Colorado

[Latestarter]

wow... fall like weather...

I wish! My absolute favorite time of year. Was 100 even when I left work for home. First part of the drive was like being in a sauna, even with all the windows down. Yes, I have AC in the truck, but kills my already dismal gas mileage, and would only just be getting the interior cooled down by the time I got home. Besides, I sweat all day pounding concrete floors in the warehouse with no AC, so at least there's air movement with the windows down.

Sorry about the hen loss and topped with losing the eggs as well... that really is the pits. Maybe/hopefully you'll have another broody and get another chance to give it a go.

"I was not about to sit in the hot car another hour with overheating pullets waiting for someone to make their mind up." Ahhhh the joys of dealing with members of the "IN Crowd."

IN-considerate
IN-competent
IN-determinate
IN-furiating
IN-significant

Feel free to add more adjectives as they occur/apply

 

[21hens-incharge]

wow... fall like weather...

I wish! My absolute favorite time of year. Was 100 even when I left work for home. First part of the drive was like being in a sauna, even with all the windows down. Yes, I have AC in the truck, but kills my already dismal gas mileage, and would only just be getting the interior cooled down by the time I got home. Besides, I sweat all day pounding concrete floors in the warehouse with no AC, so at least there's air movement with the windows down.

Sorry about the hen loss and topped with losing the eggs as well... that really is the pits. Maybe/hopefully you'll have another broody and get another chance to give it a go.

"I was not about to sit in the hot car another hour with overheating pullets waiting for someone to make their mind up." Ahhhh the joys of dealing with members of the "IN Crowd."

IN-considerate
IN-competent
IN-determinate
IN-furiating
IN-significant

Feel free to add more adjectives as they occur/apply

LOL the ones DH had would not be appropriate for gentile forums lol.
Neither would the ones I used.

Hey wood is cheap and I have a saw. I think I saw DH leaving some of the extra metal roofing in the side yard. I know I have some plywood and I think uncle Bennies had an ad for slightly damaged siding.
Like one 8x14 coop is not enough. I wonder if DH would notice it if I tore out the raspberry or strawberry bed to make a "small" coop.


OH and my truck is fixed.

Stupid EGR valve. Now I can sneak over to Home Depot when DH is not watching.

<<<<<< making tippie toe steps toward the keys all stealth like.

 

[Latestarter]

Glad to hear the truck is "all better." have NO idea what I'd do without my truck... Ride the Harley I guess...

 

[21hens-incharge]

Hubby wont let me put chickens in the saddlebags.

I wonder why that would be....
Bought him a really nice road king. He is so proud of that bike.

The truck was down for 3 weeks and I almost died I swear it. Home depot is so close and yet so far without the truck.

 

[alebuela]

Hi everyone,

It's been incredibly busy (summertime in the ole B&B), but I've been trying to keep up with all of you. I'm sorry for all the various losses. My own FiFi, the Black Copper Marans I've had since she was a chicklet, died last Thursday in a really bizarre way. She had no panting, agitation, or obvious lethargy, but her comb, wattles, and eye areas suddenly appeared very pale pink. At one point she looked at me as if she were telling me something important. She didn't go into the coop that night and I didn't notice that she hadn't. In the morning she was head down between my raised flower bed and my back fence, as if she had gotten stuck there; but I can't imagine what she could have been doing to get stuck that way. I feel badly that I missed her when I closed up the coop, but I also realize that she was not well that day.

Now I have only one hen that I've had since she was a chick - Merrie - and she's been kind of looking around, as if seeking FiFi, who was her brooder mate.

On another note, I found a really interesting article today on my Flipboard or whatever it's called, regarding possible increased virulence of Mareks for unvaccinated birds. I hope this link will work for those interested:

http://phenomena.nationalgeographic...deadlier-chicken-viruses/#.Vba45Ak-nKM.mailto

Meanwhile, my three "newbies," that I got way back at the beginning of June, are doing fine. @COChix and @corancher, they're all doing well. Nutmeg, the Welsummer from COChix has finally gotten back into laying, although she will not go in the big coop at night. She continues going into the smaller coop, where I had the newbies quarantined, to roost by herself; but she is healthy and seems to be very comfortable with my other birds. She's actually sort of the queen hen, since Merrie and FiFi never claimed that honor, but has stopped pecking at my Schocki, which tells me they're all getting used to each other.

My Lemon Cuckoo Orpington from Ann has gone through a number of name changes, and I'm still not sure if what she has now is permanent. I call her Lemony Snick, because she looks like a snickerdoodle. She has just begun laying in the last week, and she's starting to get her big Orpington skirts. She loves to sleep on top of or side by side in the nest box with my Schocki, the Bantam Chocolate Orpington also from Ann. I don't have the heart to kick them out, since they are the only ones to be laying in that nest box any way. Goofy girls!

Finally, my Cream Legbar, from Ann as well, has been named Butte - pronounced Beauty - because she's Crested and because I've heard people trying to pronounce Crested Butte as Crested "Beauty." Silly, I know, but she seems to love her name, and looks at me with her piercing stare whenever I call her. She is almost ready to lay. She was in the nest box today, and actually bristled and made noise at me when I looked in on her. I thought only broodies did that, but I don't know how she could be broody, since she has yet to lay an egg. When she was done, having done nothing, she cut loose with the best egg song I've ever heard from any of my hens. It was classic - with nothing to show for it! Oh well, maybe tomorrow.

Anyway, here's my long, every 6 week post. Hope you're all well and that your chicklets, hens, pullets, roos, and cockerels (not to mention your ducks, geese, guineas, turkeys, quail, etc.) are surviving the summer and being a source of delight and wonder for you all.

All Good to you,
Alebuela/Alexandra

 

[Travinara]

Hi All!

New here, just getting started. We bought a place on the western edge of Grand Junction back in January, relocated from Westminster. I'm just outside of the city limits, have no HOA, no significant zoning restrictions, and Very Big Plans. I'm also a full-time student (decided I hated my last career) so by the time we figured out the sprinklers, the cherry tree was blooming, then the peaches, apples, peonies, lilys, grapes... so I spent most of spring juggling school and putting a garden in. Summer has made time for more planting, building, planning, and generally getting everything 'even' after two full years of neglect. We finally got ahead of it this month, and I'm ordering the chickens this week. Nice to meet everyone! The stories and tips have already been enlightening

 

[Mtn Margie]

Hi All!

New here, just getting started. We bought a place on the western edge of Grand Junction back in January, relocated from Westminster. I'm just outside of the city limits, have no HOA, no significant zoning restrictions, and Very Big Plans. I'm also a full-time student (decided I hated my last career) so by the time we figured out the sprinklers, the cherry tree was blooming, then the peaches, apples, peonies, lilys, grapes... so I spent most of spring juggling school and putting a garden in. Summer has made time for more planting, building, planning, and generally getting everything 'even' after two full years of neglect. We finally got ahead of it this month, and I'm ordering the chickens this week. Nice to meet everyone! The stories and tips have already been enlightening

Your place sounds wonderful! Good luck on those VBP's. It would be nice to hear your stories in getting it all set up.

 

[suncatcher]

Sorry for your loss, but good to hear that your newest chickens are doing great!

Yep, been there done that in dealing with people who don't show up. I will only do prepayment, or meet just down the road from me. No more long trips, wasting gas, and my time to wait for no shows! Sorry you had to deal with this.

Looked out the window yesterday and saw this!!! Not chickens, but still very cool! They are really dark this year, guessing they are not as bleached by the sun with all our overcast days this summer.




Welcome! What breeds did you order?

 

[Ashdoes]

I'm at the breaking point with this Mareks junk. So far we've lost four Swedish, which is basically half the Swedish. I have one female and three males left. Then there's another set of mixed Cream over Cochin that are coming into the age where we could lose a couple. I'm just beat down, and can't stand to lose one more of these little guys. Mutts or Pures, it's agonizing every time I see a little limp, because I know what's coming in three to four days. If we lose too many more I'm done. I told my husband we'll just cull the flock, empty and clean out the barn and close it up for 9 months. I don't really know what else to do. Even if we clean and close down for a while, I'll never be able to hatch my own again. We'll always have to order vaccinated chicks, otherwise it's just selfish and half of them die.
I will never, ever buy another pullet or roo from an outside source again. Terrible lesson learned. Ick* totally being a bummer right now.

 

[Percheron chick]

I can't imagine what you're going through. You've had big plans over the years and put time, energy and heart into your birds. I do understand the thought of culling the entire flock. What about replacing them with ducks?