Balnagowan Poultry Mackay

24/12/2024

Merry Christmas from Balnagowan Poultry Mackay.

02/11/2024

It's that time of the year again to watch out for fowl pox. Checkout the pinned post above

14/10/2024

You can feed egg shells to your chickens. But there are a few pitfalls to avoid. Never mix egg shells or any calcium source with your chickens' feed.

20/09/2024

Roosters v Hens
Cockerels v Pullets
When buying uns*xed chicks, which you most likely will, you will get roosters.

Unless you are buying s*x linked birds or 6 week old, chances are there will be boys. They just don't turn into roosters, they were boys from the start.

S*x linked birds are the red commercial layers, all the girls are red and the boys are white. Plymouth Rocks, boys are light grey in colour and girls are black. Also look at the white dot on their heads, more prominent will be girls. Same with Wyandotte's, darker ones should be girls.

This is only a guide and not always correct. Do your own homework, don't leave it up to the breeder.

20/09/2024

Let's talk Turkeys and chickens.
Can I put them together? Yes but girls not the boys.
I have a gobbler around my chickens as a snake deterrent. Does it work 🤷.

Because he's a male and I don't have any females, I don't put him with chooks. He is too big and can get rough. He free ranges and I have a roost for him outside.

Turkeys can eat the same as chickens or there are specific feeds for them, it all depends what you are doing with them ie breeding or eating . I feed mine a cracked grain and I also put garlic in my outside waterer for him.

The garlic can help with blackhead which turkeys are susceptible to getting from other poultry. The home I got him from raises all their turkeys with chickens, this also helps with them not getting blackhead (not scientifically proven)

19/09/2024

Eggs and fertility.
I'm on the third round of eggs in the incubator as the first two lots only a couple were fertile and nothing in the rest.
As they only started laying about a month ago, after a 7 month hiatus, I thought fertility would be better.
Now to wait another 3 weeks.

13/09/2024

Lice and mite season.
Hotter weather means lice and mites, keeping on top of controlling them is key.

Having good animal husbandry, topical poultry treatments and clean nesting material.
I use Permetrol, off label for poultry. A couple of drops under the wing and the back of the neck every 8-12 weeks. There is no egg withdrawal. I use Coopex mixed with water and spray nesting boxes and pen floor.

There are other products like DE and Pestene Powder, BUT I recommend that gloves and masks are worn if using them as they contain fine particles and you don't want to be breathing them in and also change you clothes after applying to your poultry.

Whatever you decide to use, if you have an infestation you will need to reapply in 14-21days.

If you have broody hens sitting on eggs there are different herbs or you can use orange peels in the nesting box with them. There was someone on the Mackay Barnyard Fowls fb page that was making and selling bags.

09/09/2024

Keep your waterers algae free for weeks.
Place a small piece of copper plumbing pipe in the waterer.
The copper will lessen the algae not prevent it completely.
I only use plastic water containers, they are easy to clean and you can add apple cider vinegar to them.
Yes, you can put both in there at the same time.
You can use a small piece in small waterers for chicks as well.
The size of the pipe doesn't need to be as long as your container, a small piece is good.
PS. I have them on the dogs water bowls as well.

02/09/2024

Worming poultry.
If using wormers that are mixed with water buy small waterers. I buy them from thrift stores like the Sollys.

You can control the dosage better and have a greater chance of all your poultry drinking it. I withdraw water late afternoon the day before and put the wormer water out first thing in the morning.

There are different wormers you can use like tablets. You can also naturally worm with garlic and pumpkin seed, but you will need to you a commercial wormer at least once a year.

These are my own opinions, do your own research to work out what works best for you.

01/09/2024

Well as we are now skipping spring altogether and heading straight to summer, make sure your chooks have areas of shade and some where to dust bath.
Also don't put apple cider vinegar in their water during the extreme heat, they can live without it.
Now to wait for it to start raining again.

29/08/2024

My hens started laying three weeks ago. I tried some eggs in the incubator, no luck yet as they weren't fertile ☹️

25/08/2024

Shoutout to Sarina Poultry Society & RNR Poultry for organising the poultry sale today. Had a great morning and always feel welcome. Sold all my silkies and I may have bought some other birds home. 😁
If your new to poultry and want to have a go at showing your birds contact them, lots of knowledgeable people and there is always someone happy to have a chat.
Now to start preparing for next year. 🐣🐔

22/08/2024

If you planning on attending make sure you bring an appropriate cage to transport, also bring your cash 🐔 8am-12pm

Hey everyone!

Please find attached our catalogue for our upcoming poultry sale on the 25th! We’re very keen to see you all there 😁

13/08/2024

For sale: All waterers, details in pics.
Can collect from Sarina Poultry Sale on the 25 th August.