Consolidated Kansas

[mommahen10]

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!

Well, all this illness going around doesn't sound so happy at all. Karen and Hawkeye, I'm really sorry you are so sick. I know we have been exposed to some nasty bugs but we haven't got it yet and I'm a bit scared. It makes me want to just stay home. I hope you get better soon. It's so hard to take care of the kids when you are sick too.

Trish, I sort of understand what you are saying about dh being underfoot. My dh has been off since before Christmas. Some things have been so nice, like I haven't had to do any outside chores in this cold weather we've been having. He worked in the brooder room too. This evening he went to work at his second job and omgosh! By the time he got home this evening I was amazed at how much I had accomplished. Tomorrow is back to normal schedules and routines for us, I'm sure we will need some transition time but I feel a bit relieved to get back to normal.

Danz, my dh told me how you have everything set up so nicely and there are so many beautiful birds and lots of fancy ones too. My 11 yo dd went on and on about the ducks and how they fly down and it looks like they are wearing masks. She said they were her favorite and she's going to have some of those when she grows up. I heard my 9 yo wasn't too much for the big dogs. When I told them that our dog was part just the same they thought that was cool. My 9 yo was majorly cranky when she got home, I think she missed her sister and wanted to stay longer. I hope she wasn't being a stink while she was there. My dh said that he liked the pearl guineas???? Then he pointed to the lavender orp and said they were about that color. He said those are what he wants next sping. So... how about some info there? Prices, advice, anything? I'm glad he is picking out birds, we get more that way. We've never had guineas before and last summer he told me no so this is tremendous progress Did the kids get to peek at the puppies? How are the puppies doing?

After he got home, he made me sit so he could show me how he was going to build the new coops and where and all of his ideas. I'm thrilled with that, and it's good for him too. We talked about what we are going to get too. So the plan is, we will keep a small group of barred rocks, another small group of white rocks, and we are going to do the red stars too which I had given up on it. SO, I'm going to need white rock pullets, I think I'll start with 10. I'll need 1 white rock roo and 1 new hamp red roo. I'm going to divide the girls between the 2 roos, thinking this way I can always replenish the girls if we have a white rock roo too. I need to get busy on this so they have time to get bigger before it warms up.

Yes, Maidenwolf and I were talking about what a wonderful group we have here. Where else can you find so many helpful and trust worthy people? I can't think of anywhere. One of the things I like most is the ability to disagree too. We can all have opinions but I don't see anybody slamming anyone rudely. I'm appreciative of each of you and this thread has made a wonderful contribution to our lives.

medawinks, congrats for your dd. That's awesome. It sounds like you all had a HUGE New Year's Eve, sounds like fun in a way. We've stayed up sometimes for New Year's Eve, but normally we just go to bed. You're going to LOVE hatching. I can't wait to hear how things go!

Danz, I'm so so sorry about Biggy.

 

[chicken danz]

First and foremost I lost my precious Biggy this morning. My heart hurts. I was with him when he passed and he knows he was loved.
I woke up in the middle of the night sneezing. Now I am sick. I have no idea where I have contracted this cold or flu but my nose is raw already. I really don't have time to be sick right now. Hope it is a short lived thing. I guess I was in Ottawa the night my car got whammed by the deer, or maybe working outside in the cold yesterday had something to do with it. Who knows. At least I haven't gotten this awful flu that Hawkeye and KarenS and their families have. Not yet anyway. It could just be a severe sinus infection.
Mammahen your DH loved the lavender guineas. I accidentally let one girl go yesterday when I was trying to tag the boys. I hope I can catch her later cause I already have one female lavender who is a free ranger. The babies don't do well if you don't catch them early. I'd much rather hatch them myself. Your DH and the girls didn't get to see as much as normal cause most of the birds were staying in their coops to stay out of the snow. Your daughter acted great. She was a lot quieter than the older one though. Your daughter was talking about the Mandarin ducks. They are my favorite ducks for sure. Your DH said in no uncertain terms that I wasn't to try to get you to get turkeys. He said he hated them. He hated the gobble. I found that funny cause that is my favorite thing about them.
My little red stars and white rocks are growing slow. It seems the birds stay tiny and then all at once get huge. I hope they'll start producing in May or so. I should have gotten them earlier but I kind of had to wait until I had room in the brooder house. No idea yet on if I have any cockerels in my white rocks.
I'm hoping to get the pen finished today for the pups. I probably will give it another day before I move them out cause it is supposed to be extremely cold tonight. I so want to get the smell of dogs out of my house though!

 

[sharol]

I'm so sorry you lost your Biggie, he was a good boy.

have you tried zinc spray (throat and mouth) at the first cold symptoms? It works for maybe 60% of people (works for me).

You have had terrific stress lately, and stress really messes with your immune system. I know you can't control that, but it might explain the illnesses going on right now. Also, my chiropractor says that processed sugar (like in the cakes and pies from Christmas and New Years) can lower ones immune system 40%. I just hope you get to feeling better soon.

Sharol

First and foremost I lost my precious Biggy this morning. My heart hurts. I was with him when he passed and he knows he was loved.
I woke up in the middle of the night sneezing. Now I am sick. I have no idea where I have contracted this cold or flu but my nose is raw already. I really don't have time to be sick right now. Hope it is a short lived thing. I guess I was in Ottawa the night my car got whammed by the deer, or maybe working outside in the cold yesterday had something to do with it. Who knows. At least I haven't gotten this awful flu that Hawkeye and KarenS and their families have. Not yet anyway. It could just be a severe sinus infection.
Mammahen your DH loved the lavender guineas. I accidentally let one girl go yesterday when I was trying to tag the boys. I hope I can catch her later cause I already have one female lavender who is a free ranger. The babies don't do well if you don't catch them early. I'd much rather hatch them myself. Your DH and the girls didn't get to see as much as normal cause most of the birds were staying in their coops to stay out of the snow. Your daughter acted great. She was a lot quieter than the older one though. Your daughter was talking about the Mandarin ducks. They are my favorite ducks for sure. Your DH said in no uncertain terms that I wasn't to try to get you to get turkeys. He said he hated them. He hated the gobble. I found that funny cause that is my favorite thing about them.
My little red stars and white rocks are growing slow. It seems the birds stay tiny and then all at once get huge. I hope they'll start producing in May or so. I should have gotten them earlier but I kind of had to wait until I had room in the brooder house. No idea yet on if I have any cockerels in my white rocks.
I'm hoping to get the pen finished today for the pups. I probably will give it another day before I move them out cause it is supposed to be extremely cold tonight. I so want to get the smell of dogs out of my house though!

 

[LoriO]

Hey everybody! It's been awhile, probably since Thanksgiving. This is our last day of winter break. We all go back to school tomorrow.

Medawinks, congrats to your daughter & the band! I saw a little clip on the news the other night about them coming home. They always put on a good show. My boys didn't do marching band this year, so I didn't get to see all the local high school bands' shows this fall. I missed seeing the bands but not enough to go to the competitions & watch!

We visited family in Ohio over Christmas, SIL watched the chickens. Lost one, a big cuckoo marans, she wasn't looking too good when we left. I have no idea what was wrong. All the other chickens seem to be hanging in there. We've got two silkies that are with the regular flock, they're out in the snow more than some of the big chickens. I thought that discussion was interesting, since I haven't done anything special for the silkies. Just dumb luck on my part, I guess.

Does anyone know of a good local-ish to Topeka breeder of Welsumers? I'd be willing to travel a little to pick up chicks. Dd is interested in that breed for 4h projects, and I would like to go local if possible. Eventually, I think we'd like to hatch some out and breed our own, but that is not happening this time around! Because.....

Our family will be very busy this next 6 months. Dh started a new position with his company that has him commuting to Emporia from Topeka everyday. I've decided to try and get a Kansas teaching license, so I'm taking a graduate level course from Emporia State online. I also need to study for a couple Praxis tests, also for licensing. It's like an ACT for teachers.

Plus all the usual activities these kids are involved in.

Anyway, that's all from here. I hope all the sicknesses go away quickly. We're doing okay here, knock on wood. I hate to say it out loud, but we're generally pretty healthy.

Danz, I'm sorry about your kitty. It sounds like he had a great & happy life with you.

 

[chicken danz]

I always eat too much sugar. It's my weakness- but I haven't had a holiday dinner yet or any treats so that shouldn't be different than normal.
I have no immune system to speak of and get sick on the drop of a dime. I'm thinking breathing too much cold air probably just kicked up a severe sinus infection. I take anti-viral meds regularly or I'd be sick a lot more. I hate sneezing. It's the worst in my book. And today that is all I seem to be doing!!
I told myself I was going to get my act together and have a happier year this year. It sure has started out poorly. Maybe all the bad stuff will be gone the first week of the year and I can have a super great year after that.

 

[maidenwolfx80]

Thank you all for your input on the straw. I havent had much problem with the straw except once it started getting cold and I think I may have covered too many vents. I am going to uncover the whole top area and see how it helps. I always make sure there is scratch in there so that it keeps them occupied and if I dont get out to open them up right away they have something to do. the bedding feels too moist under foot also so that is a sign too. I am going to remove alot of the straw and add new ontop of a layer of it. I need more so I have to be careful for sure.

Danz I am so sorry about Biggy. Take some time to rest yourself.

Mommahen- you also have had alot of stress make sure you relax too or you may end up sick also.

 

[sunflowerparrot]

Hey everybody! It's been awhile, probably since Thanksgiving. This is our last day of winter break. We all go back to school tomorrow.

Medawinks, congrats to your daughter & the band! I saw a little clip on the news the other night about them coming home. They always put on a good show. My boys didn't do marching band this year, so I didn't get to see all the local high school bands' shows this fall. I missed seeing the bands but not enough to go to the competitions & watch!

We visited family in Ohio over Christmas, SIL watched the chickens. Lost one, a big cuckoo marans, she wasn't looking too good when we left. I have no idea what was wrong. All the other chickens seem to be hanging in there. We've got two silkies that are with the regular flock, they're out in the snow more than some of the big chickens. I thought that discussion was interesting, since I haven't done anything special for the silkies. Just dumb luck on my part, I guess.

Does anyone know of a good local-ish to Topeka breeder of Welsumers? I'd be willing to travel a little to pick up chicks. Dd is interested in that breed for 4h projects, and I would like to go local if possible. Eventually, I think we'd like to hatch some out and breed our own, but that is not happening this time around! Because.....

Our family will be very busy this next 6 months. Dh started a new position with his company that has him commuting to Emporia from Topeka everyday. I've decided to try and get a Kansas teaching license, so I'm taking a graduate level course from Emporia State online. I also need to study for a couple Praxis tests, also for licensing. It's like an ACT for teachers.

Plus all the usual activities these kids are involved in.

Anyway, that's all from here. I hope all the sicknesses go away quickly. We're doing okay here, knock on wood. I hate to say it out loud, but we're generally pretty healthy.

Danz, I'm sorry about your kitty. It sounds like he had a great & happy life with you.

Praxis was really a piece of cake! Don't stress My best advice is do the multiple choice section first (a LOT of questions about therorists and their theories), then you'll be able to focus on the scenerios. The hardest part was waiting for the results.. I ended up paying the extra little fee to find out early because I couldn't stand the wait.

 

[LoriO]

Thanks, Sunflowerparrot! I am actually stressing, & thanks for the tip. This is the early childhood specialty area test. I took it once 15 years ago, right out of grad school, long story, so I'm thinking I've forgotten a lot. I have a study guide I need to get to work on. I also need to take the principles of teaching and learning, but I can't process that right now. I didn't stress at all the first time I took these tests, but 15 years later..... Anyway, thanks for the encouragement!

I've never used straw in the coop, just wood chips. We have put a strawbale in the run to give them something to do/windbreak. Those chickens usually have it pulled apart in a couple weeks!

Should get out to the coop now and check on things.

 

[Trish44]

I hope those that are sick get better soon, I'm sorry you're feeling so bad. This weather we've been having is just typical of Kansas winter, not as bad as some I remember, but bad enough if you have to get out in it. I'm thankful we got some moisture at least, not much, but a little is better than none. I went out awhile ago & scooped some of the litter out of the main coop that seemed to be wet & stuck together, it was really heavy to lift. I think what happened over there under the roosts is the waterer I had in there leaked. I normally don't have water in the coop, but as cold as it has been I was wondering if the heated base would keep the water from freezing outside. Do you all have your waterers outside the coop? I may have to do that if it keeps getting spilled or leaking in there, I don't want my floor in there to rot or for the litter to be wet either. I stirred everything all up again after I got that one area scooped out so it could dry out more & I will add some more cattails later on. I started to go clean out the grow-out pen but got kind of weak feeling, so I decided to come in & eat & have my coffee, then I will go back out. That grow-out pen really needs to be cleaned out badly, so I really have to get that done today.

HEChicken, you were talking about your poor little chick that is so shy, I have a new Swedish Flower Hen that is that way. Every time I go out to the coop I have to search for her because she is hiding somewhere. She is going to have to get tougher to survive here. This morning I found her wedged in at the end of the rooster's pen between the pen & the outside wire for the run. I had to shoo her out of there because I couldn't reach her. I made her go into the coop because finally most of the chickens had gone outside, they were tired of being cooped up, so she could eat in peace for the most part.

Danz, I'm sorry about your cat, that's so hard. You had him a really long time & I know he had a good life with you.

Well everyone try to stay warm & those of you that are sick take care of yourselves & get better.

 

[mommahen10]

Danz, I hope you get better soon. You should make your chicken and milk recipe, that would give you some good nutrients.
I LOVE the turkeys too and he is a grump about them. He would die if he knew Colt was out the other day and got on top of my van. I'd be in big trouble for sure. I love the gobble and now he's doing some weird sounds. I don't know why he doesn't like them. I'm going to lay low on getting more, but he has come around so much on the chickens and he said he didn't want guineas too as of just this past summer so I will just be quiet and see how he does. My guess is he'll find one free somewhere and bring it home to make me happy and it'll be all over.


Maidenwolf, I'm letting go of all of the stress cracking up about the chicken giving me the willies.

Hi Lori, good luck with your test.

I'm going to go make some sugar cookies, hopefully I get them done before the kids come back in.