Geogia – Page 3 – VJP Poultry

Gifts For Silkie Chicken Lovers

December 13, 2017May 17, 2020 by vjppoultry, posted in New Silkies

People who love silkie chickens enjoy everything about their special birds. They are soft, fluffy and always up for a snuggle. Here are some gifts especially for people who own silkie chickens and can never have enough of them.

Starting off we have a silkie a holic T – shirt. Perfect for a Christmas gift. Cafe Press has a coffee mug which features a silkie trio. A plush silkie stuffed animal is perfect for any child in your life.

A stainless steel travel mug with chicken knowledge on it is just the things for traveling in your car. A long sleeve silkie hoodie brings out your inner silkie spirit. A women’s silkie pajama set is perfect for sleeping and dreaming of silkies.

If you are looking for a silkie Christmas ornament, they have one with the silkie trio on it. How about a white silkie rooster throw pillow for your living room couch? If you like silkies, here is a smooth silkie t-shirt with one on it.

A baby romper with #silkies on it. A very bouncy, springy silkie on a coffee cupis very cute. Also, we have some fluffball silkie socks. A silkie tote bag for taking to the grocery store and bringing home supplies in.

A white silkie phone grip to decorate your phone . A springy silkie notebook could also be used to take notes on at the office.

There are so many silkie gifts to choose from. They are all very adorable. If you are looking for other chicken gifts check out Gifts For Guys Who Like Chickens , Gifts For The Chicken Lady , Chicken Lover’s Gifts For The Home , Gifts For Kids Who Love Chickens , and Gifts For Silkie Chickens.

For tips and tricks for raising outstanding silkies check out our Chicken Learning Center at VJPPoultry.com . VJP Poultry is an NPIP and state inspected hatchery located 30 miles north of St. Paul. We hatch out silkies all year long so we always have stock available. Like us on Facebook to get weekly updates on what we currently have for sale.

Victoria J. Peterson

Gifts for Guys Who Like Chickens

December 5, 2017May 17, 2020 by vjppoultry, posted in New Silkies

We all know that guys like to be around chickens, but what do you give as a gift to men who prefer to spend their time around poultry? I did a little research and I have a few ideas that I think would make interesting gifts for the man in your life.

Lets start with a T-shirt. How could you narrow the choices down? There are so many to choose from. Here is one that is the Chicken Dad. Another choice is the Cocky shirt and what about Backyard Chicken Farmer.

We have high top sneakers with chickens and chicken feet slippers (make sure you get the large). Socks that make a male chicken statement and socks that are just fun.

Surprisingly, there was a selection of chicken themed men’s underwear. Boxers are available too. We have men’s jogger pants and lounge pants.

Hoodies with attitude when it comes to chickens are great lounging wear. Ugly Christmas sweaters have chicken attitude as well.

There seems to be many chicken hats available for men. There are baseball caps, and bucket caps. There are knit caps and santa hats. Lots of hats to choose from.

If your chicken loving guy likes to cook or grill, I found a grilling apron.

Drinking coffee in just the right coffee cup is important. Here are a few your guy might like. Only my chickens understand me, or Chickens, because humans are annoying. So many to choose from. If you aren’t interested in coffee, I did find some rooster shot glasses that looked like fun.

I have a couple of signs for outside. A chicken farmer parking sign and a chicken street sign.

I also liked this rustic chicken coop sign. You could put thischicken weather vane on top of your chicken coop.

Maybe all your man needs is the Famous drinking bird, that could be mistaken for a chicken. Last , but not least, how about a doctorate degree from the chicken university to show how intelligent he is.

If you want to see other chicken gifts we also have Gifts For Silkie Chicken Lovers, Chicken Lovers gifts for the Home,, Gifts for Kids who love Chickens, Gifts for the Chicken Lady and Gifts for Chickens.

Victoria J. Peterson

Gifts for the Chicken Lady

December 2, 2017May 17, 2020 by vjppoultry, posted in New Silkies

There are probably more gifts that are chicken themed for women than any other category. I think that women have a soft spot in their hearts for their chickens and like to wear items that reflect that love. If you know someone who loves chickens, this is a great place to get gift ideas for them.

Lets start with shoes. We have some lace up chicken boots for working outside. They also have high top sneakers with the same pattern. Maybe you prefer flip flops for the beach, or canvas slip ons. You may want some cool chicken socks to go with your shoes. Purple rooster socks are fun as well.

Boots for working in the garden or out in the chicken coop are necessity. Short boots or tall boots will get the job done. After working all day, slip into some soft chicken slippers to give your feet a rest.

Scarves with a chicken theme are nice way to dress up an outfit. There are many different scarves to choose from. A chicken hat is a nice addition as well.

The I Love My Chickens hoodie is a fun way to keep warm. There are so many chicken inspired T-shirts that there is no way to list them all. Mother of Chickens makes me think of Game of Thrones. I love my Ladies just about sums up how I feel on this T-Shirt.

There is also a nice silkie t-shirt.

We will finish off the clothing part by showing a night shirt and a couple of dresses. If I have to dress up, I want a dress with a chicken on it.

Purses with chickens on them are interesting. You can get totes for grocery shopping or small wallet sized pouches. Single shoulder back packs work well too.

Speaking of bags there are also makeup pouches with chicken themes. I love these chicken feet sponge holders for your make up table. Chicken poop lip balm is always good for a laugh and great for your lips.

What can I say about chicken jewelry? Have a look at some of these items. We have a rooster necklace and a rooster brooch for your sweater. A chicken charm bracelet for your wrist and some stud earrings for the ears.

As I am looking at these rooster wine stoppers, I am thinking of having a glass of wine myself. How about a set of wine glasses to go with it. This is a cute fat chicken to hold all of your wine corks.

I like to keep a journal and notes on all of my birds. This journal looks like a good one for keeping individual records on bird.

Lastly, I am going to show you some cute iphone cases. Here is one for the iphone 8. They also have the 7plus and 8 plus cases. I really liked this phone case as well. There are also Samsung and Galaxy phone cases if you hunt around.

If you would like to see other chicken gift ideas check out Chicken Lover’s Gifts for the Home and Gifts for Kids Who Love Chickens . If you are interested in a gift for your silkie chicken check out our blog. We also have Gifts for Guys Who Like Chickens. and Gifts For Silkie Chicken Lovers.

Victoria J. Peterson

How to Fix a Heated Water Base Which is Too Hot

November 17, 2017December 1, 2018 by vjppoultry, posted in New Silkies

Last fall I purchased eight new heated water bases to be used under galvanized waterers in order to keep my water from freezing in the chicken coop. I began to notice that the water was alway spilling over and making a wet mess of the pine shaving bedding. This seemed strange because the water never overflowed in the summer. I ended up buying pizza trays to place under the metal waterers. This was successful but the pizza trays had to be drained off every day which was extra work.

Then I began to notice that the water was beginning to become very warm – hot even. I could see the steam cloud raising up from the waterer when ever I changed out the water. I put my finger in the water and it was like very hot bath water. I figured that the water was around 100 degrees F. The water should have been between 32 F and and 45 F.

Chickens do not like to drink hot water. They wouldn’t wait until I changed out the water and then they would descend on the cooler water. There wasn’t an empty spot all the way around the waterer when the cool water was added to it.

As the water was heated, the water expanded and was forced over the rim. This created the situation with the wet bedding which had to be replaced. This would happen every time new water was added.

I did a little research and read some reviews of the product. I noticed that quite a few people were having the exact same problem that I was having – overheated water and water expanding and spilling out.

Dennis troubleshooted the situation and found that the snap disc thermostat was defective which was causing the base to operate at too high of temperature. He purchased new snap disc thermostats that turn on at 32 F and off at 45 F. You actually can buy the thermostats at different temperatures but these are the correct ones for the water bases.

Here are the steps for replacing the thermostats:

Flip the Heated base over.
Us a cordless drill to drill out the pop rivets holding the back plate on. Be sure to mark the placement because we found the holes to be an uneven distance from each other.
Pry off the back cover with something like a screw driver.
. Unplug the connections to the thermostat.
Remove the rivets to the thermostat with a cordless drill.
Take out the old thermostat and replace it with the new one. Ours had a red casing.
Fasten the new thermostat with new pop rivets using a pop rivet gun.
Connect the wires back up to the new thermostat.
Using aluminum pop rivets, fasten the protective back cover on the pan. Use the pop rivet gun to do this.
The little pop rivets go in each hole on the back side.
End of repair. I originally purchased two different brands of heated bases. The Farm Innovators we purchased worked great and we did not have to repair them. The other brand had to have all of its thermostats replaced. All appliances wear out sooner or later. It’s nice to be able to repair instead of having to replace. .For tips and tricks for raising outstanding silkies check out our Chicken Learning Center at VJPPoultry.com . VJP Poultry is an NPIP and state inspected hatchery located 30 miles north of St. Paul. We hatch out silkies all year long so we always have stock available. Like us on Facebook to get weekly updates on what we currently have for sale.
Victoria J. Peterson

Vitamins, Silkies, and Wry Neck

September 26, 2017May 27, 2020 by vjppoultry, posted in New Silkies

Silkies are sometimes described as a more high maintenance breed of chicken. Owners are known to give them baths and pedicures and to trim around their eyes when they are so fluffy that they can no longer see. Many live a pampered existence.

Silkies are often thought to need a higher protein chicken food than most other breeds. We feed all of our adult silkies a Gamebird Conditioner feed which is 20% protein. But, does the feed contain all of the vitamins needed for outstanding birds?

Most commercial feed companies will make sure that there is the proper amount of vitamins and minerals for the type and age of the bird. For example, layer feed will have the higher amount of calcium that the hen needs to create egg shells.

However, with any product, the age of the feed is critical to its nutritional content. Vitamins are sensitive to changes due to light, heat and moisture and can lose potency over time.

Some people try to create their own feed mixtures and this can leave the birds with incorrect amounts of certain vitamins and minerals. Corn and scratch are enjoyed by chickens but are empty calories.

Silkies need extra vitamins during times of stress, very cold weather, when they are breeding , when they are chicks and growers and when they are ill.

There are two kinds of vitamins. Fat soluble and water soluble. Water soluble vitamins are not affected by the fats in the chickens diet. These would be the B and C vitamins. If too much is ingested, it is excreted through the urine. Fat soluble vitamins are A, D, E and K. More care needs to be taken not to over supplement these particular vitamins.

Cluck N Sea Kelp is a nice mixture of Kelp meal that can be added to the regular feed with many benefits. Poultry Power can be added to their food and is a good source of vitamin E. Life Lytes Mega tabs is another product that can be added to the water. It is a good souce for vitamins A, B12, D and E. Durvet Vitamins and Electrolytes is what I use to add to both my chick’s and adult’s water. Rooster Booster is a product I would use with adults for show conditioning or if I was having problems with roosters not performing. Nutri Drench can be used if you have a sick chick and need something fast acting.

Now a word about Wry Neck…. Wry Neck is evident when you see a bird tucking her head between her legs. It usually hits young chicks but can happen in older birds. This can be caused by a vitamin E deficiency . Vitamin E and vitamin B complex are both known to be good for neurological disorders.

Wry Neck is different from a peck on the head, which silkies are very susceptible to. Their vaulted look when chicks is caused by an opening in their skull like a baby’s soft spot. Pecks can lead to head injuries that look very similar to what you see with Wry Neck. Vitamin E and Selenium (helps animals absorb vitamin E) can be helpful with these injuries.

If you think that your silkie has wry neck or a head injury, the first thing to do is separate it from the rest of the flock. Stress will make it worse, so it needs a quiet environment. Take a vitamin E capsule and squirt it onto its feed or into its mouth. Take 25 micrograms of a selenium tablet (or break a 50 mcg tablet in half ) and crush that up and add it to the feed. Give this to the chick two or three times a day. You may have to hand feed it if it is not eating by itself. It may take as long as a month before the condition disappears. Keep giving it the vitamins for two additional weeks beyond where they appear to be recovered. Wry neck affects 8% of chicks across all breeds. It is not contagious.

Since silkies are more prone to head injuries, you may want to take care not to place them in a pen along with more aggressive chickens. Keep them away from bully birds and do not place them in crowded situations.

As a preventative and just for general good health, I place 1/16 tsp of vitamins and electrolytes per 2 quarts of water. This is at the feed supplementation level. More could be used if the bird was showing illness. I also add 1/2 tsp of apple cider vinegar to the 2 quarts of water. The chicks are given vitamins every day but the adults are given it every other day. With the adults I alternate with Red Cell ( one half capful per gallon of water ) and regular vitamins as well as days where they just get plain water. Use less vitamins on hot days as they will drink more water than usual.

Victoria J. Peterson