Nevadans?

Thanks everyone! I do hope she turns up tomorrow but I don't have a lot of area to cover and we looked really well for her. I'm actually surprised it's bugging me this much, I've lost many animals over the years it's just usually I lose the good ones to old age and you expect it then. Well it is possible that she jumped up to one of the bushes and then jumped the fence (she can jump a little over 3 feet). Hopefully if that happened she will turn up tomorrow.
Thanks for the adorable pics ke_ben they really cheered me up!

Oh Sunny! I hope she is outside the coop this morning complaining!




I feel like the lowest of the low, the worst chicken keeper ever. I check my birds regularly for bugs, I even hold and cuddle some birds (those who like it) and yesterday eve I was totally grossed out with myself! I processed the young cockerel that has been running around (the Dinner in one picture). I dry pluck - do not like the smell of wet feathers, so I start out plucking him.........ugh....I am ashamed and embarrassed to go on, but will. **Stops for a quick scratch...eww** Up the leg of the chicken being plucked crawled a little critter, I leaned closer to get a better look -- ew, ew, ew.....lice I almost threw him into the garbage, so grossed out was I. But I continued and got him processed - did see more....probably 20 little critters total **scratch, wiggle, creep out**

So when I finally finished him, I grabbed the Sevin dust that I have for just such an emergency and dusted the crap out of everyone (including myself). Some of my pullets who are not yet laying thought I was getting fresh with them, so they squatted and purred for me (crazy girls). I have not wormed yet, so will get some Eprinex to hit them with next week. Also will pick up some Adams flea n tick spray. I know I need to dust/powder again in 7 days to catch any hatches - have not even seen egg clusters - none on the processed one and none on the live ones (like I trust my eyes now!).

I looked very carefully this am as I was pickin up poo - saw a few dead bodies (yippy I guess). Those darn little critters.

So, honestly, how often do you all dust - do you wait until you see bugs or are you proactive and dust on a schedual?

Ugh, worlds worst fowl keeper

Isn't it awful the surprises you get when things have been going well and you go and get all comfortable.

I have only dusted once before , when we moved to a new property and I was not sure. I cleaned the coop and sprinkled them and the sub floor, then layed down the coarse cedar. Not sure if it was necessary? But, what the heck...

Right now I am busy making 9 crochet aprons for bare bloody hens because It did not dawn on me to do it when the rooster was picking favorites. I now have even the polite hens picking the boo boos!

There is not time enough to see all and do all, so I'm trying to be content with making a grand effort!

This is a fantastic article about cooking heritage/dual purpose chickens. It is well written and very informative. I have it saved to my computer, I found it here on BYC posted by another member srsmith69.

www.albc-usa.org/documents/cookingwheritagechicken.pdf


If you are thinking about, planning on, or do eat your "home growns" - heck even if you do not - the article is great.



Really, read it, you will like it - even if you do not cook!

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Laceynoelle, I am the first person to give your Dad a referral. Tell him we said good luck in his business and to keep up the good work!
BTW, Honors orchestra? Awesome! When you get a local gig let us know so we can come see you perform.

Hey sunny, you really wanna come? That would be amazing, if you like string music. Man ive been in orchestra for six years, and i'm impressed with the music we're playing. D yo know any of the songs? we're playing Folk tune air and Fiddler's fury by Alexander Safford, Of Glorious Plumage by Richard Meyer, Don Quixote suit by G. P. Teleman, and Serende for strings by Tchaikovaky. The orchestra is made up of the top kids in Washoe county. Its fun, but hard. next week we'll be putting in a total of 19 hours after school for pratice. but its worth it. It would be soo cool if you could see it! the concert is somtime on the 27th.
Gitlaost 80, that is the cutest kid ever! Lol ke_ben what kind of goats are those?

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It just happens sometimes. At least it wasn't maggots (my sister-in-law has a horror story about maggots, ewwwwwwwww)! I haven't had to deal with lice yet but maybe I should give them a closer scrutiny now. It is more likely during the winter since they can't dust on a regular basis (everything is still too wet). You are not a bad chicken keeper at all! What would be bad is if you saw it and did nothing about it!

OK folks, here is the sad update to the missing hen. We could not find her anywhere last night so my DH decided to to leave the pen open last night in case she decided to come back. Unfortunately he did not tell me he did this and he opened up the coop this morning and did not close the small door from the pen to the yard. The dogs were let out this morning and no one knew the hen's pen was open. I did look outside before letting the dogs out to see if my liitle gal was pacing outside the pen and when I saw no sign of her I let the dogs run outside.

Well I heard a ruckus outside later and when I got outside to see what was going on... to my horror I saw my male dog with a hen in his mouth and 6 others spread out on the lawn dead. The one he had in his mouth was not dead but I had to put her down once I saw how bad off she was. Then I found another injured one in the bushes that I also put down later that day when I saw how quickly she was deteriorating. Needless to say I called DH at work to find out what the *bleep* had happened and he said he thought that the missing hen might go back in this morning so he had left the pen open on purpose (I was sure it was an accident 'til he said that) so she could go back in. When I pointed out how ridiculous it was for him to expect any chicken to ever go in in the morning he apologized all over himself and admitted how dumb that rational was!!!
I'm trying to be calm about it now, he wasn't raised with animals like I was and he just didn't think beyond the fact that he didn't want the missing hen to be locked out.

Ironically I found the missing hen later in the middle of the bamboo. I'm not sure how she wriggled into that thick mass of bamboo but she was hiding there and luckily missed all the excitement! She is alive and well and has been reunited with my remaining 9 pullets. Now I need babies to get my flock back up to between 20-25!

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Laceynoelle, I am the first person to give your Dad a referral. Tell him we said good luck in his business and to keep up the good work!
BTW, Honors orchestra? Awesome! When you get a local gig let us know so we can come see you perform.

Hey sunny, you really wanna come? That would be amazing, if you like string music. Man ive been in orchestra for six years, and i'm impressed with the music we're playing. D yo know any of the songs? we're playing Folk tune air and Fiddler's fury by Alexander Safford, Of Glorious Plumage by Richard Meyer, Don Quixote suit by G. P. Teleman, and Serende for strings by Tchaikovaky. The orchestra is made up of the top kids in Washoe county. Its fun, but hard. next week we'll be putting in a total of 19 hours after school for pratice. but its worth it. It would be soo cool if you could see it! the concert is somtime on the 27th.
Gitlaost 80, that is the cutest kid ever! Lol ke_ben what kind of goats are those?

Yes Laceynoelle, we would love to come. I love strings. Just don't ever try to drag me to an opera or a ballet.
I know three of those songs but may have heard the others I'm just not good with names. Where is it being held? I'm pretty sure we have that night free.

OHNO!!!!!
i feel awful for you....
i'm lucky enough that my dogs don't mess with the birds....
if i was closer i'd offer you all these chicks i'm about to hatch on monday...
if you want to drive down, you can take your pick...
if you want eggs to hatch, let me know... i'll send some up....

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Thank you evonne! I will keep that in mind but right now I don't have a 'bator or a broody hen. The offer means a lot though!

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Hey sunny, you really wanna come? That would be amazing, if you like string music. Man ive been in orchestra for six years, and i'm impressed with the music we're playing. D yo know any of the songs? we're playing Folk tune air and Fiddler's fury by Alexander Safford, Of Glorious Plumage by Richard Meyer, Don Quixote suit by G. P. Teleman, and Serende for strings by Tchaikovaky. The orchestra is made up of the top kids in Washoe county. Its fun, but hard. next week we'll be putting in a total of 19 hours after school for pratice. but its worth it. It would be soo cool if you could see it! the concert is somtime on the 27th.
Gitlaost 80, that is the cutest kid ever! Lol ke_ben what kind of goats are those?

Yes Laceynoelle, we would love to come. I love strings. Just don't ever try to drag me to an opera or a ballet.
I know three of those songs but may have heard the others I'm just not good with names. Where is it being held? I'm pretty sure we have that night free.

I'm not sure where its going to be yet. Probably one of the larger high schools. The people organizing it havent bothered to tell us where it'll be, or when on that day, or even where the last practice is. i think you might need a ticket, but thats okay, ill track one down for you if you do. Lol no one really knows whats going on yet. The teachers have onlytold us 'learn the music'. is it obvious?