Search results for query: *

:he :he :he Why, why, WHY do predators always go for your best bird? I lost one chicken overnight, but it was my BIG GLW hen I named Beauty. Whatever hit me, dug under the corner of the tractor (which is inside electronet fence) and ate out her guts, apparently not interested in all the meat...

Well, that explains why I didn't get a reply when I emailed. I'd love to bring in a few well-bred GLWs to supplement what I'm working on. I do have one hen (I named her Beauty) that is LARGE and has good shape. I didn't expect one in the F2, but I am certainly not complaining. Oddly, only my...

Just thought of another potential solution: you should ask Luanne D ("cpartist" here at BYC) of Eight Acres Farm north of Gainesville if she has cull cockerels on the ground. If I were not already firmly committed to the Wyandotte breed, her Delawares would be my second choice for a good...

I don't think you have the time needed. If it were me, I'd tell them that kind fo thing would need at least a six months' planning period to get the required number of cockerels, plus a few extras to cover any problems (illness, predator attack, etc). Also, I'd be a bit of a stickler and say...

LOL - on the topic of hatching,last month, my mom tried to give me a warning about hatching all these cute little chicks. "This lady lives in Texas and blogs; she hatched and hatched and before she knew it, she had 50 chickens and needed a new coop!" I laughed and said that lady is an amateur...

You obviously don't know about me and the digicam. I even get fuzzy pics of the plants, which at least hold still for my pitiful attempts at pics. That being said, I probably do need to at least try to get somewhat-clear pics of the chicks for my blog, or family up in Indiana will start...

OK, I am now juggling two hatches. First, the new babies - 15 total (including one with a bad wry neck that hubby wants to give a chance to straighten out - likely malpositioned in egg) from two breeding groups: Tiny x the Pretties (F1s) and Azar x the Sisters (F1.5s, I'm calling them, the...

Eight chicks plus Pollux, my capon-nanny.

Chick update: Down to six chicks, as two got smooshed during the nighttime dogpile. Weights are approximate, as the remaining chicks are vigorous and active, especially active, kept jumping out of the plastic strawberry container. (Next week, I'll be sure to have a paper bag I can fold...

That may not last long LOL - I have 2-1/2 acres, but the goat pasture takes up almost a full acre, and the pig pen takes up a 16x32 ft chunk of that (potbelly crosses). Then of course, there's the house and outbuildings, and room for gardens, plus I planted some fruit trees, some of which are...

This was the first duck I've roasted, so I pulled out the reprint 1950 Betty Crocker Picture Cookbook for instructions: roast uncovered at 300F for 3.5-4 hours (for a 4-6 lb duck, ours was bigger). Do NOT brush with fat, season, cover, or baste ... what the instructions didn't mention is if you...

Does anyone here actually have the yard space for another project?? LOL This holiday is finally over - I went simple-but-good here with a roast Muscovy duck, baked sweet potatoes, steamed broccoli, and a can of cranberry sauce. Hubby's parents came down with their RV and camped in our front...

Heh - nice to know I'm not the only one to underestimate the bounciness of new chicks. I didn't cut the lids off the other four strawberry containers, so next hatch they are getting put in with the tops firmly snapped down. Hopefully, lids are all I need on the containers to contain these...

Chicks have been hatching yesterday and this morning. I tried to keep the offspring of the breeding groups separate - thought I was being clever here - by using the bottoms of strawberry containers. Problem #1 is that once they get their feet under them halfway decent, they can either jump out...

Have a rectangular style brooder pen, with heat lamp only on one side. Food and water on the cold side (second set in middle if enough chicks). With a cold end and a warm end, the chicks can go back and forth as needed.

@GabrielBane re: lot of dust bathing. Put out wood ash and some poultry dust (Garden & Poultry Dust at TSC) in case they have mites. Also, around here the mosquitoes are horrible still since the hurricane and they do carry fowl pox each autumn. Is the 24% chick starter Dumor? If so, that is...

I just set 42 GLW eggs in the incubator - makes a big difference without that family of possums pillaging my eggs. Egg thief #4 was in the trap Saturday morning.

My pullets from the spring are laying decent, but since the hurricane we have had a HORRIBLE time with mosquitoes - and I doubt they are leaving the chickens alone. They sure got the goats upset (and us). As for day length ... if you had asked me last year, I would have needed to look it up...

Differences in climate region - I am starting hatching a little late this year due to a late hurricane and unseasonably warm September and October. Egg production is slow already, and won't really pick up until January, but I want to get a couple batches of chicks on the ground before then. By...