Arizona Chickens

[mclevinson]

Got the mowing finished, making the bucket waterer now.

 

[nurseshelly]

Quote:
Have fun with that

 

[turkeybreeder]

Quote:
would a non working wine fridge
work to make it an incubator
but i woud like to make it an
incubator but i dont know how

 

[nurseshelly]

Quote:
would a non working wine fridge
work to make it an incubator
but i woud like to make it an
incubator but i dont know how

Do you already have a nonworking wine fridge? There was a really nice one in Apache Junction at a garage sale - it's probably still there. It was my next choice if this one didn't come through. It's a 85 bottle wine fridge and actually still works. So it would probably have functional fans and digital temp display too (mine only goes to 99 degrees, after that you get three lines). You would just need to unbolt the compressor and hacksaw it off. They said they would take $60 if you haul it away. There is a good example on the BYC home page that shows how. https://www.backyardchickens.com/chicken-coop-incubator.html It's the one on the lower right. You just take out the air compressor, and drill holes for the light kits (we used two) and thread the cords through the incubator and then assemble the light, then pull back to the back of the bator. Then you plug the lights into a thermostat, there is one by Zilla at Petco ($49.99), or one by Zoo Med at Pets Inc ($29.99), both have plug ins for two heating devices. With the Zilla you can preset the desired temp in degrees (but does not work that well for giving you what the number is, you have to adjust up or down not looking at the number). Mine had fans that work, but you could either get a small fan and put it in there with a hole for the cord, or get some computer fans and rewire to old phone charger plugs and then use them. You also need to drill some ventilation holes. Depending on how the racks are in the one you get, you can build racks that you can use to turn the eggs with. Mine had racks, that work perfectly for eggs ... so I'll just hand turn

The most difficult part is deciding where you want to put the lights and where you want to drill holes. Once you get started it's easy!

Here's the garage sale info if anyone is interested in the big wine fridge.

Date: 2011-04-21, 9:01AM MST
Reply to: [email protected] [Errors when replying to ads?]

We are moving and everything left must go! Great bargains and lots of
stuff! Queen size bed and boxspring, Hotpoint Refrigerator, Magic Chef
wine refrigerator, Young mens jeans, Sofa, Duncan Phyfe Dining table
and chairs seats 6, legal size filing cabinet, Hewlett Packard
Computer with dual core processor and 320 GB harddrive, Southwest
style room divider/ entertainment center, Philips Pro video monitor 20
inch screen TV with Remote, house plants and deck/porch plants and so
much more!!!!

I will add more pictures later today!
Address: 612 E Desert Ave Apache Junction AZ 85119
Dates: Saturday the 23rd and Sunday the 24th of April
Time: 9:00 Am until 4:00 PM

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

Quote:
There are many, many species of birds...some of the best US birding locations are in Arizona. Just all birds do not visit all places.


Yes, I agree that birds that probably should not be protected are, but it is an international treaty that dates back over 100 years. Getting treaty changes agreed to by many nations is probably not likely to occur. There is a lot of latitude that COULD be worked with, but isn't. The basic concept has worked...many species that were in ever declining number and in danger of extinction are NOT. What would help is recognising that many of the birds that were originally protected (to prevent them becoming hat ornaments!) are no longer in any danger, and no longer need that level of protection. For mammals, it is usually allowed to kill a predator, even if it is endangered, when it is attacking one's stock. With an avian, no matter how healthy the population, this is not the case.

Are grackles protected? They're nasty and prolific.

But OH so intelligent! Yes, all three kinds are protected.

 

[deserthens]

The biggest danger to our native birds is the non native birds, house sparrows, starlings, & pigeons! The that over nesting areas and out compete them for food. Any one from the midwest knows how bad sparrows are on the bluebird population.

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

Quote:

poop soup!

We end up with *a lot* of that in our yard, in between cycling water out from the koi pond (fish poop) into the plants around the yard, the chickens mucking around in it (double poop), and of course the regular chicken poop everywhere else.....

Last spring I had a neighbor who si a soil scientist come over and look at a couple of my pine trees to make recommendations on why they looked so ratty. I have 4 pine trees--all eldarica (Goldwater). She pulled intot he driveway and I pointed out the big one that looked really ratty, and she said--"gee, it really looks pretty normal--I don't see anything wrong." Said the same thing for the smaller rattier looking tree, too. Then I showed her my other two and she said--"okay, now I see why you're concerned!" The two next to the barn are lush and dark green, very full with needles, not scraggley and yellow green with sparce needles. I had used the space between as a chicken pen for many months, and while they had eaten all the grass and scratched the earth bare, apparently their deposits were of some value.

This year I've been adding manure around the base ofhte two other pines, and they are looking much better--still not as lush, but they are slowly catching up. Oh, and yes, I used the space next to the bard again this year for growout pens.

 

[nurseshelly]

Man it stinks! I'm going to have to find a home for Paisley. She is really picking on my Silver Laced Wyandotte and pulling her tail feathers out ... not the others, just her. There isn't any blood or anything, I think my SLW (Ivy) is just too in Paisleys face, and she's the top hen. Ivy is the only one who tries to sneak in and steal a tidbit away from where Paisley is and stuff like that. Paisley is our only egg laying hen too

Between the roosters and the (now) two nasty chickens, I feel like the revolving house of chickens! Anyone need a EE hen that is 10 months old?

 

[nurseshelly]

Quote:

poop soup!

We end up with *a lot* of that in our yard, in between cycling water out from the koi pond (fish poop) into the plants around the yard, the chickens mucking around in it (double poop), and of course the regular chicken poop everywhere else.....

Last spring I had a neighbor who si a soil scientist come over and look at a couple of my pine trees to make recommendations on why they looked so ratty. I have 4 pine trees--all eldarica (Goldwater). She pulled intot he driveway and I pointed out the big one that looked really ratty, and she said--"gee, it really looks pretty normal--I don't see anything wrong." Said the same thing for the smaller rattier looking tree, too. Then I showed her my other two and she said--"okay, now I see why you're concerned!" The two next to the barn are lush and dark green, very full with needles, not scraggley and yellow green with sparce needles. I had used the space between as a chicken pen for many months, and while they had eaten all the grass and scratched the earth bare, apparently their deposits were of some value.

This year I've been adding manure around the base ofhte two other pines, and they are looking much better--still not as lush, but they are slowly catching up. Oh, and yes, I used the space next to the bard again this year for growout pens.

So funny! Miracles of chicken poo!

 

[mclevinson]

Quote:
Hows about you spray the picked upon places with that purple stuff? It cured my problem.