How to Introduce New Chickens into your Flock, part 2
[This article is part of a series that addresses the question of how to introduce new chickens into your existing flock, along with several related questions. To see all articles in this series, visit .]
Disease and Parasites
When you introduce new chickens to your flock, you run the risk of also introducing new diseases or parasites to your flock. If you take your chickens to poultry shows, then you run that same risk when you reintroduce chickens that were taken to the show back into your main flock.
Quarantine
The best and most effective way to protect your flock from diseases introduced by new chickens is to quarantine them. When you quarantine a chicken or several chickens, you keep them separate from the rest of the flock for an extended time period. We recommend a quarantine of at least 30 days.
During the quarantine, care for the quarantined chickens normally, giving them food and water, but do not allow any contact with the existing flock. Thoroughly wash your hands and disinfect your feet and anything else that comes in contact with these chickens or their environment or manure. We carry several that work well.
While the chickens are in quarantine, watch them closely for any signs of parasites, such as mites, and for any signs of disease, such as respiratory problems, or mucus discharges from the chickens’ eyes or nostrils.
Another Precaution
Chickens in a flock can build up an immunity to a disease yet still be carriers of that disease. If your new chickens have such an immunity and are disease carriers, the quarantine described above won’t be enough, and the new chickens could still introduce disease into your flock undetected.
There is a way to guard against this. It involves a little risk, but it minimizes the risk of infecting the main flock. Take one chicken from your main flock and move it into the quarantine with the new birds. Keep that chicken with your other quarantined birds for the entire quarantine period. Watch her closely. If she begins to develop any signs of disease, it is likely that she was infected by the new birds, so in that case, do not introduce the new birds into the flock. On the other hand, if she makes it through the quarantine period without any signs of disease, then you can be reasonably sure that it is safe to introduce her and the new birds into your flock.
With this approach, you run the risk of losing one chicken from your main flock to disease, but you greatly reduce the risk of losing your entire flock.
Baby Chicks from Murray McMurray Hatchery
Murray McMurray Hatchery takes a to make sure that any baby chicks you receive from us are healthy and free of disease. This eliminates any concern you may have about the baby chicks introducing disease to your existing flock, but there are still some things to consider.
Baby chicks are not able to defend themselves against larger, more mature chickens, so they should be raised separately until they reach maturity. Second, if you have any concerns about disease or parasites in your existing flock, take proper precautions to make sure that you don’t risk introducing it to your new chickens.
In next week’s article, I will discuss how to integrate the new chickens into your existing flock.
Baby
Chicks Male in
Palenville, New York
We have many Rare Chicken Breeds for sale in Palenville New York,
including Sussex Chickens, Welsummer Chickens, Turken Chickens and more.
Be sure to check out the Bargain Specials, as you can combine different
egg layers in smaller amounts and buy as an assortment. Palenville
New York also has poultry equipment for sale, game chickens for sale in
Palenville New York, bantams for sale, ducks for sale, geese for sale,
turkeys for sale, guinea for sale, peafowl for sale, pheasant for sale,
chukar partridge for sale, bobwhite for sale, many different breeds of
baby chicks for sale in Palenville NY.
Baby Chickens
And Ducks For Sale in
Palenville, New York
Thumbing through a baby chickens for sale in Palenville New York
catalog is a yearly traditions in many houses. My kids and I eagerly await
the Murray McMurray Hatchery catalog. We love looking at all the cool and
different chicken breeds available. Catalogs are free so head on over to
their site and request one if you are interested.
Typically hatcheries online offer both standard breeds
and bantams. Bantams are fun hardy little chickens, they lay tiny eggs
that kids especially love collecting. Bantams typically weigh less than 2
pounds when full grown. Just like ordering anything online there are pros
and cons to ordering baby chicks online. Pros of buying baby chicks in
Palenville New York * Big Selection - If you are wanting a large
variety of different chicken breeds and egg colors, you will find the best
selection at an online hatchery. * Both Bantams and full sized chickens
available * You get to choose what sex you want. If you want a mixture of
both male and female then choosing a "straight run" will save you money
and you will get a mixture of male and female chicks. You can also choose
all males or all females too. * Weekly specials. Hatcheries have sales on
chicks, you are likely to get a good deal if you are flexible with the
breeds you are wanting. Cons of buying baby chicks in Palenville
New York * Order early to get the best selection. Certain breeds sell
out fast, sometimes as early as 6 months in advance of shipping! If you
are wanting a certain breed it's best to order your chicks in the fall
before their orders sell out.
Baby Chickens Under Lights in
Palenville, New York
Quantity - you must order a certain number of chicks. Typically hatcheries
will require you buy a minimum of 25 chicks at a time. The number is
necessary for the chicks survival during shipping. All 25 chicks are put
in one small box without heat. They are crowded in the box and produce
enough body heat to arrive in good shape. * The wait - If you choose to
buy chicks from a feed store you will have them the same day but if you
choose to go with a hatchery you have to wait until they are ready to ship
and then wait for the chicks to arrive. Ordering baby chicks online in
Palenville New York is easy and has always been a very pleasant
experience of me. It can be a little frustrating waiting for the chicks
but it's so worth the wait. When the post office calls and you hear all
those little "cheeps" or "chirps" in the background you'll know the wait
was worth it! How to Care for your new baby chickens in Palenville,
New York Baby chicks are extremely
charming and
tough to withstand,
yet it's ideal to prepare for their
arrival prior to you get them. Prepare initially
by compiling not just the
right materials, but
likewise the appropriate
understanding to take care of
them. Raising baby chicks is reasonably
easy, you simply have to provide them with the following: A
clean and also warm
habitat Plenty of food and water Attention as well as
love Habitat Your environment can be a basic box, fish tank,
feline service provider, or guinea
porker cage. Line it with old towels as well as
coverings (without any loosened
strings!) to start, and after a few weeks make use of straw over newspaper.
Note: Avoid utilizing just
newspaper or other sandal
surface areas-- or your chicks legs can expand
malformed. You also need
something to serve up food and also
water in, such as a chicken feeder and also water
meal from the feed shop, or a pickle jar
cover for food and a pet bird water dispenser from an animal store. Also, as the chicks get
older you can present a perch
right into the habitat to get them
educated on perching. Warmth To
maintain your chicks warm you need to
offer them with a warmth source.
This can be as easy as a 100 watt
light bulb in a reflective clamp design lamp from an equipment shop, or an infrared reptile warmth
light bulb also function extremely well (my
recommendation). Chicks need this
heat 24/7 until their downy fluff is
changed with feathers (which can take up to 2 months). The freshly
hatched out need a temperature
between 90 as well as 100 degrees,
and also every week this can
be reduced by
about 5 degrees or
so. The heat source ought
to be on merely one side of the cage
to allow chicks a variety of
temperatures. The chicks are your finest
thermostat- if they are hiding in the
opposite edge of your heat
lamp, you should
reduce the temperature. If
they are smothering each various other under the
heat (not merely snuggling),
you should add some heat.
House cleaning
Cleanliness is vital and it keeps your chicks healthy and
balanced. Make certain to alter
the bed linens
frequently as well as
consistently supply clean
food and also water Food as well as water.
Chicks expand really quickly
which requires lots of tidy
food and also water. Offer
sufficient at all times and also inspect
commonly to
stop thirsty and
starving chicks. Chick food is various compared
to grown-up chicken food, and also it is available in both medicated as well as non-medicated ranges. Feed chick food for the
very first two months, then
switch to a raiser food (~ 17 %
healthy protein) for another 2 months,
and afterwards to a somewhat
reduced healthy protein feed or a layer feed
(if you have levels). Soil Some chicks prefer to get a head start on taking
dust baths, while others will not take
up that task till they are
older. If you have the space in your chick
unit, introduce a tray of sand or
dirt for them to wash in.
Focus and also love There are a couple of benefits to spending quality time with your chicks. To start
with, they will more than likely bond with you and
not escape as grownups. Second, if you
examine your chicks daily and
see their behavior, you can
capture illness or other issues previously. Keep an
eye out for wheezing, limping, or
other unhealthy
signs. Make certain to
also look at
their poop, as diarrhea could result in matted feathers and also clogged up cloaca.
Finally, it is necessary to look out
for social concerns, such as the
smallest chick obtaining picked
on. Empty nest syndrome So your
chicks are currently fully feathered
as well as its time for them to leave the
security of your house
and also relocate outside right into a cage. Check out our
part on chicken cages to get more information
concerning coops and
proper cage habitats.
Raising Baby ChickensBaby Chicks As Pets More Posts Baby Chickens for Sale in Oriskany, New York Baby Chickens for Sale in Maple Springs, New York Baby Chickens for Sale in Harpursville, New York Baby Chickens for Sale in Mineville, New York Baby Chickens for Sale in Palenville, New York