Consolidated Kansas

[sunflowerparrot]

Soooo sorry they are dying! Wow! I have never heard of Rainbow birds. I hope your CA Whites do much better! Never heard of them either! But I'm not keeping track of all the crosses people are making-- there are sooo many of them! I hate this weather too! I hope you get your tractor done. How are you thinking of making it? I love the hoop coop idea. I went and saw HeChicken's in person and her's is amazing! LOVE it!! It looks super cheap to build, too!

Hawkeye - the plan is to build the tractor on skids with just simple framing using two by fours... Then covering about 1/3 of the top/back/sides with leftover materials from the metal building we have here. - that will keep it lightweight compared to using wood for the 1/3 section (that will give them a sheltered area from rain, sun, etc.). I have tons of hardware wire that I really need to use.. so I will use all that on the other sides and top. I plan on putting a ring on one end so I can wrap a chain around it from the outside and just pull it throughout my field using the 4-wheeler.

My friend who raises hundreds and hundreds of these broilers yearly has made her pen out of old recycled swimming pool tin! It's really lightweight too. She keeps hers just out in the middle of all her fields and "hopes for the best" - she did have a problem last year with coons or something pulling chicks out from under her pen. I'm hoping with my pen being inside my electric fence and with the 2 dogs patrolling, they'll be safe from predators. (Sam is an amazing LGD - not much gets past him and he is out all night long patrolling and barking. I watched him last night as he just stood down near the fence line - he was so poised and awesome while barking - my little Holly girl (3 months old) just stood by him like "Hey dude.. I got your back!" lol

 

[chicken danz]

Hechicken, yes this would absolutely work with chicken. I had mashed potatoes and gravy (the gravy made from the broth of a brined turkey is awesome tasting. Flavored just right.) We had mixed veggies and I had cranberry sauce. I love cranberry sauce so it gave me an excuse to have some. DH doesn't care for it so I had it all to myself!!!!
I normally make dressing when I have turkey but since it wasn't a holiday meal or anything I skipped it.
I have quite a bit of turkey left over. I'm trying to decide whether to freeze it or make something else out of it.
I don't feel good but don't want to go sit in the doctor's office. I normally just flush my nostrils with salt water to clear an infection. I think a lot of my medical problems are the result of being given high doses of antibiotics when I was younger. So unless I get bronchitis I just try to treat myself. Besides it is cheaper!! A few days of feeling like crap might convince me to go however!!

I am actually kind of enjoying being inside for a change instead of being outside working. But the birds will still need feed and water so eventually I'll have to get out there.

 

[checoukan]

Dont' you just love march weather?

We slipped by with some snow, but not much over 2 inches I think, course it was melting as it fell too.

Someone was talking about "Rainbow Chickens". The only rainbow that I know of are from a small hatchery in Georgia I believe. These birds were bred to be a meat chicken. We did get some of them one year when we ordered our "Red Rangers" for the kids and the broiler project. They do get to be a large meat bird, but, I still like to raise the white cornish crosses for my broilers. They are so much more easier to pluck. Im thinking that I seen some red rangers in one of the hatchery catalogs. Yes, Yes, I get those catalogs too, and I love to look thru them. Nice way to send a cold winter's day.

Danz~~ sounds like you have what I had, took me almost 2 months to clear up from it. I also went thru two rounds of antibiotics, and finally shook it. It was awful!.

I am a little confused as to why so many of the chicks are dying. I am wondering if the feed is not right. Course, the weather is not the best right now, but that should not be bothering the chicks that much. I would make sure if you buy any more chicks to get the chick probiotic packets, I know I seen them at tractor supply, mix, makes a gel, and feed the babies that, they usually eat that gel real fast. Make sure you disinfect your chick areas with a virus-cide like oxine, or tek-trol. If babies have died, and you get new ones, and didn't clean that area with a virus-cide, you are asking for problems. I even spray tek-trol on my eggs before I put them into the incubator. Never had any problems with sick chicks.

I was just thinking, if you are buying chick starter, be sure that you check the date of manufacture. I seen some feed that was almost 7 months out from manufacture. If it is a medicated feed, any meds that were in the feed would be gone. Yes, I DO feed a medicated starter, I think the chicks do better, course, may chicks are bred for show, but I do hatch and sell mixed babies for layers, and they get the same feed.

Oh, and

and Kansas thread to all newbie's, and the lurkers in the background. If you like to read this thread, please join, we would love to have you!!!

 

[sarajoy]

Quote: Okay, maybe they did have it and I just didn't notice the difference between the two sprays. in fact, I did notice there were two different prices on two different bottles, and thought I looked over the labels enough to see what it was for, that I would have noticed if one said gel - I did see a small bottle of "drops" rather than the spray. But really want the gel. So I'll look again, and as a last resort, ASK (grin)....

I have a special needs son who has always had psoriasis. For him what cleared it up was using whey (from my homemade kefir, drained off to make kefir cheese) as a last rinse after his shampoos. I'd add it in the shower, and let it run down over his body as it rinsed off. And no more psoriasis, as long as I do this at least once a week. Sara

 

[sarajoy]

http://naturalchickenkeeping.blogspot.com/2013/03/benefits-of-fermenting-feed-for.html?m=1

A great article on FF!

Is this feed mill in Thayer easy to find? Would love to find somewhere close to get organic feed!

Thanks RoosterLew - I'[ll look into the article as soon as I'm caught up here. Yes, the feed mill in Thayer is easy to find. It is visible from 169 - half a block east of there, I think on the main road through Thayer - but Thayer is to the west, the mill to the east. There is an agcoop of some kind about one block before the mill - also to the east. I don't have the phone number or address handy, but you can just do a search on feed mill and thayer and you'll find it. Price is great, too. And they also have feed mixes for other critters - goats, rabbits, etc. And will special mix with any grains and supplements you want. When caught up here, I'll got and look them up and paste the info here. They also mail to folks - but that would certainly up the price. But for anyone in SE Kansas, it might be worth a trip. In summer you can't order/purchase huge amounts at a time, as the B vitamins in there would become ineffective in high heat/storage. Unless you had a cool storage place to keep it. But last fall I got enough in one trip for my needs for the whole winter. If enough folks from one locale got together to buy, could take turns making the trip once a month or so. I know they do deliver LARGE amounts to folks who use a lot, but I'm sure there is a price tag on that as well. Sara

 

[sunflowerparrot]

Someone was talking about "Rainbow Chickens". The only rainbow that I know of are from a small hatchery in Georgia I believe. These birds were bred to be a meat chicken.

checoukan - it was me that mentioned the rainbow chicken. According to the hatchery, they are a dual bird - hens are layers and roos are meat.

Here is their description: "The Rainbow is a dual purpose bird. It has one of the most unique feather color patterns you will ever see. It has every color you can imagine - no two birds look alike! Buy them as egg layers as well as for the meat! The hens lay large brown eggs. The males reach market weight around 12 weeks (approximately 5 lbs. live weight)."

Here is the link to their information with a photo of the bird too: http://hoovershatchery.com/rainbow-1.html

I will say that the ones that have survived, I believe 2 are roos - they are very large compared to the same chicks that were delivered with them (various other breeds). Those 2 will get butchered with my broilers in June.

 

[sarajoy]

Quote: I got them through the Kansas Forestry Service. They sell bundles, of 20 or 25 different trees for about a dollar a tree. They have a variety of evergreens, and others - I got some lilacs and some mulberries as well, and my pecans. Just do a search on Kansas Forestry Service and look for their trees for sale pages. Most of mine were healthy and have made it, though my pecans have struggled. Another time I'd get potted ones - which are for sale I believe in the autumn. Sara

 

[Hawkeye95]

Well said Deerfield. It would have taken me an hour to write all that! I am on this whole campaign myself to raise top notch rare and heritage birds but I still have some hatchery quality birds for laying and such. I have to maintain some common stock for layers just for the locals who don't see the value in a heritage breed.
I guess it all depends on your long term goals.
As far as LGDs go it is all a matter of breeding. I definitely can't recommend a cross bred dog for chickens. When you get different traits in there is when you have problems. A good LGD is invaluable. But you can't pen one up in a tiny pen with a group of chickens and expect it not to get bored. They are bred to protect a larger area.
So here is my recipe for brining turkey for anyone who wants to try it. It works great.
Ingredients

• water and ice (see instructions)
• 1 cup kosher salt
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 cup apple cider vinegar
• 2 tablespoons sage
• 2 tablespoons thyme
• 2 tablespoons rosemary
• 1 tablespoon pepper
• 4 cups ice
• Remove giblets and neck from the cavity if it is a store purchased turkey . Do not buy a kosher turkey or self basting turkey because these will make your turkey too salty.

Instructions

1. Bring 4 cups of water to a simmering boil. Add salt and sugar. Stir until the sugar has completely dissolved. Turn off the heat. Stir in 8 cups ice water, apple cider vinegar, sage, thyme, rosemary, pepper, and ice. The brine is ready to be used.
2. Rinse the outside and inside of a thawed turkey. Empty and clean out the bottom drawer of your refrigerator. Put a large size oven roaster bag in the drawer. Put the turkey in the bag and fill the bag with the brine water. Allow the turkey to marinate for 12 to 24 hours. I turn mine over about half way through so all the meat gets a good soaking. Rinse turkey inside and out before preparing to cook as you normally would. You can if you prefer use the same bag that you brined in for roasting. I bake my turkeys at 325 degrees about 1/2 hour per pound. I don't really like using the oven bags for roasting but they work fine if that is what you are used to.
3. Note: The sugar and the vinegar do not flavor the turkey. These are there to break down the fibers so the turkey is moister and more tender. I think unless you desire the flavor of the spices you can easily use half this amount of sage, thyme, and rosemary.

On another note I am very excited. I have geese pipped and making little goosey sounds in the hatcher. Wish me luck!!

Sounds really good!!! Yay on your geese! I want pics when they are dry! (or wet) haha

I also had a skunk visit one night a couple of weeks ago. It sprayed my chicken yard gate (and the dogs who much have been on the other side of the gate barking at it). Ewww. But, no harm done.



Deerfield gave you a ton of great information and I would not take it lightly as she has learned much of it the hard way. I also subscribe to a blog written by a lady who pooh-poohs the whole idea of "free range", stating that in her opinion, confinement is better because it concentrates the fertilizer into an area where it can then be used on her farm. She finds the idea of birds wandering around freely to contribute to their being "unthrifty". Personally I like my birds to have access to greenery since it makes their eggs more nutritious (and I get more than enough poop from the coop they sleep in at night) so I continue to free-range but it is good to hear other opinions too. In the end, we all have to do what we feel is best for our own situation. What works for Danz or Deerfield or me, may not work for your situation.

Good luck and I hope I've helped a little....

Poor skunked dogs! I agree-- I loved Deerfield's advice.

With my EE with the bumblefoot back a year and a half ago, I was using the regular liquid wound and infection care stuff. I probably would not have tried it that way (spraying feet on the roost just before the lights went out) but I had left my poor DH to deal with the problem when i went out to my daughters for a week (in Reno). He didn't want to soak her feet every night in the Tricide Neo I had been using for a week, so he tried the Vetericyn. It was amazing how well it worked. By the time I was back, she was walking normally, and I used it off an on all last summer. As of right now, there is no sign of infection in either of her feet.

Sounds like great stuff! Of all the things I have on hand, that isn't one of them. May have to change that.

I can see the benefits of having the good heritage birds for breeding definitely & in fact that is what I have been working on myself. I'm also excited to get the new Speckled Sussex chicks, I can't wait! I don't know if I would go so far as to say you should just get them for your laying flock.
Absolutely! I think Danz is right, I don't think anyone wants to bash hatchery birds or sound like a chicken snob! The hatchery birds are bred to be the better layers. Which is why they are mixed! If you're in the egg business, or just want a reliable egg source-- they are the way to go! But if you're breeding them to sell, or thinking about showing, people should realize there is a difference between birds.

It's so cold here today, the mud is frozen solid on the ground. The sun is trying to come out so I hope it succeeds & warms it up out there. I went out to let the little goats out of their shelter & I'm cutting the little one's bottles back to once a day now & she really wasn't happy with me. She was bumping my legs & jumping up on me looking for that morning bottle. When she saw she wasn't getting one though she went right for the feed bowl & started on the feed I brought them. I do enjoy bottle feeding her, but she will be 8 weeks old this week & I think she is old enough to wean her soon. I thought maybe she would do better getting a night bottle, that way it would hold her over till morning with a full tummy. I have been trying to get the dogs used to having the goats here & the goats used to the dogs too. I haven't let them go in the pen with them yet because I didn't want them to spook them & I'm not sure how they will do yet. I will start soon letting them go in with me when I'm in there. I was pleased that they did go investigate one day when I was out feeding the birds & Penny was bleating loudly, they ran over to see what was wrong with her. At least I know if something did go after them that they would go to their rescue.
How old should they be when they are weaned? I would have thought 8 weeks was too soon, but I'm no goat expert! ha! I just know when we were foaling horses, they nurse for several months! Up to a year if you have a brood mare that isn't too worried about kicking them off. I hope the dogs take to your goats really well. It would be nice if they ended up having a great relationship with each other!


My birds are doing pretty well now I think. I didn't hear much when I went out to let them out this morning & the one little lavender Orp hen is doing lots better. I really was thinking I might lose her because she just wasn't doing well. I hate losing birds, especially my beautiful roosters that were my flock protectors, but I guess you just have to look at it as part of having chickens & the strongest survive type of attitude. They do build up some immunity from having an illness just like we do, so next time maybe they won't get sick so easily. I can't wait for warmer weather so they don't have to go through such extremes of weather at least for a little while. I sure hope we don't have another scorcher of a summer like we did last year.
What a relief that they are feeling better!! I think my lone sick silkie is doing pretty good now. It's time to put her back out with her flock. I know she'll be thrilled to be with all her friends again. They miss each other! When I put her in a while back, everyone ran over to her and talked to her to make sure she was okay. Then they went about her business. I'm sure once I get her back out later, they'll all be asking her where she went!

I am still sick with this sinus infection. DH told me to go to the doctor today cause I was sneezing and coughing last night and driving him nuts. Believe me I was more miserable than he was!!!

I hope some of you newer people don't think we are chicken snobs. There is nothing wrong with a group of chicks regardless of breeding, for eggs or companions.
X2

My attitudes changed because I was loosing money breeding just normal hatchery stock. But then I got into admiring and appreciating the awesome quality of the true pure bred birds.
That being said, many of the rare and highly sought after birds are conceived by selective breeding to get colors or other traits. There is nothing wrong with that as long as it is done with the breeding ending with particular standards in mind. And of course as long as someone is still trying to maintain birds of the original type.
My passion for Breda fowl is one of these examples. It is said that they have been used to make many of the modern breeds of chicken. So much so, that the original bird became extinct in the U.S. back in the 19th century.
I feel privileged to be able to own an ancient breed. By the same token the Swedish flower hens and many of the other new imports were bred by crossing various breeds either naturally or via a breeding program. And the Aloha program is another example.
I've found that the old barnyard mix birds turn out to be the hardiest and strongest birds so there are good sides to both.
My point is to make sure you all understand almost all of us have some of these less than perfect birds and we love them as much as the expensive birds.

Danz, I love your method for brining. I don't have a turkey but I just pulled a chicken out of the freezer who is almost the size of a MW and when he is defrosted I plan on trying that. What else did you have with your meal after it was cooked? I'm thinking maybe mashed potatoes and some kind of vegetable?

Oh Trish, I DID have problems with birds sitting on the door and that was the main reason I built the chunnel. I was also concerened about the winds and the chunnel fixed both problems at once.

Let us know how the brine goes for your chicken!

Hawkeye - the plan is to build the tractor on skids with just simple framing using two by fours... Then covering about 1/3 of the top/back/sides with leftover materials from the metal building we have here. - that will keep it lightweight compared to using wood for the 1/3 section (that will give them a sheltered area from rain, sun, etc.). I have tons of hardware wire that I really need to use.. so I will use all that on the other sides and top. I plan on putting a ring on one end so I can wrap a chain around it from the outside and just pull it throughout my field using the 4-wheeler.

My friend who raises hundreds and hundreds of these broilers yearly has made her pen out of old recycled swimming pool tin! It's really lightweight too. She keeps hers just out in the middle of all her fields and "hopes for the best" - she did have a problem last year with coons or something pulling chicks out from under her pen. I'm hoping with my pen being inside my electric fence and with the 2 dogs patrolling, they'll be safe from predators. (Sam is an amazing LGD - not much gets past him and he is out all night long patrolling and barking. I watched him last night as he just stood down near the fence line - he was so poised and awesome while barking - my little Holly girl (3 months old) just stood by him like "Hey dude.. I got your back!" lol

It sounds great!! I think that is a brilliant idea and I bet the dogs will keep the predators away, especially since they will all be in the electric fence. I bet you'll be fine. I'd love to see a picture when you get it done. Are you thinking of a triangle?? I like the idea of using the metal left overs. So glad that Sam is working out so well for you.

Hechicken, yes this would absolutely work with chicken. I had mashed potatoes and gravy (the gravy made from the broth of a brined turkey is awesome tasting. Flavored just right.) We had mixed veggies and I had cranberry sauce. I love cranberry sauce so it gave me an excuse to have some. DH doesn't care for it so I had it all to myself!!!!

mmmmm... it all sounds so good!! I love green beans, so I would have it all with heaps of green beans!

 

[sarajoy]

Quote: Thank you Chickendanz! This sounds like something I need to try! Sara

 

[chicken danz]

Goats can easily be weaned by 8 weeks or if you let them they'll nurse until a year if the mother doesn't get bred back. No reason to keep giving them milk once they are eating well. Most of mine were eating pretty good by about 4 weeks old. I never forced the mother's to wean them but often times they would get tired of having their utter butted by the kids so they'd wean them early.
I've not accomplished a thing today. My sister called and talked for over an hour. I really need to get out and get the feeding done.
No geese hatched yet but they are still making noise. It makes me an nervous wreck. One egg isn't pipped yet. I sure hope it does. I love these little guys.
I need to set a bunch of eggs that I don't have in the incubators yet. They sure collect quickly once laying season begins.