You know what else? Remember last year when we debated on the sex of chicks from FF fed hens? Well, a dozen hatches later, and my pullet to cockerel ration was off the charts - 3-4 times as many pullets as cockerels per hatch or better. Don't know just how 'scientific' the results are but I'll...
Yep, Bee, we plan to can a LOT of the meat this year - saves SO much room in the freezer! And my husband loves it canned!
Gun season opened here yesterday, so we have 10 days to fill 4 tags!!
Boy, the eggs and the meat are fabulous - that is an added bonus to the healthy birds you get on FF...
I have found over and over again that the best way to intermingle adult birds is to put the new birds on the roost with your established flock in the middle of the night. Of course, I mean after your period of quarantine - which you should ALWAYS have with new birds coming in - is over. They all...
IS your chicken poop mixed with straw/sawdust/etc from the run? We put our straw from under the roosts (that is full of the chicken poop ) on the garden all winter long and pile it in the compost area in the other months. Over winter, like right now, it goes directly onto the garden and the...
Yes, you can freeze them. And the chickens will like the pumpkin even better for having been frozen - freezing it brings out the sugars in it! They go nuts for it!
I agree with HEchicken.
In the winter, even in VA, the ground gets cold and lots of the creepy-crawlies that chickens depend on for their protein go deep as well and are not available to the chickens. I'd supplement through the winter, and during molt. Otherwise, if they look happy and healthy...
Hey Bee!
Been too busy raising the flock and working the farm but since it is a rainy, blustery day here I thought I'd check in.
I'm into 2 years now with my flock on the fermented feed, STILL using the SAME original bucket I started with (it has never been restarted, only added to all this...
As usual, Ridgerunner is full of wisdom and good advice.
I learned sooooo much from the OTs (old timer) here, they really know their stuff.
I've had a dozen or so successful hatches now, all because when I first found BYC the first thing I did was devour the original OT thread, the HLF...
My goodness, I had to take some time away from the computer around the holidays and I didn't think I would EVER get caught back up!! But I've finally finished reading the last month's worth of posts.
Bob, I just can't thank you enough for this thread. I have learned soooooo much here, and I...
Good Morning!
Glad to see you will continue to have eggs for a while!
Do you mind if I ask where in Arkansas you are? I'm sorry if you already mentioned it and I missed it. Totally understand if you don't want to post it though.
I am in SEMO, and I hope to have a hen go broody this spring...
I've stayed quiet so as not to clutter up the thread, but since there is a question of interest I want to speak up and say I have also been following along since the start and want very much for this thread to continue!! I want to know everything y'all OTs and Masters know about chickening...
Greetings from Wayne County in SEMO.
Currently cutting my 'chicken teeth' on hatchery stock and looking to move on to better quality stock in the near future.
Right now we have a few each of BOs, BAs, RIRs, Black Minorcas, EEs, Silver Spangled Hamburgs, and Colombian Wyandottes...
The things that I've learned from the OTs - both here and IRL - could fill a book! And they have made my chicken keeping easier, my chickens healthier, my eggs bigger and stronger, and my pocketbook fatter!
This is the ongoing list I keep in my chicken keeping book in a section called 'OT...
Oh, I also wanted to say that for first year pullets, the eggs I am getting are the size of a fair medium to large store bought egg. And you just about need a hammer and chisel to get into them - the shells are amazing. There have been no soft shells, no missing shells, no funky shells, and no...