Consolidated Kansas

[SandyC]

Hi Kansas Chicken People!

I moved here to Ft. Riley about a year ago from Northern NY and had to give up my chickens! :-(
If I can ever get off of this Army post, I would like to have some chickens again. What are your greatest
hazards and problems keeping them here in Kansas. In northern NY, my greatest problems were the cold
weather...-20+ wasn't unheard of in the winter and the occasional fox could be a problem. I free ranged for
a long time until the last year I was there, due to a very persistent one! My guess is hawks and coyotes could
be troublesome here. What about snakes? We could be here for a while and if so, will move off post. I sure
would like to get myself some Spitzhaubens again and may some Barred Rocks, a Buff Orpington, and and
Americauna again...and don't get me started on turkeys!

 

[pikeman94]

Hi Kansas Chicken People!

I moved here to Ft. Riley about a year ago from Northern NY and had to give up my chickens! :-(
If I can ever get off of this Army post, I would like to have some chickens again. What are your greatest
hazards and problems keeping them here in Kansas. In northern NY, my greatest problems were the cold
weather...-20+ wasn't unheard of in the winter and the occasional fox could be a problem. I free ranged for
a long time until the last year I was there, due to a very persistent one! My guess is hawks and coyotes could
be troublesome here. What about snakes? We could be here for a while and if so, will move off post. I sure
would like to get myself some Spitzhaubens again and may some Barred Rocks, a Buff Orpington, and and
Americauna again...and don't get me started on turkeys!

I can tell you from experience owls are a pain in the ***!

 

[HEChicken]

Hi Kansas Chicken People!

I moved here to Ft. Riley about a year ago from Northern NY and had to give up my chickens! :-(
If I can ever get off of this Army post, I would like to have some chickens again. What are your greatest
hazards and problems keeping them here in Kansas. In northern NY, my greatest problems were the cold
weather...-20+ wasn't unheard of in the winter and the occasional fox could be a problem. I free ranged for
a long time until the last year I was there, due to a very persistent one! My guess is hawks and coyotes could
be troublesome here. What about snakes? We could be here for a while and if so, will move off post. I sure
would like to get myself some Spitzhaubens again and may some Barred Rocks, a Buff Orpington, and and
Americauna again...and don't get me started on turkeys!

Hi SandyC, and welcome. We pretty much have it all here, unfortunately. Foxes, coyotes, racoons, opossums, snakes and birds of prey. That said, many of us free-range more or less successfully. There is a link in my signature detailing my fox attack only 3 weeks after I had moved to our new property. Yet, 5 months later, I haven't lost a single other bird to a predator, so its not all bad. I have a Fort Knox coop that they sleep in at night. Since most predators are nocturnal (other than that one fox who hunted in broad daylight), that has worked pretty well for me other than the one incident.

 

[Trish44]

SandyC - I agree with HEChicken we have about every predator here except bears & wolves. We just have to keep our birds shut in at night in secure coops. Some of us also have Livestock Guardian Dogs to chase away predators on foot at night. The owls though are a different story for some people & they have been a pretty big problem this year. If you do move & get chickens just be sure to have a very secure coop to keep them in at night. Usually during the day they do fine free-ranging, but even then some have had attacks even during the day from fox & hawks.

 

[JosieChick]

Hahaha! My DH would never stop the car until the dog peed in his back seat one time! Now he stops when I tell him!

I like the food coloring idea, it would surely get some on the egg. That's smart thinking. Your turkeys are sooooo beautiful!

Josie, I didn't trust my dh in bed either. I put the portacrib on my side, raised it to the level of the bed and kept the baby there. I also put a second bed in my room. Usually I would go to bed with my dh and keep baby on the portacrib side, then when baby woke up we would go to the other bed and sleep normally. I got to where I could nurse on both sides but only lay on one side. I don't think that was best for baby though, but you learn all kinds of cool tricks. LOL, how about leaning over screaming baby buckled into carseat. That's my craziest one. My dh is always so determined to get somewhere he can't be bothered with stopping and I can't be bothered with crying babies, I just can't let that happen.

That is definitely a pullet judging by her color, and mostly salmon faverolle. Does she have 5 toes? Looks like a gold laced polish might have been involved in there as well. If you need a broody she will have the genetics for it. Should lay medium sized light brown or tannish colored eggs. I think she is pretty cute!!!
Sometimes those mixed breeds make for some awesome funky chickens. And heaven knows they are hardy. They make good layers if nothing else.
I kind of miss having a yard full of funky chickens. I've only kept the gold laced polish/cochin combos cause they are so awesome looking. The rest of the mixed birds I've sold.
I spent my afternoon with my Dad and he had ordered me a pretty little glass rooster. It totally surprised me. I need to find a special place of honer for it. My Dad isn't one to just buy gifts for now reason.
I even spent a little time with him teaching him how to use the computer. It hasn't been used since Mom passed away but it is still hooked up to the internet. He actually said he might be able to master it if he gets some glasses he can see better with. He has rejected the idea of learning the computer since I bought the first one for him and Mom maybe 15 years ago and taught her how to use it to email. I really think he would enjoy using the computer in the assisted living home he is moving to this weekend. It would be better than wasting his day watching tv and taking naps.

Cute! I love buff brahmas and bantams are super fun. They lay a pretty good sized egg too. I would keep her in for at least 2-3 weeks. I swear they are fine for 2 1/2 weeks and then you put them out and a day later they are sneezing. Ugh!

As always I am behind in reading posts.....sigh....

I made it through Thanksgiving with most of my sanity intact and with an additional chicken.

A friend of my alerted me to a rescue chicken. Here she is:



Her name is Curry and she is a Buff Bhrama Bantam. Apparently, the flock she came from was fully of RiRs and Leghorns. The Leghorns wouldn't leave this poor girl alone so the owner wanted to find her a new home.....I am a sucker. Now she is in the garage in quarantine. The only think I wonder is how long do I keep her there, 1 week or 2 weeks? So far she is absolutely fine. Thoughts appreciated on this question.

I have a friend who is going to give us a boppy. I can't justify asking for a $60 pillow when we need so much else. Plus there is so much gently used stuff out there for 1/4 the retail price. We had a snafu with the roof but I am super happy to say that I think it is resolved. We requested that Truett Roofing in Wichita come out the day of the home inspection with the hope that the seller would use them out of convenience because we used them for our house in Wichita and they were awesome. They accidentally damaged some of the aluminum window casings and came back after we had paid them and repaired them at no cost to us. They came through for us again today with State Farm who was going to try to shirk paying for part of the roof!

I read thru about 10 pages-- sheesh! I read them all, but didn't multi because I figured I'd have a post two pages long.

Lindsey, I like the second open coop better than the first. Less wind drafts and more protection from rain, snow, etc... but still nice and open! I hated the Boppy pillow-- have you been able to put one around you? I'm a pretty small person and it didn't fit right. I liked the Nuby pillow-- it's just more like a wedge with a bit of the U shape to it. Enough to tuck up close to you, but not enough to try to wrap around you. If you do end up with the Boppy, it's great to sit the baby up in. Just hated it for nursing. I co-slept with all my babies and nursed them nearly a year (except for my middle child). Anyway, I nursed in bed at night and just went back to sleep while they nursed. I'm really excited about the new roof you get on the house!! That is GREAT news!!!! That will set you up for the next 20-30 years, hopefully. Depending on weather and which composite they bought. Either way, it's one less worry for now.

Lizzy, your horses are beautiful!!! Love the paint. I'm a big fan! hehehe! And yeah, it's not ideal to leave the gate open, but it will happen. I've done it a few times on accident. That or I left the lock off and I have a very smart gelding who can open about anything he can get his lips around. Anyway, it was just this summer I was out at 2:30 in the morning (in the DARK!) chasing down horses to bring them back home. The trick is to NOT chase them. But call them and shake your feed bucket so they come running to the feed. If they are super skittish, then I will pour out a bit onto the ground and back up away from them so they can get to the grain to eat. Then when they finish that, I shake my bucket again and usually they are so ready for more, they come right up. I always do a slow walk when I'm "chasing" them down and act like I don't really care. They are soooo sensitive to your cues and actions, they will only be interested in coming if they think there is something in it for them. Like Lindsey said-- I would work on ocassionally getting them to come running to you out in their pasture with the feed bucket. Let them know when you walk out there and shake it-- that you have food and will let them have it. Pet them and talk to them and leave them be. Do this often enough they know what you are doing when you walk out there with the bucket. THEN... when they will escape (and I say WHEN... not if) they will be that much more eager to come to you! Train them before the wreck. This is sooo true! What is it about getting lose that causes a horse to just totally lose it's mind? Its like they are being chased by ghosts! DH always tries to chase him and I just tell him that he will never run as fast or fart as loud as a frightened, lose horse!!!!

He is moving Saturday so it will be a rough day for me. I cry when I think about it. One of the first things I want to do is buy him a little Christmas tree and set it up for him. He and my Mom had a nice large one but I am sure he won't want something big.
Good to see you on here again Rob. I think a couple weeks quarantine would work as long as she shows no signs of illness in the meantime. I would be sure to worm her just to be sure she isn't bringing in any parasites. Some people say 3 weeks but I would think problems would surface by 2 weeks. I've not taken on any new stock other than chicks and a few juveniles that I knew had been treated for everything, so I'm certainly no pro on the subject. You will love the brahma.

he he! I know what you mean about a horse that is an escape artist. My mom (she's where I got my "project" horse - the bay gelding) said that Montana (the bay gelding) could untie himself if you used a quick-release knot on him. Hahaha! My mustang can untie himself, I have to put the knot on the opposite side of the fence! They have one of those gates that you push the lever, and the gate opens. Well, they had to put a chain on the gate to keep him from letting himself out!

I am quickly discovering that he is a somewhat playful horse. You should get him one of those horse cubes that you put treats in!! I always wanted to get one of those but I don't think our horses would do anything with it. Yesterday evening, I went out to feed them their grain. The only grain I have now is that which I bought from my parents when we took the horses from their property. It is in a small dog food bag. I have been carrying the bag to the horse pen twice a day to feed the horses their grain. I keep the bag tied with a string. When I stepped inside the gate, I set the bag down and turned around to close the gate behind me. Montana grabbed the bag and picked it up and then dropped it. Then, when I opened it, he tried to stick his nose inside it. Sneaky horse! I think I'm gonna have my hands full with him. I took Gabby (my paint mare) out for a short ride yesterday. Montana was a mess! He was running back and forth across the barn yard, rolling, getting up and doing it all over again! I took Gabby for a short run to get the mail (about 1/2 mile away) and back. When I got back, Montana was way sweatier than Gabby was! I call him my project horse because he is an ex-barrel horse and has a bucking issue. He's a sweetheart on the ground, though he can be ornery/playful/mischevious.

DH went to Topeka today and called saying that Menards had the washer I wanted at the sale price. He wasn't convinced that it was a good buy until he looked at it and was super impressed and excited about it. So I ordered it while ago. I was glad I did too, cause their service agreement was about a 4th as much as anyone else's. I hadn't even thought about looking there for one of them. So I guess when it gets here I will be a broke owner of a new high efficiency washer.
I worked outside this afternoon and got three gate panels drug across the yard to double the size of the turkey pens. I couldn't finish setting them up cause he had parked the trailer there and every vehicle he had here had the ball taken off the hitch. I've never switched out balls before so I left it for him to do. I want to get the pens done before I move the blue slates over there. It will be nicer for all of them. I am going to have to hang some more hardware cloth on the new section so the dumb wild turkeys don't beat themselves up.
I had to dig up some edging and some flowers to make room for the new panels. Then replant the flowers. I hope they do okay. Not really great weather for planting flowers.

Kansas Prairie that is so funny. I have put eggs in my coat pocket more times than I like to admit and forgot about them while I chored until I stuck my hand in the goo! At least my coat gets washed now and then because of that!!!!

Oops!

I went out hunting with my ds for a little bit this afternoon and while I was away, my children were on the iPad and made purchase while inside of an APP, about $35.00.

Soo sorry for your loss. That is such a bummer. I am surprised it came right down into your yard.

Well an owl struck tonight and killed my NH Red. Fing OWL!!!!! That is the other bird my daughter had picked out this past Spring. I guess the newbies just don't know any better. I did save one of my other reds from the winged terror. She was under some chicken netting I have around one of my raised bed gardens so the owl couldn't get to her. The owl was on the fence above her when I walked up on them. She is not injured, just scared out of her mind. I know everyone keeps saying that the predators are bad this year, but come on!

Time to go drink a homebrew and let this steam blow off.

Welcome! This is a crazy busy thread so just jump in. Sometimes I get on and have missed 65 posts or more! Just jump back in to the converastion. I know around here we have copperhead snakes but I haven't had any issues with them so far. I have had more trouble with the big black snakes (can't remember what they are called) stealing eggs. I moved here from southern Maine several years ago so we are fellow New Englanders! I think fox, possum, racoon, bobcat, coyote, stray dogs, hawks and owls are our biggest problems. I have livestock guardian dogs, hot wire and mesh covered pens so it hasn't been too bad. You kind of learn as you go how to deter predators. I free range when I am home to supervise except in late summer/early fall when the hawks are migrating through. I was just complaining the other day about predators and then I started thinking, at least we don't have bear, wolves, cougars!!! Yikes, I would definitely not want to deal with those huge predators that could easily injure or kill working dogs.

Hi Kansas Chicken People!

I moved here to Ft. Riley about a year ago from Northern NY and had to give up my chickens! :-(
If I can ever get off of this Army post, I would like to have some chickens again. What are your greatest
hazards and problems keeping them here in Kansas. In northern NY, my greatest problems were the cold
weather...-20+ wasn't unheard of in the winter and the occasional fox could be a problem. I free ranged for
a long time until the last year I was there, due to a very persistent one! My guess is hawks and coyotes could
be troublesome here. What about snakes? We could be here for a while and if so, will move off post. I sure
would like to get myself some Spitzhaubens again and may some Barred Rocks, a Buff Orpington, and and
Americauna again...and don't get me started on turkeys!

Yeah! Last day of work today! For now anyway. I am excited to get moved and settled in. We have a doctor appt Friday and hopefully will have our next sonogram scheduled. Then we have our birth class all day on Saturday. Kinda bummed we are going to miss a whole day of nice weather but should be interesting and good info for DH who is finally finished reading his crash course in pregnancy for future dad's book!

 

[lizzyGSR]

I went out hunting with my ds for a little bit this afternoon and while I was away, my children were on the iPad and made purchase while inside of an APP, about $35.00.

Oh no! Sorry to hear that! Was your hunt successful? My DH went out deer hunting yesterday and came back with a large doe. We got ~60 pounds of meet off of that deer. After work today, I'll have to get busy making jerky and sausage. Does anyone have any good recipes for venison? I don't like the taste of it plain or even when mixed with ground beef. I found a recipe for jerky that sounds pretty easy. I found a recipe for sausage as well, but it calls for a couple of things I've never heard of, which means I also don't have them on hand.

 

[sunflowerparrot]

SandyC - I agree with HEChicken we have about every predator here except bears & wolves. We just have to keep our birds shut in at night in secure coops. Some of us also have Livestock Guardian Dogs to chase away predators on foot at night. The owls though are a different story for some people & they have been a pretty big problem this year. If you do move & get chickens just be sure to have a very secure coop to keep them in at night. Usually during the day they do fine free-ranging, but even then some have had attacks even during the day from fox & hawks.

Trish - Fern has been looking upward into the sky and trees for the past week. She will run after birds that fly overhead. She seems so proud of herself when they keep on flying and not land. I don't have the heart to tell her they didn't plan on landing anyways and they were just flying over I'm hoping by moving the coop to the open field, hawks and owls will be less of a problem and with Fern's overhead fascination, maybe my chicks will be kept safer.

I looked out the kitchen window this morning and Sam is already half the size of Fern. He is going to be a very very big boy.

See you later today.

 

[Kansas Prairie]

Yeah! Last day of work today! For now anyway. I am excited to get moved and settled in. We have a doctor appt Friday and hopefully will have our next sonogram scheduled. Then we have our birth class all day on Saturday. Kinda bummed we are going to miss a whole day of nice weather but should be interesting and good info for DH who is finally finished reading his crash course in pregnancy for future dad's book!

Here's what dad needs to know "Yes dear, anything you want dear".

I went out hunting with my ds for a little bit this afternoon and while I was away, my children were on the iPad and made purchase while inside of an APP, about $35.00.

How was the hunting? A few years ago we bought our oldest daughter a Kindle, and noticed she'd purchased some books, the books weren't expensive and we didn't mind buying them for her, just didn't realize it worked like that, she put the Kindle on her own account, and set up a password so her college friends couldn't make purchases for her.

I can't believe the owls this year. I've never had a problem with them and I'm sure I've probably lost 15 or more birds to them. I just lost one more that roosted on the high edge of one pen. The openings are too small for an owl to get through but she would roost up there with her back end exposed. I noticed she was missing yesterday.
I am supposed to meet a friend's husband tomorrow and pick up another peacock when he gets it caught. I intended to have the netting changed on a pen and have a taller center pole in before I had to pick him up. Crum!
I lost so much time with the heat this summer I can't see one week of decent weather helping me much. I still have a lot going on with my Dad too.
I did sell a couple ducks this morning and got the other new hatches out in the pen with the others. I guess what happened to the ducks was that they got into the neighbors yard and the neighbors dog broke their necks playing with them. The guy said it was his fault cause he had every thing secure except the fence between he and the neighbor. He said the dog was a nice dog and just played too rough but he was obviously very upset about loosing his ducks.
BTW if anyone wants or needs any young Black Copper Marans or barred rock cockerels I have a several to sell. I hate to sell them as meat birds because they are from excellent breeder/show stock. These are young birds but old enough to be outside... a couple months or more old. I will sell cheap.

Danz, I wish I lived closer, I'd love to have one of your cockerels.

Hi Kansas Chicken People!

I moved here to Ft. Riley about a year ago from Northern NY and had to give up my chickens! :-(
If I can ever get off of this Army post, I would like to have some chickens again. What are your greatest
hazards and problems keeping them here in Kansas. In northern NY, my greatest problems were the cold
weather...-20+ wasn't unheard of in the winter and the occasional fox could be a problem. I free ranged for
a long time until the last year I was there, due to a very persistent one! My guess is hawks and coyotes could
be troublesome here. What about snakes? We could be here for a while and if so, will move off post. I sure
would like to get myself some Spitzhaubens again and may some Barred Rocks, a Buff Orpington, and and
Americauna again...and don't get me started on turkeys!

Thanks for serving our country!! I live in SW Kansas, Kansas has all 4 seasons, hot dry summers, cold winters, and 45 mph wind is common. This November has been a weirdly warm one. In our area a secure coop at night is a must, owls, racoons, fox, coyotes, bobcats, are out hunting at night and sometimes during the day but our biggest threat during the day are hawks and stray or neighbor dogs and fox.


We live near 108,000 acres of public hunting land, yesterday was opening deer rifle season, pick-ups every where, orange vested drivers, will probably be the same way Saturday when the people with jobs will get to hunt.

 

[SandyC]

We had bears around in Northern NY. I saw one cross my street a few months before I moved.

I am headed to midcoast Maine next week for a week! Love it up there!

 

[Kansas Prairie]

Oh no! Sorry to hear that! Was your hunt successful? My DH went out deer hunting yesterday and came back with a large doe. We got ~60 pounds of meet off of that deer. After work today, I'll have to get busy making jerky and sausage. Does anyone have any good recipes for venison? I don't like the taste of it plain or even when mixed with ground beef. I found a recipe for jerky that sounds pretty easy. I found a recipe for sausage as well, but it calls for a couple of things I've never heard of, which means I also don't have them on hand.

Congrats on the deer! The best part is the back strap, we cut it about 3/4" thick wrap it in pepper bacon and grill it like a steak, yummy! Back strap on our local deer is about the only part that doesn't have that wild taste. The deal with making deer jerky is to cut out anything white just use the red meat, it's very time consuming to cut all of the white stuff off. After cutting away all of the white I sometimes use the food slicer and make thin slices marinade it for a day or so and dehydrate it, I've also ground up the red meat and used a press guns that form the ground meat into strips and dried it on the dehydrator. Several pounds of meat makes a few ounces of jerky, yummy stuff!!

Trish - Fern has been looking upward into the sky and trees for the past week. She will run after birds that fly overhead. She seems so proud of herself when they keep on flying and not land. I don't have the heart to tell her they didn't plan on landing anyways and they were just flying over I'm hoping by moving the coop to the open field, hawks and owls will be less of a problem and with Fern's overhead fascination, maybe my chicks will be kept safer.

I looked out the kitchen window this morning and Sam is already half the size of Fern. He is going to be a very very big boy.

See you later today.

It's great how they have natural instincts to watch the sky! We have 2 bird dogs that run around with their nose on the ground and will follow anything if they see it take off, but they don't seem to notice a hawk circling above them.