building paradise for the birds

[birdman55]

With that many eggs you have enough to give away plus boil some for your birds.They love boiled eggs.Shell and all,but you need to crush them up good so they can't identify the shell.They may start eating the eggs before you get them if they see the shell and think it is ok to eat.
In N.H.,Tony.

hey tony glad to see you still on here....you getting ready for this season...im making brooders kindof like how you have them.....do you think I should use hardware cloth for the bottom...what do you use for the bedding on yours...curious....and as for the eggs there from the worming process so she is just going to blow the eggs out and do paint/artwork on them....I would so give them to the birds I just don't know what the clean cycle is on the wormers, after worming them....and I don't wanna feed them wormed eggs...if that makes any sense...called me paranoid....but would that even matter

Your birds are gorgeous! And you have so many of them! You must be running 24/7!

thanks...have spent a lot of time with them and getting the list together to make 7, 10' x 30' peafowl pens....so im so tired...im close to running 24/7 yesterday was a good rest day...actually got some sleep finally

Can't wait to see more pictures!

Your birds and chicks look great!

well the coolerbator should be all done today...that is the goal....and then two coolerbators running at the same time with close to 70 eggs by this weekend...so getting excited....but I know the building will never end.....

 

[Tony K T]

I have plywood on the bottom of mine as they are in the basement.They need to be cleaned weekly so not to smell the place up.I use pine shavings for bedding.The only wire is on the front door and the holes on top for the light to go thru.I use 1/4x1/4 hardware cloth for both.


We did get a little snow and 18-20" more on the way.

Thought I had more brooder pics but I don't see them.
In N.H.,Tony.

 

[birdman55]

tony what wattage in light do you use...do you change them as they get bigger or just use one bulb ...how do you regulate the heat...or does that not matter to much....I have heard many different ways of brooding and a lot of wide range in ways people do them...Your very successful at breeding...whats your trick...

......

I don't want to mess this year up and I don't want to go way over board....on the brooding process...im about to set 70 more chicken eggs...so as you guys can imagine I will have many birds....it is overwhelming for sure....thanks for the input tony

THATS ALOT OF SNOW...IM SO THANKFUL I DIDNT GET THAT MUCH...MY RINKY DINKY ROOF COULD NOT HAVE HANDLED THAT MUCH...I WOULD HAVE BEEN OUT THERE ALL THE TIME....

 

[Tony K T]

Week 1 250 watt heat lamp,week 2 100 watt bulb,week 3 75 watt,week 4 60 watt,week 5 40 watt and week 6 25 watt just for the light as my hatching room is a little dark.All my bulbs are painted red so if anyone is bleeding it makes it a little harder for the others to see the blood.My brooders are set with the bulbs in each one so I don't have to move the bulbs around.When the brooders are cleaned out and sprayed with tek trol each week then I do all the moving of the birds.
In N.H.,Tony.

 

[Tony K T]

The brooder in the pic is where they end up the last week of brooding.As you can see the bottom pens are for storage.Each brooder is 2'wx3'dx18"h.
In N.H.,Tony.

 

[birdman55]

thanks tony...I might just give that a try instead of doing all digital meters in each brooder as you can imagine how pricey that would be...

oh man tell you what I understand y people just put wormers in the water....but I still cant do it...I did the older peafowl today which was super easy.....then the new ones...holy pea was that not fun...im pretty sure they had no human contact....they are super strong and didn't want me holding them...that's for sure....but I got every single bird here wormed which is over 140 birds now....except the seven new peafowl....which today I got three done before dark.....and yes I did get pooped on...so tomorrow I have to do the other four...which im so not looking forward to...but gotta get done...incubator will also be done tonight....it is well past 50 percent done now...just working on it here and there....ok im done....lol

 

[birdman55]

so I have to share this...everyone that is reading this forum knows im doing mealworms....and if you didn't know now you do know...so I read that the beetle was cannibalistic. and a couple of people let me know that they are only cannibalistic when there is no food...so I separated the pupas and then place a good forty into the beetle bin to see what would happen with the beetles...well after a day lets just say that wont happen again....the beetles were in fact eating the pupas....so I wont be adding the pupas to the beetle bin anymore...I watched several beetles gang up and just go to town on several pupas.....so no more...I like the divided sections where max growth can be achieved and that cant happen when beetles are eating my pupas...just my thoughts and what I have seen...but here is a pic of the beetle bin....hope everyone has a wonderful night....


and that's only about half of them....when the light turned on they ran like crazy to hide...and the noise was so loud for a bunch of little beetles....

 

[attimus]

Great info. I also heard that about them but the proof is in the pudding as they say. How many did you start with again. I think I'm ready to give it a go and would like decent numbers.

 

[birdman55]

I would get 1000-2000 of them online...I would honestly buy a 1000 now and get three bins about 12" x 18" x 8" high for the mealworms (2 of them) and a beetle bin (1 of them) and then a smaller bin about half that size for the pupa...and in a month after that get the other 1000 and you should be on your way...once a week go thru the mealworm bins which will take about 20 minutes each...be careful not to breathe in the dust...and separate the pupas into the container with no bedding...just keep an eye on them and as they grow into a beetle just transfer them into the beetle bin....more then likely will take about month n a half before you see your first pupa....so be patient...that's for sure this process wont happen over night... you don't have to cover them or anything and they wont get out from the slippery plastic....I will be redoing the bottom of the bins and cutting large holes and putting screen so the worms and the beetles can do the sifting....but I will talk more about that when I get some motivation to do them....until then...be back in a flash...thanks for watching and have a great day...

 

[birdman55]

check it out....its finished...








oh boy its coolerbator time....lol