Chickens for 10-20 years or more? Pull up a rockin' chair and lay some wisdom on us!

[Miss Lydia]

This article ( www.i-sis.org.uk/US_drought_destroys_GM_Crops.php ) says the latest drought destroyed GMO crops, but non-GMO crops flourished. More food for thought...

My flock loves the 7way scratch they get so either they are immune to the GMO corn that maybe in it or it doesn't have GMO corn. It's a small company in Tenn is all I know about them, they don't even have a wed address. I wanted to ask them about the corn and GMO and also the Aflactoxin [sp] that is showing up in this years corn.

 

[Kansas Prairie]

For the first time I have been seeing a red tailed hawk,, maybe more than one, circling the area. My turkeys will see it and sound the alarm and the chickens run for cover while the turkeys stand out in the yard still as can be with their heads turned towards the sky until the threat is gone. That darn thing has been back every day and I am afraid he is looking for an opportunity to strike. My gpa shot one down one time when I was growing up, it swooped down and snatched a hen out of the yard and he shot the bird down and saved his hen, glad he is a good shot huh? I do not want an attack, does anyonehave any advice on how to keep them away or deter them?

Protect Backyard Birds From Hawks

By Melissa Mayntz,

• Shelter: Providing natural cover for small birds is the best way to protect them from hawk attacks. Dense trees, shrubbery and brush piles are all suitable, and shelter should be within 10 feet of birdfeeders so small birds can reach it quickly when they feel threatened. To make landscaping do double duty, choose plants that provide seeds or fruits for the birds and they will be able to feed in the cover and in complete safety.
  
• Shield Feeders: Place birdfeeders in covered areas such as under an awning or umbrella or hanging from lower tree branches where the canopy will prevent hawks from seeing available prey. Alternatively, covered platform feeders can provide some visual shielding from circling hawks.
  
• Avoid Ground Feeding: Birds that feed on the ground are more vulnerable to hawk attacks because they cannot react as quickly to a predator and their options are limited as to where to go. Avoid low feeders or feeding birds on the ground to minimize a hawk’s success.
  
• Remove Hawk Vantage Points: Hawks will often stake out suitable hunting grounds and wait for unwary prey to approach. To make your backyard less inviting, remove dead branches that a hawk may perch on, or choose a type of fencing they will not be comfortable with, such as thin wires that can be difficult for larger birds to grasp.

 

[bruceha2000]

mine love both cracked and whole corn and whole BOSS the smaller ones wont eat teh whole corn but still love the BOSS

Mine love BOSS too. This isn't love, it is

LOVE!

The chickens that wouldn't take anything from my hand run right over and go for it. These birds loved earwigs but only if I dropped them (unlike the birds that would jump in my lap to stick their heads in the container).

What I don't understand is "why"? They don't chew so the seeds go straight down in the hulls. Do they have some sort of taste that picks up the seed flavor through the hull? Or the hull is "tasty"?

Bruce

 

[Miss Lydia]

Maybe we're getting real corn here, don't know, the bag just says clean corn, but all the birds love it. It's the second favorite next to the racing horse oats. Since I started feeding the chickens and ducks the corn, their yolks have been very large and ORANGE ! I am just starting FF a couple of days and not tried any eggs laid with it yet, but if the yolks get any darker, they would be RED ! The yolks are so dark on the corn, the scrambled eggs I cooked today look like just yolks and the eggs are mostly yolks, very little, very clear yolks. The oats swell in the bucket overnight, so I can't fill it as much as I can when I don't use it. I am using 1 part whole oats, 1 part whole corn, 1 part 22% game bird and turkey grower and 1 part mixed whole grain (scratch), with a hand full of BOSS thrown in. It has been less than a week, but time will tell. I just got a new egg customer who is on a high protein diet for bodybuilding and eats a lot of eggs, so he will make this even more interesting!

Hey Celie I saw your post on the duck thread, 150 ducks? wow thats alot of ducks.

 

[bruceha2000]

With big predators like that coming close to the house, you need Anatolians! A pair of them.

I don't know that I NEED a LGD but I did some research a couple of months ago and what I don't know is: How to do find someone to train them? I imagine a LGD wouldn't work out here though. They are supposed to be guard dogs, not pets and shouldn't be treated as such or they won't be good at their job. My daughter would want to love and cuddle it, let it in the house (which I am SURE the 3 indoor cats would NOT love) rather then leave it outside where it should be.

Bruce

 

[bruceha2000]

but could never water enough to feed the flock through the year, at least not in any substantial percentage.

Did the Native Americans grow corn in your area? If so, perhaps there are varieties that grow pretty well without as much water and fertilizer as our pampered sweet corn.

 

[bruceha2000]

But, before I get roasted for doing it...lol...I never cook it for them if I'm not making it for myself!

People just need to face the fact that sometimes one's eyes are bigger than their stomach and there is a quart of left over cooked steel cut oats!

 

[armorfirelady]

Quote: I accidentally found a great mouse trap for the house. A 5 gallon bucket of water. But you have to be sure the toilet seats are all down lol. Thought I had a mouse a couple years ago. Turns out I had three. When they say you never just have one mouse, they're right.
I found this out to when I had a leak and kept finding mice floating in the mop bucket full of water. I thought my cats were trying to wash the mice after they caught them

 

[galanie]

I found this out to when I had a leak and kept finding mice floating in the mop bucket full of water. I thought my cats were trying to wash the mice after they caught them

It's awfully nice to see the little monsters floating in there. Especially after all the traps failed to catch them.

 

[Kansas Prairie]

Hello Everyone!!

Howdy!

okay, that was pathetic and somebody shooting guns in the background. Those poor chickens must live in the land of Stupid. I just tasted a little throw up, for the first time today, and that is saying a lot!

Guns are good, stupid people with guns are bad. Who in their right mind would think that "coop" was anything other than a feeding trough for predators? There are some people that should not reproduce! To think stupid people have the right to vote scares me, but I'm not going to go there.

Absolutely! Like every other fad....only it's kinda hard to put chickens on a shelf after you get tired of playing with them. Guess that's why there are so many dogs in animal shelters etc. Commitment is something that seems to be lacking these days.

i am chiming in late here. are you folks telling me there is a tv show about chickens and some person hugged a chicken.on the internet/ what the h---ll is wrong here. it is a chicken. plain a simple. chickens are kinda like a pigs with feathers. think about it. they will eat just about anything dead or alive. they walk, sleep in and eat their own crap. you mean to tell me there are people who hug chickens and make tv shows about them. sorry folks to me that is just beyond my comprehension. no i don't get it and i don;t want to get it. i feel it promotes a fad of chickening . i will bet when the fad dies there will be more homes needed for chickens via craigslist then people wanting them. thus creating the spreading of diseases. this in return will set more laws into place about where and how chickens are kept. zoning laws are getting tougher and tougher as it is with out this stupidity.

okay, i am off my rant.


bruce h ,

I agree with Bruceh!!! These chicken huggers and chicken mommies are going to cause laws and inspections that will cost us for their fad experience.