calling any one from missouri

[FluffyBottomBantams]

That is helpful thank you! Was just looking to get some idea of what we’d be dealing with. We don’t have much in the way of arial predators around here besides hawks, usually cooper, and our birds are about as big as most of em lol so they don’t give us much trouble.
Sorry to hear about one taking your bird, and the possum getting in. Nasty things

 

[jthornton]

Hi there! We currently live in NH but will be moving to Missouri in the next few months.
(Yay cross country(ish) trip with 20+ birds!)

What sorts of predators do you guys find is the most threatening to your flocks there? Coons and coyotes are the biggest worry up here.

Here in swamp East Missouri we have fox, coyote, weasel, black snakes, raccoon, opossum, hawks, eagles and the worst one of all is dogs.

At night you have to be smaller than a 1/2" square to get to any of my hens. During the day the old gals have a 5' chain link fence with hot wires on the outside and the young hens have 1" square welded wire fencing in their run. On nice days I'm a chicken ferry and carry them over to another fenced in area and my wife sits up on the deck and watches out for any problems.

JT

 

[microchick]

Hey Missouri folks! haven't checked in for a while.

@jthornton, I agree, we have the same predators around us here plus we have the occasional cougar wandering through. Steel coated coop and hot wires keep the predators at bay.

Then there is this:
https://nypost.com/2022/02/11/chick...-fast-spreading-bird-flu-spreading-across-us/

Have any of y'all heard anything about this? This is the first I've read about it and frankly I don't like the sound of it at all.

 

[microchick]

@jthornton, visiting your gnipsel.com page. My husband is heavily into arduino and used to be into raspberry pi. He is also into 3D printing which I think is his main interest right now and experimenting on making a wind turbine that is using a stepper motor as an alternator.

He gave me a 1" bore cannon that looks like a miniature version of yours that shoots steel ball bearings and 4th of July fireworks for us! What can I say, the way to this girl's heart is cold hard steel. I think it weighs about 25 pounds.

Are you making your own meat smoker? That is something on my project list.

 

[jthornton]

I added a PLC with a touch screen to a Bradley smoker to make an Uber Smoker but now I mainly use the Traeger Smoker for smoking. At one time I was making a lot of beef jerky but only make it from time to time now and use the Bradley smoker for that.

I found the Ardunio a bit flaky with programs and prefer the Raspberry Pi and Python for chicken automation and some automation at the industrial park like capturing data from a PLC each time the data changes and log it to a file. I'm very good programming in Python...

Speaking of spoiled rotten Cinnamon Queen hens I finally finished the chicken stairs today to replace the kennel tray, milk crate, 6x6 and ramp that I temporarily installed about a year and a half ago so they could get in and out of the coop lol. The finish is Tried and True Varnish Oil so food safe and safe for skin contact, it's just the only safe finish you can get. Too bad you can't use it on stuff like the purple heart in the background as it changes the color.


JT

 

[microchick]

DH was working on a pop door opener for me using an Arduino Uno for me using a heat and light sensor so it would only open with a certain percentage of light. Then I up and changed my door and got Egyptian Fayoumis so the project is shelved for the moment although it might be able to be installed on another coop.

We want to get a smoker made incase the need arises to do something with the freezer full of meat incase the electric takes a dive. Sort of a back up SHTF sort of scenario.

 

[shawluvsbirds]

Hi there! We currently live in NH but will be moving to Missouri in the next few months.
(Yay cross country(ish) trip with 20+ birds!)

What sorts of predators do you guys find is the most threatening to your flocks there? Coons and coyotes are the biggest worry up here.

What JT said.
Even where I live within City limits of a small rural community I get foxes, raccoons, opossums, hawks, snakes and once even a coyote.
People's unrestrained dogs are always a concern as well and stray cats.
I've never had a cat attack any birds but I keep mine penned up. I imagine they would go after the tiny call ducklings if they could.
Opossums don't really bother me either I've never had one get inside my coop.
I've had more trouble with possums trying to live under my house and get into my heating duct work than I have with them bothering birds. Same goes for cats.

 

[jthornton]

All right now the chicken stairs are done and the bowls for egg shell, oyster and grit are attached.



It won't take them long to make it look like crap but it was fun to build...

JT

 

[jthornton]

I used the cover of darkness to install the new stairs and bowls... tomorrow will be fun. Of course after that it's no issue pooping on them.

JT

 

[lifein1840]

All right now the chicken stairs are done and the bowls for egg shell, oyster and grit are attached.
View attachment 2993065
View attachment 2993067

It won't take them long to make it look like crap but it was fun to build...

JT

that's fancier than the steps up to my house!! beautiful work!