Getting the flock out of here - a diary of a crazy chicken man

[OffGridMAMA]

maybe I will fly OGM over for the summer to straighten them all out

that would be fantastic Lol.. after the day I've had, I'm gonna have to imagine that could someday happen!!!

I'm in a bzzzed state.... because of squirrels!!!!! (Sigh) apparently I'm gonna have to buy myself a squirrelinator for my birthday :/

 

[perchie.girl]

Quote: OH my goodness.... be careful they carry the plague.... Not all but there is a definate chance.

According to this its best to dispatch them.
http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7438.html

deb

 

[hillfloweranch]

HFR is too busy with her green tractor

Lol not too busy to come over and straighten out the personnel! Rectal temps and flex seals for everyone If they don't straighten up!! Lol

 

[Vindi]

Don't forget NG tubes!

 

[Phage]

I don't get why they are all quitting.

Isn't this the best opportunity for them around?

 

[ozexpat]

I don't get why they are all quitting.

Isn't this the best opportunity for them around?

This is something very hard to explain to someone who has not experienced it.

I fully understand Bernie quitting.

Analou was doing very well at school on a scholarship when she fell pregnant to Bernie - a poor low class kid who finished elementary school.Her family ostracized them. When Mrs Oz met them they made it very clear that they did not like Bernie. They did what they could to survive then found the job with us. we planted the idea that Analou could finish school and gave them an insight into a much higher social experience. Analou hated being a domestic helper and always felt she was above it. In the kitchen she was great but as far as cleaning goes - not so much. An hour after Ging arrived, the house was cleaner than in the last 2 years.

When her family offered the return into their fold, Analou jumped at it. Bernie thought he could make double as a day laborer with us but we could not guarantee him work. The piggery is about a month from completion.We were going to build the new house for them but the offer was taken away when they left. The previus week, we had Analou file the building application. The house our help live in now is far above average. Dominic and Ging will get the offer of a new house at their two year aniversary. So essentially Bernie took a gamble that backfired.

When the offer of a job came up in Batangas he had to take it.

Could they have done it differntly? sure. We had offered to send Analou to school and pay for her tuition, books supplies and uniforms. She would have had to pay her bus fare. I offered that she could take the profit from selling eggs or even snacks at school - a great little sideline to cover the fare - essentially I wanted her to show she was willing to put in the effort. She declined.

We cannot do more than that. People who come from poor backgrounds have great difficulty looking to the future.

Aljay is a kid. Bernie propped him up. Dominic is not much of a nurturer to twenty year olds that he has to work with. Aljay was put under pressure today to take respobsibility for three trees that died due to lack of watering and he folded. We dont need that long term.

Mrs Oz will guide Dominic. and use Alfred - one of the day workers who covered Bernies vacation to help. She will find the right student to help in the long term.

Backfilling attrition is part of the experience. Our average length of service is two years. Thats really good. Occaisionally you find an employee that will stay for life. Its just a matter of working through them until you do.

 

[Bens-Hens]

Mrs Oz just became a chook lady

Aljay quit

Holy smokes, I thought the dust was settling but clearly not.

lol

i get the picture.

you wanted a few twists

how are we doing so far?

Yeah.....that's enough twists for now, and the foreseeable future thanks!!

maybe I will fly OGM over for the summer to straighten them all out

I considered offering a hand, I can water palms and candle eggs, where's the jet ski parked for after hours hahahaha

Occaisionally you find an employee that will stay for life. Its just a matter of working through them until you do.

This is true, I have worked at some places that have had employee's of 20-30 years. Often they are the grumbly ones in the corner, they know where every nut and bolt is kept and has seen the world pass them by with young upstarts trying to change the show, yet the place would take a big hit losing them, and they rarely quite, just retire.

Good luck finding that person, I was secretly hoping it would be Aljay, better to find out now it's not than later down the track once he was more heavily invested.

All the best mate.

 

[Tomtommom]

My fear was that at twenty, he would not be able to handle the responsibility.

It appears I had good reason.

We had not paid his tuition yet - but I will deduct his brown hat and scabbard from his final pay. He will stay the weekend as Mrs Oz has a seminar to attend and then she will become the chook lady.

So now we have Dominic and Ging. Provided they last a month, they should be there a while

Mrs Oz will post the sponsored student position at the agricultural school. We will try and get a second or third year student. We started Aljay as a relative of one of our contruction guys but a guy with a little ag science bachground will be nice, I am pretty sure we can find one. The deal is very good - we just need someone who can see the future.

You might end up with someone better in the end.

lol

i get the picture.

you wanted a few twists

how are we doing so far?

More twists than desired...

maybe I will fly OGM over for the summer to straighten them all out

Now that's a plan!

that would be fantastic Lol.. after the day I've had, I'm gonna have to imagine that could someday happen!!!

I'm in a bzzzed state.... because of squirrels!!!!! (Sigh) apparently I'm gonna have to buy myself a squirrelinator for my birthday

I want to learn to hunt squirrel >_> It's one of those emergency skills that would be handy in our neck of the woods

This is something very hard to explain to someone who has not experienced it.

<snip>

Thank you for shedding some light on that. It really does make things a lot more clear. All understandable reasons.

Coco beach will recover and move on. We still have Mrs. Oz and I don't think she's quitting

 

[ocap]

I met a guy long ago that had an uncle that owned a ranch and left it to the hired hand (when uncle died). None of the relatives, children included wanted to work hard, so all the cattle, land and equipment went to the hard working employee who turned out to be the uncle's best friend.

 

[ozexpat]

Life goes on at CocoBeach

Mrs Oz is in Bacolod to attend a Pshychology seminar. She took the kids to their swimming lessons and then stopped by the mall where they had a reptile display. Toni got to pet an eight foot yellow Burmese Python. They saw all soughts of lizzards including a small Komodo Dragon,



These guys are amazing road warriers - the three hour drive is a breeze for them. The are either asleep or getting an education out the window. Tablets are banned in the car. There is just too much to see in the real world

She also picked up new baskets for the display case bator. The pink ones ( our originals) have proven to be a bit low and we end up with a bunch of mixed chicks that we cant identify.



We should fit all eight smaller green/blue baskets as well as the four larger new pink/blue baskets in the hatcher as the next hatch is rather complicated



I saved a file in drop box - a cloud drive we share - with daily instructions for her to give Dominic and Alfred

Care of all poultry including ducks and quail

• Check blue drum for water and fill. Add a half cup of copper sulphate every two weeks to kill any algae and protazoans. Add a cup of home made coconut vinegar each day
• Fill all feeders and waterers – with chick brooders they must be checked three times a day and cleaned at least daily. Waterers in grow pens and quail cages need cleaning daily
• Scrape quail poop and save. Place on compost pile.
• Collect eggs morning lunchtime and evening – mark eggs for incubation with breed code and date.
• Observe birds for wet poop – especially chicks and quail.
• Observe for runny nose or cloudy eyes or weak or wonky gait
• Heating lights – on during night and day for the first ten days then at night only for ten days. A 50w is sufficient for up to 40 chicks and use 2 lights for more than 40 chicks
• Change rice husks in brooders every two weeks but leave about an ice cream container of old husks as it will help chicks immune resistance
• Change rice husks in adult and grower coops every two months
• Observe poultry leg bands as they grow – make sure they are not cutting off circulation
• Treat respiratory illnesses with Tetrox 1 tsp of powder per 4 liters of water and contact me
• Treat poop illnesses with Dimethox 1 tsp in 4 liters of water and contact me
• Severe poop 1tsp of bacitracin and ½ tsp neomycin in 4 liters water and contact me
• The medications must be measured not guessed.

Daily care of pigs

• Feed and clean pens three times per day
• Observe for illness
• Pigs with wet poop get 1ml of Agrimycin per 10kg body weight injection into rump or neck muscle using 1½” needle and contact me

Daily care of goats

• Feed daily
• Ensure fresh water
• Observe for illness
• Goats should be taken out of pen daily to graze. The must be tied up so they cannot eat important plants

She will return Monday and give Aljay his final pay check.

The workers used about a meter of soil (sand) near the new piggery to fill the sub floor. The remainder they got from the new trash pit we had them dig as the other one is full.

Only Dado works Sunday - he goes home every second week - so he will spend the day cutting steel bar and forming the reo.

We had the pig pen gates made at the house in Bacolod and they will go back on Monday with the chook lady