Australians - Where are you all????

[Rachel96]

Hi Fierlin! Well, if no-one minds, I'll hang out on both threads.

Sooo... I've had an ear infection the past few days, which isn't good. It probably wouldn't have been this bad if I'd paid attention like five days ago when I first started getting sick and actually rested - it got to yesterday and I basically collapsed. I actually slept for four hours DURING THE DAY today. I never sleep during the day - I can't! I usually get up when the sun rises (blame my roosters for that), which is about 6 o'clock at the moment... the fact that I didn't wake up until nine o'clock today is weird... the fact that I fell asleep again at 11 is stranger...

Anyway I'm getting a bit behind on schoolwork (how sad is that? Third day of term and I'm behind already) but what the teachers don't know won't hurt them. I've worked out my timetable this term so that all my contact hours are on a Monday - that gives me the whole week to do nothing (ahem, do schoolwork). Ooh... I guess that's something Australian that other's wouldn't get. Does everyone know what School of the Air (SOTA) is? I trust you've all see 'Skippy the Bush Kangaroo' (it's nothing like that). My school is basically the high-school equivalent of SOTA.

Anyway I think it would be sort of cool if the Aussies could start up their own forum like this one day, as Aussie Lady suggested. I guess I get a little annoyed sometimes that a lot of the swaps/sales/meets/breeders people talk about on here are in America, and there for not applicable to me. There are lots of people here selling eggs or chooks that I'd very much like but can't get because they're simply too far away. But it's a very good forum all the same. At risk of sounding like my (rather poultry-ignorant) mother, a chicken is a chicken (yes, I know it's not true), as far as injuries and incubation goes most of the time - this forum has been very helpful to me for some demi-emergencies I've had and also just for questions.

While I'm think about this, I'll mention a thread I started here https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/652101/australian-and-new-zealand-poultry-shows-and-sales. If people could go over, have a look, and hopefully add something, that would be great!

Also, please tell me if I babble too much or am annoying. I'll stop, or try to.

from Rachel.

 

[redfeather13]

spoke too soon didn't I
yesterday arvo it poured rain followed very quickly last night by an icy wind.
oh well - that's nature for you

 

[Aussie Lady]

Hi Fierlin

You are most welcome in this thread, and no you are fine, don't worry about babbling, it shows you're enthusiasm which is refreshing. I'll check out your link however I have no idea when it comes to sales and shows. By the way I understand re school work, I've got all my exams coming up in May (mature aged student doing her nursing diploma/degree). I just finished the last of my assessments and I will be handing these in tomorrow. Thank God for the holiday today. I had also started a thread for "newbies" a while back. Not a whole heap of responses but there may be something in there for you. I try to keep this one educational and a few people had been interested. Check it out if you like. (https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/619423/help-for-the-newbies). It is a place where I am hoping to get answers, suggestions and feedback from other chicken lovers who know a lot more about chicken issues than I do. Anyway, now I'm rambling on.

Have a good week at school Rachel

Cheers Chrissy

PS: I'm old enough to remember Skippy the Bush Kangaroo - I loved that show, it was on a Saturday morning as far as I can remember and found the way Sonny did his schooling fascinating - I was jealous of him, I wanted to be a country girl. You get more time living in the outdoors than being stuck in a school room all day long.

 

[Aussie Lady]

G'day to all


Sorry Rachel, I accidentally called you Fierlin, no offense Fierlin.

I had a very funny incident today. I was looking at my mealworm farm and low and behold they were all wriggling around in the box so I decided to share some with the girls. I thought, lets see if my Australorps like mealworms. So I put a few in my hand and tried to coax them to grab them. 2 of them were off on the other side of the garden, and two were near me. They looked to see what I had in my hand, one of them came near but not near enough to take it out of my hand. So I through one in her direction and she gobbled it down. The other one was watching and decided to take a closer look and came closer and closer - I just talked to her and encouraged her to come (I might regret this yet) and reached out my hands with the worms and yes she took it. She came back again and again - this was exciting she actually trusted me. After that she followed me around everywhere to see if I had some more worms, she even jumped up at my hand in case there was something there. Now I have a chicken like a long lost puppy, she wouldn't leave my side. I don't know yet if this is a good thing or not. I hope the others catch on as I do want them to get the goodness that a mealworm provides. My pet silkie was not interested at all, she actually ran away from me - silly chook. Anyway, I just wanted to share this.

 

[Aussie Lady]

I've just come in from the back yard. Boy those chickens sure crack me up. Now all 4 come to my hand, it's a battle to see which ones will get the most worms. They even chase after my dog Oli to keep him away - as if he eats worms, oh well he eats their seed and **** so why not worms!!! They like my toes as they kept pecking at them like it was a giant worm when I ran out of mealworms for them to eat. One of the cheeky ones jumped onto my table as I was trying to put away the mealworm box and thought just maybe I can get some more. Then they tried to follow me into the house, and if I wasn't quick enough they would have been in the house. Amazing what mealworms can and will do, it certainly changed the characters of these chickens. They seem to trust me now however I have noticed that I have to move slowly with slow arm movements as to not to startled them with sudden movements. I don't care what anyone says, chickens do have characters and each different. One is more shy than the others. I thought about names and because they are all black, I may call them after our famous Aussie spreads like Vegemite, Marmite, Promite and I may have to stick in an old English one that's been around for some time i.e. Bovril.

PS My silkie is a strange chicken - she won't come near me unless I catch her. So I did and put a mealworm right in front of her, she pecked at it once but was not interested in the least - so I'm giving up trying with her - she just doesn't want them - maybe it's the breed

 

[fcooper]

Hi Aussie Lady - are you framing the mealworms too or buying them?

My girls are just trying to stay dry - it's pouring here - dreading having to get out there and clean out the coop

Thanks!

 

[Christie Loves Silkies]

Hey all.
How have you all been?
The weather here has been really cold.

Aussie Lady - about 7 weeks ago I posted pictures of my chicks that hatched.
They are the most beautiful chicks.
There is another 2 but I haven't got pictures of them.

 

[dirtgirl49]

Christie, I do so love the pics of your baby silkies. I currently have 4 assorted colour Silkies (started with 6 but have lost 2 sadly) I find them just the most beautiful gentle natured chickens, albeit lousy egg layers! I wanted to take on more Silkies, but ended up adopting 4 various bantams from a lady moving interstate.
My white Silkie gets dreadfully dirty and I remarked today about perhaps giving her a wash, hubby thinks I am crazy. Have you had any experience with tubbing down your Silkies or should I just let her remain dirty? She refuses to go inside when it rains and sits out in it, no matter how bad it is, that's why she gets so dirty!

 

[Aussie Lady]

Hi there

Fcooper, I bought my initial mealworms (100 pieces) and from that I now have quite a few that I can share with my chickens. I can't give them as many as I want to as yet as they are still reproducing. I have quite a number of beetles that are laying a lot of eggs and have different stages of worms. If you would like to find out more info, I started a thread "Help for the Newbies" that may assist you with more information about my mealworms with pictures. Here's the link below:

(https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/619423/help-for-the-newbies)

Christie, your baby silkies are soooooooo gorgeous and I like the colours.

Hi dirtgirl and

and our Aussie thread. I do bathe/shower my silkie with warm water and some wool wash which gives it a lovely eucalyptus smell. I also dry her with my hair dryer and she absolutely loves it. She just sits there on my kitchen table on her towel and falls asleep while I dry her off - she comes out smelling lovely and all fluffed up.

 

[Christie Loves Silkies]

Christie, I do so love the pics of your baby silkies. I currently have 4 assorted colour Silkies (started with 6 but have lost 2 sadly) I find them just the most beautiful gentle natured chickens, albeit lousy egg layers! I wanted to take on more Silkies, but ended up adopting 4 various bantams from a lady moving interstate.
My white Silkie gets dreadfully dirty and I remarked today about perhaps giving her a wash, hubby thinks I am crazy. Have you had any experience with tubbing down your Silkies or should I just let her remain dirty? She refuses to go inside when it rains and sits out in it, no matter how bad it is, that's why she gets so dirty!

My white silkie Rose gets dirty when she's broody a lot, I do bathe her as she gets covered in egg.
Im sorry about your loss, a month ago today I lost my darling girl Lucky
I have a clock of 10 silkies right now if you would like to see pictures of my flock feel free to ask for some.
I know a lot about silkies in general it drives my family crazy.