Australia - Six states..and that funny little island.

[satay]

Does anyone know what this girl is? She's half my birthday present. About half way between a bantam and standard chicken.

And here's the 2nd half

I am hopeless at guessing crosses usually but the first one reminds me of a polish cross ara.

 

[satay]

After a fair bit of a break from hatching. We have babies

 

[Teila]

Goood morning folks

While I have been lucky to date [touch wood] another reason for the new coop and run is to ensure that if that luck does change and a fox visits, we are ready. I am not too far away from MyHaven so I am definitely taking heed of her warnings.

Hey MyHaven, no, I do not think I have visited Feedmania, but I will keep it in mind, thank you.

Belated birthday wishes to you .. those are beautiful presents!

LuckysMum I am thoroughly enjoying the Bear stories, he sounds like a great big softie and Bear is a good name for him [teddy bear].

I had a border collie x cavalier king charles spaniel named Charlie-Bear who I lost on Christmas Day 5 years ago; still have not got over that one.

Anyways, she was a sweetheart .. she tired to befriend a pet rat that was in our park one day; he had either escaped or someone had dumped him but either way, she wanted to make friends.

On her morning walks, we used to see a big ginger Tom cat most mornings; after a couple of months, he used to hide in the drain when he saw us coming and then jump out and play with her .. they were the best of friends and she got quite upset on the mornings she did not see him.

One afternoon I was watching her out the kitchen window and she kept gently picking something up, moving a few steps and then putting it down again. Having no idea what she had, I went outside to check it out. It was a baby bird and she had not harmed it in any way. She may have been trying to find somewhere safe to put it or just ‘mothering’ it .. so so sweet.

satay they are quail right? Sooooo cute!

 

[satay]

Goood morning folks 

While I have been lucky to date [touch wood] another reason for the new coop and run is to ensure that if that luck does change and a fox visits, we are ready.  I am not too far away from MyHaven so I am definitely taking heed of her warnings.

Hey MyHaven, no, I do not think I have visited Feedmania, but I will keep it in mind, thank you.

Belated birthday wishes to you .. those are beautiful presents!

LuckysMum I am thoroughly enjoying the Bear stories, he sounds like a great big softie and Bear is a good name for him [teddy bear].

I had a border collie x cavalier king charles spaniel named Charlie-Bear who I lost on Christmas Day 5 years ago; still have not got over that one.

Anyways, she was a sweetheart .. she tired to befriend a pet rat that was in our park one day; he had either escaped or someone had dumped him but either way, she wanted to make friends.

On her morning walks, we used to see a big ginger Tom cat most mornings; after a couple of months, he used to hide in the drain when he saw us coming and then jump out and play with her .. they were the best of friends and she got quite upset on the mornings she did not see him.

One afternoon I was watching her out the kitchen window and she kept gently picking something up, moving a few steps and then putting it down again.  Having no idea what she had, I went outside to check it out.  It was a baby bird and she had not harmed it in any way.  She may have been trying to find somewhere safe to put it or just ‘mothering’ it .. so so sweet.

satay they are quail right?  Sooooo cute!

Oops sorry forgot to add that. Yes they are one little marans out so far too.

 

[MyHaven]

I have always used the deep litter system in my 19 chook houses.
Just top it up every month or so, usually with free Council woodchip mulch.
Clean it out about once a year. No smell. No flies. No problems.

xxx   M

I only clean out about the same frequency. I find leaving it that long means the compost underneath is aged and smells rich at the bottom. I clean it out when I need soil for a new garden. Dig to the bottom and take that then fill with the top not so aged stuff. Once it's working it breaks everything down pretty quickly. I actually don't find any hard build up like AnnieB finds. Mine's crumbly mostly. I also top mine up every month or so. No flies inside - if I could only get rid of the mozzies that way.

 

[MyHaven]

Mommas babies have almost outgrown her.

They remind me of when my blue Australorp Lizzy Taylor and Silkie were that age.

Just lovely !

 

[satay]

Does anyone know what this girl is? She's half my birthday present. About half way between a bantam and standard chicken.

And here's the 2nd half

 

[MyHaven]

Thanks for the birthday wishes. I also got a chicken feed scoop from my little one. Picked it out at feedmania.

Satay I did see the polish. I think she had ducks too, but isn't always the way I can't put a face to her, I can only remember the birds. I am so glad and yet soooo disappointed I didn't see any d'uccles at The market. As it was I had to breath through it and walk away. Three lovely wyandottes 2silver laced and one penciled for $45. Ohh that was hard to leave.

You quail look good - hard to read scale but they look large.

As for butcher birds yes definitely they take chickens - worse than magpies I find.

I'll sketch a fox proofing design for runs and post it when done for everyone's information. Someone showed me on the weekend and it looks great.

Potatochip I'm sure butter wouldn't melt in your mouth.

 

[LuckysMum]

satay Yes Bear is cuddly and great with the grand kids bear even gets between my husband and the girls when he play fights. We had another shepherd who wasn't well and had to be put down. She killed 2 lots of chooks but we don't think bear even touched them. We had some babies pigeons in the mandarin tree and they fell out. Bear was barking so we investigated he brought a baby bird to us in his mouth untouched. Shadow ran and hid with another and ate it before I could stop her. Bear got his name because he was 55kg when we got him and he was only 9mths old, he was kept in a tiny backyard with food left out all the time. So he looked like a big cuddly bear, poor thing couldn't climb into the car. He is 55 kgs now but healthy and 8 years old. I think its safe to say he is a big softy with my chicks.

 

[User395221]

Your dog is bigger than I am....

EDIT: I'm so excited. I just found a teeny-weeny egg with the big girls' eggs. I think one of my little girls (the little girls who are in with the big girls, not the tiny new imaginary girls in the other yard) has laid an egg. Woohoo! (it's brown, not blue, so I don't know whether that makes her not an "easter egger"?) I wonder which it was?