Jessamine (Jessie for short) is a large Rhode Island Red/Araucanamix who's now recovered from her bout with coccidiosis an often fatal bacterial infection that affects poultry and other livestock.
I'm delighted to report that by using a medication called Amprolium, the illness that affected Jessie has been cured.
Not only is she all better she's begun laying eggs again. Laying is a sure sign that all is well.
Jessie lays a large brown egg. Can you tell which egg is Jessie's?
For me treasure comes in ovoid, tiny, tasty, little packages!
There's just something sweet about a clutch of eggs. I find them visually charming in their unadorned simplicity.
My four rescue chickens are good layers of medium-size eggs in shades of soft brown.
The Girls are settling in nicely discovering that I'm not an ogre but a source of tasty treats and kind words. At first they were terrified of me...now they approach wondering what I might have for them. Their confidence grows daily.
They love free-ranging throughout the gardens lunching on the lawn, digging fat, scrumptious worms (you've got to see this from a chicken's viewpoint), snarfing up my seedlings, and making chicken wallows in my garden beds.
When my chickens began mysteriously dying I became concerned and began to research possible causes.
My chickens didn't get sick all at once. It started with one hen, then a few months later another, and so on. Being new to raising chickens I wasn't sure if it was a disease, a natural process aging chickens sometimes went through, something in the gardens poisoning them, or what.
I took one hen to my veterinarian. He examined her and gave her an antibiotic shot and she died that night. I tried giving affected hens oral antibiotics without success.
I consulted with another vet at our local rabies vaccination clinic and described the symptoms. He suggested it might be coccidiosis. He provided me with a medication, Amprolium, to combat the next infection.
This disease first manifests when a hen stops laying eggs although she'll look healthy and active. A gradual decline begins as she loses condition.
Her comb shrinks, eyes grow a bit dull, her tail droops, and the area under her vent is stained with white diarrhea. The affected chicken walks with legs slightly splayed as her abdomen fills with blood. Eventually the hen weakens and is unable to walk. Then she dies.
Some chickens recover only to die with a second bout or they may become immune.
Broody Girl (in the foreground), an eight-year old chicken and one of my first ever has never contracted the disease. Jessamine (Jessie), the big red girl, was treated and recovered from coccidiosis.
Broody Girl seems to be immune. The disease generally affects chickens under three years old.
When Jessie came down with the infection I was ready with Amprolium, which I mixed daily, 1/2 cc or ml sucked up into a hypo then dispensed into one quart of water.
The medicated water replaces the hen's drinking water. I sometimes try to isolate a really sick chicken in a separate hutch. However, the Amprolium added to all the hens' water can act as a preventative for those not yet affected.
Medicated chick starter feed contains Amprolium for preventing outbreaks in baby birds. Next time I raise chicks I'll be using the medicated feed.
The Amprolium/water mixture must be made fresh each day as the effectiveness of the Amprolium dissipates within 24 hours with exposure to air. I store the bottle of unused Amprolium in the fridge.
The medicated water is administered for five days. Jessie recovered and is now a healthy, active chicken.
It seems chickens are most susceptible to coccidiosis either going into or coming out of their moult...at least that's been my experience.
Coccidiosis is caused by the coccidial protozoan organism. It's spread by droppings, so keeping a clean coop may help somewhat. However, studies have shown that birds kept in pens with wire floors where their droppings fall through actually have more of a likelihood of suffering from coccidiosis while those in contact with their droppings tend to develop an immunity! Go figure...
My theory on this conundrum is that birds kept in pens with little contact with sun, soil, free-ranging, and not living normal chicken lives have compromised immunity and succumb more easily to the disease regardless of feces contact.
The coccidial bacteria also resides in the soil for years.
Amprolium is not an antibiotic. Instead, it's a thiamine blocker which deprives the coccidial bacteria of thiamine thereby causing them to die and allowing the hen to recover.
In the event of overdosing a hen with Amprolium she will need to be given a thiamine shot to restore her balance of this nutrient. Therefore, it's important to give the bird medication for no longer than recommended. Five days is how long I was instructed to provide the medicine.
Amprolium is available on line, from Amazon, or through a veterinarian. I was unable to get this medication from my local feed store.
With Amprolium in my fridge, I'm well-armed for the next outbreak. I'm determined that my current small flock of six sweet hens will not have to suffer the ravages of this debilitating disease.
Three of my four new Girls! One, however, has not put her best "face" forward for this photo.
Here she is, number four! She's a Buff Orpington and being a very good girl laying her egg thereby missing the group photo.
Introducing "Sugar Pie". She's either of the "Brahma" or "Cochin" breed of chicken. Notice her fluffy, feathered feet.
Chummy and Sugar Pie feast on the emerging greens of a kniphofia despite the wire cage "protecting" it. A bit of chicken wire will stop these naughty girls!
Chummy's lovely feather pattern is called "lacing". She's been named after a character in PBS's Call the Midwife series. Chummy is the tallest of the new hens.
Plummy is black with feathers that have a green and purple iridescence in the sunlight. Her color reminds me of Italian prune-plums when they're ripe. Plummy is coming out of moult presently.
Three of the new girls have feathered feet. All four lay medium-sized, light brown eggs. All the girls are about 1-1/2 years old.
These chickens and their flock mates would have been put to death if homes couldn't have been found for them. Their owner had grown tired of them and wanted them gone.
I took four and other folks took some, too, until all the hens were rescued.
Beth Merayo, rescue organizer, took five of the hens. My neighbors, young Joseph Worch (egg entrepreneur of my "The Egg and Joseph" of March 2nd blog post) and his family, took the black, feather-footed rooster from this flock.
Businessman and entrepreneur, Joseph Worch, poses beside his chicken coop.
Turning eggs from his thirteen hens (with plans to add more) into cold, hard cash is one of Joseph's occupations...that and going to school, playing, and probably doing some homework.
After school Joseph is often seen plying his egg trade around our neighborhood.
Joseph's egg conveyance (borrowed from his little sister) is a frequent and welcome sight.
Fresh, tasty eggs delivered right to your door. Does it get any better than this?
Joseph takes his egg business very seriously and with the help of his Dad has some dandy signs that draw hungry egg seekers to his door.
These are some of Joseph's special girls.
Joseph has a nice variety of chickens. On my visit and interview with him I saw Barred Rocks, Golden Sex Links, Rhode Island Reds, White Leghorns, and Araucanas. His hens lay white, brown, and green eggs according to breed of chicken.
Joseph and his Dad have plans to get more chickens such as Marans that lay brownish-red eggs and some that specialize in pink eggs.
A dozen fresh brown eggs sell for $3.00. Mixed white and brown eggs are $2.00 per dozen, and a dozen white eggs are $1.00. Specials are offered, too, such as two dozen eggs for $5.00.
While you might pay less at the market, these eggs come from well cared for, free-range, beloved hens. And you can't beat fresh eggs laid daily. No market can compete with that!
A peek into the hen house. This Barred Rock hen hops into a nest box to lay her egg. A handy hatch door makes collecting eggs easy and efficient.
Joseph lets his girls out for an afternoon of free-ranging.
During my interview with Joseph I noticed that his girls are quite attached to him. They follow him about into whatever part of the yard he happens to wander. Joseph says that's because he feeds and cares for them.
It appears he does a good job of raising his chickens. They're confident, healthy, and happy hens.
Joseph's girls contentedly scratch for bugs in the backyard.
Joseph has plans to expand his business by offering a new weeding service. He's also offered to let me be his first customer!
This new weeding enterprise will launch later this Spring when weeds began to sprout in earnest. I'm looking forward to his help around the Cottage.
Click on the link below to access Joseph's website and blog, to subscribe, and follow the adventures of Joseph and his girls.
Somewhere in this huge field is the perfect pumpkin...
...many have come from far and near to see if they could find it...
Helpful people with tractors pulling straw-covered wagons pull us about so we can find hopefully find it.
I think Ms. Pikyavit may have found it!
Oh yes, it's a keeper! And, it is the perfect pumpkin!
My dear friend Rena Pikyavit - the first friend I made upon moving to Utah sixteen years ago - and I spent a fun, Fall afternoon pumpkin and squash hunting!
In addition to Rena's many perfect pumpkins, I nabbed some cute sugar pumpkins for baking, a couple dandy banana squash, and some "wee-be-littles" for decorating.
Fall fun in the sun...with many perfect pumpkins and lots of people who found theirs!
My dog, Shadow, doesn't love chickens but she does tolerate them...and the chickens (Jessamine, Broody Girl, and Peekaboo) tolerate her, as well.
Not all dogs are this trustworthy around chickens. Shadow tolerates the chickens - she didn't always - because she knows that the chickens (and cats) are part of our "pack".
Generally, it's not a good idea to leave dogs unsupervised with chickens.
Shadow's technique for dealing with the Chicken Girls is to basically pretend they don't exist. The Girls, on the other hand, keep close watch on this large, black creature!
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