Colorado

[Pozees]

Here are some pictures of my hail netting that we used over the garden in the summer. We are also using it over the chicken run and it has been great for ventilation but also allows some shade and water to pass through, also really inexpensive

Wendy, thanks for posting these, we looked at it online too, but your pictures are better. Now all I have to do is figure out where to find it - tell me again the name of the place you went in Denver?

BTW your yard looks adorable! If I buy this stuff I am definitely getting enough to cover the garden!

 

[Pozees]

Hey guys, I'm probably still considered a newbie, as far as past posters go. Only posted twice, maybe three times? With wsmith, who's postings have changed my want of Barred Rocks to Doms. I keep up with you all every night, constantly learning (and laughing) but you're all so into your flocks I feel like I'm betraying this thread by looking at my flock as "food" only. And you all seem like such great long-time friends, I didn't want to just barge in with my ramblings.

I started raising RIRs fifteen years ago and switched to BRs, then Javas, which didn't do well in our Colorado winters; not to mention they had no meat on them when butchered no matter how much feed and kitchen scraps they got. Tried the Leghorns, which was like raising over-sized white roadrunners. Nasty buggers! Now I'm back to BRs, with a few cochin roosters from a bad purchase this past summer. I like the heritage birds for the historical value, like my Narragansett turkeys (I also love America history). My garden follows suit with heirloom vegetables, some dating back to the 1600s. Now, through this thread, I see that Doms fit in better than my BRs, since BRs originally come from a mix of Doms and a couple other bird breeds. So thank you, wsmith, for making me do the research and rethinking my flock.

I think others have known one another far longer than me, I've only been here a few months, they just make you feel like an old friend Colorado Chickeners rock!

I, too, have taken another look at Dominiques thanks to Wendell. His reasoning is so sound for choosing them! I was sorry to read Javas didn't manage well here, I had put them on my list for consideration because they are the second oldest American breed, thus the foundation for many modern breeds, and are prone to broodiness which is something I appreciate. I also thought I read they had a reasonable amount of meat on their bones, guess not, huh?

 

[wsmith]

Wendy, thanks for posting these, we looked at it online too, but your pictures are better. Now all I have to do is figure out where to find it - tell me again the name of the place you went in Denver?

BTW your yard looks adorable! If I buy this stuff I am definitely getting enough to cover the garden!

I wish I could afford to cover my whole chicken yard with the hail netting.

 

[wsmith]

I'm still lurking and following along. Guess I'm just spending more time over on the Cochin thread. Anybody want some???

FYI - Here's a list of the members with the most posts on this thread:


wsmith

759
coloradochick

531
Wifezilla

386
coloradogal

288
Rock Home Isle

262
Chick_In_The_Burbs

259
Minchi

256
gardendufus

254
Coopa Cabana

223
kmatt87

183
ONSTAD1

178
dennarahl

172
Pozees

163
mrsengeseth

156
MyKidLuvsGreenEgz

154
colowyo0809

145
wattsjadajoe

145
ryan820

131
ShysCreations

120
alpinefarm

117
Mtn Margie

108
mynamesjenelle

107
farmerlor

106

WOW! I didn't know I had the most post on the Colorado thread. Hope I'm not posting too much..

 

[wsmith]

Boy, Wendell, kind of brings it home, huh? I hope her passing was as gentle as possible given the circumstances. My sympathies.

Hope your brother manages in the storm. We have been watching coverage of the swinging crane in NYC among other things. Scary. My folks and some of the rest of my family are in NY but upstate and not in the path, although I did warn my mother to keep the phones charged just in case.

Will there be a time you will process chickens for those of us with no facilities, for a price?

Thanks. It does bring it home. Beth has been doing good the last couple of weeks, and I guess we get lulled into a sense of security, then someting comes up and gives us a reminder.

I don't have plans for processing other peoples birds for money. I would, however, be willing to assist others if they want to come over. Just let me know. This Saturday morning we will be doing our remaining 12 roosters, and I will have lots of help, the more the merrier. If anyone wants to come out and process birds, or bring your own to process we will have things set up and running. Just let me know in advance. We plan on starting at about 8:00AM. You can PM me or contact me via our Windy Ridge facebook page. (link is in my signature)

Any birds from outside flocks will need to be caged and have their food removed at least 12 hours in advance, 24 hours is better. Water is fine. Bring latex gloves if you want to, leather gloves if the birds to be processed are typically less cooperative. Bring a favorite sharp knife and bags to put the meat in. Whole birds will usually fit into 1 gallon bags unless they are very large. If you want to keep your feathers, bring a garbage bag for them. We keep everyone's personal birds separate, so you know you have your chicken(s). We say a short prayer to begin. We dispatch, pluck, and clean the birds outside, and generally finish (getting the remaining pin feathers, etc) and cut up in the house. After cleaning up the remaining pin feathers, we dip the birds in a mild bleach solution to kill any bacteria, then rinse with clean water.
Processing birds can be messy, and can be traumatic for many. If you start and can't handle it, we will finish them for you, and you can go in the house and hang with Beth. She doesn't do processing either. My daughters are better at it and handle it better than my sons (who are fine with the scalding, plucking and singeing, they have a hard time killing and cleaning). We try to stay upbeat during the process. This process is what has to happen in order to harvest the birds for food.

We have found that home grown poultry is better if you allow the birds to "rest" for a day or two in the fridge before eating or freezing.

 

[kmatt87]

Hey guys, I'm probably still considered a newbie, as far as past posters go. Only posted twice, maybe three times? With wsmith, who's postings have changed my want of Barred Rocks to Doms. I keep up with you all every night, constantly learning (and laughing) but you're all so into your flocks I feel like I'm betraying this thread by looking at my flock as "food" only. And you all seem like such great long-time friends, I didn't want to just barge in with my ramblings.

I started raising RIRs fifteen years ago and switched to BRs, then Javas, which didn't do well in our Colorado winters; not to mention they had no meat on them when butchered no matter how much feed and kitchen scraps they got. Tried the Leghorns, which was like raising over-sized white roadrunners. Nasty buggers! Now I'm back to BRs, with a few cochin roosters from a bad purchase this past summer. I like the heritage birds for the historical value, like my Narragansett turkeys (I also love America history). My garden follows suit with heirloom vegetables, some dating back to the 1600s. Now, through this thread, I see that Doms fit in better than my BRs, since BRs originally come from a mix of Doms and a couple other bird breeds. So thank you, wsmith, for making me do the research and rethinking my flock.

I just got my first batch of chickens this past april and barged right in! lol. This group is full of wonderful people that seem to embrace a newbie. Barge away!

 

[wsmith]

Hey Auntie....

We are going to process our remaining Narrageansett in a couple of weeks. are you planning on breeding any next spring? Depending on a couple of things, we may try again with them next year. Got to keep them in a covered pen though, to discourage turkey suicides......

You are right, BRs came primarily from mixing Javas, Dominiques and cochins, perhaps a couple other breeds. The chickens we raised while I was growing up were mostly BRs. Nice big brown eggs.

Don't ever feel bad about how you look at your flock. Everyone has different viewpoints on it, from strictly pets, to strictly food. Mine are primarily a food source, but there are a few of them that Beth especially is attatched to. That one she named. Our breed rooster, #23 now has a name. The others are still referred to by their number on the leg band. My oldest daughter thought of #11 as a pet, as he was the first to hatch and she was there. Then he turned on her.........At that point he became a food source, not a pet. Some are very friendly, and others not as much.

 

[gardendufus]

Auntie,

My birds were bought with 3 things in mind. In order, they are:

1. Eggs
2. An amusing way to occupy my time
3. Meat

While, some of my birds have names, even tho I only have a few, it was mainly for identification purposes only. I don't consider them pets, I don't coddle them.

I realize that many people on this site have a different viewpoint, but everyone on the CO thread seems tolerant about it, so you should have no fear of speaking up and participating. Many would even welcome the info that could be gleaned from someone who raises for meat purposes. After all, you have pretty much the same potentiial for problems, and have probably come up with solutions for many of them.

When I went back to look for old posters, it was more because, especially when I saw that the OP was no longer posting, I began to wonder if they had gotten out of the 'raising chickens' business, and if so, why. Did it become too much trouble, etc.

Anyway, glad to have ya speaking up.

 

[WendyGeisler]

Thanks, I bought the hail net at the American Clayworks, located in Denver.

http://www.americanclayworks.net/products.html

I can find the invoice and give you the phone number, they shipped in one day.

I bought the hail net last summer, and have used for 2 6 month periods of time and it is indestructible (like fishing line)
Hope this helps! We love the stuff

 

[WendyGeisler]

Also I think the price wasn't too bad. I think I paid 200 dollars to cover our whole entire back yard, and then when the garden is done I rolled it up in trash bags and stored it in our attic.
We attached the hail net with metal hooks that we screwed into the fence and deck. Then I rolled the hail netting and hooked it over the screw when I got the desired tension.