So this season I have been brooding in a separate coop than my main one, but now I need that coop for breeding groups, and am trying to consolidate all my chickens (around 50 atm), so I decided it was time to finally tackle the in-coop brooder. I am looking forward to having my chicks in the...
Got some birds to process soon, and I am thinking about skinning them. Any one got a good technique they'd like to share? Is it pretty easy on a young bird? I have a plucker, but would like to learn to skin so I can save the electricity/time of set up when I only have a couple birds to do...
It is still in the incubator, chirping and floppin around. Just hatched less than an hour ago. Is that unabsorbed yolk? Will it continue to absorb? Should I do anything?
Hey bunny buddies. So on Friday (3 days ago) I bred my rabbits, Maple and Hops (Amchin) . Maple (NZ) has been a rock solid mom for me. So anyway friday hops gets a good fall off and I assume all is well. Then this morning I give everyone their handful of hay and Maple immediately starts...
Just picked up a Sweeter Heater. The 11x30 model. It may be a little over kill for my current batch numbers (22) but I got a good deal on it and figured bigger wouldn't hurt. I set it up today in my outdoor brooder and have it warming up now to test it before the birds hatch in 3 days.
Has...
Hello hive (coop?) mind. So I have gotten to the point where I am going to sell some hatching eggs. Right now the girls from which the eggs are coming are all together, a group of 6 with 2 different breeds, NHs and delawares. The buyer would prefer the eggs are separated by breed, which will be...
Hi! I have 4 roosters right now and wanted to share some pics.
This is John Crowtrane, an about 5 month old heritage New Hampshire Red
And his broodmate Thelonious Cluck
Next we have a heritage Delaware, unnamed. Any ideas keeping with the jazz/chicken pun theme?
Lastly we have RooPaul. He...
Vinyl collecting is one of my other obsessions not including animals. Any one else? What kind of stuff you collect?
Personally I only buy LPs, a mixed of new and used. My whole collection can be seen here.
https://www.discogs.com/user/Tre3hugger/collection
I'm addicted enough that I had to...
Next year I will be trying my hand at breeding. I will have 3 different groups. How does everyone that breed keep their groups separate? Can you tell me about or show me your setup? Any infrastructure tips you wish you knew before you started breeding? Thank you in advance!
The topic of dual purpose birds and sustainability come up a lot on this forum. After raising about 50 cornish x, and learning a few things about meat birds and processing, and reading threads by people like @U_Stormcrow I decided I am ready to sacrifice their quick growth for an option a...
So, I just got my first rabbit tattoo outfit. I sprung for the inkinator, ordered from KW cages. I also got a bunny burrito to wrap the little ones up when I am marking them. It seems pretty straight forward. Slow, deliberate lines on the inside of the left ear.
Any one have any tips or tricks...
So, last week I got all my birds tested by the state. 19 Chickens, 20 quail, and 9 guineas. Wrangling all for individual blood tests during a down pour was likely comical to watch for the state official sitting comfortably under a pop up lol. The birds were tested for Salmonella Pallorum & avian...
I am planning on turkeys next spring and I would love to see how you guys house your flocks. Want to build a turkey house this summer. Post some pics of your turkey houses please!
Also a couple questions. Do you have a covered run or do you clip their wings? Can you home them like guineas for...
Hello fellow diy enthusiasts. So with the price of lumber skyrocketing and lots of building projects in my near future, I decided now was the time to invest in an alaskan chainsaw mill. I went with the Granberg G777 small log mill...
I set 7 guinea eggs about 26 days ago and starting yesterday they have been hatching. As of now I have 5. 4 hatched yesterday and 1 this morning. I removed the 4 that hatched yesterday this morning and moved them into a brooder in my shed. They have a heat lamp on a thermostat keeping the hot...
Hey peeps. Just got my yardbird all assembled and turned it on. Seems awesome! I plan on processing about 10 birds (8 week cornishx) tomorrow with it.
My plan is to scald at 150. I am aware that the motor casing should be slightly uphill to deter water flow from it. I will use a bucket with...
So I am getting ready to give my doe a nest box tomorrow. I have a wooden one from tsc. Typical shape. It is solid backed and bottomed. My question is, should i drill holes in the bottom and/or back of the nest? Should I remove the bottom entirely and replace with wire? This is the box...
Hey guys. Not sure how many of you out there raise meat rabbits, but the Bunny Rancher Ballista captive bolt gun just came into stock! Also works on poultry, and it is under 75$. Other similar products cost hundreds. Humane dispatching looks incredibly easy with this device. I just ordered one...
Title sums it up. I just got a Yardbird plucker (hurray!) and I know a good scald is essential to make it work right. Last year I used a stock pot on an open flame so really I can only improve. I am leaning toward a big turkey fryer but may consider a low end electric scalder. It is to process...