Consolidated Kansas

[maidenwolfx80]

Danz- I saw that info too after I looked it up again. I love learning and reading things. I soak up the info.

HEChicken- Nature does such a wonderful job at disguising itself. But I agree the prickly leaves are a menace.

 

[HEChicken]

So I have heard of "Horse Whisperers", The "Dog Whisperer" & then there was Kevin Costner "Dances with Wolves"....
We alreeady have Chicken Danz...

So HEChicken is here by dubbed "Dances with Sheep"

I am going to kill my keets X( they are huge and they wont shut up X( I'm not getting any sleep

Maybe its time to move them outside?

HEChicken- Nature does such a wonderful job at disguising itself. But I agree the prickly leaves are a menace.

maidenwolf, I take it back - I think maybe that is the compass plant. I have one that always grows in a corner where there is concrete and I've never been able to get it pulled by the root. This year I let it go and noticed this morning that it is starting to form a yellow flower. What I don't understand is that the info says it is a good livestock food, but neither my chickens nor the sheep seem interested in eating it.

 

[chicken danz]

Rooster I had worked all that through my head actually. But I figured it would freeze unless I had such a powerful pump that it would tend to splash the water. I did buy valves and lines to put in my peacock house but didn't get them installed. I hadn't planned it to run in a full loop though. I had thought about wrapping it with heat tape but then insulating the pipe would be difficult because they would pick at foam or anything similar.
I do have a fountain that I bought at an auction. I am thinking of reworking it so the turkeys can drink the falling water. It would have to be dumped every day though because they would be standing in it.
I do have a few pond pumps because I built decorative ponds as a side business for years.
So if I had a tank for water storage and a pump hooked to a pipe that ran full circle back, went through a filter then to the tank; I could drill like 1 inch holes every now and then in the top to keep excess dirt and poo from entering. It wouldn't be falling water like they like but at least it would be moving. If I ever build a poultry building that might be something to think about.
Polish pal guineas can be noisy. Mine are pretty quiet as long as it is just me here. But if anyone comes by it is deafening. They also yell if the wind blows or anything else they don't like. They are wonderful bug eaters though. I moved my babies out to the brooder house because they were too noisy in the house.
I have some peafowl hatching today. I hadn't even candled these eggs. Some are mine and some are purchased. So now I am trying to find the list of what her abbreviations meant so I know what they are. So far I have a silver pied that hatched and one other.

 

[cherwill]

Hey guys! Remember me? I've been reading and reading trying to catch up and I'm finally throwing in the towel for now. I was over 600 messages behind and I'm down to 222 to go. I know I didn't have to but finally had the time and so what the heck?

We've missed you! Sorry you've had such chaos; I hope things settle down. I'm also sorry about the bunny, but I'm glad you're enjoying the new one. I can't believe you're trying to read everything! If I get even 100 behind, I usually give up in despair.

Never mind, I found more info. Supposedly in Mexico they cook it up like scrambled eggs. It is called "caca de luna." (chuckle) It isn't harmful to animals or humans unless you are sensitive to its spores.

So far, the job is working out great down here and I'm liking OKC.
Okay, so today, I mowed the lawn and the mower made that horrible "chunk" sound when it hits flesh. I've been killing poor toads in my lawn left and right, so my heart was in my throat as I swung the mower around to see what I hit. But thankfully-- it was a snake. I felt bad about it for about 2 seconds and then continued on mowing thanking the fact that I didn't kill another toad! LOL!!!

Hope everyone is doing great!! If there is anything I need caught up on, let me know!!

BTW-- Lizzy, how are you feeling now?? Have you hit the phase where you're so tired you could sleep standing up??

Danz, hope you haven't fallen over your feet, a hose, a rock, or down a hole while I've been gone! Bwhahahahaha

edited to add-- HOLY HECK Sunflower... 85 birds butchered?? I just read up, geez, that's a lot of birds!

I'm glad you're happy in OKC.

Two years ago I mowed a snake, then sat on the mower crying through the rest of the yard.

The poor keet just died :'( its almost like she had a stroke? Her head would tip back and she would fall, and she couldn't stay focused. I am very confused on how she died because just yesterday she was a happy healthy keet. But my hearts broken because we tried so hard to help her.

That's too bad about your poor keet.

That's going to be one cute nursery!

Maidenwolf just got back in and looked up compass plant. Livestock love it and will eat it until it won't survive. Native Americans made a tea of the roots to treat all kinds of illnesses including asthma and breathing problems. They also used the sap from it to make a gum to freshen breath and brighten teeth. I've seen a lot of that growing around here ..often in the ditches.
It's so great to learn new things even at my age. I knew what it was called but hadn't ever read about it.
Another busy day here. Will it ever end?

Maybe I need to grow some. My asthma has been kicking up quite a bit this year. Last year I don't think I had a single attack, but this year has been a different story.

We've harvested radishes, beets, and a few rutabagas from the garden so far. Someone planted lettuce, spinach and snow peas, then abandoned their garden. The garden manager said we could pick anything we wanted. My aunt got a bunch of snow peas (DH doesn't like them, so I didn't take any) and we both got a bunch of lettuce. There's still lettuce there, but I'm not sure I can eat all I have before it goes bad. The spinach had bolted already, so we left it. Yesterday we picked peas and it was a bumper crop compared to previous years. My aunt and I split them, and I still spent over an hour last night watching The Voice and shelling peas!

 

[maidenwolfx80]

maidenwolf, I take it back - I think maybe that is the compass plant. I have one that always grows in a corner where there is concrete and I've never been able to get it pulled by the root. This year I let it go and noticed this morning that it is starting to form a yellow flower. What I don't understand is that the info says it is a good livestock food, but neither my chickens nor the sheep seem interested in eating it.

well maybe they have plenty of other tastier grasses to munch?! Maybe the sheep think its pretty. I know not all my chickens care for dandelion greens. I see some of the hens eating them and some hens would rather eat other things. Maybe its like that?

 

[TheDownyChick]

Danz, I like Rooster's idea for the flowing water. Wouldn't it be cool to have a stream or small river flowing right through your property?

I also was up early this morning. I woke and thought about going out and moving the sheep back to their pen before the chicken door opened. Once the thought was in my head, I couldn't go back to sleep, knowing if I slept and the door opened, they'd be back in the coop. So I went out and moved them and then of course I was too awake to go back to sleep anyway. Grrr. I can't wait until our fencing is in so I don't have to do this dance with them all the time. On the other hand, they're getting so much friendlier that handling them is easier than it was in the beginning so I guess that is good.

DownyChick, I can't remember your concerns with the chick in the photo? Probably you mentioned it in a previous post but I couldn't find it on the same page as the picture and with a slow connection, didn't want to go back several pages to find it. Is it that one of the toes is a little crooked, or is that just the way it appears in the photo?

Yes, she has crooked toes on one foot. That fooot seems weaker, too. I dont know why it did not post the text I typed with the photo. She is 3 weeks old. Is that too old to try to fix her footie? She seems to be able to do everything, and has hidden it well, but I just dont want it to be more trouble for her when she is older, especially if I can fix it now. Does anyone have any thoughts or ideas?

 

[sharol]

have you ever tried Sugar Snap peas? You eat the pods, but you wait for them to fill out to pick them. They look fat like regular peas, but the pods are as tasty as the seeds. That way you don't have to shell them. I do string them (like beans), but they are much easier to prepare and you get more bang for the buck. I plant them every year in a different place so that my garden can benefit from the nitrogen boost for the next year. Some years they thrive (like this year) and other years they don't do well, but it is worth the effort. We love them. Not so much snow peas -- don't like the little flat pods.

My aunt and I split them, and I still spent over an hour last night watching The Voice and shelling peas!

 

[chicken danz]

I quit growing peas years ago just because they take so long to pod out and I could buy them pretty cheap. I did grow sugar snap peas but I always shelled them. I just liked the super sweet peas that they had inside. I have eaten the unshelled ones in salad and in stir fry though. I was digging through papers and now I need a nap. That's what getting up too early will do for you. I've got too much to do though. I need to get some bills paid before I let them slip. That won't make me feel very happy for sure.

 

[HEChicken]

Yes, she has crooked toes on one foot. That fooot seems weaker, too. I dont know why it did not post the text I typed with the photo. She is 3 weeks old. Is that too old to try to fix her footie? She seems to be able to do everything, and has hidden it well, but I just dont want it to be more trouble for her when she is older, especially if I can fix it now. Does anyone have any thoughts or ideas?

If the toe is just facing backward a little but she is walking fine, I probably wouldn't worry too much about fixing it. I had one chick whose toes were so curled, it was literally hobbling along on its knuckles, and was NOT doing well. I made little cardboard "shoes" for it (just cut a piece of cardboard out of a cereal box, about the diameter of the chick's foot when the toes were spread out), then used vet wrap to attach them. After a few days, the shoes came off and I found the chick was now walking properly. That was when he was a few days old. He is now weeks old and to look at him, you'd never guess his toes were ever crooked. But in your case, if the toe is just facing back a little, I wouldn't worry. I know you said it seems weaker in that leg than the other, but I'm not sure there is much you can do about weakness.

 

[Trish44]

I am going to kill my keets X( they are huge and they wont shut up X( I'm not getting any sleep

Those keets grow fast, I have 4 in my brooder with my Frank's BR chicks & they have about outgrown the chicks in only a week. They're not going to get any quieter I can tell you that, guineas are the noisiest birds ever. They sure do eat ticks though, they have cleaned out the ticks around our house & where my pens are in the woods & that is great. We had so many ticks last year I could never go out without having several on me when I went in. Now I can actually go out & walk all around where my pens are & not get ticks on me.

Rooster I had worked all that through my head actually. But I figured it would freeze unless I had such a powerful pump that it would tend to splash the water. I did buy valves and lines to put in my peacock house but didn't get them installed. I hadn't planned it to run in a full loop though. I had thought about wrapping it with heat tape but then insulating the pipe would be difficult because they would pick at foam or anything similar.
I do have a fountain that I bought at an auction. I am thinking of reworking it so the turkeys can drink the falling water. It would have to be dumped every day though because they would be standing in it.
I do have a few pond pumps because I built decorative ponds as a side business for years.
So if I had a tank for water storage and a pump hooked to a pipe that ran full circle back, went through a filter then to the tank; I could drill like 1 inch holes every now and then in the top to keep excess dirt and poo from entering. It wouldn't be falling water like they like but at least it would be moving. If I ever build a poultry building that might be something to think about.
Polish pal guineas can be noisy. Mine are pretty quiet as long as it is just me here. But if anyone comes by it is deafening. They also yell if the wind blows or anything else they don't like. They are wonderful bug eaters though. I moved my babies out to the brooder house because they were too noisy in the house.
I have some peafowl hatching today. I hadn't even candled these eggs. Some are mine and some are purchased. So now I am trying to find the list of what her abbreviations meant so I know what they are. So far I have a silver pied that hatched and one other.

You all talking about moving water for the birds made me think about how it would be nice to have one of those fountains that bubble up out of the ground just for the birds. I did at one time have a stream coming down to a small pond by my driveway, but then my son dug me a bigger pond on top of the hill in the backyard & I got rid of the smaller one. Now I wish I had it back because the big one is too much trouble to care for any more. The dogs like playing in it when it's hot outside & they have pretty much made a mess of it. The goats & dogs have knocked a bunch of rocks into it & I disconnected the pump & filter a couple years ago because it was always leaking water around the falls.

I have been chasing my tail lately around here, it seems like there aren't enough hours in the day. We made a trip to Tulsa Sunday for the day to pick up my Cream Legbar eggs I wanted & it rained like crazy before we got out of there. The eggs made it home safely & I put them in the incubator last night along with a few of my own. It was worth the drive to not have to worry about the postal service scrambling my eggs for me.

It's been a muddy mess here to Danz, I get mud caked on my garden shoes every time I go out to the pens & I have to be careful & hold onto something so I don't fall because it's so slippery. I'm going to have to bring some dirt up to fill in some places in my pens when I get a chance because there are places the water stands in some of them & I hate that. I have to let it dry out some first though because I don't want to dig in mud to bring up the dirt. It's nice to have rain again instead of what we had last year, it's just messy to deal with muddy pens. I'm out of straw right now & need to go get some more so there isn't a whole lot I can do right now but deal with it.