good for you for giving them a chance.

 

[Chickin Fairy]

Not a bit of help for what you're asking, but I had to reply -

They are lovely! That blue in the roosters' tails! And the feathering on that one hen's back is fascinating.

Good for you for giving them a chance.

Thank you. They are gorgeous. I guess the previous owner who had them was an alcoholic and sort of neglected them for years, in which time they would hide eggs and hatch them out, so the population grew. The previous owner passed away about a year ago and they are not being looked after as they should. The person helping is trying, but he's never had chickens before and doesn't know much. He's going to work on Mackinac Island for the summer and the birds will be left.

 

[Chickin Fairy]

@Shadrach I'm so sorry for your loss of Henry. I'd been lurking and reading about your flock for awhile now and I know he will be dearly missed by so many.

I think I'll move my question/story to another area in my own thread so I don't take away from the point of this thread here:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/tails-of-a-rescued-flock.1659072/

 

[HiEverybirdy]

Two and a half hours today. Sunny and warm until the sun dropped below the tree line. Fret has been very vocal since Heny's death. She's slightly aggressive towards the others which I assume is part of her establihing herself as the tribe leader now Henry has gone. I feel for her.
They had a full two and a half hours in the extended run which needs some cleaning up at the goose run end where C had the people who repaired the run and stripped the rotting wood and bits of fencing dump the stuff which they have made no effort to clear away.
I think I am going to give up my vegetable plot and make a small bed in the extended run to grow a few veg and herbs. I'm also thinking about the extension to the coop run which would encompass the old fruit bush plot which is one of their prefered cover spots.
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Now is Fret's turn for extra mackerel and walnuts so she has energy to lead! A big job just fell on her shoulders. It's fortunate her family is already so well knit.

Tax: what used to be our hen-only group, until Merle & Andre blew up my bachelor-pad plan by deciding they couldn't co-exist, and Merle moved back with the girls (which I posted about back in 2022).

They're under their Amur honeysuckle, one of few invasives I've left there intentionally because it sprouts a thick canopy earlier than native bushes and keeps it later.

And of course, their handsome rooster. And his human double, according to ChatGPT's creepy new graphics release. They made Merle older than I think he'd be as a human, but that shirt is high fashion.

 

[no fly zone]

Well, here we are. This seemed as good of a place as any to tell my story and ask some questions to those of you who have rescued birds before.

I caught wind of a wild flock of (mostly roosters) Ayam Cemani/Australorp mixes up in the UP of Michigan. I connected with someone Saturday who helped me to catch some to bring home. There are about 15 roosters and maybe 3 hens left. It breaks my heart but with AI and the distance to the place, a lot of rescues aren't getting back to me.

I brought home 2 hens and 2 roosters. They are gorgeous. I have them in my isolation coop/run but I have never rescued adult birds before. I treated them all for Scaley Leg Mites (soaked them in an Epsom salt bath and then dipped them in veg oil) and sprayed the coop down with a peremethian-based spray. There is also some DE in their bedding and in the run (I don't particularly like DE, but I decided to use it this time).

My question is how often do I repeat the SLM treatment. They are pretty wild and don't come to me for treats, although I've been working with them. I had to net them to treat them before and I really don't want to traumatize them like that again. I will try plucking them off the roost to dip them in oil, but wondered if anyone had any advice on best ways to build trust with them?

Also, when I introduce them to my flock in a month or so, how do I do that? They can see each other right now through their separate runs, but I can free range a little here. Do I let them all out a little later in the day and let them choose where to roost? I could add them to my existing flock at night, but the only roost I have access to there is the lowest rung.

Pics for tax! There are a few here of what I suspect is SLM, but if anyone can confirm, I would be grateful!

Awesome what you are doing for those birds.

 

[no fly zone]

It appears that dove nest has been abandoned.

 

[townchicks]

It appears that dove nest has been abandoned.

It's been my experience that doves specialize in crappy nests and abandoning them. We used to have a wisteria arbor and every spring without fail, mourning doves would build a nest, lay eggs and within a few days, the whole thing would fall out onto the patio. It's a wonder to me, that there are so many of them around.

 

[Shadrach]

Is there anything worth salvaging in the stuff in the goose run end? You now get to attempt to defend your garden against four curious and determined hens!

I'm thinking about salvaging one of the dog kennels used as a coop for a shade shelter in the extended run, but that's it.