Chickens Feed The Fishes

Two days ago, I get a quite frantic call from a veterinarian who's worried about his present Sunshines on the range.

I thought he got the wrong number, as he knew Doc Rey's contact.

Nope, he clicked on the right contact..he wanted to speak with me as he was embarassed to ask Doc Rey. Thought balloon right away...."he must have done something he knew wasn't right" hahahhha.

Ok, what age? What range did you use (because he just harvested)? I wanted to make sure.

I preempted the answer already in my mind, following my just blown thought balloon...YUP, he used THE SAME ranging area. The very area he just harvested from.

"Don't you remember about how to break cycle of the bacteria? That some need chickens as hosts for them to survive and spread????" You need to let brooders and ranging areas rest. To break that cycle.

No vaccines, no antibiotics are being used.

Now he can sound a little more frantic, as he already let out his can of worms.....calm down...chop up some chilis, ginger, garlic and add them in the drinking water.

That was 2days ago and I asked him to advise me. He didn't, so I called.....The sunshines are happy now, and transferred to another area.

Conversation led to other things. His family was asking why will he want to take care of chickens, well he said initially : nice to look at seeing running all around, food on the farm's tables. Later on, people were buying from them. He takes care of about 1000-1500 a month.

After pencil pushing and co-relating their expenses chicken raising and fishpond expenses...hey the chickens fed the fishes! He was now laughingly telling me that no one now questions the chickens in the farm.

Hope that after we do the Visayas loop, we be able to visit him in Tarlac. Our media friends might find interesting the veterinarian venturing into sustainable farming...going against practices, BUT knowing that there are points in the exact science that can't be thrown away and will always be the foundation of farming.

He is equally excited about the visit and the marketing that it will do to his town.

Where's my natural farming tandem? This might be the best venue to kick off our pages :)

BTW, when I told Doc Rey about his vet friend being shy to call him, he said "tell him just think the Sunshines have colic"...diba kabag yun? lol

THE_start

When Zac Sarian, Doc Rey and I made the Feb trip to Davao for the PVMA, it was primarily for Doc Rey and his seminar. Zac and I knew we were going to enjoy Durian and whatever comes our way after. I asked Tere of Earthkeepers to set us up with the infamous Andry and Jojie Lim, and of course a farm visit with her co-author Dante Delima.

That trip was enjoyable and educational. Doc Rey was only with the group for the lastday, so what we saw was just heresay for him :) When he saw Andry's and Jojie's naturally farmed pigs....he had a lot of questions. Very normal for a veterinarian. We would take that he didn't know his craft, if he accepted the natural farming practice without resistance. That is granting that he is a veterinarian of the 80s.

Things happen and get delayed for reasons....

1) We are working on a book for "Raising Sunshines". Busy schedules have sidelined it, but it is all ready to be edited, illustrated and printed.

2) While brainstorming for Kaunlaran sa Agrikultura over DWWW, an idea flashed for a nice segment. We will keep quiet on this first :)

3) Jojie got different batches of free range chicks and was able to compare growth. She wanting to be more conclusive, she got a 2nd batch.

4) Our seminar in Davao coincided with a time that Andry and Jojie were also in Davao and had the time to go visit farms and showed us their Sunshine chicks.

5) Those visits were eye openers to both parties. Doc Rey was now asking Andry and Jojie a lot of questions. We now had all the time, no rush, to rationalize and put perspective to why science and natural farming should work together and learn from one another. The Lims also saw the logic to what a veterinarian's experience, knowledge and steadfast science has to offer in terms of team play.

They were discussing beddings, feeds, length of intestines, fermented juices etc....

Doc Rey was so awed and renewed after seeing how Tibaw is able to sustain his farm. Seeing the fishes happy and swimming in the dikes...from where he was eating freshly caught fish and really good vegetables in his tinolang manok.

You can see the excitement in his voice, questions and voice! No doubt, everyone's never ending thirst for knowledge will work in sharing. One must study new things, to take care of what's old.

6) Lightbulb!!!! My initial concept for the radio segment may now be translated "in writing", in series and will be for distribution nationwide. Verbal agreements made and final discussion over cafe latte, decaf, green tea and frapuccino....four (4) people, four (4) different drinks. Diverse personalities that blend and meet. Four of us, Andry, Jojie, Doc Rey and I. There is incidentally a 5th person involved for a cameo role.

See for yourself the baby steps....things happened so fast that I missed the most symbolic...when Andry, from below, was throwing the sacks of rice straws to Doc Rey at street level. Doc Rey catching it and Jojie was lugging it to the trunk. As usual, I was comfortably seated under a shade....taking pictures as a disguise for being so tamad.


Symbolic also is how you see Andry and Doc Rey in pictures? Jojie is behind, below or simply taking pictures. Same with me.

Teasers? Let's hope the ones in the background work faster....as we have the "TO DO" assignments.

Easers to be done....to ease the mind of farmers :) Options will be offered to you...you choose what is a workable blend for you. Team play dictates no right nor wrong. Let us come up with our own "3in1" for you.

If we didn't tickle your mind to what we are up to....then we have to reinvent ourselves.

(0917) 8-DOC REY

In our position to make us very accessible, we have made it easier for you to contact our Technical Veterinarian.

Please save (0917) 8-DOC REY, that is (0917) 836-2739. Easy recall, easy to reach.

Note that is not Doc Rey's active number, but we will check that unit several times of the day to get back to your queries.

Benguet State University's Vetmed Week 2008

February 14, Valentine's Day. La Trindad, Benguet. Close you eyes and feel the cool crisp breeze, take in the fresh air...and taste the sweet Strawberries.

That was what we did before going to Benguet State University's Vetmed Week.


I realized I had no pics of Doc Rey as he was speaking. That is because I was manning the projector and I was having problems with my laptop's photo viewer.

Thank you to Robichem group who was the next speakers. They were very helpful in my predicament and plugged my flashdrive into their laptop. Now I know why they had several laptops with them. Can't tell when life's jokes play on you.

The vetmed students and faculty was a great audience. We hope to get invited back.

PAWS 12 Days Of Christmas Wish List

Although my passion is our Sunshine Chickens, Solraya is composed of other branches in the business. One of which is our team of veterinarians who offer technical support and animal health services.

For those who have small animals and would like to share the blessings of your furry family members with their sheltered relatives..pls read their wishes.

How to brood your Solraya's Sunshine Chicks

BROODING THE BIRDS: By practice, use one (1) watt per bird for heating bulbs. It is better to use several bulbs in smaller wattages, rather than using a100watt bulb when you brood 100 chicks. Temperature should be 70 to 75oF with the temperature at chicks’ level to be 95oF during the first week. The area assigned to these chicks should have some flexibility such that they can move through a range of temperatures (95 to 75oF). Monitor the birds for signs of stress; for instance, if the chicks are scattered around the area and chirping loudly, chances are they are hot; conversely, if you notice the chicks all huddled together in one area, they are likely cold . They should be comfortably scattered, moving around. That is your basis that temperature is right. The temperatures given are just guides. USE YOUR EYES to monitor them. At the end of Week 1, begin dropping the temperature by 5oF per week until you reach 70oF, and then try to maintain that temperature.

One common mistake: When the breeze is cold or the wind is strong, most people have this misconception about wrapping the brooders with curtains or laminated sacks. That builds up ammonia fast inside and no fresh air is circulated. Remember that fresh air comes from below and hot air escapes at the top. If you will drape a curtain around the brooder, leave space below for air entry and keep the top (roof) open. If the Sunshines are cold, add more bulbs to keep them warm. Scatter bulbs to even heat around. 1watt per bird is just a guide, you may use more as needed.

Best gauge: How we feel is also how they feel. If you walked into their brooding room feeling warm and gasping for air....so do they!

WATER AND FEEDS: The most neglected and overlooked nutrient is water. What appears to be a bowl of “clean water;” may contain millions of bacteria. The bacteria will stress the digestive system of the bird, such that it will not grow at the rate believed to be their potential. The waterers and feeders should be cleaned routinely (weekly or sooner) with a product like chlorine to reduce the incidence of microbial formation. Fresh water needs to be supplied everyday to insure healthy birds. During the periods of extreme heat, there is an increased risk of microbial growth.
We suggest using probiotics/vitamins in their drinking water, and adlibitum feeding of chick booster for the 1st 21days, prior to ranging. Make sure feeding trays are NEVER EMPTY. Medicate only when necessary.

VACCINATIONS: Day 7 - B1 B1; Day 14 - B1 La Sota

Here are samples of styles of brooding. Let's work on what is available and easy for your requirements. What is important is that the system is one that works for you, so feeding and cleaning is not a task but an enjoyable way to bond w/ your Sunshines.


Remember, aside from Doc Rey, we have veterinarians to assist, we are very accessible by cellphones and landline calls that are forwarded to us (NO COST TO YOU), email, YM etc... Let us keep in touch always so we can monitor. We do farm visits for FREE. What is important is we are able to grow the Sunshines properly. Happy customers, means success to all of us.