Arizona Chickens

[LadyKotaDoria]

I just keep in mind that he is, or must be the same with his partners. He is to controlling. In his 40's and alone. He has a lot going for him, but he is not interested in the B- personality. He keeps finding another A Type persons. I think he knows it too. For him it is easier to clean my house then his own, sort of to say.

I have had trouble getting men to go away. I do not like game playing, but I try to get them to drop me. They go away happy and I am happy they went away. I undergo a slight personality change. Figure out what they hate and do it. I'm such a cowered.

 

[LindaMurphy]

OMG I CAN'T TAKE THIS ANYMORE!!! My MOMMA DUCK IS GONE!!!! WAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!! :'( My drake just keeps calling for her. OMG he is going to be misserable. WAAAAAAAAA!!!!!! :'( **** COYOTES!!!!!!
It just keeps coming here. I have lost my little Orpy Annie BO hen, just started laying. My Americana, and now my momma duck. All since new years.

Going to get cement and get that **** enclosure up NOW!!!! If they would just give me the chance to get it done. I'M LOSING ALL OF MY EGG LAYERS!!

I also lost my old horse Pooh but she was just very very old, New Years day.
I also lost 2 family members the day before Thanksgiving and Dec 19th.

My heart is so heavy right now. I was hoping for a better beginning to the year but the heart ache just keeps coming. :'(

Now I need to find a female Buff Orpington Duck or my drake will go mad. They were so happy. I was looking forward to ducklings this spring. WAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!! :'(

 

[Mahonri]

I got my McMurray Hatchery Catolog yesterday. Told DW I'm "thinking" how I can fit a tiny coop under the gigantic pink grapefruit tree and next to my little shed... yeah, there's room to put feed in there.

I'd have to talk to Cal & Shirley next door. They are great neighbors and I wouldn't want to ruin that. I'm thinking Boston could bring me an Ameraucana, a Marans and then I could get a Leghorn and a black star for egg production.
I HATE buying eggs and they just don't taste right... and Lilly (our red Golden Retriever) would love the company in the back yard.

I think I'll talk to the neighbors and then I'll do some measuring and check out the little coops they have available at Western Ranchman...

Still a chicken-a-holic without chickens.

On the home front... we STILL haven't sold the old house. I check on it regularly and clean the pool. Anyone looking for a home with a nice shed and large coop in east central Phoenix??????

All 7 of the kids were home for the holidays. It was amazing. Don't think we could have swung it in the old house. It was perfect here. Lots of hikes in the preserve right in front of our house, lots of good times.

#1 just finished up his degree at Utah State. He's got a decent job but will probably start applying for work down here in a year or two. His wife is expecting our first grandchild (a girl) in April. Can't believe I'm that old!
#2 is a junior at BYU and will be taking the MCAT exam in Vegas in May.. he quit his WONDERFUL part time job so that he could put time into studying for the exam, he's also close to giving his girl a diamond so we are planning on a June wedding in Salt Lake.
#3 got home from his mission to Xalapa Mexico on Dec. 19th. He's at Snow College in Ephraim, Utah and enjoying life...but not the cold after spending two years in MX.
#4 will be starting his second semester at Utah Valley University and will be heading out on a mission this summer.
#s 5, 6 & 7 are still here with us. #7 has really done well up here... is doing great with the Piano and flute and is a straight A+ student. She is daddy's little girl and I LOVE it.

Our church time switched with the other congregation so we go at 11AM now instead of 9AM. I'll miss those LONG Sunday naps.

I'm still working with the scout troop as #6 is 13 and at that age. DW works with the women's group at church teaching on Sunday once a month.

I'm nursing a bum left knee so if you pray, remember Dar's knee! I need all the help I can get.

Love you all!

Dar

 

[Angelray]

[COLOR=37404E]OMG I CAN'T TAKE THIS ANYMORE!!! My MOMMA DUCK IS GONE!!!! WAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!! [/COLOR][COLOR=37404E] :'( My drake just keeps calling for her. OMG he is going to be misserable. WAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!  :'( **** COYOTES!!!!!![/COLOR][COLOR=37404E]
[/COLOR][COLOR=37404E]It just keeps coming here. I have lost my little Orpy Annie BO hen, just started laying. My Americana, and now my momma duck. All since new years.[/COLOR]
[COLOR=37404E] [/COLOR]
[COLOR=37404E]Going to get cement and get that **** enclosure up NOW!!!! If they would just give me the chance to get it done. I'M LOSING ALL OF MY EGG LAYERS!![/COLOR]

[COLOR=37404E]I also lost my old horse Pooh but she was just very very old, New Years day.[/COLOR]
[COLOR=37404E]I also lost 2 family members the day before Thanksgiving and Dec 19th. [/COLOR]

[COLOR=37404E]My heart is so heavy right now. I was hoping for a better beginning to the year but the heart ache just keeps coming. :'([/COLOR]

[COLOR=37404E]Now I need to find a female Buff Orpington Duck or my drake will go mad. They were so happy. I was looking forward to ducklings this spring. WAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!! :'([/COLOR]

I'm so sorry for your heartache! I hope it ends here.

 

[Angelray]

[COLOR=333333]I got my McMurray Hatchery Catolog yesterday.  Told DW I'm "thinking" how I can fit a tiny coop under the gigantic pink grapefruit tree and next to my little shed... yeah, there's room to put feed in there.  [/COLOR]

[COLOR=333333]I'd have to talk to Cal & Shirley next door.  They are great neighbors and I wouldn't want to ruin that.  I'm thinking Boston could bring me an Ameraucana, a Marans and then I could get a Leghorn and a black star for egg production.  [/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]I HATE buying eggs and they just don't taste right... and Lilly (our red Golden Retriever) would love the company in the back yard.  [/COLOR]

[COLOR=333333]I think I'll talk to the neighbors and then I'll do some measuring and check out the little coops they have available at Western Ranchman...  [/COLOR]

[COLOR=333333]Still a chicken-a-holic without chickens.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=333333]On the home front... we STILL haven't sold the old house.  I check on it regularly and clean the pool. Anyone looking for a home with a nice shed and large coop in east central Phoenix??????[/COLOR]

[COLOR=333333]All 7 of the kids were home for the holidays. It was amazing.  Don't think we could have swung it in the old house.  It was perfect here. Lots of hikes in the preserve right in front of our house, lots of good times.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=333333]#1 just finished up his degree at Utah State. He's got a decent job but will probably start applying for work down here in a year or two.  His wife is expecting our first grandchild (a girl) in April.  Can't believe I'm that old![/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]#2 is a junior at BYU and will be taking the MCAT exam in Vegas in May.. he quit his WONDERFUL part time job so that he could put time into studying for the exam,  he's also close to giving his girl a diamond so we are planning on a June wedding in Salt Lake.[/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]#3 got home from his mission to Xalapa Mexico on Dec. 19th.  He's at Snow College in Ephraim, Utah and enjoying life...but not the cold after spending two years in MX.[/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]#4 will be starting his second semester at Utah Valley University and will be heading out on a mission this summer.[/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]#s 5, 6 & 7 are still here with us.  #7 has really done well up here... is doing great with the Piano and flute and is a straight A+ student.   She is daddy's little girl and I LOVE it.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=333333]Our church time switched with the other congregation so we go at 11AM now instead of 9AM.  I'll miss those LONG Sunday naps.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=333333]I'm still working with the scout troop as #6 is 13 and at that age.  DW works with the women's group at church teaching on Sunday once a month.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=333333]I'm nursing a bum left knee so if you pray, remember Dar's knee!  I need all the help I can get.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=333333]Love you all![/COLOR]

[COLOR=333333]Dar[/COLOR]

Sounds you got a little piece of heaven right in your home with family!

 

[cbnovick]

Happy 2014 everyone!

I am looking for a genesis hovabator to use as a second hatcher. I am located in Scottsdale. If anyone in the local Scottsdale/Phoenix area has one available/for sale, please pm me the details.

Thanks!

Cindy

 

[Arizona Son]

OMG I CAN'T TAKE THIS ANYMORE!!! My MOMMA DUCK IS GONE!!!! WAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!! :'( My drake just keeps calling for her. OMG he is going to be misserable. WAAAAAAAAA!!!!!! :'( **** COYOTES!!!!!!
It just keeps coming here. I have lost my little Orpy Annie BO hen, just started laying. My Americana, and now my momma duck. All since new years.

Going to get cement and get that **** enclosure up NOW!!!! If they would just give me the chance to get it done. I'M LOSING ALL OF MY EGG LAYERS!!

I also lost my old horse Pooh but she was just very very old, New Years day.
I also lost 2 family members the day before Thanksgiving and Dec 19th.

My heart is so heavy right now. I was hoping for a better beginning to the year but the heart ache just keeps coming. :'(

Now I need to find a female Buff Orpington Duck or my drake will go mad. They were so happy. I was looking forward to ducklings this spring. WAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!! :'(

I really can relate a little too well to this post and your predicament. I have had an absolute maddening time with predators, and it seems to be getting worse every year. After the pain of losing most of my best laying hens and 6 of my very best roosters, I started building "Fort Knox" coop enclosures out of the chain link dog kennel panels and gates. These come in a convenient kit at Lowes and can be set up in an afternoon and have birds safe by that evening.

http://www.lowes.com/pd_473440-5102...rentURL=?Ntt=chain+link+dog+kennel&facetInfo=

To secure the roof area, I lay two long sturdy boards across each other in a "plus" sign, and then staple welded wire mesh across the top and wire tie that to the sides at about 18 inch intervals.
That has stopped the frikkin barn owls, great horned owls, the prarie falcons, the coopers hawks, the harris hawks, the harriers, red shouldered hawks, coyotes, bobcats, feral cats, feral dogs .... all of which I have personally had problems with here! jeez, is there ANYTHING out there that hasnt stolen a bird or 3 from me and caused grief?!?!?! About the only thing I am still vulnerable to, is snakes. King snakes, bull snakes, garter snakes, rattlers will come into the coops to eat eggs and or chicks I am guessing, but they dont seem to go after the adult birds. Chicks are an all u can eat buffet for snakes, and I have had issues with them, until I built special welded wire and wood brooder pens to industrial specs. I like the king snakes because they supposedly eat rattlesnakes and ground squirrels too, so I dont kill those, although i've been REAL tempted to. Rattlers get executed in short order, particularly after my dog got bit and ran up a vet bill that I'd rather have spent the money on a vacation to Europe.

I then take chicken wire and wrap the exterior of the whole thing and wire tie that too. That stops the cats from reaching thru the chain link and ripping birds apart while they sleep. If chicken wire isnt strong enough for you, you can go with welded wire or what is known as "hardware cloth". The hardware cloth is a bit pricey, but when u are tired of losing birds, it seems like a logical option. The chicken wire can be bought fairly cheaply, in 3 x 75 foot or larger rolls.

Its absolutely ridiculous how many predators there are in AZ that love chickens and ducks, turkey etc. It pisses me off when city folk start lecturing with how coyotes belong here and are only doing what's natural. The thing is, the coyote can make a living preying on native desert wildlife, like he has for millenia. He is just a lazy predator, and an opportunistic feeder and will take the easy way out of stealing poultry from backyards, rather than chasing down a scrawny rabbit out in the desert. After so many losses, I am merciless now when I catch something on my land or in my airspace that doesnt belong there. I started hitting back. Until it has happened to you, it may be hard to relate to.

I do miss being able to free range my flocks, but the word must have spread thru the raptor and predator community that my place is easy-peasy for a quick meal. I occasionally will let my birds out of one of the "kennel coops" when I am going to be outside with them and can supervise, but even then, the hawks are very brazen and I've had them dive down and snatch birds less than 7 feet away from where I was standing, no lie! My dogs keep the predators at bay when they can, but they cant be everywhere on my place at once, and I have had predators come in from all four directions. Coyotes are highly intelligent and very methodical & organized. They are a formidable adversary and are relentless and also very patient and will wait for that one day you let your guard down, or your dog is asleep, or sick, etc, and they will strike. Its unreal.

Anyway, I hope my experiences and knowledge gained will help you and anybody else currently going thru the pain of dealing with losing your birds to predators.

 

[MandyFitch]

Harris hawks will hunt together. And they're a good size.

 

[MandyFitch]

Rockn did you ever recover from The Blob fermented feed incident? How is that going for you? I am a big proponent of ff and post frequently on those pages. I hope you are having success with it!

I was curious about that too! Your experience has put me off trying!

 

[MandyFitch]

OMG I CAN'T TAKE THIS ANYMORE!!! My MOMMA DUCK IS GONE!!!! WAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!! :'( My drake just keeps calling for her. OMG he is going to be misserable. WAAAAAAAAA!!!!!! :'( **** COYOTES!!!!!!
It just keeps coming here. I have lost my little Orpy Annie BO hen, just started laying. My Americana, and now my momma duck. All since new years.

Going to get cement and get that **** enclosure up NOW!!!! If they would just give me the chance to get it done. I'M LOSING ALL OF MY EGG LAYERS!!

I also lost my old horse Pooh but she was just very very old, New Years day.
I also lost 2 family members the day before Thanksgiving and Dec 19th.

My heart is so heavy right now. I was hoping for a better beginning to the year but the heart ache just keeps coming. :'(

Now I need to find a female Buff Orpington Duck or my drake will go mad. They were so happy. I was looking forward to ducklings this spring. WAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!! :'(

I'm soooo sorry to read this. I'm sure you are busy getting your enclosure up but when you have a minute to reflect, consider that all your bad luck for the whole year is probably done. So it's all good things once you get past this. Sending you hugs since I don't think there's anything else I can do for you...