Arizona Chickens

[jfeitlinger]

On Saturday morning I went out to say hi to our 6 girls and found our 1st egg. Was so excited. The egg was perfectly sized, brown color, etc. I was told that often the 1st few eggs are small, odd shaped, etc. but still perfectly healthy to eat. This led me to believe my sneaky family was playing a trick on me but the egg was so warm that I knew it was from our coop.

Well I went out in hope to find our 2nd egg yesterday and again today and no egg. Have others experienced this where you get 1 egg and none for a few days? Is this normal? I was not sure. We haven't eaten the 1st egg yet but probably will today.

 

[Memphisjourney2seramas]

Not sure on the horned lizards up there. I don't think the Regal makes it up that far. You might have the Short Horned Lizard. If you want to encourage them, make sure you don't poison ant hills, since they feed on ants.

I let all the snakes live in my yard, including the rattlers, but that's me...I had a gopher snake kill a young turkey and eat another one last year. I saw it leaving with a big bulge. I figure it is just my responsibility to make the pens predator-proof, whether it be to protect against hawks, bobcats, coyotes, or snakes, all of which are prevalent where I am. If there is a problem animal that is persistent in killing poultry, then it does go, but I do my best to make sure that doesn't happen. I have a lot of rodent problems here, mice and packrats. I need all the snake help I can get to control them. Especially the packrats, they can be so destructive to vehicles and anything else if you don't have it inside a building.

having little kids we aways get rid of the rattle snakes, no ifs ands or buts. one my kindergarten kids got bitten by a rattle snake last week. They were watering a neighbors yard. It didnt even warn, it wasnot coiled up or anything, it just struck and bite him on the calf. he has already had 16 viles of antivenom where an average adult only gets 13 and his whole lower body is swollen and black, espeically his legs, scrotum, and penis. We live 2 hours from a hospital so out here it is not something you take chances with.

 

[pastrymama]

Bootsie the fireman was nice enough to not scramble up the eggs you brought and they are in the bator right now. now how to get them to hatch before memphis leaves????? oh, make her stay longer!!!!!

funny story that could have had a bad ending. saturday morning i woke up around 6:45 and had a text on my phone from my neighbor that said one of my ducks was on the roof of his workshop. the workshop looks just like a replica of his house and is right next to my chicken/duck yard, but the entire run is covered in netting and the gate is closed. i freak out

run outside and start counting, hoping he saw a huge pigeon instead. no, i am missing a girl duck. called him and he said he went in to get his phone to text me, came back out and the duck was gone. he figured she came back in my yard. i frantically search the giant yard, no duck. he went out front to look for her. i hear loud voices over the other fireman's wall(the one NOT SO HAPPY with my flock that i must keep noise to a minimum) i stood up on a bench and peer over the 7foot wall and ask if they have seen a duck, why yes they have! omg! i ask if she is alive(they have 2 huge english mastiffs) and she is alive and ok and in the fireman's wife's arms. duck decided to find an unfenced pool and go for an early morning swim, she sat on their mat at the arcadia door when she was done and the mastiffs saw her, one came out and the 2 were nose to nose, duck started flapping and running across the grass, lucky for her that dog has terrible hip dysplasia and can't really move. the other mastiff and the weiner dog were still trying to get out the doggie door. as fireman's wife was handing duck to me over the wall while i was apolgizing for the rudeness of my duck, she said, i didn't know you even had ducks! i told her they were quackless ducks. her fireman said, honey, they have 4. i started to giggle because my holderread's duckling order is supposed to ship today or tomorrow, and those are NOT quackless. oops.

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

Time for a wing clipping. SO very glad that you got her back safely. When do the new ducks arrive?

 

[Billiam]

On Saturday morning I went out to say hi to our 6 girls and found our 1st egg. Was so excited. The egg was perfectly sized, brown color, etc. I was told that often the 1st few eggs are small, odd shaped, etc. but still perfectly healthy to eat. This led me to believe my sneaky family was playing a trick on me but the egg was so warm that I knew it was from our coop.

Well I went out in hope to find our 2nd egg yesterday and again today and no egg. Have others experienced this where you get 1 egg and none for a few days? Is this normal? I was not sure. We haven't eaten the 1st egg yet but probably will today.

Perfectly normal.

 

[pastrymama]

Time for a wing clipping. SO very glad that you got her back safely. When do the new ducks arrive?

wings got clipped immediately as i had to leave that morning for the resort with the brownies. new ducklings should be here no later than thursday of this week. i have already fished out a basque pullet out of the pool this morning. she got spooked by the sprinklers. i asked the fireman to change the timer, i think he is trying to kill or drown all my chickens.

 

[Drjennidvm]

Great job! What is in the tupperware? I am always looking for new things to grow for the girls. I am super jealous of those grubs...

The tupperware is full of wheat grass/fodder/sprouts- NOW youv'e opened a whole new bag of worms! I found out about fodder feeding while researching how to feed my horses for cheaper (hay sometimes over $20/bale) and feeding them fresher/better feed.I found this site called Keeping a Family Cow (KFC) with a thread on fodder feed growing at home. So now my garden tub area in the master is converted to a fodder growing station. Now I've cut my hay bills in half and I love feeding everyone fresh, green grass (horses, dogs, cats, and now chickens) that is far superior in nutritional value than any grain by itself. It was actually the KFC site that inspired me to get chickens. Right now I'm sprouting wheat and sunflower seeds for the chickens- they love it!
Jenni

 

[MagicChicken]

having little kids we aways get rid of the rattle snakes, no ifs ands or buts. one my kindergarten kids got bitten by a rattle snake last week. They were watering a neighbors yard. It didnt even warn, it wasnot coiled up or anything, it just struck and bite him on the calf. he has already had 16 viles of antivenom where an average adult only gets 14 and his whole lower body is swollen and black, espeically his legs, scrotum, and penis. We live 2 hours from a hospital so out here it is not something you take chances with.

Sorry about the little boy. That must be rough. Hope he pulls through.

There are more and more stories about people getting bitten by snakes that didn't warn them. I suspect this is because people have been killing all the rattlesnakes they find. The snakes who give warning by rattling get found and killed. The snakes who don't rattle live to reproduce. The killing is backfiring on us in the long run. It's like breeding chickens for particular traits. We're culling the well-behaved rattlesnakes and keeping the sneaky ones.

 

[AZBootsie]

On Saturday morning I went out to say hi to our 6 girls and found our 1st egg. Was so excited. The egg was perfectly sized, brown color, etc. I was told that often the 1st few eggs are small, odd shaped, etc. but still perfectly healthy to eat. This led me to believe my sneaky family was playing a trick on me but the egg was so warm that I knew it was from our coop.

Well I went out in hope to find our 2nd egg yesterday and again today and no egg. Have others experienced this where you get 1 egg and none for a few days? Is this normal? I was not sure. We haven't eaten the 1st egg yet but probably will today.

Congratulations!!

Billiam's right....not to worry. Chickens pretty much just do what they want, when they want. Some layers start out strong and others take their time.

Pastry- Your morning sounded like an I Love Lucy episode.

If Memphis is coming in 2 weeks, you are going to have to do some tricky hatching!!

Memphis- That poor Child. That is awful!! I didn't realize the rattle snakes would strike without putting on a show first. Last week I caught a glimpse of a snake as it slithered under my nesting boxes. They are the exterior mounted type...a few inches off the ground. I just stuck a pole under there and poked around. Since I didn't hear any rattling, I wasn't worried.....now I am a bit concerned. That coop has hardware cloth down the side walls about 8 inches into the sand and completely covering the coop floor.....so don't think the snake can get in. But it is completely open on the other side where I collect the eggs. We want to take the boxes off. Pour a cement slab, and then set the boxes right on the slab before reattaching them. The plan was to wait until this fall......guess it needs to be done now.

And as "un-green" as it may be, I would also kill any snakes that ate my babies. So far luck has been with me. I see an occasional snake, but the chooks are all accounted for.

 

[Memphisjourney2seramas]

Sorry about the little boy. That must be rough. Hope he pulls through.

There are more and more stories about people getting bitten by snakes that didn't warn them. I suspect this is because people have been killing all the rattlesnakes they find. The snakes who give warning by rattling get found and killed. The snakes who don't rattle live to reproduce. The killing is backfiring on us in the long run. It's like breeding chickens for particular traits. We're culling the well-behaved rattlesnakes and keeping the sneaky ones.

he got out if ICU this morning and as starting to look up. It scares me for sure having two little girls and dogs. I did have a pitbull get bitten by one years ago in the face and her face swelled up to the size a football sideways. she survived, but she also survived distemper from the pound when I got her,(she was part cat), but she died last year of cancer. They say those are the dogs to keep around becuase they will always warn you when there is a rattle snake around.