Search results for query: *

Ooops. Must be Walt or Fred. We were talking about them pages and pages ago in this thread. Around here duck goes on sale for next to nothing right after the holidays. I always get three or four. I might try making some duck jerky.

Al, Have you ever smoked jerky on your Big Green Egg? Just put a batch on mine that has been curing for a couple days. It's what my nephews ask for for Christmas every year.

I'm pretty green here, but I think she's moulting....even if she was born in February. I've got one going through it right now, and she started out just like that.

Well, now, that's a revolting development. Bee...if you're watching but sticking to your guns, please know that you have far more supporters than adversaries. We didn't always see eye-to-eye, but opinions were always respected. Don't let a few misfits keep you from helping all the hundreds...

Thanks, Al. My girls thank you, too. They get a lot of meat scrap now, but they'll start getting my pan drippings, too. I keep a jar in the kitchen that it all goes in to keep it from going in the septic. I'll start using that to topdress the feed once in a while. The chickens have their...

Maven and/or Al... Could you point me to the previous discussion of topdressing with fat? Without sounding too fluffy lol, is there anything to watch for in the grease? As in, bacon fat has quite a bit of salt. Skimmings off a soup or stock will have quite a bit of seasoning. As I'm typing...

We have a French's mustard plant here in Springfield. I bought some surplus barrels from them. Popped the bung on the first one and almost got knocked down by the smell. Read the label, and it was white wine for the fancy Dijon mustard. Might have smelled pretty good before it sat in the sun for...

That's what I was asking, Galanie. If it is important to you, you would have to pen up the ladies individually after a few days with the rooster. Then you could collect for a few days with them individually penned, then let them back out with the rooster. I can't remember exactly how long one...

Thanks, Fred. It sounds like we're on the same page on that. So, If I only have two females, banding or punching isn't going to be a big issue in the first generation.

Sorry, I meant two sisters or half sisters with an unrelated rooster.

I want to make sure I'm following here. With a good pair of hens, most likely siblings or at least half siblings, you would not bother separating them, but treat their offspring as one group?

Thanks, Al. I will officially abandon the term that shall not be mentioned. The ID thing is starting to make sense. The first chart posted, with blanks, can be filled in with as your Buck Rogers Secret Decoder. Now, back to my future trio. In the breeding pen, how do I isolate the hens so...

Well, I'm ever more of a nube, and that brings some questions up. How do you turn the eggs when they're in the bag ...OR.... do you not put them in the bags until lockdown? Guess as I was typing this, I figured it out on my own...if that's the right answer.

Are you talking about storage to eat or storage before incubation? For the first, it really doesn't matter. If you're going to keep them more than a week or two, the refrigerator will keep them longer, but the counter is fine for up to a week...maybe more....dunno, they don't last that long...

Al, Could you elaborate? What's wrong with letting them run together when not collecting eggs?

I don't know what to say, Kathy. I'm overwhelmed. Unfortunately, I'm not ready. I need to build some pens in my barn before I have any housing for them. Can I get a rain check for a couple weeks? And, while I have your attention, could you give me some guidance on how to set up a pen for a trio...

After Fred re-posted Robert Bosl's picture of the award winning New Hampshire, I'm thinking life is going to take me about an hour Northwest of where I am right now come late February.

And I know just the one for the job.

From what I've gathered, it is possible to do exactly what you're talking about, but at what cost in time? Once you decide what breed of birds you want, go to that breed's web site look at the breeder's directory. It will point you to the closest to you. That's a lot easier than watching the...

That (and Bee's) helps a lot. So, I could get a breeding trio, let them run with the rest of the flock of mutts most of the year, and then isolate them when I'm ready to collect eggs to hatch. I wouldn't need to keep them separate all the time. That works in my head much better than what I was...