Consolidated Kansas

[cleansquared]

Ok if you guys have a minute check this out its a really good laugh..a ladys rant and warning on chicken math....http://www.undergroundhealth.com/the-hazards-of-backyard-hens/ also i just read an article this am on free range eggs or chickens fed extra caritoids(antioxidents in their diet like marrigold or calenduela pettals ,sea kelp, blue green alge, or a whole host range of orange ,yellow& dark purple fruit.. Any ways besides making a blue egg shell a more concentrated blue eating the eggs helps the elderly prevent& even reverse macular degeneration.. Just thought i would share if you have an older person in your life share your eggs with them if you give them any of these foods or free range them as the caritoids are passed on through the yolk...

 

[JosieChick]

HEchicken- That little snake is a riot. I can't believe your birds didn't snatch him up!

What is it with giant roosters being big wimps? My huge buff laced brahma boy gets regularly beat up by my little serama cochin mix. It is tragic to watch. He hides in the corner with his head down while Spanky tries to flog his side. (I would intervene if I thought there was any potential for physical damage here but Spanky is a 1/4 the size of the brahma, maybe even smaller than that!)

HeChicken my Reece New Hamp rooster is a pushover as well. All of the other roosters pick on him and he runs from all of them. I really like this guy. He is beautiful. I sold a pair to a guy for the fair and I almost wish I'd kept them so I could breed them. They did really well though and I think they are going to state.
I have a couple of the barred rock boys and they get along fine together. I guess they are a pretty even match even though they are in a pretty small pen with only 4 girls. I have some young ones growing up now as well but haven't for sure decided how many of each sex I have.
Yep Pikeman the sussex are from Karen. I have a couple younger ones that I got from some show lines but they aren't running with the adults yet. They are old enough I think. I just am waiting to mix them. School is ready to start so hopefully we'll hear more from her in the near future.
DH got home from work while ago and has already said he wants to use the wagon. So much for me having it all to myself!! I went through the box of pictures and stuff and found my baby books. Interesting. I've never seen them before. And there are no pictures of me until I was a year old. I know I was really sick and in the hospital for the first part of my life but you would have thought they would have taken a picture or two since they were told several times I would not live. I was surprised to learn I had dark hair when I was born. Any pictures I had taken later I had blonde hair.

I have been reading but never have time to do a bunch of multi posts. Sounds like everyone is done with rain. I wanted to overseed the back pasture for the horses but it is so wet back there I think the seed would just float away.

Have sold lots of birds and still have lots more to sell. It has been tough but it is nice to get them under control out there. I would like to actually have time for the birds I have and enjoy them but right now they are just a huge chore.

I have also decided to find homes for the two mini ponies if anyone knows someone that is an experienced horse person and looking for a project. They will both need some work to be harness or saddle broke. I just don't have time for four horses and would like to be able to ride now and then and not feel guilty about having so much that needs attention and work out in the pasture.

Poor Amelia must have been having a growth spurt because she was super cranky and hardly slept for a week but is now back to her usual sweet self. So funny how they can get so grumpy and then suddenly snap back out of it. I just have to remind myself it isn't permanent when she is super needy and wants to be held all the time. Don't get me wrong, I hold her a lot but it was so bad I could hardly put her down with out her crying. But she is much better!

Everyone enjoy the sunshine today, I think it is supposed to storm again tonight!

 

[tweetybaby2005]

It sure is nice seeing the sun instead of the rain. So far it is nice and cool. I have been cleaning the coop and fixing up holes around the fenced in area due to the rain. The dirt just got washed away and what's left is so soft that the chickens just decide to dig through and go out to help themselves with bugs and what not over several acres of pasture.

I am going to attempt to mow the grass but if it is still way too wet, I have plenty of other projects I can work on. I'll be going back to work tomorrow since Wichita schools started today. One of my shelties hurt his front paw. He is limping and having a hard time getting up from the floor. He sure didn't seem hurt while chasing our neighnor's greyhound this morning I was yelling and hollering at him to get him to come back. I am sure that was a great pic of me desperately trying to get the dog to listen to me. Hope I didn't wake up the neighbor since it was bright and early when this happened.

Enjoy the day. It's nice and cool with a slight breeze. I didn't see any rain in the forecast till tomorrow night for areas around Wichita and even then, it's more miss than hit.

 

[sharol]

I've done a few things outside, but the majority of my day has been spent fighting the fleas that the new kitten brought with her. I use Frontline on the dogs and older cat, but Emma couldn't have Frontline until she was 8 weeks old, so they got ahead of me. I have been using borax again on anything fabric, leaving it overnight and then vacuuming it up. I'm also following it up with a Frontline product for bedding. It doesn't sound like a time consuming proposition, but with all the interruptions, it is taking FOREVER.

I'm wrestling with when to introduce the 2 7 week olds to the flock. They are 7 weeks old this Thursday and about the size of my Campine (not nearly as tough, though, no one is as tough as Scout). The rest of the flock consists of a Welsumer (molting, no sense of humor), 2 Delawares, 5 EE's, and the BO that has 3 babies in the hoop coop. Actually, my only real concern is one of the Dels and the Campine. They have been spending days in a pen I created next to the hoop coop for about a week, and there doesn't seem to be too much hostility from the girls. I think they are both cockerels (will that make a difference?).

I'm also trying to decide when to open up the hoop and let Marlena introduce her babies to the hens. They have been getting a half hour or so out of the hoop every evening for several days.

Of course, the minute I integrate anyone into the flock, I have to change out the feeders (they are full of egg maker) and fill them with flock raiser. I plan to leave the chick starter in the feeder that is on the lower level for them if they want it. Will the spillage that is already mixed into the shavings be a problem for the young birds? (in terms of too much calcium) I didn't plan to clean out the coop until early September and there is a fair amount of spilled food around.

I'm blabbering. Gotta get back to work on the flea project.

 

[chicken danz]

Sharol I honestly wouldn't worry about the feed. Chickens dig around for feed and heaven knows what they eat when they are digging in the dirt. As long as they have regular feed available I don
think what they scratch up will hurt them a bit. That's my opinion.
Do you ever let all your chickens out to free range for a while? That is how I integrate young ones. I let out the older ones and the younger ones out at the same time and they don't seem to mind if it's a big open area. If you do that on occasion then they seem to blend together. So when you add them to the coop they aren't considered outsiders. If you don't want them out long wait until an hour or two before bedtime. They will automatically decide to get back in on their own.
I've been out feeding and watering. Now I need to get in the shower and head to town.
The day has gone really fast and I was up super early.
Tweety your dogs must listen like mine do!! It's amazing how well they hear until you start calling them and they have something else in mind.
Josie it's so hard to give up chickens. I tell myself every day I have more than I can afford or take care of even after selling so many but I just can't seem to let go of them. I've done really well getting rid of excess breeds but now I have all these projects and colors I have to keep separate. Will I ever be satisfied? I doubt it. Now I am having problems letting go of peachicks. I want all the colors I can get.

 

[sharol]

They sort of free range in our large fenced yard. Do you think they are old enough at 7 weeks to give it a shot? I'd sure like to get them out of the brooder at night.

Sharol I honestly wouldn't worry about the feed. Chickens dig around for feed and heaven knows what they eat when they are digging in the dirt. As long as they have regular feed available I don
think what they scratch up will hurt them a bit. That's my opinion.
Do you ever let all your chickens out to free range for a while? That is how I integrate young ones. I let out the older ones and the younger ones out at the same time and they don't seem to mind if it's a big open area. If you do that on occasion then they seem to blend together. So when you add them to the coop they aren't considered outsiders. If you don't want them out long wait until an hour or two before bedtime. They will automatically decide to get back in on their own.

 

[tweetybaby2005]

Sharol, not sure if your setup will allow this but what I did was setting up a section with just the chicken wire in my main coop. I let the 5 to 7 weekers in the small sectioned off area and block off the entrance. The bigger birds will gawk and check them out but can't hurt the little ones. After a week or 2, I just let the little ones out the same time I let the rest of the flock out. I have done this 3 different times and seemed to work. I do leave a small entrance for the smaller chicks to run back in when the bigger birds peck at them. For the most part, they figure things out on their own. Since you have a bigger yard with a smallish flock, I think it will work for you. I don't recommend just putting them together without the slow introduction though unless you can supervise closely. Hope this helps.

 

[Trish44]

Sharol, I have some chicks that are about that age & some younger that I have in my growout pen outside. I would sure let them go out & free range during the day in the yard. I have some young pullets that are about half grown that I have let out now with the general laying flock & they're learning to go into the coop at night. I still have a couple I'm working with to get them to go in, but the rest are doing great.

It sure is humid today with all of the water standing around here. There is just nowhere for it to go any more, we have just gotten too much rain all at once & the ground is already saturated. I sure hope it stops soon so we can let it soak up some. The air conditioner guy is here but he hasn't figured out the problem as of yet, he seems kind of puzzled about it, not a good sign. I'm just thankful it's not one of those 100 plus degree days. We kept the house shut up until this morning & then opened the windows & turned on more fans.

Gosh I went to the COOP to get a few bags of scratch just to get me by till next week & when I got in the truck I found that it has been so wet that the seats had mildewed. It hasn't rained in there or anything it's just been so wet outside that with the old truck sitting all the time & the seals aren't that good it just has grown in there. So now I have that to deal with. Does anybody have any ideas about what I could put in there to dry it up some. The seats are old fabric seats & it's just an old truck we use for farm stuff, hauling things, & getting out in the winter.

Danz, yeah we probably do need a de-humidifier in the house, we have cement walls in the back lower part since the house is underground on the first floor & we have a lot of humidity in here. The plants love it, but it probably isn't the best for anything else. It's probably a good thing that the front part is all terra cotta tile since that soaks up the excess moisture.

I guess they just found the problem, they say it's the thermostat, so the expensive thing my DH bought is going to be returned now, what a bummer, it was really nice to have it so we could control it with our smart phones.

 

[tweetybaby2005]

Danz, I'm also looking to get a couple of dehumidifiers. Have you seen a huge hike in your electrical bill? I need one upstairs and one in the basement. Just worried that running two 24/7 will cost me an arm and a leg.

Anyone else has experience on dehumidifiers and what brands are reliable and cost efficient?

 

[sharol]

I think I'll let them out of their pen toward the end of the day tomorrow if the weather is nice and just watch to see how they get along. Maybe after a couple of days with the big girls, they will want to go in the run and the coop with them. That was how it worked when I added the EE's a couple of years ago (but they were a little older -- 12 weeks I think). If they get along ok in the whole yard, maybe after a couple of days they will get along in the run and the coop.

Sharol, I have some chicks that are about that age & some younger that I have in my growout pen outside. I would sure let them go out & free range during the day in the yard. I have some young pullets that are about half grown that I have let out now with the general laying flock & they're learning to go into the coop at night. I still have a couple I'm working with to get them to go in, but the rest are doing great.