Arizona Chickens

[gckiddhouse]

Quote:
ACK ACK! That's so terrible! I hope you find her. Maybe leave out some food for it? Could she have gone far?

I'm sorry to alarm you - I started to go out back and take a look around and then saw my container with the extra chick (see my modified post). It's doing fine. I feel like such an airhead.

I once lost my son. I was so terrified! I found him sitting on my hip - in my arms - looking at me like I was a crazy person because I was calling for him frantically. It was my mother who said, "isn't that him in your arms?"

So, please, (in the words of George Costanza), with all due respect, I'm a much bigger air head than you!

 

[gckiddhouse]

Quote:
Oh, good, I am not crazy!

Yes, good idea to wait until they are actually growing.

Okay - some of them are actually growing and I'm posting on that thread

Yay~ glad to hear that!

 

[Mahonri]

MaryAnn, I guess Trader Joes was probably closer, but if you wanted fertile eggs, I have LOTS of those....

The Easter Egger eggs are way less expensive.

... and wouldn't you know it?... About an hour after gckiddhouse left, my polish laid another egg.....

 

[LarryPQ]

Hello all. It has been a "chicken weekend" at my house.

I THOUGHT the coop was all dried out from the rain last month(?) --after all, it was dry and I have cleaned it out a few times since then. Well, not so. I got the shovel "just to check" and dug through the hard pack. The first 4 inches were dry, under which was horrible, horrible-smelling blackened, rotting hay. I haven't had hay in there since summer! I was SURE I got it all in October!

SO- I ended up spending yesterday "tilling" the coop, scraping out the ick, and then laying it all out to dry. Today I will turn it all again, throw down a couple gallons of DE (I have a milk jug scoopy-thingy). I have never had any issues with bugs in there, but as soon as all the much was exposed, the flys came in droves.

My wrists and ankles are COVERED in bites.

While I was waiting for the first wheelbarrow loads to dry out, the DH and I built this:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/web/viewblog.php?id=36979-chicks-like-garden-benches

Lastly, I took eggs to my first "customer". His kids have swim lessons the same time mine do. I gave him the eggs, he went to take them to his car, and before he came back, 5 other people asked for eggs.

I hope my girls can keep up!

Anyway, I need to get moving. NO EXCUSES FOR LAZINESS!

 

[ArizonaDesertChicks]

Quote:
I probably should have made the trip to your house, but originally didn't plan on hatching more than 4 eggs and TJ is right around the corner from me. Midnight can't fit an entire dozen under her and I didn't want to have to monitor the incubator for 3 weeks again, so soon. But.... now it looks like I probably will be running it again for the entire 3 weeks after all. The TJ shells are thin and she has already broken an egg. These new chicks will be 5 weeks behind the others, so I wouldn't be able to keep any either (another reason I wasn't particular about type of chicks hatched and didn't mine using plain ole TJ eggs).

I'm overrun with chicks and will hopefully be selling some next week (if I can figure out the boys from the girls). I really didn't need any more chickens, but now that I've hatched Wheaten Ameraucanas, I MUST keep a couple, which means keeping and raising some other chicks too, so that they can grow up and be integratd into the main flock together. I'm planning on keeping a couple W/BW Ameraucanas, at least 1 blue EE and the black/brown EE (if they are pullets), a couple blue andalusions, and a couple more TBD. I wish I could have hatched a female Marans from you, but it wasn't meant to be.

All my chicks were moved into their new daytime home yesterday because the smell was too much inside the house. They now have a secure 6' x 6' area to run around in during the day and then I bring them in at night to sleep in a large box.

Carol -- Too funny - the thought and picture of you hunting for your son while holding him! I've done that with sunglasses before, but not with a child! Hilarious!

Lauree - Great job on the brooder, breeder, chicken motel!

 

[gckiddhouse]

Quote:
OMg! We had to do that this year, too! the smell was awful!!

We had no idea it was there until we started digging. We took out 3 inches from the whole coop area. Yuk! I don't think I will be putting hay in there anymore. I had been putting it in the hen house in the winter to keep them warmer than the wire floor, but I think I will find another material.

The converted garden bench is very cool!!

 

[gckiddhouse]

Quote:

They did not. They are FBCMs and Welsummers. Not sure if that is what I told you. I am patiently turning the eggs I got from you and hoping that Monday evening will be okay. The incubator is still settling into a good temp, so maybe it is best.

I have made everything exactly the same on both sides of the incubator, but we may still have one side that is hotter than the other. If I can get it down to less than a degree, I will feel better about it. I just can't figure it out. I do have a thermostat and a very sensitive thermometer this time. Not sure how I am going to fit so many eggs in the incubator!!! I think it will be like 36 eggs!! I might be able to fit them if I don't use the egg trays. I will just have to manually turn each one.

Those Marans eggs are just huge!

That poor hen!! Do you get double yolkers from her? Not sure I have ever seen chicken eggs that big!! The carton won't even close over them!

I am getting anxious to post pics of my chicks to get some information as to their gender! ADC's chicks are a week older and it sounds like the jury is still out, so I may wait a couple more weeks. The feathers that the little W/BWAs are developing up near their necks are light colored. That is a good sign, right? So far their feathers are the same color, too...

ADC - we are also wanting to move ours out of the house!! The first week they were so cute and clean and quiet... but now they are running and jumping and causing smells and dust. EW!! We still have ours in a box brooder (which I intended to post pics of), but we are going to start putting it out the door in the morning and just have it inside at night. Working on getting the predator-proof-brooder going out by the coop. They will be moving - soon.

Chickens free ranging today while DH works outside. Getting ready to host Easter celebration for about 60 of our closest relatives.

No clouds, but the day seemed kind of dreary, didn't it? Maybe it is just me. I have a nasty cold.

 

[gckiddhouse]

Laree - I know you are a craigslist junky, but just in case you missed this...

http://phoenix.craigslist.org/evl/grd/1652406802.html

ETA - Oh, darn. Guess they are all bantams, aren't they.

 

[ArizonaNessa]

I attempted Glendale. I think I did it correctly

Edited to say I tried to do Mesa since it was on the list but I don't have a law degree and the way everything is written and scattered about I could never post all the links without driving you mad. Hopefully someone out there will be able to help more with that one.

 

[gckiddhouse]

Quote:
I am right there with you. DH is making me watch the news about it right now.

DS said tonight at dinner, "We already have 2 wars and financial problems, it seems like we should resolve those problems before we start something new."

He is 11.