Consolidated Kansas

[Kansas Prairie]

This FREAKS me out!! This totally does not look real!! Eeeks!! That is crazy!! What is he doing out in the middle of the day? Sheesh! Great capture!! Were you really close or do you have a telephoto lens? We just got a telephoto lens for my SLR a few months back and LOVE it. The only down side is that it's HUGE!!!! A royal pain to tote along, but now I can go to Jon's runs and stand on the side and get great up-close shots of him even when he's 1/4 mile off yet.

I do have a telephoto lens that I love, & yes it's heavy to tote around! Yours must be bigger than mine, 1/4 mile would be to far for mine to get a good close up. I didn't take this owl picture, we live by the 108,000 acres of the National Grasslands, we exchange pictures and trail cam pictures with a friend, he took this picture. We usually exchange deer pictures, and prairie chicken pictures. He sent that so I could share it with a local school teacher. Our grade school kids, our 3rd graders dissect OWL pellets, it's the bones and stuff the owls don't digest. The Owls do have an interesting digestive system, thankfully we've never had them bother our poultry, that I know of. Who knows with this crazy drought, it's making the animals do strange things to survive. Our dogs have been going crazy about 4:30 am, not sure what's out there but it has them on full alert, their fur is standing up on their necks and backs and they sure sound serious, but I can't see anything. Glad we have dogs!

Nice coop! Cute Christmas lights. I put my chicken tractor in the barn for the winter, will get it out next spring for new babies.

We have "bird people" come here from all over to look at birds."Bird people" as we call them are easy to spot, they usually wear binoculars, have cameras and a bird book. There is one particular tree row where a certain rare breed of bird likes to hang out, it's near a cemetery. Don't often see people in cemetery's with binoculars looking up, but it's a common occurrence here.

 

[cherwill]

Isn't the Menard's store nice? We found some fencing for the compost heap there very cheaply during their opening, and they have "Pill Pockets" for my elderly Golden's meds a bit cheaper than the vet. Not worth a special trip, but if we are there anyway... We always hit Sams for certain items. I love fruit, and their berries are very good and cheaper that anywhere else most of the time.

Salina is only a half hour away, but we still don't go often. We don't go out of town much, so when we do, it's usually a big day and we don't want to miss any great deals!

Hawkeye- the mushroomy taste is more because it is a earthy flavor not fungus flavor. Alot of people hate mushrooms and I am married to the biggest mushroom hater of them all. I love mushrooms but I dont use them anymore because he just cant make himself eat it. Anyway he devours the dandelions when I cook them. Between him and my 2 kids there is not any left by time I take the next batch out of the fryer lol.

About the roosters, I have 10 boys out there and all of them are nice to the ladies they dance and stomp their feet and protect them, except these two. They are well like stated cavemen roosters. They just grab any hen walking by and force her to the ground. The hens are terrified of these two and run and scream when they are near. They do not do this with the other boys. My favorite little guy and golden sebrite names Blaze. He is the sweetest and most gentle boy ever to my mille d'uccle Katana, she is Sunshine's sister the one Iost to a hawk in my avatar. He will not let Katana out of his sight and when one of these bullies comes near he goes all ninja on him and boy does he chase them away even though he is small. He brings her food and doesnt eat until he thinks she has had her fill, he makes nests for her and takes her to them and when there is a hawk call he pushes her back to the coop and wont let her out until all is clear. He is in constant communication with her. When he is eating or occupied he has a second in command my buff columbian d'uccle Red, he will take over all Blazes duties finds her food, makes nests keeps her safe, but try to mate with her and the attack is on lol. What a super boyfriend.. I wish all of them could be like this. Anyway, my fear is that Iwont be able to do it. I didnt buy them with the intent to eat them. I do know however that I cannot let them continue like this, my girls will not be hurt. The turkey situation is different I do have one available for butcher, this one is just mean. He grabbed my welsummer roo and he is a big guy, by the comb and shook him like a rag doll twice yesterday he was bleeding pretty bad. All the roo was doing was eating scratch, so aggression over food. The other well he is a turkey we saved this year. When we got him he was so thin and very sick I thought he was not going to make it but we pulled him thru. He is a beautiful narragansett around 6 months. He loves treats and the ladies lol. He is a really nice boy but we got the others first and they are the ones we all picked out indivually.

This is Colt the narragansett up for sale hopefully as a pet?

Not the best pic but here is blaze and off in the distance you can see Red.

Here is the other turkey up for removal he is a royal palmx

Those are some beautiful birds. I have no place to put a turkey and DH would just want him for Thanksgiving dinner anyway, but I'd love to have one if I could.

More leaf sucking for people today. I don't know if we'll have much left to do after this week unless a few people want us to some fall cleanup in their flower beds. I'm always sorry to see it end, but also a little happy because it's nice to slow down and spend some time with DH that doesn't involve loud mowers and blowing dirt!

 

[JosieChick]

You have friends that will help! Count me in.

You are so busy as it is and you are going to drive down and help us put in fencing!?! I won't turn down any good help but I would feel badly dragging you away from all your work!

I am way behind on posts. I was on the run all day yesterday. I went to town and got eggs delivered and then back home to finish feeding and watering everyone. Then we went to Emporia. DH had some part to pick up and some shopping to do, and I had a growing shopping list as well. I bought a turkey. That's so dumb when I have so many out here. I just don't want to eat my midgets until I am sure of who is who. When they are strutting and gobbling you can pick them out one by one but when they are just being their normal sweet selves they all look the same.

Maidenwolf I would so love to buy one of your turkeys but I would want to butcher it and I know they are pets, so I wouldn't even ask. I was reading on the turkey thread yesterday that when you butcher a fresh turkey you have to instantly dip them in a cooler of ice water. We throw all our chickens as we get the gutted into a salted ice bath. You would need a big one for a turkey! Supposedly a refrigerator won't cool them fast enough to prevent bacteria growth. I wonder if that has to do with their size?? Then you don't eat them but you let them set for 3-4 days or they will be tough. I had never heard that before either. I did read the cooling thing on a web site is a government mandate but they use some kind of cold blaster. I need to do some more research on the letting them set thing. (someplace other than BYC) That part I don't understand. I don't know why they would be different than chickens. Of course I never eat chicken for a few days after butchering because I can't due to the smell. I wonder if it is like hanging meat?
Anyway next year I assume we will have turkey several times. I kind of have a waiting list for my babies.
I've got to get some boxes ready to go out in the mail. I threw away most of my spare boxes when I cleaned out the sea van to store the bird seed so I am going to have to hunt for something that will work.
I hope to finally get some cleaning done today or at least start. I am so far behind. I need to go clean too and everyone needs water. Love heated water bowls but they drink it fast. Wish they were bigger. I bought a bucket one last year and it worked for two weeks and then quit! There is a new place in Ottawa called DIY something or another, they are right across from Orschelns and they have heated water bowls for $12! I stocked up and I think I may go back and get another for Molly today. I forgot I was going to get one for her....

Hawkeye- the mushroomy taste is more because it is a earthy flavor not fungus flavor. Alot of people hate mushrooms and I am married to the biggest mushroom hater of them all. I love mushrooms but I dont use them anymore because he just cant make himself eat it. Anyway he devours the dandelions when I cook them. Between him and my 2 kids there is not any left by time I take the next batch out of the fryer lol.
I am going to have to try this next spring, I always wondered how you would eat them and I have heard of people eating them but never got brave enough. I love mushrooms too, DH grills portabella mushrooms during the summer and they are yummy!

About the roosters, I have 10 boys out there and all of them are nice to the ladies they dance and stomp their feet and protect them, except these two. They are well like stated cavemen roosters. They just grab any hen walking by and force her to the ground. The hens are terrified of these two and run and scream when they are near. This is just rotten behavior, you should definitely cull them and have them for din din. They are naughty and you don't want your hens living in terror. They do not do this with the other boys. My favorite little guy and golden sebrite names Blaze. He is the sweetest and most gentle boy ever to my mille d'uccle Katana, she is Sunshine's sister the one Iost to a hawk in my avatar. He will not let Katana out of his sight and when one of these bullies comes near he goes all ninja on him and boy does he chase them away even though he is small. He brings her food and doesnt eat until he thinks she has had her fill, he makes nests for her and takes her to them and when there is a hawk call he pushes her back to the coop and wont let her out until all is clear. He is in constant communication with her. When he is eating or occupied he has a second in command my buff columbian d'uccle Red, he will take over all Blazes duties finds her food, makes nests keeps her safe, but try to mate with her and the attack is on lol. What a super boyfriend.. I wish all of them could be like this. Anyway, my fear is that Iwont be able to do it. You can do it! It isn't that bad. Once you get them killed and plucked they look like a chicken from the store and you just have to remove head/legs and guts. I never in a million years thought I could kill and process a chicken but I do it all the time now. Once you do it a few times it gets really easy, I had the hardest time getting the hang of where to cut to clean them out because you don't want nasty stuff to leak into their body cavity. There are some great you tube videos on processing chickens. If you have roos you will have to eventually butcher some. I would say one roo to about every 5 or so hens with large fowl birds. More than that and the hens really start to take a beating. I didnt buy them with the intent to eat them. I do know however that I cannot let them continue like this, my girls will not be hurt. The turkey situation is different I do have one available for butcher, this one is just mean. He grabbed my welsummer roo and he is a big guy, by the comb and shook him like a rag doll twice yesterday he was bleeding pretty bad. All the roo was doing was eating scratch, so aggression over food. The other well he is a turkey we saved this year. When we got him he was so thin and very sick I thought he was not going to make it but we pulled him thru. He is a beautiful narragansett around 6 months. He loves treats and the ladies lol. He is a really nice boy but we got the others first and they are the ones we all picked out indivually. Ohhhh, a narragansett, I love them! So wish I had room for a turkey right now.

This is Colt the narragansett up for sale hopefully as a pet?

Not the best pic but here is blaze and off in the distance you can see Red.

Here is the other turkey up for removal he is a royal palmx

Those are some beautiful birds. I have no place to put a turkey and DH would just want him for Thanksgiving dinner anyway, but I'd love to have one if I could.

More leaf sucking for people today. I don't know if we'll have much left to do after this week unless a few people want us to some fall cleanup in their flower beds. I'm always sorry to see it end, but also a little happy because it's nice to slow down and spend some time with DH that doesn't involve loud mowers and blowing dirt!

Cherwill- Do you guys run a landscaping company? I must have missed that somehow....


Ugh, I am in the worst cranky mood. I am telling you, the glass is half empty and I could throw it like a small child right now!!! How ridiculous, I feel like such a brat. DH just sent me a forwarded email that he has a conference for work the second weekend in Dec. in NY!! I am so aggravated. Does this company not think that having conferences right before the stinking holiday is inconsiderate? We are going to Maine for Christmas, if this house works out we are going to be scrambling to get stuff done there so we can move. I am packing and trying to get this place ready to list for sale, get someone coordinated to care for the petting zoo while we are gone....It never ends. And to top it all off I am pregnant and getting tired a lot faster so I can't do as much as normal. So I guess we are going to leave the pregnant wife home to get everything done while we go to stupid work conference. I could call the CEO and chew his ear off. What is wrong with people in business, don't they have any respect for people and their families? It is no wonder this guy who runs this company has been divorced so many times!! Sorry for the vent, just super aggravated with how much is on the plate and now I get to contend with it right before we leave for a big trip by myself! The weekend is the only time we can get anything done....

 

[COOP Group]

There will be no city hens for this Overland Park family.

I received my copy of our HOA declaration of restrictions from my title company today and it does say no poultry is allowed. When I asked our HOA president about it she said there was nothing written about chickens and come to find out, her entire section of paperwork for the declaration of restrictions is missing. I really appreciate all the help and support you have all given me along the way and I hope you don't mind if I still peek in on your posts from time to time.

 

[maidenwolfx80]

Josie- The dandelions are awesome and so many ways to cook them.
I have processed many chickens and know how to do it well. The not knowing if I can comes from the fact that both are pets, they are named and messed with everyday. I know it needs to be done because my girls are being beat and they are more important. I guess I just need to toughen up and realize it is better to eat him in tears then sell him so someone else can eat him. It will break my heart. I promised my kids that these certain group of birds would not be eaten and of course out of the small group these two are in it. I need to think it over and make the right decison. Butcher or sell. Either way it will put food on the table. While on the subject if anyone is interested iin them I will post soon on what I decide and if I am going to sell them they could go to someone close. Here is a pic


They are big boys the other looks just like him. They are mixes, beautiful boys. Around 6 months now.

Those are some beautiful birds. I have no place to put a turkey and DH would just want him for Thanksgiving dinner anyway, but I'd love to have one if I could.

The royal palmx is the one that I dont mind if he is dinner

 

[maidenwolfx80]

There will be no city hens for this Overland Park family.

I received my copy of our HOA declaration of restrictions from my title company today and it does say no poultry is allowed. When I asked our HOA president about it she said there was nothing written about chickens and come to find out, her entire section of paperwork for the declaration of restrictions is missing. I really appreciate all the help and support you have all given me along the way and I hope you don't mind if I still peek in on your posts from time to time.

Oh no ,I am so sorry to hear this. You are welcome here anytime. You dont have to own them to join us. Maybe someday in the near future it will happen for you. Dont give up, things can be changed with alittle hard work.

 

[chicken danz]

Ugh, I am in the worst cranky mood. I am telling you, the glass is half empty and I could throw it like a small child right now!!! How ridiculous, I feel like such a brat. DH just sent me a forwarded email that he has a conference for work the second weekend in Dec. in NY!! I am so aggravated. Does this company not think that having conferences right before the stinking holiday is inconsiderate? We are going to Maine for Christmas, if this house works out we are going to be scrambling to get stuff done there so we can move. I am packing and trying to get this place ready to list for sale, get someone coordinated to care for the petting zoo while we are gone....It never ends. And to top it all off I am pregnant and getting tired a lot faster so I can't do as much as normal. So I guess we are going to leave the pregnant wife home to get everything done while we go to stupid work conference. I could call the CEO and chew his ear off. What is wrong with people in business, don't they have any respect for people and their families? It is no wonder this guy who runs this company has been divorced so many times!! Sorry for the vent, just super aggravated with how much is on the plate and now I get to contend with it right before we leave for a big trip by myself! The weekend is the only time we can get anything done....

I'm sorry but I'm laughing at your post. You sound so much like me and I am not even pregnant! But I sure remember those days when my hormones were changing and I wanted to rip someone's head off. You can only do so much. I hope you have a wonderful trip to see your parents and can relax then.
I plan to go to the DIY store and stock up but I have to wait for DH to be off to help load some stuff. That price is unbelievable and we saw that in the flyer. There ares some other things I wanted to buy there before prices change as well.
So I was thinking, since you will be down closer to lots of the other girls maybe we could have a day to build and a get together. The weather may suck, but otherwise we can do it. I think Sapphire and her sister love doing things like that. I think they normally charge but maybe you two could work that out. I could always bring down a portable air compressor and my staple gun and make pretty quick work at putting up wire. I'll bet most of these people would love to help. I just hope it wouldn't fall during the holidays cause it's so hard to juggle schedules then.
How are you going to move your birds and your horses? Do you have a larger horse trailer you can borrow or are you going to have to make several trips?
I have a million projects as always but I know you have a lot to do. I can't imagine trying to move my group somewhere.
I am more than happy to do what I can for you.
Originally Posted by COOP Group

I am so sorry. What a rip. Maybe you could take it to the HOA board and have it put to a vote?
I've been busy boxing up stuff. I had two more boxes to get ready than I thought and had to make boxes out of other boxes to keep weight and size down. I started selling my Lemax stuff so it requires me to actually do some work and some computer work I can't put off.

 

[Hawkeye95]

Sounds like your neighbor needs some education about chickens and being a good neighbor.

Anyway next year I assume we will have turkey several times. I kind of have a waiting list for my babies.
I've got to get some boxes ready to go out in the mail. I threw away most of my spare boxes when I cleaned out the sea van to store the bird seed so I am going to have to hunt for something that will work.
I hope to finally get some cleaning done today or at least start. I am so far behind.

agreed, there are advertising tactics and techniques to desensitize the public on issues BEFORE something like a product or proposed law comes about. First is TV, radio and mailers. I could go on and on about how to turn people around and get them on your side of thinking without them realizing they are doing so. My bachelors degree can come in handy at times... hehe What kind of boxes are you talking about? the poultry shipping boxes? Good luck on the cleaning. I need to do the same. This place is a disaster. I am trying to catch up on laundry! The kids rooms were a mess and are now starting to look a lot better.

Mikesfarmer, I forgot to mention. That was very nice. I know you have struggled yourself. You are right. That is where this country is. And it is so close to us that we don't realize. There was a thing on the Topeka news just a couple nights ago honoring a guy who put a group together to bring food and things to homeless people.. I guess what really brought it home wasn't their efforts but that there were complete families living under the river bridge. I always thought most of the homeless around here where drunks or drug addicts but that isn't the case at all any more. It's the kids that break my heart.
I am so thankful to have a place to live and be able to eat. I just got notice my health insurance is going up another $90 Jan 1st. That makes a $300 increase in health insurance counting being forced to go on medicaire for the past 12 months. I keep thinking, for that I could be driving a decent car!!! And my coverage is worse than it was. I wonder how many years it will be before I am without funds to live on at that rate. Every increase like that takes more money out of my pocket I could use to live on.
I've been reading up on making my own chicken starter. Seems fairly straightforward other than I would need to put Corid in their drinking water. That would be a real pain. I haven't gotten to the point of figuring up costs yet but I may have to do that in the future.

It seems so flippin' UNFAIR to have insurance go up like that for people who are retired. I just don't understand it at all and it makes me so mad. That is partly why the elderly lady I help is in trouble-- that and her medical bills. She has nothing to live on. Makes me so mad we treat our retired this way. I know for a fact that if she were able to work, she'd go back to work to be able to eat and buy toiletries. But she's in her 80's, has a very serious heart aneryism, and is sick a lot.

Hawkeye- the mushroomy taste is more because it is a earthy flavor not fungus flavor. Alot of people hate mushrooms and I am married to the biggest mushroom hater of them all. I love mushrooms but I dont use them anymore because he just cant make himself eat it. Anyway he devours the dandelions when I cook them. Between him and my 2 kids there is not any left by time I take the next batch out of the fryer lol.

About the roosters, I have 10 boys out there and all of them are nice to the ladies they dance and stomp their feet and protect them, except these two. They are well like stated cavemen roosters. They just grab any hen walking by and force her to the ground. The hens are terrified of these two and run and scream when they are near. They do not do this with the other boys. My favorite little guy and golden sebrite names Blaze. He is the sweetest and most gentle boy ever to my mille d'uccle Katana, she is Sunshine's sister the one Iost to a hawk in my avatar. He will not let Katana out of his sight and when one of these bullies comes near he goes all ninja on him and boy does he chase them away even though he is small. He brings her food and doesnt eat until he thinks she has had her fill, he makes nests for her and takes her to them and when there is a hawk call he pushes her back to the coop and wont let her out until all is clear. He is in constant communication with her. When he is eating or occupied he has a second in command my buff columbian d'uccle Red, he will take over all Blazes duties finds her food, makes nests keeps her safe, but try to mate with her and the attack is on lol. What a super boyfriend.. I wish all of them could be like this. Anyway, my fear is that Iwont be able to do it. I didnt buy them with the intent to eat them. I do know however that I cannot let them continue like this, my girls will not be hurt. The turkey situation is different I do have one available for butcher, this one is just mean. He grabbed my welsummer roo and he is a big guy, by the comb and shook him like a rag doll twice yesterday he was bleeding pretty bad. All the roo was doing was eating scratch, so aggression over food. The other well he is a turkey we saved this year. When we got him he was so thin and very sick I thought he was not going to make it but we pulled him thru. He is a beautiful narragansett around 6 months. He loves treats and the ladies lol. He is a really nice boy but we got the others first and they are the ones we all picked out indivually.

This is Colt the narragansett up for sale hopefully as a pet?

Not the best pic but here is blaze and off in the distance you can see Red.

Here is the other turkey up for removal he is a royal palmx

I'm not sold on the dandelions anymore! LOL I would eat the two roos, for sure. I love my birds, but I would eat them if they were acting up. I wish silkies didn't have black meat, or I'd have eaten about 5 roosters this summer. I know I hatched them and they are cute, but they are CHICKENS. LOL!! I really need to find some person where I can offload my silkies that doesn't mind the black meat. Those turkey are beautiful! Love the royal palm. I can't have any more turkey, unless they're dinner.

I do have a telephoto lens that I love, & yes it's heavy to tote around! Yours must be bigger than mine, 1/4 mile would be to far for mine to get a good close up. I didn't take this owl picture, we live by the 108,000 acres of the National Grasslands, we exchange pictures and trail cam pictures with a friend, he took this picture. We usually exchange deer pictures, and prairie chicken pictures. He sent that so I could share it with a local school teacher. Our grade school kids, our 3rd graders dissect OWL pellets, it's the bones and stuff the owls don't digest. The Owls do have an interesting digestive system, thankfully we've never had them bother our poultry, that I know of. Who knows with this crazy drought, it's making the animals do strange things to survive. Our dogs have been going crazy about 4:30 am, not sure what's out there but it has them on full alert, their fur is standing up on their necks and backs and they sure sound serious, but I can't see anything. Glad we have dogs!

Nice coop! Cute Christmas lights. I put my chicken tractor in the barn for the winter, will get it out next spring for new babies.

We have "bird people" come here from all over to look at birds."Bird people" as we call them are easy to spot, they usually wear binoculars, have cameras and a bird book. There is one particular tree row where a certain rare breed of bird likes to hang out, it's near a cemetery. Don't often see people in cemetery's with binoculars looking up, but it's a common occurrence here.

Sounds like you are a photog! I really enjoy picture taking and took several classes in college. Interesting about the bird people! I just don't think that's a hobby I could get into. Unless I had a better camera set up. What kind of dogs do you have? Mine would be of no use to anyone other than food for a predator. I have a 5lb Pomeranian and a 10lb Shih Tzu.

Ugh, I am in the worst cranky mood. I am telling you, the glass is half empty and I could throw it like a small child right now!!! How ridiculous, I feel like such a brat. DH just sent me a forwarded email that he has a conference for work the second weekend in Dec. in NY!! I am so aggravated. Does this company not think that having conferences right before the stinking holiday is inconsiderate? We are going to Maine for Christmas, if this house works out we are going to be scrambling to get stuff done there so we can move. I am packing and trying to get this place ready to list for sale, get someone coordinated to care for the petting zoo while we are gone....It never ends. And to top it all off I am pregnant and getting tired a lot faster so I can't do as much as normal. So I guess we are going to leave the pregnant wife home to get everything done while we go to stupid work conference. I could call the CEO and chew his ear off. What is wrong with people in business, don't they have any respect for people and their families? It is no wonder this guy who runs this company has been divorced so many times!! Sorry for the vent, just super aggravated with how much is on the plate and now I get to contend with it right before we leave for a big trip by myself! The weekend is the only time we can get anything done....

Oh, I get it! Lots going on and your DH goes out for a nice fun business trip. Mine does that ALL the time. ARGH. Well, now that Boeing is coming to an end, that will probably end all of this business trips to the east coast where he rubs it in that his company pays for all of his food, rental, airfare, and hotel. Oh yeah.. NICE hotels. The kind that have nice restaurants and bars that have free Happy Hour in them. While I'm stuck with 3 kids that like to give me a run for my money when daddy is gone. The last trip was perfectly timed-- I had that bad car wreck and totaled out my mini van and the next day my DH was boarding a plane for the East coast again to talk to their customers!! Talk about I could have KILLED him. If it weren't such an important trip, I would have thrown a big fit and made him stay home and take care of me. As it was, my parents who were moving their entire house and selling at the same time were over here a lot helping me do lifting and things I could not do that week. And that was at the expense of having to take time out of their busy week to do that. I had sprained my wrist badly and could not lift the grain cans, founts to refill with water, etc, etc. I just was seething by the time he got home. So yeah, I hear you girl! Sometimes I wish I had not quit my job at Boeing, so I could be doing those trips too. The last one I got to go to Jacksonville, FL to check out the planes my wiring harnesses were on and see that they were done right. Talk about FUN! There is no way to disguise a business trip as a PITA when you get to have a good time like that. Sigh. I sure hope your house plans go smoothly and will make up for this aggravation in December.

There will be no city hens for this Overland Park family.

I received my copy of our HOA declaration of restrictions from my title company today and it does say no poultry is allowed. When I asked our HOA president about it she said there was nothing written about chickens and come to find out, her entire section of paperwork for the declaration of restrictions is missing. I really appreciate all the help and support you have all given me along the way and I hope you don't mind if I still peek in on your posts from time to time.

Just remember that your HOA bylaws are NOT the end of the world. You CAN change them. It takes work, though. I've done it before, and it requires a lot of foot work. You can send out mailers to the entire neighborhood that are in the HOA about the rising popularity of backyard chickens and list other Kansas cities that have them, and other cities in the nation-- like San Fran and their suburbs, and east coast cities.. then have an informative blurb about how they don't smell, the benefits of them, and how quiet and unobtrusive they are. I would also have a picture of the most adorable chicken coop you can find and have a graphic designer work this up for you in a way that is not offensive and persuasive. I'd be willing to do it for you if you want to go to the trouble to mail them. That would be your first step-- is just getting the information out there. Plan #2 would be a few weeks later after that gels to launch a second "attack" with a similar flyer stating that your HOA can be changed to allow these and that a certain amount of signatures are required to do so. Then you'd have to call and go around door to door to get those signatures. Personally talking to them and answering concerns will get more signatures than anything else. I've confronted really nasty neighbors and got them to swing to my side on an issue. It was about future building codes, but it all works the same. It's doable. So if you think about it and really want to go that route, then I'd research other stories of other people doing the same thing and changing their HOA. Of course.... that can NOT be done until the city allows poultry. So you'd have to press forward with that one, too. Once the city changed their law, then you are free to change your HOA.

Josie- The dandelions are awesome and so many ways to cook them.
I have processed many chickens and know how to do it well. The not knowing if I can comes from the fact that both are pets, they are named and messed with everyday. I know it needs to be done because my girls are being beat and they are more important. I guess I just need to toughen up and realize it is better to eat him in tears then sell him so someone else can eat him. It will break my heart. I promised my kids that these certain group of birds would not be eaten and of course out of the small group these two are in it. I need to think it over and make the right decison. Butcher or sell. Either way it will put food on the table. While on the subject if anyone is interested iin them I will post soon on what I decide and if I am going to sell them they could go to someone close. Here is a pic


They are big boys the other looks just like him. They are mixes, beautiful boys. Around 6 months now.

The royal palmx is the one that I dont mind if he is dinner

Pretty boy, looks like he'd be a nice size dinner. Uh oh, a mean royal palm?? My royal palm jenny was the sweetest thing ever! She used to cuddle up next to me, and even run her break thru my hair like she was grooming me. She did it often enough, I think it was her way of grooming and showing her appreciation. Sigh. She ended up being coyote dinner, which was just a heart breaker. She went broody on me and snuck out into the tree line one night.

 

[cherwill]

Cherwill- Do you guys run a landscaping company? I must have missed that somehow....

We just mow some lawns for extra money in the summer and several of our clients come to us for other odd jobs as well. If we think we can do it, we say yes.


Ugh, I am in the worst cranky mood. I am telling you, the glass is half empty and I could throw it like a small child right now!!! How ridiculous, I feel like such a brat. DH just sent me a forwarded email that he has a conference for work the second weekend in Dec. in NY!! I am so aggravated. Does this company not think that having conferences right before the stinking holiday is inconsiderate? We are going to Maine for Christmas, if this house works out we are going to be scrambling to get stuff done there so we can move. I am packing and trying to get this place ready to list for sale, get someone coordinated to care for the petting zoo while we are gone....It never ends. And to top it all off I am pregnant and getting tired a lot faster so I can't do as much as normal. So I guess we are going to leave the pregnant wife home to get everything done while we go to stupid work conference. I could call the CEO and chew his ear off. What is wrong with people in business, don't they have any respect for people and their families? It is no wonder this guy who runs this company has been divorced so many times!! Sorry for the vent, just super aggravated with how much is on the plate and now I get to contend with it right before we leave for a big trip by myself! The weekend is the only time we can get anything done....

Grrr ... I'd need to vent, too. I get aggravated over a stinkin' work Christmas party because it's not like I have enough to do in November/December, and that's just a couple of hours! I also think it's rotten that most employers just assume that the wives will take care of all the holiday stuff so they can send the husbands away and it's no big deal.

There will be no city hens for this Overland Park family.

I received my copy of our HOA declaration of restrictions from my title company today and it does say no poultry is allowed. When I asked our HOA president about it she said there was nothing written about chickens and come to find out, her entire section of paperwork for the declaration of restrictions is missing. I really appreciate all the help and support you have all given me along the way and I hope you don't mind if I still peek in on your posts from time to time.

I'm sorry it worked out that way for you. Some HOAs are only in effect for a certain number of years; is yours one of them? Maybe you'll still find a way, there are lots of people here who seem to know how to go about that.

It seems so flippin' UNFAIR to have insurance go up like that for people who are retired. I just don't understand it at all and it makes me so mad. That is partly why the elderly lady I help is in trouble-- that and her medical bills. She has nothing to live on. Makes me so mad we treat our retired this way. I know for a fact that if she were able to work, she'd go back to work to be able to eat and buy toiletries. But she's in her 80's, has a very serious heart aneryism, and is sick a lot.

And again, my main gripe is that this is the treatment you get for having paid your dues for decades. You'll never convince me insurance isn't a major scam that has directly contributed to the ridiculously high costs of medical care!


I'm not sold on the dandelions anymore! LOL I would eat the two roos, for sure. I love my birds, but I would eat them if they were acting up. I wish silkies didn't have black meat, or I'd have eaten about 5 roosters this summer. I know I hatched them and they are cute, but they are CHICKENS. LOL!! I really need to find some person where I can offload my silkies that doesn't mind the black meat. Those turkey are beautiful! Love the royal palm. I can't have any more turkey, unless they're dinner.

If I raised a separate flock of birds, I think I could eat them. The problem with my group is, as my husband says, I know them all by name.

Pretty boy, looks like he'd be a nice size dinner. Uh oh, a mean royal palm?? My royal palm jenny was the sweetest thing ever! She used to cuddle up next to me, and even run her break thru my hair like she was grooming me. She did it often enough, I think it was her way of grooming and showing her appreciation. Sigh. She ended up being coyote dinner, which was just a heart breaker. She went broody on me and snuck out into the tree line one night.

That's so sad. I'm sure she was grooming you; how would she know humans do things differently?

 

[maidenwolfx80]

I'm not sold on the dandelions anymore! LOL I would eat the two roos, for sure. I love my birds, but I would eat them if they were acting up. I wish silkies didn't have black meat, or I'd have eaten about 5 roosters this summer. I know I hatched them and they are cute, but they are CHICKENS. LOL!! I really need to find some person where I can offload my silkies that doesn't mind the black meat. Those turkey are beautiful! Love the royal palm. I can't have any more turkey, unless they're dinner.





Pretty boy, looks like he'd be a nice size dinner. Uh oh, a mean royal palm?? My royal palm jenny was the sweetest thing ever! She used to cuddle up next to me, and even run her break thru my hair like she was grooming me. She did it often enough, I think it was her way of grooming and showing her appreciation. Sigh. She ended up being coyote dinner, which was just a heart breaker. She went broody on me and snuck out into the tree line one night.

I know they are just chickens and most of the flock is but there are those few, everyone has them. But you are right they are hurting my girls and being terrors. I want my girls safe and with them being this way lately they have pulled away from wanting to be near anyone. So they are not affectionate like some of my other roos who will come sit on my lap. so I gotta pull it together and do it. wish me luck I'm gonna need it.
Both my hens one is a royal palm mix looks just like the bad boy in the photo, and the other is a black spanish and both of them are loving and beg for attention. That is just how hens are. The two boys I will have left, you can bend down and wrap your arms around them and hug them and they stand there and wait for you to be done. I sat out and held my other narragansett tom and cried on him one time and he just stood there and made these soft purrs at me.


Cherwill-- I do know all mine by name they all have names, those are not ones to be butchered.. Those I intended on doing next spring, I am building a seperate pen off from my main gang were they will eat and get plump and not played with. So this is very hard for me even with them being such bad roosters.