Consolidated Kansas

[Kansas Prairie]

Lizzy and other horse lovers, have you seen this video?

"A deaf-mute girl on a horse that she has ridden for only THREE weeks!!, not to mention the song she picked out to dedicate to her deceased father! Listen to the announcer's voice crack! The horse she is riding is not even hers; she is training it for a client and has had it only 20 days at the time of the ride shown here. Note that she rides without a saddle or halter and bit and (obviously) without voice commands. She is using the method used by North American Indians. When you think your voice can't be heard I want each of you to watch this Video. She has no voice. She cannot hear. Yet she has persevered and achieved! Thought you all would enjoy this ..."

http://horsetalk.co.nz/2012/02/10/stacy-westfalls-bareback-mare-roxy-dies/

 

[JosieChick]

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

Hahahaha!!!! He is working on perfecting that!!!

Josie - so glad you have a roofing company you trust and who did right by you. I can't wait until we are neighbors!!! Having spent most of this year packing, moving, unpacking, cleaning and preparing a house for market and stressing over all the details that go along with that, I don't envy you having this still in your near future - especially in the winter months and while pregnant. Just take it easy and don't place too high expectations on yourself. There are some things that might be nice to have done immediately but CAN wait until later so don't feel bad if you have to delay some plans. The animals are what make it the most challenging, I think. I couldn't move my flock out here until I had somewhere safe to put them so the first part of our move was really just me coming out here to built the coop. Every time I came I loaded up the car with boxes and unloaded them here but my main focus was on getting the coop built. And of course, I still had to keep up on taking care of them all back at the old place whilst preparing the new place for them. I only had a 45 minute drive back and forth though - it will be a much bigger undertaking for you, so if you have people to help - accept their help!
Me too! I will miss it up here but it will be nice to be closer to everyone down there. And to have help! I can't wait. The animals are a challenge to move, I need to downsize a bit more. The other pickle is that the chickens, dogs and cats really need daily care and need to have someone there to feed, water etc so we have to hire someone on either end to check on them until everyone is moved and I can move! I am not looking forward to listing this house. I hate selling a house.

I need to medicate my birds. I have sneezing, coughing and runny noses in 3 of my birds. I have duramycin, I am not sure how long the withholding on eggs is or if I should just treat the sick ones individually.??

I read through the next couple posts. If I were you I would medicate all the birds with duramycin. I haven't heard about the absorption thing but it is better than nothing. I would treat them for at least 5 days. If they aren't starting to respond in a day or two you may need to buy something else to try. I would keep up with homemade herbal stuff to help them stay clear and breath easier. You could soak feed in warm water to encourage them to eat. For some reason chickens really like sloppy. water logged feed, it is a big treat. We are planning on butchering this Sunday so I will send you a PM.

So when is the moving date?? I'll bet you are glad to not have to wear yourself out working right now. Moving date is up in the air. Once animal shelters are ready we will move critters and me. They are the hard part. I don't mind working a little but this place was wearing me out. I am going to groom at my old job part time and they will do whatever I want for number of dogs to groom and I will have plenty of help with lifting etc.
Are you going to learn the sex of the baby this time? I wanna know!!! I still think Girl! I'm still a little bummed you are moving away. I really wanted to play grandma, but I know it is much better for all of you. This sonogram we will find out the sex, I will let everyone know as soon as we know! EVERYONE thinks it is a girl, so weird. You can still come down and play grandma!!! You will probably be a lot more fun than the real grandma, she hadn't even told the family that came to Thanksgiving yet, I had to tell them because they were all staring at me like I was fat!!!!
Yeah I am pretty happy about buying the washer. So you got the same one?? I researched for a couple years before I decided this is what I wanted, then to find the special price helped a bunch. I have no idea when it will be delivered to the store. We have to put it in ourselves but that is no biggy. I hope to sell the old washer for a little cash. It works fine. I just got tired of not having room for larger loads. Especially bedding and jeans. I always wonder if my blankets and stuff are getting clean at all. Did you get the topload LG? That is what we got, we have family friends that have one and love it. I suppose it wasn't a necessity but I sold my sports car a while back so that will pay for it. That wasn't a necessity either!!!

Glad you found your mom's embroidery stuff, that will be nice to have. My mom used to do very elaborate embroidered patterns and frame them as gifts.
My sister wrote me last night and said my Dad found my Mom's embroidery threads. I am supposed to pick them up Saturday when we move him. I am very excited. I have a huge collection of projects to do when I find time and my Mom had a big lot of thread. It brings back memories of time we spent together. When I had a double spinal surgery on my back and neck at the same time my Mom came out and cared for me. We spent many days doing needlework together. She taught me how to needlepoint which is my winter passion now- even though I never find time to do it any more. The whole idea makes me smile and tear up at the same time. Now it will be that much more rewarding just because I know it is something we spent lots of time doing together.
I have so much arthritis in my hands I can't do needlework for long but find it very relaxing. Makes me want to get more work done for housing birds just so I have time to do something like that again.

I love this clip, Stacy Westfall is an amazing horse woman. I am not sure where the deaf-mute comes from because she can hear and speak.....She does ride bareback and bridle less and doesn't use verbal commands. It is all cues to the horse. I have heard her speak on training and she is an amazing person. I love to watch her ride.

Lizzy and other horse lovers, have you seen this video?

"A deaf-mute girl on a horse that she has ridden for only THREE weeks!!, not to mention the song she picked out to dedicate to her deceased father! Listen to the announcer's voice crack! The horse she is riding is not even hers; she is training it for a client and has had it only 20 days at the time of the ride shown here. Note that she rides without a saddle or halter and bit and (obviously) without voice commands. She is using the method used by North American Indians. When you think your voice can't be heard I want each of you to watch this Video. She has no voice. She cannot hear. Yet she has persevered and achieved! Thought you all would enjoy this ..."

http://horsetalk.co.nz/2012/02/10/stacy-westfalls-bareback-mare-roxy-dies/

I am going to sell a couple call ducks in case anyone is interested on here. I have a white pair and a grey duck available. I think I will probably list them this weekend.

Well I just got back from a crazy expedition to pick up baby items! It all started out with a super price on display item diaper bags that still have the tags on them. So I got two really nice diaper bags, one for me and one man purse for DH! I was up that way so I got in touch with a lady who had some diaper covers for sale that I needed for my pre formed diapers and she also had a nursing pillow that I bought because I liked the looks of it better than a boppy. Then I got an exersaucer, two play mats and a free boppy from a lady! I spent like 1/4 of what all the items would have retailed for. I am so excited. I hate to register for items that cost $60 and I can buy them gently used for $10! Plus we need so much that I would like to make some room on our registry for items we really need help buying.

 

[Trish44]

Josie, it sounds like you got some really good deals on the baby stuff, good job! Babies grow so fast too that clothes most of the time don't get worn very long, so you can find some nice clothes once you know what sex you're having. It doesn't matter too much for awhile because they don't need much more than onesies & things like that. I have found some really nice kid's & baby clothes at garage sales. I know there aren't many right now, but there will be in the spring. I used to find really cute stuff for my granddaughter at garage sales. I also used to buy a lot of stuff for my son when he was little at used kid's clothing resale stores, they usually are picky about the quality of things & you can find some good things at them.

I'm really tired tonight, just pooped out. I had to replace 3 of the 4 bottom poles on the dog run I bought because they were rusted out. That involved taking off 12 brackets with 2 screws & a bolt each, then taking loose all the wires wrapped over the fence & pole on each one. We had to cut the new poles because they were too long too, so that took some time. Fortunately for me my DH did help me with all of it because I was really struggling with it. It's a good thing too because some of it was really challenging getting the new pole in & all the brackets back on. The bolts that came with it were barely long enough & it was a real pain to get them back on. We finally got it done though. I still need to wrap some more wire on the bottom of the fence & over the poles though, there isn't enough & then go get some chicken wire to put inside the pen all around. I'm going to use my netting I bought awhile back for the top & then get a tarp to put over that for shelter & one for the back of the run since that is the north side. It will be in a nice sheltered spot though, so it should be good. My DH just looked at me when he saw I had gotten another pen, he didn't even ask what it was for, I think he has given up on asking me what I'm doing any more. After all of that today I went over to Sunflowerparrot's & got another load of cattails. That just did me in the rest of the way!

We went to see if the windows I had were going to fit in the openings again today after he put the trim on & discovered that we both messed up bigtime. The windows are 4 different sizes & evidently we only measured one, so I just decided we would use hardware cloth over the windows in the summer & put plexiglass in there for the winter. What can you do but just punt when you make a mistake like that, oh well. I will have the big windows on the ends of the coop that are crank out windows & there will be space at the top on front & back where there will be venting too. I'm going to put screen up there to keep anything from climbing up there & getting in. I'm kind of disappointed that the windows I had didn't work out, but it will be OK the other way too.

 

[mommahen10]

Kansas Prairie, FEED SACK PURSES!!!! Now that's COOL! I like that idea.

Get this about the iPad APPS... I disabled the purchasing of APPS, in-APP purchases, disabled deleting or downloading APPS. It has a passcode on it now, but if I want to go disable it so I could look for things (not that I care to), but it automatically sets it all back to the default settings which allows it. I also made it to where it automatically signs out if I do sign in, where as the default it has 15 minutes before it'll require the password again. That's just wrong, if I want to disable it the default shouldn't come back, it should stay the way I had it when I enable it again. The good news is I changed the password so the kids couldn't easily sign in, the password was my son's name and I made it when he was a newborn and now he's 4. Anyway, I changed it and I don't remember it so I can't sign in either, I'm sure I'll fix that at some point but I really don't care if anyone signs in.

Danz, I may be interested in a Barred Rock boy. If I forget to PM you by the time I'm done typing here please remind me.

Lizzy, we didn't get a deer. Isn't it nice how much meat they provide? We really need one, or a few. We have exclusive permission to hunt on the land directly behind our property, the land owner said he doesn't let anyone else out there because our house is out there, of course we are more motivated to only shoot certain directions. I appreciate that. So my ds was out there, he's 15, and in his blind. The neighbor to the other side, he's a bit, ummmm, not so nice. He drove his truck back on his own property to the fence line where my ds was and just sat there and stared at him. Ds's blind is clearly marked out and obvious. This neighbor also had on his orange like he was out hunting or going to or something. So after my ds left, because he was a bit intimidated, he came home. He went out to take some practice/target shots and the same neighbor came and kept driving by and slowing way down and staring at him. DS at one point waived to him just to let him know he wasn't scared even though he is. I don't know what's up with him. Maybe he didn't recognize him, the last time he saw him my ds would have been quite little and now he's huge. We went down to some other property to avoid any conflict, but tomorrow we plan to go back out there but I will go with him. Last night and this evening we went out to another property, owned by our nice neighbor. Last night we saw places where the deer lay and prints, and we found an antler. Out further back we found a bigger area with lots of spots where they have been laying. Tonight, we sat where the smaller area is and waited for them to go to bed but they didn't come and it got too dark. We did see a doe when we first got there but it was too far off to get a clear shot. Of course, I'm not shooting anything, just spending time with my ds. I think tonight the wind wasn't in our favor in the position we were. I'm new to this hunting thing, this is the first year I've gone along.

Lizzy, do you soak your deer for a few days? I found that makes the taste much better and more mild. I thought I didn't like deer for years.

HEChicken, that is just it about this !@$#@$ iPad! Nobody quote me, I'm gonna delete this later. I didn't want it, I've been saying I don't want one. I like to type with 2 hands, I use designing type of software and need my computer. If I just want to check the weather, it's more efficient. If I want to come here or design, or sell on eBay I need my computer. I can do a quick check on my ebay or just read on here on the iPad but it's not what I go to. So my dh LOVEs his iPad, but he's playing poker on it or looking at facebook and he doesn't really type. He was constantly asking if I wanted one and I would say, oh, that's neat but no I don't want one. I like to type with 2 hands. He got me one, bought it in September and was saving it for our anniversary in December. That was so sweet. Thanksgiving came and for months now he asks if I want one, and I say no. We didn't have everything we needed for Thanksgiving so he gave it to me so I could take it back and get what we needed. NOT, they wouldn't take it back because it had been too long. 15 day return policy. I said thanks, I suppose my kids just got a new toy. It hadn't even been out of the store sack, I didn't even take it out and look at it. I've had it for like a week. It's nice to keep them busy when I need to do something but mostly it's a PITyou know what because the kids all want to be on it and they're not getting their work done, then these charges and I think this thing is a curse. I guess you can make calls on them now, although I don't have that set up. I had an iPod touch, my dh got it for me when my youngest was a tiny baby. He was an extrememly needy baby, required constant attention, my early baby but as he got older he had severe anemia and was just hard. He wanted to play but didn't have the energy to but we didn't know what was going on. The iPod was awesome for my sanity then, it gave me something to do besides peek-a-boo 24/7, I could hold him and still be in touch with the outside world. That was 4 years ago, it's sat on my dresser for 2 years now. I could check email, or get on a forum but it was small enough it was just like texting, I did think a little bit bigger would be nice but just another inch or two. I didn't have any music on it at all, the only movie on it was a Barney movie. That was worth it, but at the time and under the circumstances. I don't need it, don't want it, don't want the iPad either, it's not me. I may grab it to check the weather or peek at my auctions, or maybe to wait at a dr. appt, but seriously don't need this thing. I don't mind the touch screen if it's sensitive, I always use my real keypad on my phone though and it has both touch and buttons. I could text accurately on the ipod but not on the touchscreen on my phone but the iPad is too big to hold like that to type.

Danz, the APP that the kids installed had something to do with dunking Oreo cookies. You had to sort of slash them with your finger and hope they land in the milk, or maybe you don't want them to land in the milk, I don't know I'm just not a game person. The charges were for tokens to do something special within the APP, the actual APP was free but then it pops up this stuff to purchase the tokens. It's downright mean, I think they make it trick you on purpose. I can see where an adult wouldn't have known let alone a child. I contacted APPLE and they are supposed to respond within 24 hours but I still haven't heard from them. I hope your got your water problem fixed by now. You really don't want hot water leaking it'll make your electric bill high. I know what you are saying about being expected to fix things, sometimes I wish I had played stupid. Not really, but you know what I mean. That's so sweet about the needlework, you will treasure that thread for sure.

Once I used a tincture on myself and the instructions said to hold under the tongue and it burned me. Needless to say I wouldn't do it again that way, I would dilute it. I wouldn't put a tincture in a chickens nostrils because I would think that the alcohol would seriously sting. I'm just assuming that inside of a chickens nostrils is a mucous membrane like in people. I think the tea would be perfectly safe, as well as essential oils diluted in water or a carrier oil.

Cherwill, we have boxes of just keepsakes. You can't put out everything and I would think they would understand too.

 

[chicken danz]

I'm getting ready to go to the post office to pick up my new chicks. Holy egg layers! How can I be excited when I already have a couple hundred chicks running around in the brooder?? I am truly nuts!! I should be on the road but I had to have some coffee first.
Mammahen and Maidenwolf I think the tincture for the chickens is based in corn oil to make it more soothing to the chickens nostrils and make it more palatable since they will be swallowing some.
Josie Yep I got the top load LG waveforce big one. That is the one I have been wanting. Woot! I am still excited. The part I will hate it sitting down reading the instruction book. I am a hands on person and hate trying to read how to do things.
You know I would love to come play Grandma. I did notice your MIL seemed less than excited when I was in the clinic. Maybe she'll change once baby is here. Is your Mom going to fly down to visit for a little while after the birth?? I haven't looked at your baby register yet. I need to. Have you chosen bedding or are you waiting to see what sex the baby is? You really have saved a fortune on baby items. I think it is so much more practical to buy gently used than spend a fortune on new stuff.
I am a bit germ-phobic but I did go to garage sales back when I was having my boys. I lived in Okla City then. I would go to the sales in the upper crust parts of town and brought home hoards of new baby clothing with the tags still on them that had never been worn. I saved a bunch and had very nicely dressed kids. I also hit the semi-annual clearance sales in the exclusive baby shops. I got some very nice very expensive things for less than the Walmart brand. We had a carter's outlet as well and I bought tons of things there. I always like the little once piece jumpsuits for them once they got to crawling or walking. They had those snap legs and were the easiest things to get them dressed in aside from being very practical.
I know a guy that wants some call ducks. PM me and let me know a price and I will email him. He won't want to pay too much for them I am sure so if they are show type he won't be interested.
Mammahen just let me know and I will keep you a barred rock boy. These are some really nice birds. I just can't use 20 boys! Actually I have no idea how many I have cause many are still young.
Did you think maybe you could sell the Ipad since it is new and use the money for something you really want. Would your DH be upset?
I think it is great you are going hunting with your son. I used to go fishing with my middle son. It was a great time to spend with him. Of course after he got about 16-17 he found a fishing buddy and no longer wanted me along but I value that time. It's the only time in my life I have actually paid for a fishing license.
Well Poop I've got to go pick up those chicks.

 

[Kansas Prairie]

Then I got an exersaucer, two play mats and a free boppy from a lady! I spent like 1/4 of what all the items would have retailed for. I am so excited. I hate to register for items that cost $60 and I can buy them gently used for $10! Plus we need so much that I would like to make some room on our registry for items we really need help buying.

We had an exersaucer for my youngest, we loved it and called it a poopAsaucer, when he got in it he would get very active and..... poop! If he got fussy with a tummy ache, we'd put them in the poopAsaucer and taadaaa! My friends had similar experiences/ benefits with their babies in exersaucers! He loved being up in it where he could see what his sisters were doing.

TRISH,
Glad you were able to conquer that project. I get myself into some of those projects.

Mommahen
I hope your deer hunting goes well!

Danz,
My son slept many nights in his sister's pink hand-me-downs. I knew it was clean, comfortable and where it had been and to me that was safer than buying from strangers, have a little bit of germaphob too. He didn't know or care and it sure didn't scar him as he is 110% boy! I did get some great deals at some garage sales, but we live in rural area so great garage sales aren't abundant.
More chicks????

Where do you get them? I want to get some black australorps pullets soon!

 

[ImaFarmerNow]

My class is hatching eggs for mommahen10. We candled yesterday on day 16. I'm new at candling and the kids took the pics so neither of us did the best job in the world, but it was pretty amazing. We removed the unfertlized eggs so they won't explode. One class was lucky enough to see a baby splay his toes out and open and close it's beak! We're all excited. We started late afternoon on a Tuesday, so next Tues and Wed we should have chickies! We have 34 viable eggs, so we are hopeful that we will have a great hatch for mommahen and her family. We are honored to be able to share this experience and learning. Many of my kiddos are from big cities and only know food comes from McDonald's. It's a whole new world for them.

 

[maidenwolfx80]

My class is hatching eggs for mommahen10. We candled yesterday on day 16. I'm new at candling and the kids took the pics so neither of us did the best job in the world, but it was pretty amazing. We removed the unfertlized eggs so they won't explode. One class was lucky enough to see a baby splay his toes out and open and close it's beak! We're all excited. We started late afternoon on a Tuesday, so next Tues and Wed we should have chickies! We have 34 viable eggs, so we are hopeful that we will have a great hatch for mommahen and her family. We are honored to be able to share this experience and learning. Many of my kiddos are from big cities and only know food comes from McDonald's. It's a whole new world for them.

That is wonderful! Welcome to BYC. You can get any question answered here. It is so nice to be able to share the experience with kids who like you said thinks food comes from a fast food window. I think it would be exciting if schools would teach kids about where their food comes from, some will never know. Good luck with the hatch.

I read through the next couple posts. If I were you I would medicate all the birds with duramycin. I haven't heard about the absorption thing but it is better than nothing. I would treat them for at least 5 days. If they aren't starting to respond in a day or two you may need to buy something else to try. I would keep up with homemade herbal stuff to help them stay clear and breath easier. You could soak feed in warm water to encourage them to eat. For some reason chickens really like sloppy. water logged feed, it is a big treat. We are planning on butchering this Sunday so I will send you a PM.

I think I will medicate with antibiotic to the really bad ones and treat with herbal preventative to everyone else. I really dont want to medicate with antibiotic to the ones who dont need it. I hope it works this way anyway. I give mine a treat of "mash" every week sometimes more, they love it, sometimes I use yogurt and soometimes I use a tea with lavender and give them that warmed on a cold day. I add oats to it sometimes, I like to spoil them. I also use this method to give antibiots to the ones who snub their beaks at the thought of taking medicine. Just let me know about the chickens,, pm me or text me. Thank you by the way.

Keep up with the treatment. Maybe Josie will check in and she can suggest something that might work. Anything is better than nothing. Our good vaporizer just died and we have a crap one I am using for this sick chick. Maybe the herbal stuff will work if the duramycin doesn't but you need to at least try. I believe in herbal remedies more anyway myself.
Do you have any golden seal root? I had pneumonia really bad once and all the antibiotics and steroids wouldn't clear it. I took golden seal root and within a week it was cleared. I had fought it for over 3 months using normal prescriptions. Also if you have any cayenne pepper or garlic they both might help.

I would rather treat naturally in any situation. Oh yea goldenseal root is in the tea, it is a wonderful herb. The combo I have made is seeming to be a hit they drink it before the regular water, so today I am making 2 gallons of it to put out and a bunch in the fridge. Gonna need to buy more herbs. The really bad off roo is not clogged up this morning and his eyes are not swollen, he still has a runny nose but he looks alittle better. I hope this herbal treatment works.


The tinctures used for putting in sensitive areas are diluted in a carrier, I use something light like safflower oil. The straight essential oils I dilute some in that oil some straight and they are easier to use for dropping in noses or ears etc.

 

[chicken danz]

I have 50 noisy, hungry and thirsty chicks. I couldn't believe every one of them arrived in perfect condition in this weather.
I had just one package of chick saver on hand. I went to the cabinet to pull out my bin of chick meds and knocked a bottle of betadine on the floor. Plastic bottle but the cap broke and the entire bathroom floor was covered. I had on a new pair of jeans for a change so those and my shoes are in the washer. I sure hope that stuff comes out. I will be really upset if I ruined a pair of jeans. I cleaned the floor with bleach but I fear that the grout will be permanently stained. I have the fan going but the bleach smell is burning my eyes.
I also got another dozen eggs that were shipped on Monday. Nothing like late priority mail. I suppose with the holidays I should expect that. I haven't opened the box yet. Almost afraid to. These are some more white Orp eggs. I won't be ordering any more eggs for a while now. No sense pressing my luck. I should about have all I need other than some cream legbar eggs I'll get later for some replacements. I should be sitting pretty good unless I have some great losses.
I have ton to do today. I need to get that pen finished for the new peafowl and then build more pens for the turkeys. I have to line the sides where the wild turkeys will be or they will tear themselves up. Hopefully it will warm up soon. I need to do some more cleaning in the brooder as well.
This is going to be a busy weekend. Somehow I lost a day this week so now I feel behind. No wonder I was feeling good about my progress. I have to run eggs to town again today as well.
Kansas Prairie, I ordered them from Welp hatchery. I am supposed to be a retailer for them but the owner has never sent me back the go-ahead. It's almost like he doesn't believe I am going to resale the ones I order for other people. It wasn't much of a savings anyway. Maybe 20-30 cents per bird. I have been impressed so far with the birds I have gotten from them though. But these are for me so I guess that wouldn't count any way. They don't have Austrolop but Ideal poultry does and they should be available. You won't get show quality birds from these but that doesn't mean they are all junk birds either. Both of these hatcheries and most others for that matter contract out to breeders to hatch birds for them. The only lousy birds I have gotten from them have been from overstock that didn't sell. You get a cheaper price for a reason. The nice thing about these two hatcheries is the low amount you can buy at one time.
These I got today and going to be my egg layers and my future egg layer breeders....God willing...so I don't care about quality much.
ImaFarmerNow, I love seeing projects like that go on in school. That's awesome.
Woot! just got an email that my washer is in Topeka ready to be picked up.

 

[Hawkeye95]

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!

Welcome! I've had no loses so far-- BUT that is because no one is free ranging right now, either. The hawks have been BAD. We also have coyote and I lost a turkey this summer to a coyote.

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!
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!
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!

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!

That is exactly why I quarantine for 3 weeks-- something will pop up on that 3rd week! They will look totally fine for the first 2! Glad your roofers got you all sorted out! Can't wait to see what you're having!

Mommahen, I would be fuming over the app charge too. It makes me all the more glad we don't have a data plan and don't have to worry about apps being accidentally downloaded. I've never really figured out what you would do with an iPad. I remember a few years ago when tablets came out and I asked my DH what they are for and he listed all the things you can do on them and it just didn't seem to me like you can do anything on them that you can't do on another device. Honestly, they seem like kind of a waste to me. Too small to be comfortable to use as my main computer, too big to carry around in a pocket or purse. You can't make calls on them, so they can't replace a cell phone. My FIL has one and he likes to view photos on it but to me its a pretty expensive photo-viewer, and I think that's about all he does on it. When it comes down to it, I just don't like touch screens. The phone I've been using for years has both a touch screen and a key pad and I wouldn't want it any other way because touchscreens seem to always quit working at some point. My last phone, the touch screen quit working and I was able to keep using the phone for another year because I could do every function with the keypad. But so many of the "modern" phones have only a touchscreen, so when it quits working, the phone is useless. I was reading an article just the other day about how the average "life" of a phone today is 18 months. Since most companies make you sign a 2-year contract before they'll give you a discount on a phone, that means you're still paying on the contract for 6 months after the phone dies. Crazy. That's why I just buy all of mine unlocked off eBay and that way I don't have to have a contract.

The forecast here is for 71 on Sunday. In December. Scary. I don't mind the warm temperatures - I just want some rain to come along with them. We keep watching the water level on our pond recede and recede and worry about it freezing solid if we have really cold temps this winter, since the water level is already so low. That would be devastating to the fish, frogs and water birds that rely on it.

My Dh and I have discussed the iPad, but have decided we can't figure out what we'd use it for. I have a nice slim laptop that I can easily take anywhere. It has a full sized keyboard on it, and I can take it with me to the coffee shop if i wish. But usually, I just take my Kindle and iTouch (MP3 player). I also do have a Smart phone that has internet and when I'm away from the house, I can read my email, check the internet and it has GPS. I don't need another "toy", I think I'm all covered. I use my Kindle, phone and iTouch constantly! And of course, I'm on my laptop alllll the time. I think the iPad and similar devices are more toys or status symbols than anything else. *shrug*

I need to medicate my birds. I have sneezing, coughing and runny noses in 3 of my birds. I have duramycin, I am not sure how long the withholding on eggs is or if I should just treat the sick ones individually.??

Read thru your posts and your birds are VERY ill. When we talk about using VetRX instead of meds-- it's usually because of a sneeze or a bit of congestion with NO other symptoms-- no discharge from eyes or nose. You have a very serious illness going on right now. If Duramycin is the only drug you have, I would use it on EVERYone. Not just the effected ones. Disease is transported by feather dander, sneezing, head shaking, poop, water, food and on and on... BTW, Duramycin is one of the least effective drugs, so don't worry about having them overdosed or drugging them with it. That drug binds to calcium in the body and by the time they get the effects, it has only about 1/2 power of the original drug. Once, when I was so worried about some birds I had shipped in and I had nothing else on hand-- I had started them on the Duramycin. After 3 days and NO change, I doubled the dosage keeping in mind that it could be binding with their food (which has calcium in it). (keep in mind, that was only a guess I was making) Only then did it start to make an impact, but even then, not enough to save them, I didn't believe. I finally had to to the vet and pick up a vial of Baytril and inject them for 5 days. Finally, they turned around. Baytril can cross the membrane of the brain, so if they have something that is that serious, it's about the only drug (for chickens) that will do that. I now keep Tetroxy, OxyTet, Denagard, baytril, penicillin, VetRX, Probiotic powder and a few other things on hand for poultry emergencies. Having said that-- I have NEVER had a bird have bubbles of mucus coming from their eyes or nose. That is far beyond what I've considered serious in my flock. My idea of serious is lethargy, sneezing, head shaking, and when you listen to their back/lings, an obvious upper respiratory congestion with some crackling.

OH DEAR ME!! I just went into the bathroom and found water running on the floor. I checked and it is coming from where the hot water hooks to the sink. The connection is tight and I have no idea how to fix it off hand. Figures! I suppose I could figure it out if I wanted to lay on my back upside down in a wet cabinet. Why is DH never here when I need stuff like this done? Some times I hate the fact I had to learn to do every thing because now it is just expected that I fix stuff. I don't have time for this right now!!! Maybe I'll just throw a towel down and turn a space heater on to dry it out some and hope that he will fix it when he gets home.
My sister wrote me last night and said my Dad found my Mom's embroidery threads. I am supposed to pick them up Saturday when we move him. I am very excited. I have a huge collection of projects to do when I find time and my Mom had a big lot of thread. It brings back memories of time we spent together. When I had a double spinal surgery on my back and neck at the same time my Mom came out and cared for me. We spent many days doing needlework together. She taught me how to needlepoint which is my winter passion now- even though I never find time to do it any more. The whole idea makes me smile and tear up at the same time. Now it will be that much more rewarding just because I know it is something we spent lots of time doing together.
I have so much arthritis in my hands I can't do needlework for long but find it very relaxing. Makes me want to get more work done for housing birds just so I have time to do something like that again.

oh no! Another water problem! And why does it always have to happen in winter? So sorry! I sure hope it gets fixed fast for you. So neat about the embroidery floss your Dad found! I like to knit in the winter. I never got into embroidery, but I can see how that would be an awful lot of fun, too! I just like to knit and make things my kids can wear. I made my youngest cute little dresses, jackets and sweaters. I've made the boys jackets. It is relaxing, for sure, especially when you really don't have anything else going on and you can sit and enjoy.

Welcome to our newest person! As to preditors someone once told me prevention prevention prevention! It really works. Not always but it does help. I have a chicken house with an attached pen that is covered and preditor proof. When I let them out they free range. I loose some to foxes, dogs and coons mostly. Never had a hawk or owl. I dont think the owls get me cause the birds are locked in and secure at night. I have some big black snakes but I keep my eggs picked up. I dont think I loose eggs to them but I do enjoy the fact that they are in the coop eating mice. I think some of our people have dogs that do a good job of protection the chickens etc. I try to live in the country with the country. If I have heavy fox action I try to change the schedule the birds are free ranging or reduce it. Just some of my thoughts.

I'm of the same thought-- which is why I don't want the guard dogs. More mouths to feed when I already have horses killing the monthly bill. Secure pens and coops can take the place of dogs.

Oh also.. On the sick chickens the eyes are swollen and have bubbles coming out, what does that mean? The mucus coming out of teh nose it not clear it is thick and alittle off creamy looking. My poor birds it seems every day there is another with these symptoms. Anybody have any advice?

Medicate them all! And do it quickly! Good luck!!! I sure hope they feel better.

My class is hatching eggs for mommahen10. We candled yesterday on day 16. I'm new at candling and the kids took the pics so neither of us did the best job in the world, but it was pretty amazing. We removed the unfertlized eggs so they won't explode. One class was lucky enough to see a baby splay his toes out and open and close it's beak! We're all excited. We started late afternoon on a Tuesday, so next Tues and Wed we should have chickies! We have 34 viable eggs, so we are hopeful that we will have a great hatch for mommahen and her family. We are honored to be able to share this experience and learning. Many of my kiddos are from big cities and only know food comes from McDonald's. It's a whole new world for them.

WELCOME to the Kansas thread and welcome to BYC!!!

Very neat to see the babies swimming in there! I never get tired of it!

Looks like i'm behind again. I'm going to fluff around today a bit. I need to do a lot of laundry, but otherwise, I'm going to get my grain put out for the horses and do all of my cleaning/refilling for the chickens and call it a day. I have a GNO (girls night out) tonight and I want to get my hair set up so it has plenty of time to dry. I guess it won't be much of a fluff day with all the laundry I plan on doing. But at least i'm not running errands or going anywhere.