IA here

[Mahonri]

Quote:
While you are here, here are some Must Do's:
1. Sweet corn on the cob slathered in butter
2. Pork chop -- must be 2" thick, juicy, wonderful
3. Steal Clay's blue chickens.

Oh, I'd love to steal his BLUE WHEATEN ROO! REALLY!!! I WOULD!

Tomorrow we'll look for a restaurant close by that does some Pork tender loin and has sweet corn.

Tuesday morning, it's back to St. Louis and then on to Phoenix and the heat. My wife about froze to death at the pageant in Nauvoo! I guess it hit 53 and that was record low for the date. I'm LOVING Global warming!

 

[Lilandra]

had a stupid chicken moment...
one of the black americanas i got from wren disappeared yesterday. she usually stays in the sunflower patch near the coop with the smaller hens or sits on the cans of feed inside -- she is just a bit shy still.
anyway, yesterday she was no where to be found when i went to water them in the afternoon (i fill wateres at least twice a day in the summer) i was a bit saddened by her disappearance, we've had coyote sightings again

well... last night when i went to shut the coop door, there she was sitting next to the hamburg rooster all by themselves on the far end of the perch. the hamburg rooster likes to hang out during the day under the pine trees on the far end of the yard with a few other black hens - who yesterday were up by the house without him... guess she's got a boyfriend and they wanted to be alone

 

[jerseyridgearts]

am wondering what that bright yellow orb in the sky is this morning....the one burning through the fog?

Am hoping to get some beauty shots of the gorgeous roos Clay and his son gave me last Sunday. Stu and Lucky have adjusted well...Stu is taking his place as BMOC and its wonderful to hear him announce the day each morning.

Clay's homestead was beautiful too...rolling green hills and trees - hundreds of trees. And his flock is a riot of color - shiny and glossy and abundantly healthy.

taking a 'mental health day' to work in the coop and the gardens...hope everyone enjoys the sunshine. Glad to hear that your hen showed up Lilandra

Catherine

 

[WyanLuv]

Isn't the sun wonderful? I miss the warmth of July. What can I say, I'm weird, I like the heat. Anyone going to the Jones County Fair tonight?

 

[Lilandra]

i think that bright orb is the sun and its sure nice to have... makes it easier to take down the giant ragweed on the fence rows when its not cold.

today i'm building a new division inside the coop for the little birds plus a hospital section for those poor birds that become the rooster's favs. i am thinking maybe the separate area should be a jail but then who's going to announce the wind blowing in the yard

might be able to post a picture later - if the camera wants to work... whole other story

glad those roosters of clay's found homes other than the stew pot -- they were much too pretty for dinner

no go on the jones county fair -- just finished the buchanan county fair and have to save $$ so we can do the state fair later
hope you have fun if you go and the weather holds for you

 

[FlashPointFarm]

Too nice of a day to be stuck inside working!!!

I agree, Clay's place is so serene.

Have fun building your hen hospital, Steph!

 

[TwoMileRanch]

Free range question? Maybe I should ask this in the general forum, but I'll ask the local folks first if that is okay.

Do you let your chickens free range when no one is home on your property? I'm keeping my egg girls in a secure coop at night, and let them roam a small fenced yard even when I am gone. Wondering about expanding their range a little bit.... thoughts anyone? (please let me know if I'm breaking any etiquette by posting this ? here.....

 

[FlashPointFarm]

I don't think you're hurting anything by posting here. I'm home all the time and mine run all over. I'd say it would depend on the predator population in your area. I say, try it. If it doesn't work, then try Clay's method. He got 2 of those electric chicken fences. It works well. And you can move it very easily.

So far, knock on wood, I haven't had any predator problems. But there are coyotes, fox and owls in my area. My neighbors have problems with fox and coyotes, so do several others here. Mostly when the corn fields are growing. And that can happen whether you are home or not.

ETA: Maybe you should try it with your flighty birds. They would be the most likely to survive an attack, heaven forbid.

 

[Lilandra]

mine are always outside BUT they can seek shelter inside their coop, in the garage, on the porch with the dog and anywhere else they want to go. the yard is pretty wide open with scattered trees and we live on a busy gravel road so if a predator was to come into the yard it would be at night when the birds couldn't see it and when the traffic is minimal. I have lost a few birds in the past to a coyote and I have heard them again the past few nights. that's why the construction project and ragweed removal. if there are no places for the stupid birds to hide at night they will come home and be safe.
the past year i had birds hunker down for the night in the ragweed and those were the birds i lost.
i have a pretty awesome dog who barks at things that don't belong in his yard and a few roosters that mind their ladies very well. again its the birds that go rouge or broody away from the flock and dog that i loose - darwinism at work

at night - i close the coop door and the dog sleeps inside the porch. it works for us.
my advice to you - watch your land and the area the birds frequent. look for animal droppings, nests and other signs of what lives in your yard. if there are critters, trap or fence them out. collect eggs frequently and keep the cat and dog food up at night and the water bowl empty at night. don't give any reasons for night-time snackers to come into your yard. put the birds away at dusk - they can't see very well when it gets dark and will be less likely to run away in time if something should come into the yard in the evening... things should be safe for your birds to be day time free rangers

 

[jerseyridgearts]

I've had a couple of bad experiences with unsupervised free range....I never let the flock out when no one is home anymore (neighbor dogs) and even when I'm home I check on them every few hours - they can access the coop and the goat pen and have about 1/2 acre of fenced field. We have all manner of predators here - raccoons being the very worst so my girls are locked up no later than 6:30pm.

Clay's fencing was intriguing - need to look into it.

am searching for my 'chicken books' because I don't remember how long it takes for my new head roo to fertilize eggs - wanna try to get my broody to hatch some before autumn. Anyone have an opinion?

Catherine
(who just mixed up a lovely pound cake - the batter is the color of sunflowers...love fresh eggs!)