Consolidated Kansas

[dwink2]

Hello all. Just blowing through today like everything around here. Like everyone else we are in need of rain and all we get is wind. We had blowing dirt yesterday but nothing like it was west of here. I am located about 30 miles south of the Nebraska border in the middle of the state.

Danz you give excellent advice! Everything from a sick flock member to dating. I totally agree for SternRose to ask the boy in person. It always gets messier the more people that get involved.

My geese are doing so much better. Their eyes have really cleared up. I had on hand what you recommended and medicated them. Then the next day our vet was here working cattle so she gave them a shot of LA-300. They are on the mend now and run from me when I try to medicate them so I am thinking they are telling me to quit.

I am really getting fuzz butt fever looking at everyone's pictures of their new little ones. My first time broody hen is still sitting tight on her eggs. I tried candling them on day 10 but obviously I had no idea what I was seeing. I used a LED flashlight but it may not have been bright enough. I just put them back under her and will hope for the best.

 

[Trish44]

I have a broody hen as well setting on eggs, she's a Swedish Flower Hen. A couple of days ago I went out to feed & she came out the pop door & had a little chick in tow. It was the only one so I took it in & put it in the brooder. She is still sitting on a bunch of eggs so that one must have been early. I have a Lemon Cuckoo Orpington hen that can't decide if she wants to be broody or not. Speaking of that I have decided to sell my breeding stock for my Lemon Cuckoo Orpingtons, if anyone is interested send me a PM.

The wind has been insane here lately, it's hard to want to go out with it howling like it has been & today it was cooler. It's supposed to be even cooler tomorrow. What's the deal, April is almost over & it's getting cooler again, strange.

 

[cherwill]

Cherwill seems you've been sick a lot lately. I hope you get it worked out and start feeling better.

Thanks. It seems like I have been sick a lot because my sinuses hit real hard for a couple of days, then DH got a cold and then gave it to me! Jerk.

It always takes me half again as long to get over it as it does him. Doesn't seem fair.

I would keep it really casual, like "Hey, do you wanna hang out sometime?" and if he says yes, then suggest specific time/place/activity.

And if he says no, you can be very casual, like it's no big deal, and don't ask him to the dance.

He's probably just as scared as you are.

I am really getting fuzz butt fever looking at everyone's pictures of their new little ones.

So am I, but I can't get any more. I'd have to get at least two or three, and then my coop would be overcrowded and (with my luck) one or two would be a roo and I'd have to get rid of it ... *sigh*

 

[friendshipstar]

I finally gave in to one of my broody cochin hens and gave her a nest in the broody coop with 11 eggs. She isn't going to give in and has been stealing eggs from other nest boxes and moving them to her favorite box for three days now. I just got finished making her a private spot this evening, and then moved her after dark.

I have decided to sell my new coop. It is brand new, except being used for these two broody hens. The nest boxes are brand new. Never used. The roof has brand new shingles. There is a walk in door with latches on both sides. A pully lifted wooden window with heavy wire for fresh air and ventilation. A small widow with screen that opens and closes. It also has a guillotine door for the chickens to come and go. Wooden floor. This is a very sturdy building.

We can help load with our kabota tractor. I would like 450 for the building, which is a steal.
Wat to make an offer? I'll at least listen.

 

[SternRose]

H

I finally gave in to one of my broody cochin hens and gave her a nest in the broody coop with 11 eggs. She isn't going to give in and has been stealing eggs from other nest boxes and moving them to her favorite box for three days now. I just got finished making her a private spot this evening, and then moved her after dark.

I have decided to sell my new coop. It is brand new, except being used for these two broody hens. The nest boxes are brand new. Never used. The roof has brand new shingles. There is a walk in door with latches on both sides. A pully lifted wooden window with heavy wire for fresh air and ventilation. A small widow with screen that opens and closes. It also has a guillotine door for the chickens to come and go. Wooden floor. This is a very sturdy building.

We can help load with our kabota tractor. I would like 450 for the building, which is a steal.
Wat to make an offer? I'll at least listen.

Sounds great, have to ask ma and pa first. Lol

 

[Trish44]

I finally gave in to one of my broody cochin hens and gave her a nest in the broody coop with 11 eggs. She isn't going to give in and has been stealing eggs from other nest boxes and moving them to her favorite box for three days now. I just got finished making her a private spot this evening, and then moved her after dark.

I have decided to sell my new coop. It is brand new, except being used for these two broody hens. The nest boxes are brand new. Never used. The roof has brand new shingles. There is a walk in door with latches on both sides. A pully lifted wooden window with heavy wire for fresh air and ventilation. A small widow with screen that opens and closes. It also has a guillotine door for the chickens to come and go. Wooden floor. This is a very sturdy building.

We can help load with our kabota tractor. I would like 450 for the building, which is a steal.
Wat to make an offer? I'll at least listen.

Why are you selling your coop if I may ask?

 

[friendshipstar]

I am selling this coop so that I can afford to make a different kind of coop. Something more portable. I need several different coops to seperate breeds. This is a very nice coop. If shut up completely it us predator proof. BUT I have another coop pretty much like the one I am selling and a huge shed that we are getting ready to turn into a large winter coop. So by selling this one I can build a few portable breeding coops for the warmer months. Make sense?

 

[okjenyp]

I grew up here in kansas. And still not used to this weather we have. Hot one day. Cold the next. And man these winds are terrible. I keep waiting for the house to blow away! Anyways it's got me thinking about preparing for my first summer with chickens. And any input from you more experienced ppl would be greatly appreciated.
My yard has tons of trees, it is hard to grow grass! Anyways I have plenty of morning shade for the chickens. But when the sun is on the west side, there is little shade. I have ordered some grape vines and lilac and such. But I am unsure if I need to get tarps? With this wind I think the tarp would be shredded in a matter of minutes!! I saw someone made a shelter thing out of willow branches, which looks neat and I would love to try that but I don't know where to find any willow branches. And if I order it it'll be years before I have anything that is useful. So, what have you guys done to help your chickens stay cool in the summer??

 

[lizzyGSR]

So, what have you guys done to help your chickens stay cool in the summer??

I'm not much help as I only have ducks and geese, but I believe people have put out small bowls of water for their birds to stand in. I have also heard of people setting up misters that spray a fine mist for the birds to stand in.

The weather today is still very windy and still considerably cooler. It was 36*F when I got up at 7AM, and it was already blowing to beat the band. We got a few sprinkles overnight, which was nice, but it hasn't amounted to much. Thankfully, it isn't as dusty (yet) today as it was yesterday.

I have a bird mystery I could really use some help solving. This morning I noticed that one of my female embden geese was limping pretty badly. I also noticed that the area behind one leg was missing quite a few feathers. I caught her (which was much easier than usual - it is obvious she isn't feeling 100%) and looked her over. I don't see any reason for her to be limping, and the skin is not broken where she's missing feathers. Her left leg is the sore one and the feathers are missing behind her right leg, all the way around to ALMOST her vent, but not including the vent itself. Do you think she had a close call with a predator? Do you think she has mites (missing feathers) and just happened to be clumsy and hurt her leg? What, if anything, should I do for her? To add to the mystery, I am pretty sure I have two female geese (both embdens) but have only been getting one egg per day. I think it is the other female that is laying. Have I just not been observant enough or is this a sudden thing? I would appreciate any opinions!

 

[HEChicken]

So, what have you guys done to help your chickens stay cool in the summer??

The most important thing is to give them options for how to get comfortable and in summer that means several shade options, since as the sun moves across the sky where the shade is, will vary. Chickens are far more cold hardy than heat hardy, so, as hard as winter is on us, it is actually easier on them. I have never lost a bird to heat but I think that is because I have a lot of different places they can get shade. In the morning shade is in the east part of their yard, at noon there is less but always some and as the afternoon gets longer, the shade increases on the west side of the yard.

In addition to shade, water is essential. They simply cannot run out of water because they won't last long in triple digits if they do. Place the water in a shaded area so that it too will stay a little cooler. When the weather service reports the daily temperature, they are reporting what it is in the shade, so out in direct sun, it is actually much hotter. And if you keep their water out in the sun, it could potentially get too hot for them to drink. Ideally, you want to have multiple waterers and place them in a variety of places around the yard so that there is always one that is in shade.

I don't do misters. When I had only a few hens, I used to freeze a gallon of water (¾ full) and place it in their water bowl around 1pm every day, and that kept their water cool for the rest of the afternoon. The occasional hen would even stand in the water bowl to cool her feet. But with up to 100 birds, that stopped being practical, and it uses quite a bit of energy to freeze a gallon of water every day so I haven't done that the past couple of years. I do have a wading pool now to provide water to my ducks and sometimes a chicken or turkey will go and stand in the water to cool their feet. It also provides an alternate water source, though the ducks get it pretty disgusting rather quickly.