You filthy swine!

[mike_belben]

well, gimpy foot probably wont make it to tomorrow night.  doesnt get up anymore,  gave him water by a straw drip and he drinks but not eating. cant hold head up or keep eyes open.. a lot like pity when she showed up.  such is life i guess. 


any of you ever heard of chicks dying from heart attack if allowed to eat too much?  my brother said something like that can happen. ive never heard of it. 

[Old Greenhorn]

The Chicken Ranch   has begun.   That sand is probably  good enough, I asked the chicken doctor across the room to be sure.... They don't use it when starting chicks, just bedding, feed, and water..

AH The Chicken Ranch, what a great name, it even rings a bell....let me think.... oh, ah, nevermind. Well maybe that's a different venture you could partner with Barge on sometime.

[Southside]

Got some whey? Juice on the top of yogurt. Nature's miracle elixir for birds.

[mike_belben]

I do.  Same as cottage cheese juice right?  

Gimpy has passed on but the rest look great. 

[mudfarmer]

Looking good Mike!!! 

We just "ended up"  : with another dozen Pekin ducklings. "They were practically giving them away!" Half are sold on pre order already so that makes me feel better, the rest can go in the freezer if they have to. Them and the goslings are growing like weeds. Lots of bird butchering coming up. The guinea hens are going in the soup pot too. Dumbest creatures alive except for some humans.

[HemlockKing]

RIP Gimpy. Happy mountain 

[mike_belben]

theres breakfast.  theirs, not mine!  i figure feed them what i should eat, then i will eat them. 

the days split cherry tomatoes that will mold before i get around to making another batch of sauce, 2 ears of corn kernels just off the stalk, some dockweed, some plantain leaves, splop of yogurt, splash of milk, water, and a handful of little protein nuggets all blended up. boy do they dive off that dry grain feed for this mash. its fun to watch them fight for the biggest tomato skins.

[Nebraska]

Yes I have heard of broilers growing so fast they suddenly expire.  A small amount of death loss is not  unusual  starting chicks like that.  So far you are  doing well.

[mike_belben]

Thanks for the reassurance doc. 

[WDH]

I was pulling for Gimpy.  Rest In Peace, Gimpy, on Happy Mountain at the perpetual feed trough.  

[mike_belben]

well, unfortunately theres another one.  same thing, toes are crossing over and thus it doesnt stand much. its eating this morning but i wont be surprised if i lose it too.  i guess 10-20% loss is the normal on cornish cross and it doesnt take much google to find people that have lost dang near all of some pretty big batches.  apparently these are a very overbred, highly unstable bird.  


i have not found an exact interweb case that matches mine so i dont know what it is yet.  a regressive trait from excessively interbreeding the same bloodline?  onset of heart issues?  dietary insufficiency?  i dunno. 


today they got less corn, same amount of tomato, more leafy green protein and vitamins, more chopped up larvae protein and fat, a tiny bit of chopped peanuts for additional protein, salt and vitamins.  i made some $ yesterday and have to head to town for some dog food and will probably get some unmedicated starter to atleast try that and be sure its not me poisoning them.  

i am thinking if it was sickness the whole flock would go down, and if it was diet the others would be doing poorly but they are very very vibrant, running all over, flapping wings, chasing flies, chasing the one with the tomato scrap in its beak.  i think bad diet would show in all of them.  im hopeful its just the genetic consequence of breeding for extreme production.  that seems to be a consensus on that among the obviously professional bird growers who i have been able to sift from the plethora of backyard hobby answers. 

so cliffnotes, i have no clue what im doing.  just figuring out as i go like always. 

[newoodguy78]

Mike I agree those Cornish crosses are not a hardy breed at all. My exes family used to raise 3-4,000 annually for years. I would consider them excellent at it , if they got under 10% loss in a batch they were excited. Every once in awhile they wouldn't lose any, that was cause for celebration. 
I like that feed you're mixing up but am curious if all essential minerals are there? Just a thought, hate to see you get in a jam there. 
Probably not an issue right now but if you do a batch in cooler weather crowding to get warm and suffocating each other is a real concern. Always found a circular pen with a light in the center worked best. 
You'll appreciate what they will do for your land , the stuff coming out their backside is rocket fuel for soil.
Keep up the good work.

[HemlockKing]

Could make a mobile “chicken pen” that you can haul around spots of your lawn you want to be tick and insect free, bring them out in that pen first thing in morning before feed and move the pen over to another patch of grass every 5-10 minutes. I seen this being done somewhere in YouTube and thought it was a good idea, basically grading the grass free of ticks lol

[Southside]

I don't like it but if I get a 10% loss per batch I consider it acceptable. The batch we are harvesting now only lost 1 or 2%, one before that was 12% or so.

The Post Office shipping element can add a lot of misery to the process and you can't do a thing.

Few years ago I had a 99% loss on a batch of turkeys. That was hard.

[mike_belben]

I have a pen that will get scooched along  daily in a grassy run so that the tin will block north wind and south sun.  Its got soffit intakes and fully vented ridge with removable ridge tin for sweltering weather.  With the top off you can really feel cool air pulling in the bottom drip line. Its also downpour proof and has a center brace down low to give them a perch for dry feet or getting off cold wet ground... And to make the fatties jump over for going from food to water.  Little exercise.  





I broke down and bought probiotic chick grit and non medicated crumbles today for more than i wanted to spend. Just to be sure some trace element deficiency isnt the culprit here.  


Gimpy 2 has wierd feet but is strong abd fiesty if you pick him up.  Gimpy 1 could hardly keep its eyes open or hold its head up, it had no fight in it when i was nursin him. (like pity the dog when she showed up starved and diseased)  

Anyways a scrap of maple tubing makes a pretty good beak water dropper.  Theyre really goin after that grit.

[mike_belben]

.

Few years ago I had a 99% loss on a batch of turkeys. That was hard.

Dang thats terrible.  I see what they want for them things.. Expensive compost. 
I got very lucky that shipping happened in a temp lull from the storm and all came out full throttle.  Its this footy thing i have to keep tabs on i guess.  No other issues at all so far. 
1/29th loss.

[Southside]

Yeah, I learned a lot that time. I half wonder if it could be a mineral issue, either missing or too much. Some animal feed has added copper and that can be toxic in excess concentration. 

If you see a third one then I would suspect an environment cause, if it's just the two, then bad luck. 

[mike_belben]

Took both kids to watch the sale barn action on the way by.. It was packed.. Watched 10 minutes or so of bred cows and cow calf pairs.  Got a cheesesteak and fries at the little restaurant and the lady just gave the kids ice cream for free. Sort of like 1970 here. Half the trucks are that old and the other half brand new. 


Talked to a guy in a new F350 crew with nice tri axle that i saw drive by full and was sitting empty.. Obviously a seller.  So i walked over to shoot the breeze and see if hed explain some of what im seeing go on. 

  Ended up being a hired transporter who was hauling cows for the family that owns the pature behind me. Got some pretty good info. They all know each other. The hot bidding buyers are there purchasing for a packing plant and the growers in the know make sure to unload when that crowd is there purchasing everything that can walk. Lot of good info, im sure ill run into him again. 

[Southside]

What range were prices? 

[doc henderson]

in nature these would prob. not survive if they are that over bread.  we always fed commercial stuff, till birds were well started. then let them fend more for themselves.  we used for eggs and fun, not meat.  sounds like some good homeschooling exercises.  we did a more "free range"  and then coop them up at night.  only had one neighbor complain.  all the others thought it was neat.  we have been annexed into town.  even in town you are allowed 1 foul for each 2,000 sq. feet of grass (land not cover by a building) you have.  my son used to hold the chicks and set in the coup.  my daughter thought they all wanted to peck her eye balls out.  she wore glasses.    

[mike_belben]

Im house sitting for a neighbor on a half acre lot with 2 dogs, a cat, a 275-300lb sow, rabbits, chickens, 4 or 5 full grown turkeys..  All in barns or a mud lot.  Theyre not dirty people but the sensation of animal filth is pretty high.  The stink and the flies are pretty extreme.   If you were to butcher anything there it would be in a swarm.  I think nature just wasnt designed to keep up with the bacteria and PH balance of constant manure and no sunshine.  

Their feed cost is pretty high. 

[mike_belben]

What range were prices?

Well .. Kinda hard to say since im so new to watching it. 

the last short sit by myself there was individuals. steers, bulls and cows no calves. and that was $/cwt format with every animal scaled.. The bidding was on rate per cwt.  Ranged from a low of like 25c/lb for a sick animal to i think $1.08/lb on 1800lb macho bulls.  I think the sick animal was like $200, the highest macho stud was around $2300 and the midrange was about 50-70cents/lb for typically thousand dollar animals.  


Today the portion i saw was cow calf pairs and bred cows.. 15, 20 minutes just for the kids to see how life works behind the screens scenes.  Today it was outright price auction (plus whatever fees and tax im sure) without weight being on the screen.. I guess he coulda been saying the weight at 300mph in southern mountain talk but it was unrecognizable as a language.. Barely barely make out the prices he was soliciting.

 It was harder to keep up this time because there was a few lot sales and i dont know if the price was each head or for both.


 Around $800-1100 per mature animal or cow/calf pair for most black breeds.  There was a brown and white cow calf pair that didnt sell and they split the young calf away.. That went down to $80 then sold @ $150.  I think $500ish was the cheapest cow i saw and $1400 highest.  A fat, short legged, slick hide angus cow, prob 1400#. I kinda like the cwt bidding better. 


Ive never seen a south poll there, thats for sure.  Would really like to see what a greg judy animal would bring.  I get the impression anything here thats not angus is penalized.  Maybe 5% of them are actually good looking.. Sleek, wrinkled necks, good hour glass leg bones, filled out chests and saddled guts etc. 

[Nebraska]

Mike there was a chicken water electrolyte suppliment called Electro-vite we used to carry. Look for a similar product to add to the drinkers when you go to town.   $1100 for a cow calf pair is pretty cheap unless she had a bad bag, no teeth or really bad atttitude.

[Southside]

A 1000 lb finished Greg Judy South Pol would not do well in that auction at all.  Those are commodity market buyers - they want black hide monsters.  The Angus folks did a great job of promoting their brand, and you saw this in the sale.  The other issue is that small framed cows are very much discriminated against when it comes to feed lot abattoirs.  The reason is simply a matter of through put efficiency in the plants.  The cost to carve a 14 oz ribeye from a 1500 lbs corn and soy finished Angus is the same cost as cutting a 9 oz ribeye from a 1000 lb grass fed and finished sow.  The mega plants work on fractions of a penny and a reduction in labor is a savings.  A labor reduction because the grower (farmer) us willing to grow larger cattle, while growing them less efficently, is even better.  Get the producer to carry the largest risk and you have an unbeatable monopoly.    

[mike_belben]

Thats basically putting words to the thoughts ive had swirling around.  Just like many a sawmill doesnt care what happens to the forest as long as profitable logs stay coming in cheap for now, the packer does not care what happens to the farms.  Just keep the beef coming in the gate cheap for now.

Economies of scale reaching the pinnacle of their benefit and going back over the other side of the hill to a detriment sunset.   You cannot always go bigger better faster more costly upfront. Everything has a sweet spot.