Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Coco has recovered

I think Coco is all better.  She's looking and acting fine.  And her crop feels normal.  I've moved all the straw to the compost bin and to the far side of the garden and I've put up a 3 foot tall temporary fence to keep the girls out of that side of the yard.

I wonder if she's learned her lesson and won't eat straw again?  Because they clearly recognize when I bring them their favorite treats.  So I'm curios if she now has a negative association with straw?  But we'll never know for certain because I'm going to keep them away from straw moving forward.

Coco had to weigh in at the vets office last week and tips the scales at 6 1/2 lbs.  I would have lost a bet on that.  I thought for sure she was closer to 7-8 lbs.  She is so solid and heavy compared to her sisters.  She will ultimately weigh in between 9-10 lbs. when she's fully grown.  But that won't happen for another 8-9 months.

Which means her sisters don't weigh anything close to what I thought they did.  I'm guessing Pumpkin tips the scales around a pound or slight over.  Ginger probably comes in around 2 lbs.  I've toyed with buying a scale to weigh them but really don't need to be spending any more money on these guys.  And I doubt they are going to stand still to let me weigh them.

I also need to make sure Coco is getting as much protein as possible since she's still growing.  I've been trying to do this but she is one picky eater.  She wants fruit, veggies and wheat grass.  She'll take a few bites of a scrambled egg.  Yogurt is not a favorite.  I've tried mixing in some oats to entice her, but she's too smart for that.  They don't like beans.  I had already tried those.  I can add some water to a small scoop of their feed crumbles and make a paste and add in some grated apple or smashed banana.  She'll go for that.  I suppose I could try some tuna.

I'm curious what you feed your chickens that is high in protein?  And please don't say chicken.  I just can't bring myself to feed my chickens, chicken.

2 comments:

  1. Tilly loved to eat hay. She developed a sour crop. I too took her to the vet. Long story, but I never gave them hay again. The straw she leaves alone. I was so scared I'd lose her:(

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  2. Yea, I'll never give them hay or straw ever again. I raked it all up and put it into the compost bin. I was so afraid I'd lose her too. She's so loud and bossy and when she wouldn't greet me, Ugh, I just knew I had a real issue on my hands w/ her.

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