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

[LuckysMum]

This is my backyard at the moment
.

 

[Fancychooklady]

Yes, the wild weather is certainly playing havoc. The main river isn't flooding yet all this water is coming down from the mountain. Can't get the cows and goats up , the Westpac rescue helicopter has just had to lift 5 people up from down the back of our neighbors place trying to rescue the sheep and lambs. It's going to be an anxious wait for high tide.

 

[LuckysMum]

my new aurcana babies 1 is yellowy the other 2 are grey

 

[LuckysMum]

Yes, the wild weather is certainly playing havoc. The main river isn't flooding yet all this water is coming down from the mountain. Can't get the cows and goats up , the Westpac rescue helicopter has just had to lift 5 people up from down the back of our neighbors place trying to rescue the sheep and lambs. It's going to be an anxious wait for high tide.

We are thinking of you I hope you don't have anymore problems.

 

[Fizzybelle]

Ohh, Fancy, glad no one was hurt! Hope the weather improves quickly for you and everyone there. Stay safe, and what a brave chookie you have too!

LuckysMum, they are BEAUTIFUL!Love seeing the pics of your set up.

 

[ChristieB]

Loving all the new chicky photos guys!
Sadly cho just a day after I put her back in the coop got out again and this time I didn't get there in time, it must have been while I was still in bed because I didn't hear anything
But on a more positive note the 6 chicks I got are growing nicely, I'm thinking if we have a few warmer days they are almost old enough to join the older chicks, 3 of which are roosters so really they'll just be joining the one lonely pullet. They'll all be going into the big coop as with cho gone and ginny broody it's empty.
And yes ginny is still broody so in a fit of madness I went and bought 4 day old Sussex chicks today, just put them under her, boy was she mad!! She shuffled around so much trying to peck me she caught sight of the chicks and started going for them, but I put them in a pile sat her directly on them and she's now sitting tight, I'll be checking on her all night and hope by morning she thinks her plastic egg magically produced 4 babies for her to mother. I don't know how I'll choose what to keep when the time comes to comply with council regulations...

 

[Anniebee]

A friend sent this to me she thinks I have a lot of chickens.

My husband is in the shed building an annex for my teenagers (chicks) at the moment so he thought it was funny. With my 3 new araucanas I now have over 80.
Hopefully that should drop heaps next week.

I cannot imagine having over 80 chickens - in a back yard environment.. ... although you obviously have much more room than just a back-garden !!! What do you mean "that should drop heaps next week" ... are you selling or giving some away ?

I would be fit for a long rehab. stay, in a psych unit .... probably never to recover. ... Have 3 chickens, and they worry the daylights out of me. !! ( as most here know ).

Have a friend who is a 'bio-farmer' ... rotates her chickens ( at least 200 +++ ) .... along with her Limousin meat cattle. The chickens follow the cattle on a rotational basis, into paddocks - turn over the manure, dig up the pasture which has been softened by the cattle - the pasture flourishes, the chooks flourish on ground feed ( plus layer feed in their substantial coops housing ) , the cattle benefit from new pasture that springs up etc. etc. ... and on it goes. She has a Maremma dog that cares for her chickens AND the cattle. She sells the huge amount of great googies she gets ... after having to register with the Agric. Dept - and receive a stamp device to use on all the eggs.

Fascinating .... rather think I would need at least five of me to do something like that - or have even just 80 chookies . !!!

Cheers .......

 

[Anniebee]

Amen to that, nothing cheers you up more than cuddling on of those little fluffy faced sweethearts.



Bea's out of wanting to have babies mode, and back into wanting to be treated like a baby mode. She's been following me around and wanting cuddles and attention, which I'm happy to give her.

Also, here's our run and coop as it is currently. All that's left to do is move out that A frame coop the banties have been using, and secure the wire to the front of the run. That should be done in the next few days. That stuff is really heavy duty, it's been trickier to work with than regular chicken wire, but worth it. Wire is buried into the ground and we've been careful to board up any entry points to keep out possums and rodents. We also need to build another of those little houses for the bantams to sleep and nest in. The whole thing is 3x6 metres, with a divide down the middle separating it into two 3x3 pens. My new feeders should arrive tomorrow so I can mount them to the panels. It's already so much easier to clean this entire setup.




I was cleaning the coop/house and left the lid up in these photos.I need to sew some proper curtains too, to help keep bugs out at night. The door on the right is from the pen at our old house, we just put new wire on it, hence why it looks older. The roof is all wooden panels with a good quality tarp stapled to it, to be changed as it ages. It's very dry, which is good as storms are on the way to Brissy atm. Excuse the mess to the sides, the shed is going up in a few days now the concrete has set and we'll be doing a huge tidy.

Fizzybelle - you are an inspiration - as are all here who have devoted so much time to making such beautiful residences for their chickens.

Re-furbishing goes on the list for me - meantime, my 3 are happy enough in their now aging quarters ... they are safe, clean and comfortable, so that is the main thing, and will have to do for the moment. Am not robust enough to tackle re-doing by myself, but next year, when hubby retires ( again ? - yeah right ) ... there could be some changes. Hubby works very hard, but has much to do .... don't like to add that to his pursuits at this time.

Love what you are doing with your chicken housing, shown here .......

As for the curtains - could small cut tarps be used, fixed on the wire with pegs ? That's what I use for the night time comfort of my 3 .... and so far, so good. No bugs, no critters. Might save you a lot of time and work.

Cheers ....

 

[Anniebee]

Thanks again for the great advice Fancy. I do remove their feeders and water containers when I spray, just not the nest boxes and yeah, definitely when I know they are going to be free ranging for most of the day.

Thanks Anniebee I was thinking possum or fox and probably swaying more towards possum especially going by this article:

http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2007/09/26/2044094.htm

It is definitely cylinder-shaped and black which is possum-like. But, apparently foxes like to go down roads and paths and I found that one in the middle of the path. However, it does not taper off like the fox poop.

Fizzybelle great work on the run; looking really good!

Teila .... that was a different and better link in regards to identifying 'scat'. ... Would have to agree that it was probably a possum ( again - in a hurry !! ) .... who left that gift. !!

Have never seen black possum woopsies here ( Upwey, Victoria ) - but then we live in a rain-forest area, and most all of their diet would be herbiverous - resulting in greenish to brown scat.... I leave oldish cut up apples ( cores and seeds removed ) for the possums. Doesn't stop them raiding any vegetable or herb I have planted. The patio in summer is covered with planters - covered in bird netting or wire. ........ Looks a right mess. !!

Sincerely hope that is the answer for you though ... a possum. ( they are currently in 'fight' mode here, prior to breeding season - their noises upsets the dogs no end ).

Cheers ......

 

[LuckysMum]

I cannot imagine having over 80 chickens - in a back yard environment.. ... although you obviously have much more room than just a back-garden !!! What do you mean "that should drop heaps next week" ... are you selling or giving some away ?

I would be fit for a long rehab. stay, in a psych unit .... probably never to recover. ... Have 3 chickens, and they worry the daylights out of me. !! ( as most here know ).

Have a friend who is a 'bio-farmer' ... rotates her chickens ( at least 200 +++ ) .... along with her Limousin meat cattle. The chickens follow the cattle on a rotational basis, into paddocks - turn over the manure, dig up the pasture which has been softened by the cattle - the pasture flourishes, the chooks flourish on ground feed ( plus layer feed in their substantial coops housing ) , the cattle benefit from new pasture that springs up etc. etc. ... and on it goes. She has a Maremma dog that cares for her chickens AND the cattle. She sells the huge amount of great googies she gets ... after having to register with the Agric. Dept - and receive a stamp device to use on all the eggs.

Fascinating .... rather think I would need at least five of me to do something like that - or have even just 80 chookies . !!!

Cheers .......

I am selling some and giving some away to friends and co workers. I don't have a huge backyard but it is very large compared to newer homes backyards. I am out there all the time cleaning, watering, feeding, collecting eggs and using a tonne of pine shavings to keep the smell away. My vege garden is being dug up again and I will use a lot of the soil from the big run to top up the vege garden. Thankfully a large number are bantams or small hens so its not too bad. The only thing is I am becoming attached to them. I gave some eggs to the lady who lives behind me she says its not too noisy and there's not any smell that she can notice. But I do worry about when it gets hot.

Fizzybelle I love your coop what a palace for your princesses.

Fancy I hope everything is good over night.


I think that's what my nephew told his chooks.