Chickens for 10-20 years or more? Pull up a rockin' chair and lay some wisdom on us!

[Beekissed]

AL!!!!!!!! Where ya been so long, ol' buddy?????

We'll take wisecracks any day...we have been sadly lacking in good wisecracks and humorous content since you've been gone. Good to see you again!

 

[al6517]

Been around just hanging in the shadows I guess. How has everybody been ??.

 

[loanwizard]

Bout time you showed your head back in here Al!

 

[sourland]

Can we give a bit of good advice with a wise crack thrown in for good measure ??.

AL

Wisecracks are the spice that makes human interaction worthwhile. Sure beats a whole lot of boring.

 

[Beekissed]

Yes, indeedy! We need some laughs around here!

 

[Mommy 2 Wee Ones]

Just thought you all would get a kick out of these pics. I've got a young WR rooster integrated with my meaty chicks and he has taken over the role of mom. Keep in mind that he was roosting on his own roost just fine until I actually opened up the brooder and let the chicks out into the coop area. As promised, I said I'd post a pic of this roo chasing all these meaty chicks and taking care of them:



He just squats there all night but never actually settles down and rests comfortably...he has a few chicks under that wing. He becomes terribly upset if I disturb his "kids" in any way and will act just like a broody hen...all puffed up and making the exact same sounds. We've started doubting if he has his actual Roo Card on him because he has crossed over to the Mom side.

Bee, Just saw your Daddy/Mama pictures. That is just too precious! Your Roo is just in touch with his softer side. Wonder what he will do when his babies grow and are bigger than him. Keep us posted!

 

[Beekissed]

Well....Rudy Roo kind of lost his little feathered mind there and started thinking these chicks were his hens. Started breeding them. Damaged one and I didn't see it improving from there so Rudy made a great pot of soup. I will tell you this...the fermented feed really improved the flavor and tenderness of the meat because that was the tastiest older DP bird I'd ever made into soup. I had read that it sweetens the meat of the animals to which it is fed but this bird made a believer out of me. Can't wait to sample these CX now.

I'll stick with real mama hens from now on!

 

[Leahs Mom]

Now I'm up to post #2031 so I'm getting closer to current!

I'd like to pose a question for the OT crowd. I have to admit that this is a strange one but it is possible that it is somewhere between 2031 and current so if someone has addressed this (on this thread or somewhere else) please direct me!

I know that our property has coyotes (as well as the normal raccoons, skunks, etc.) nearby and I am NEW to chickens so my hen house is going to be new on the property. It sits in a 2 acre fenced pasture but the fence would definitely NOT deter common preditors. Even though the property has a total of 12 acres, it is totally surrounded by housing so shooting my preditors will be hard due to neighbor issues

(but not totally impossible) even though it would be my first choice.

In the "research" I've done, I had read that having a llama on the property has actually been shown to cause coyotes to totally avoid coming near the area just due to the scent.

With that in mind, I thought, 'hmmmm...wonder if I could purchase scent to put on the property...? And if I could, would it work and how long would it last?"

Started looking around and found a website that sells, as their site address states, "Preditor Pee" http://www.predatorpee.com/ (they have wolf pee to deter coyotes).

MY QUESTION: ANYONE USE PREDITOR PEE to deter ANY preditors? If so, has it worked for anyone?

 

[amenfarm]

Don't know about preditor pee, we just bought a standard sized donkey--no more coyotes. Less feed than a livestock dog, but you can here him bray from 1/2 mile.

 

[Beekissed]

Never used it...but the dog uses it a lot!