Recent content by upriver

  1. upriver

    Probable coon problem: does trapping work?

    Thanks! Is there a safe/sane/humane way to dispatch without a firearm?
  2. upriver

    Probable coon problem: does trapping work?

    Hello- We've had a bear getting into the run this summer (found the berry-rich scat inside the run). The food supply was gotten into but the birds were always safe. I've sealed up the areas of the fencing he had pulled out and dug under. But this morning I found one of our decks dead. Her...
  3. upriver

    Weird ?male? Welsh Harlequin

    They are pets and for slug patrol, their run is a "chicken moat". We consider the eggs bonus, though they haven't laid any that I can find yet. We bought them from Yachats River Hatchery, which seems to be one of the few places they are available - but we chose them since they are just down...
  4. upriver

    Weird ?male? Welsh Harlequin

    Would you be willing to explain what a drake feather is and how to check?
  5. upriver

    Weird ?male? Welsh Harlequin

    Thanks! We were similarly duped when buying "araucana" chicks which turned out to be "easter eggers". Hard to find good birds eh? I don't really mind at all, in the case of the ducks or the chickens. I just find it interesting that it apparently happens pretty frequently.
  6. upriver

    Weird ?male? Welsh Harlequin

    Hello- We have 4 Welsh Harlequins we raised from chicks this spring. It seemed all along that two were males. However, one has not had its head change color, and has a black bill. Is it also a male? Is it somehow remaining "beta" since the other drake is more advanced? Is it normal to be...
  7. upriver

    ducks and chickens - sharing food

    Hello- We have some ducks and chickens living in peace. I am wondering, though, for optimal nutrition for the birds, how to feed them together. We have a long "chicken moat" run around a garden with a chicken coop on one end and a duck house on the other. They occasionally go back and forth...
  8. upriver

    rooster picking on a hen

    Update: It is not just the rooster. ALL of other ladies were attacking her. This started suddenly, after a year and a half of total peace. I put Vick's on the victim's neck. She stopped venturing out to eat, so put a little food in with her and kept the others away for a while. They still...
  9. upriver

    rooster picking on a hen

    The victim is a buff orpington, and the hasslers are easter eggers and a cochin-araucana rooster. the other BO seems to be leaving her alone.
  10. upriver

    rooster picking on a hen

    Today I noticed one of the other hens picking on her, and that eruption of squawks attracts the rooster. It seems that for whatever reason, there is now an outcast. Yet y'all say do not remove her? I'll try some of the topical stuff today...
  11. upriver

    rooster picking on a hen

    Hello- 5 Hens (2 BOs and 3 EEs) and one Rooster (Cochin/Araucana mix) are sharing a coop with a daytime run. The rooster has always been nice to us and the ladies, but recently has started picking on one of the BOs. She now has a bare spot on the back of her head from this treatment. Are...
  12. upriver

    Welsh Harlequin Ducklings

    Dutchhollow, if you mean are those stripes really there and not a trick of a camera, yes they are there. Its not exactly grey and white, though.
  13. upriver

    pond under raised duck house?

    There will be a gate right at the back of the house so the pool can be easily pulled out and drained/cleaned. Thanks for the advice everyone! I'll post pics when its done.
  14. upriver

    Welsh Harlequin Ducklings

    Oooh, is the beak-sexing thing reliable? The breeders said they "didnt" sex ducks. The woman who handed them off said she suspected something by looking at their feet but wasn't sure. I can definitely start to work on getting some beak pics. Should I post them here or is there a better...
  15. upriver

    pond under raised duck house?

    Hello- First time duck keepers here. We're going to raise 4 Welsh Harlequin ducks outdoors. I was planning to build a raised coop, not unlike the henhouse of "the Garden Coop" plan. Then considering having a 4' kiddie pool halfway under the house and halfway under the ramp in front of the...
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