Australians - Where are you all????

[Teila]

My new additions....

Aaaw, cute as!

 

[MyHaven]

My new additions....

Gorgeous!!!

 

[MyHaven]

[COLOR=333333]OMG .. I'm stressing![/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]I picked up my eggs on the Sunday and when the lady gave them to me she said to mark 20 days on the calendar.  I'm thinking they were probably laid on the Saturday the 21st. 20 days from when she handed them to me is up on Friday.  [/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]I noticed today that one of the eggs has a small circular 'indent' in the shell and some very very tiny cracks, barely visible (needed my glasses). It doesn't smell at all.[/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]I'm freaking out! I don't know if something is happening, I don't want to mess with it.  Apparently some bantams hatch on day 18 and if you include the Saturday they were laid on, tomorrow is day 18![/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]I don't know what to do, I don't know if one of them is starting to hatch or something has gone wrong.[/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]OMG stress levels are now officially through the roof! lol[/COLOR]

So sorry I've missed your post. I had a stint in hospital and had to leave the care of my own babies in the hands of someone else.

What is your update?

I can tell you that while living in Brisbane all my chickens (and that is only three cluches) have arrived at day 18 from setting. It spun me out the first time. I put it down to the humidity. In the dryer country I have only seen them hatch on the normal 21 days when set under a hen.

I do hope all is well.

Cheers

 

[rachmickmurphy]

For RachMickMurphy .... From memory, my mother's kangaroo tail soup was made by cutting up the sections ( vertebrae like portions - guess it is vertebrae as it extends from the spine ) ....and placing them in water, with whole carrots and one onion, and a big handful of barley. Salt was added to taste. She simmered it for hours - and the richness from the meat / bones was delicious. The vegies and barley pretty well disintegrated after hours of simmering. From memory, the meat fell off in the long cooking, and I think she left it all there - certainly there were some tiny chunks of really tender meat at times. She also put the soup through a strainer at times, which resulted in a rich thick brown stock or consomme. Just removed all the bones ( and there were lots ) .... and there it was. Rich and beautiful. I wondered if there were any kangaroo ( & soup ) recipes on line, so Googled and there are - at this link :

http://www.macromeats.com.au/Recipes/Kangaroo_Tail_Soup.aspx#.UlGlXNKBn5E The soup on this page has a whole lot more in it than Mum ever used. There are other recipes for kangaroo meals on this page as well .... just cursor over the pics that are shown towards the bottom. I am going back there to try some myself. A point is made on this link, that it should be cooked quickly and served rare or medium rare. I prefer mine a little over medium rare, but never well done - turns to leather that way. Pelts for floor rugs - my grandmother had them here and there in the farmhouse.

Hope this helps.

Cheers .......... AB.

thank you for posting this your mums recipe sounds delicious BARLEY would make so homely flavoured i live in grain bowl terriory can get it from the neighbour. yes the vertibrae extends thru the tail cross cutting the tail thru these with a saw you get chop like cuts or tailsteak the person cooking thickly smeared it in crushed garlic it was overdone so tough.or maybe it was tough because no fat on it either way i wont eat tailsteak again. thanks again

 

[rachmickmurphy]

Hi Aussies and all! Would have said hello on that other Aussie thread but it was huge... Too many posts, not enough time.
Just wanted to add, just in case... (I reckon you probably already know though). Ivomectin can kill some dogs, especially herding breeds/common working farm dog breeds. They're known to have hypersensitive individuals among them due to a genetic mutation caused by generational exposure from being in paddocks where horses etc have been wormed, and also from people using Ivomectin on dogs. Coma, paralysis, blindness, deafness, and death from an allergic type reaction can result, even from exposure to minute amounts of Ivomectin.

Those that do recover take a long time and may not recover fully. Two "immune" adults can still produce hypersensitive pups. A litter of non-sensitive pups can have one pup in the whole bunch who will die if it even licks a horses' drool after it's been wormed with that. I've heard there's some sort of test you can get done to identify whether your dog has the gene responsible.
Farming roos has been discussed and attempted for decades now but they're too difficult. The only way, it seems, is to "game ranch" them. As in, have a large property with feed and water to attract and maintain a population, and hunt them periodically. (Not the true meaning of the term, I know). They don't transport well at all, being one of the main problems, so they must be processed on-site. I think it's just a matter of having the setup. I'm sure someone's made strides in this area.

I'm pretty keen on "game ranching" both natives and some exotic species which are either already running feral in Australia or are in private collections and zoos. (Banteng, Gaur, Eland, Nilgai, various other ruminants, etc). A lot of these animals are very well suited to the Outback and thrive to a competitive degree compared to any domestic cattle, with superior dressing weights and fecundity, water independence, disease resistance, etc. I know these ideas aren't popular with a lot of folks but I don't see too much difference between farming one common introduced species or another less common introduced species. I've been eating feral deer recently, and it's very nice. Hard to go back to storebought beef or chicken or whatever. No longer a fan of any storebought meats, they just taste rank. Nothing compares to home grown.

Anyway, best wishes to all.

lol roo ranching the army could corner the market you should see pukapunal. feral deer O you sooo lucky we love venison i used to get from a farm never had the opportunity to process myself so jealous hope you are tanning the skins too. i think if i was in your position i would have another hobby lol taxidermy and i totally agree it is really hard to go back to beef after the luxury of deer.

 

[chooks4life]

@rachmickmurphy:
Quote:
We use every body part, don't believe in waste. I'm not sure taxidermy would suit many of these, as they are a particularly aggressive lot and even the young ones and females bear many scars. Not good stock in that way, hyper-aggressive. But there are always uses for each portion!

I had thought venison would be tough and gamey, but it really is superior to beef in every way. The clean flavor and smell are wonderful, and the sheer obvious health of the flesh is an eye-opener. I loved store bought meat until I gained experience with naturally grown meat. There is just no comparison.

It's kind of a good thing feral deer are in need of controlling, lol! There are a lot of spikers around here, and from what I've read that's a lethal gene when it goes too far.

Regarding Puckapunyal, I hope they don't waste the meat. That would be unconscionable. And directly responsible for a feral predator boom, possibly. They said the number is around 89,000 roos. That's a lot!

Best wishes.

 

[rachmickmurphy]

lol that how you spell puckapunyal glad you knew what i meant. not sure what they do with the meat but they breeding better than cows there. we process alot of our own meats have been trying to get dh to build smoke house for 2 years now so i can do hams and bacon too. yes we dont waste much the sweetbreads liver kidney brain tounge all served here. in the supermarket one day one of my kids said yuck what is the pink writing on that meat (the quality control stamp) had to laugh my kids so used to seeing our meat they were revolted by the ink our gov inspectors use. guess they wonder wonder why eggs have stamp or used by dates reckon they would float test them anyway its just habit.

 

[MyHaven]

Hello MyHaven .... found your comments here very interesting - as usual.     I could imagine that pickling kangaroo would end up tasting like corned beef, as it should.   The link below here, shows some of the nutritional qualities ( and lots more - recipes etc ) of kangaroo, and high on the list is iron, which not doubt accounts for why I experience a slight taste of iron when eating it.   Lambs' Fry or any other liver, is heavy going as it is absolutely loaded with iron .... and takes a while to get through a decent plateful.   A lot of people don't like liver, or any other forms of offal.  I do. 

http://www.macromeats.com.au/Recipes/Kangaroo_Tail_Soup.aspx#.UlGsJdKBn5G     This site recommends quick cooking and eating rare to medium rare - I prefer mine a touch more than medium rare.   Like Venison ( which I also enjoy - it does have a strong flavour though ) ... and any form of good meat - quick cooking is the key I guess.   So get the Barbie out and have another go at BBQ'ing a good piece of kanga steak - ultra hot flame / heat and quick.   I would think you would have to serve it immediately - often people doing Barbies, leave the meat to one side to keep warm before serving.  Not so I would imagine with kangaroo.   As for horse and donkey - I will leave that to you and others who have the chance to experience it.   

Your school holiday job sounds like fun - NOT !!    Ugh - not a pleasant experience.   

Me and me chooks are well thank you ... hoping you all are the same. 

Good catching up with you again ......

Cheers .... AB.  

Hi, sorry for delay replying. That was very thoughtful. I shouldn't have made the BBQ comment, some people are very good on it. It's just there are many people who murder meat on them.

I couldn't get a decent shot of Silkie and her babies the other day. She is a good mum. I know you miss yours so thought you'd be interested. The poor girl has started her moult. J

Cheers

 

[Anniebee]

Hi, sorry for delay replying. That was very thoughtful. I shouldn't have made the BBQ comment, some people are very good on it. It's just there are many people who murder meat on them.

I couldn't get a decent shot of Silkie and her babies the other day. She is a good mum. I know you miss yours so thought you'd be interested. The poor girl has started her moult. J



Cheers

She is a real cutie ... and I guess she has hatched a clutch put under her ? They don't bear any resemblance to Mum ! LOL. I hope she has a good heavy quick moult - Mindy did, and came back with beautiful feathers and began laying almost immediately again. What a happy little family you have there. My girls will remain celibate for their entire lives .... am not going down the breeding chickens road. Haven't got enough room .... although we do have a big enough back garden - we would need several coops or quarters for different chicken events. As it is we now have two coops ... might have mentioned my dear little Araucana is not at all tolerated by my Welsummer mainly, and to a degree my RIR - who also has a go at her. So it's separate everything for us - and I only have 3 chooks ! Enough - at the moment. Am thinking of getting another Araucana 'on trial' - to see if she gets on with Mindy ok ... and I would then keep her. A family member has about a dozen Araucanas and Silkies ( BIG silkies too - one of them entirely black ) .... and I can have one if it works out. Weather is nuts, so when a few more days of good weather present, and husband is on holidays late October, will address all of it then. Meantime, have fun with your gorgeous little brood there.

Cheers ......... AB
p.s. You sure are right about people murdering meat on a barbeque. !! And yes, I still miss my little Moppitt ... have a lovely plant over her grave now.

 

[Nutcase]

WOW! I never knew that there were 2 Aussie threads! Hello to you all, I'm from Darwin.