Checking-In On Peeps - Post Here To Say Hello!

[Debbie292d]

Still here and currently have 14 chickens!
3 white leghorns
1 partridge rock rooster
1 olive egger
3 turkens
2 Ameraucanas
3 prairie bluebells
1 partridge rock/production red mix

Hiya, Susania, and glad to hear things are going well! Sounds like you have a beautiful bunch of colorful yard ornaments there!! Thanks for checking in with us and don't be shy!!

 

[Debbie292d]

Hi! Thanks for reaching out! We are doing very well here over in Scotland, currently have couple Indian Runners and Khaki Campbell. We had problem with fox getting through secured fences somehow so lost few birds but haven't seen it in about a year now. Have been very busy last year with guinea fowl hatching, over 80 eggs were found on friends farm, some eaten and destroyed but managed to hatch 58 of them! All grown birds have been realised back on farm

Hiya, and good to hear from you! Sorry about your losses but glad it's going better now. Sounds like you're having fun though!! Glad you stopped in!!

 

[KathryninQuebec]

We have such a vibrant community here at BYC... tons of active friendly members. Of course, life gets busy, so I was thinking it would be fun to start a thread welcoming some of our peeps we haven't heard from in a while.

If that's you, come say hello and let us know what you've been up to.

(if that's not you, feel free to invite peeps you haven't seen in a while and say hi to those that post here)

Well yes, life has been busy. How time flies. For the last few years I've been wanting Silkies. Not because they are irresistibly cute but because we worried about power outages or the ability to afford a new incubator as prices go up and supply chains faulter. Silkies are heralded as being excellent Mammas. We live WAY up North in Quebec and if you want any particular breed of Chicken you have to ship hatching eggs and cross your fingers or travel 5+ hours south to bring mammas and papas home. This past Summer we finally lucked out and saw an add for Silkies an hour and a half North of us! We got 2 roosters and 6 hens. Sadly 1 rooster didn't make it through the Winter. But, early this Spring while there was still a foot of snow on the ground, we got our 1st broody hen, "Sweetie". We brought her in with her clutch and she hatched 2 out of 7 eggs. Not bad with the temps outside still well bellow freezing.1 Silkie and 1 Barred Rock. Apparently the Barred Rock Hens were flying over the 6ft fence from the rafters to lay their eggs on the "quiet side" of the green house. Lol. Soon after hen #2 Hair-doo went broody and hatched 6 chicks! 2 Barred Rock, 3 Silkies and possibly 1 cross bred! What do you all think? (pictures attached). Then 3 days ago #3 Gwendolyn went broody and is sitting on 7 eggs. This investment has paid of big time. The best part is I have to worry and fuss a lot less over the chicks as they are being raised naturally by a Mamma. I couldn't be more pleased!

 

[Chickiestohens]

what is a pine martin?

Pine Martins are members of the weasel family and as the name suggests, can easily climb. Though somewhat rare, that is not a comfort to their chosen meal....

 

[Debbie292d]

Looks like I'm not the only one that's been incognito. I don't have any recent photos of my chickens. We are down to 4 from 15. We've had a resident coyote systematically cull my flock this past year. I believe a neighbor finally was able to "trap it". I've decided to replenish the flock with Easter Eggers. We have two that have managed to escape the predators because they are well, "chicken" and hide and run from everything. And they are fast. I've favored Isa Browns, because they are friendly and great layers. But I think they are inviting the predators in for lunch only to meet their demise. It's been a tough year for chickens on our two acre homestead.

Hiya, and good to hear from you, but sorry about the coyotes. Not sure if you have a run for yours but some who have predator issues make large runs with 1/2" hardware cloth then poultry netting on the top which keeps out just about everything.

I hope whatever you do that you don't lose any more chickens!

 

[Debbie292d]

Howdy!

How y'all been?!

April has been a mix of good and bad for us.
Good in that there have been warmer days.
Bad in that the warmer days have been interspersed with cold and snowy days.
Good in that our little flock has resumed egg production and 6 of 7 of them are happy and healthy.
Bad in that the 7th - one of our EE's had to be culled.

We're ALL looking forward to summer.

Hiya! Glad to hear from you, and thanks for asking. We're good here. Not sure where you are, but that sure sounds like the weather here in Wisconsin.

Come on SUMMER!!

 

[myfavoritechicken]

We have such a vibrant community here at BYC... tons of active friendly members. Of course, life gets busy, so I was thinking it would be fun to start a thread welcoming some of our peeps we haven't heard from in a while.

If that's you, come say hello and let us know what you've been up to.

(if that's not you, feel free to invite peeps you haven't seen in a while and say hi to those that post here)

This says it all!

 

[wcbpolish]

busy, just busy

 

[The Gardening Chick]

Hi, thanks for starting this! I still have most of my girls! They helped with dandelion removal today - I removed, they ate. Other aspects of my life have been quite busy. Happy Spring all!

 

[Mimi Chickaduck]

Hiya Mimi,

So sorry for your losses and what you've been through. It sounds like you're getting back on your feet though!!

For a run, you'll need to use 1/2" hardware cloth to keep the predators out. You can bend it at the bottom about 18" and cover with rocks or pavers, or just bury it down is even better.

For a coop, most on BYC would discourage any prebuilt ones as they never hold the number of chickens they say they will, maybe half, and they do not last like stick-built ones. You could try watch for a shed on Marketplace, or if you're in a state like here, an ice-fishing shack would work too. Otherwise, on BYC there are oodles of ways to build a coop, and make one that's predator-proof.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/categories/chicken-coops.12/

Thank you so much!