Consolidated Kansas

[Prairie Fleur]

Danz, wish we could have some of that rain too! We've had some but could use some more already. The goats are loving all the cheat grass and other stuff that's going crazy already.
My chicks are all doing well (knock on wood) and the SS that I got from you, Danz, are getting Huge!!!! I lost one of the little ones to something respiratory but the rest of them are doing well. We moved them to the adult coop today in their crate and I let them out for a while to scratch around the run. They were ready for their evening chow by the time I brought it!
My Ameraucanas and Chicken Hill Wyandottes are coming next week so I'm going to have some work to do to get ready for them.
Had a Gorgeous day here today. I spent all afternoon outside. DH was home and he's working on cleaning out our old elm tree belt with the skid steer. A lot of the dead trees are rotted completely thru at the base some a couple shoves sends them crashing. it's really changing the looks of the place for the better. London spent the afternoon following me around for pets and looking for a cool spot to lay close by. He's getting Huge!! Without his winter coat he looks very leggy and gangly.
Yesterday I went out to feed bottle babies and I couldn't find one of my goat kids. When I finally did, one look told me something was wrong. One eye was all gunky and swollen. I gently cleaned it off, only to find that its all cloudy and had a thicker blue part in the center. Poor Mischief is so miserable! He walks around all careful like and holds his head like it hurts. I put some medicinal Manuka honey in it tonight as an antibiotic cream and I plan to do it again tomorrow. Anyone else seen anything like this?

Welcome to the new people!

 

[Grain Gypsy]

Lady Gaga Makes a Better Rooster than Hen!

This is the story of our crazy Polish hen, Lady Gaga. Her name, correctly assigned to her by our four children, sums up her ferocious attitude and ability to single-handedly lose all favor with her flock-mates on a regular basis. She's a straight-up nut. Who apparently makes a better roo than hen.

Gaga is one of 15 day-old-chicks we received by mail-order on October 21. She was one of only two Polish breeds in the flock. The other Polish we had ordered on purpose. Gaga was an "assorted rare breed" grab-bag we purchased.

Gaga was certainly the chick favored by my children from the get-go. I think this is solely due to the fact that she is so batty that she wasn't quite smart enough (er, couldn't see past her chicken 'fro) to hide when the kids went to retrieve a chicken to love on. She was coddled and spoiled, despite her erratic behaviour.

Maybe the spoiling is why she started getting picked on when they transitioned to the coop around Christmastime. Maybe the other chickens were like, "Yep. You just wait, Gaga. Once we get to that coop, we'll show you exactly how we felt all those time we were passed up for you!" Well, I dunno. Maybe they just got sick of her erratic behavior?

Or, maybe Gaga was a threat to Perry, our accidental rooster. Perry (formerly Katie, before her, um, his crowing debut) was a pretty chill guy, but for whatever inexplicable reason, Gaga would try to challenge him. They fought like siblings from about 5 weeks (when Perry first crowed) to about 20 weeks. During the transition to the coop at 10 weeks, Perry started picking Gaga's head. Then the other hens followed suit, and started picking it, too. Gaga's head was soon a bloody mess; her beautiful, full fro reduced to just a few, haphazard top feathers here and there. We put some BluKote on Gaga's head, as she defiantly shook her head back and forth, causing my daughter and I to smell like grape lollipops for 3 days. Lovely BluKote.

They at least stopped picking her bloody after that, but one of the gals still ensures that she still has a indefinite patch of bald on the back of her crazy head.

All was well again in the flock, until Good Friday, the fateful day that we lost 5 of our hens and our Perry the Rooster to stray dogs. We came home to confusion and carnage, as we found 3 of our girls lying dead, strewn across our backyard, and a fourth in bad shape. Perry, the rooster, and our hen Sporty Spice, were nowhere to be found. Dragged off by the dogs, we guessed.

Our remaining girls soon heard our voices and started coming out of hiding. We started finding them on the banks of the river near our house, and coming out of an adjoining field. Then we spied Gaga. In true celebrity form, she was standing bravely alone on a sandbar in the middle of the river, squawking wildly for us to come help her. We wondered how in the world she got there. My son Dawson, who was man enough to claim crazy Gaga as his own chicken, volunteered to go to the sandbar and get her.

Suddenly, there was a huge splash and ruckus coming from the water. Gaga wasn't about to wait for her rescuer to come to her. She had leapt in the river, in an attempt to reach the shore and the safety of our arms. Our 8-year-old was frantic, because she surely thought chickens couldn't swim and Gaga would drown. I and the other three kids stood dumb, not knowing if chickens could swim, either.

We all watched, helpless and kind of dumb-struck really, as Gaga made it ungracefully to the shore. She made it, but she didn't like it. She squawked the whole time she was swimming to the shore and looked as mad as a wet hen when she finally got there.

Flock dynamics inevitably changed after the dog massacre, and our remaining ladies have only been able to free-range when we're home now. Gaga, however, seems to have been emboldened by the terrifying ordeal.

Gaga is the new roo of our flock. Last weekend, the girls were happily free-ranging while my husband worked on their new run and I worked in the yard and the kids played outside. Dixie, our 12-year-old chocolate lab, has never had the wherewithal to even consider chasing down a chicken and lives amongst them peacefully. She was outside that day, too. She was keeping a respectable distance from the chickens, minding her own business and sniffing dandelions. Suddenly, Gaga decided to bum rush her. She came running toward Dixie, chest puffed and wings-a-flappin', squawking and warning Dixie to get back. Dixie, equally surprised and terrified, turned her old bones and got the heck out of Dodge as quickly as her dog years would move her.

Imagine that? Gaga protecting the flock now! Who knew. CHICKENS CRACK ME UP!!



This is Lady Gaga (around 10 weeks) and my youngest daughter showing off their 'fros.

 

[Henagerie]

That's a cute story!

 

[sharol]

I think my year and a half old Marans hen may be going broody again (fingers crossed). She is the hen who raised the ss's and br's last summer and did such a good job integrating them with the flock. She is a great mother, so I hope she sticks. I'm going to give her a few days to see if she is serious before I do anything about eggs for her. It looks like Jake is shooting blanks, so I don't have any fertile eggs at this point (even if I wanted to raise mixed chicks).

I have been busy. We had a business moving/home garage sale this weekend and made a big $40. However, the junk is gone, and there will be less in the landfill. I have some long casual dresses that I'm going to list separately on the local swap site, though. They are really nice, just too big for me to wear.

We haven't gotten much rain. a half inch 3 or 4 times in the last couple of weeks - better than getting drowned, Danz. Sorry about your mud problems. I agree that we could use some of that, but the big rains are all going south and east of us.

My potatoes, peas and onions are doing great in the garden, and I'll be putting in some tomatoes this week. I am trading computer skills for produce with a friend down the road who just bought a Windows 8 computer, so I'm not planting enough to can. She is going to keep me in tomatoes and other produce as it is abundant enough for canning. Yeah!!! I'm keeping up with the weeds for a change. We will see how long that lasts.

I'll be back on the list now that that dang garage sale is done. It was way too much work for what we made.

 

[chicken danz]

Danz, wish we could have some of that rain too! We've had some but could use some more already. The goats are loving all the cheat grass and other stuff that's going crazy already.
My chicks are all doing well (knock on wood) and the SS that I got from you, Danz, are getting Huge!!!! I lost one of the little ones to something respiratory but the rest of them are doing well. We moved them to the adult coop today in their crate and I let them out for a while to scratch around the run. They were ready for their evening chow by the time I brought it!

The sussex always seem to have their own set of health problems when they are young. I am getting much healthier more substantial and stronger chicks now that I'm using the new rooster. (Thanks to Sharol for letting me buy him back.) At least I know I accomplished what I wanted in the breeding process. Much bigger healthier and better spotted chicks. I am thinking your chicks may have come from my old rooster. Hard to remember dates. I know the fertility is spot on. I've never had great fertility in the past but this guy is producing lots of chicks.
My Ameraucanas and Chicken Hill Wyandottes are coming next week so I'm going to have some work to do to get ready for them.

Had a Gorgeous day here today. I spent all afternoon outside. DH was home and he's working on cleaning out our old elm tree belt with the skid steer. A lot of the dead trees are rotted completely thru at the base some a couple shoves sends them crashing.

it's really changing the looks of the place for the better. London spent the afternoon following me around for pets and looking for a cool spot to lay close by. He's getting Huge!! Without his winter coat he looks very leggy and gangly.
Yesterday I went out to feed bottle babies and I couldn't find one of my goat kids. When I finally did, one look told me something was wrong. One eye was all gunky and swollen. I gently cleaned it off, only to find that its all cloudy and had a thicker blue part in the center. Poor Mischief is so miserable! He walks around all careful like and holds his head like it hurts. I put some medicinal Manuka honey in it tonight as an antibiotic cream and I plan to do it again tomorrow. Anyone else seen anything like this?
He obviously got something in his eye and it caused an eye infection. I would personally use Veterycin eye spray on him. He looks like he is blind or will be but at least you could prevent the infection from going further. He probably punctured his eye on a thorn or a stick.

Lady Gaga Makes a Better Rooster than Hen!

Cute story! I used to trim the feathers around my polish hens eyes so they could see.

I think my year and a half old Marans hen may be going broody again (fingers crossed). She is the hen who raised the ss's and br's last summer and did such a good job integrating them with the flock. She is a great mother, so I hope she sticks. I'm going to give her a few days to see if she is serious before I do anything about eggs for her. It looks like Jake is shooting blanks, so I don't have any fertile eggs at this point (even if I wanted to raise mixed chicks).

I have been busy. We had a business moving/home garage sale this weekend and made a big $40. However, the junk is gone, and there will be less in the landfill. I have some long casual dresses that I'm going to list separately on the local swap site, though. They are really nice, just too big for me to wear.

We haven't gotten much rain. a half inch 3 or 4 times in the last couple of weeks - better than getting drowned, Danz. Sorry about your mud problems. I agree that we could use some of that, but the big rains are all going south and east of us.

My potatoes, peas and onions are doing great in the garden, and I'll be putting in some tomatoes this week. I am trading computer skills for produce with a friend down the road who just bought a Windows 8 computer, so I'm not planting enough to can. She is going to keep me in tomatoes and other produce as it is abundant enough for canning. Yeah!!! I'm keeping up with the weeds for a change. We will see how long that lasts.

I'll be back on the list now that that dang garage sale is done. It was way too much work for what we made.

Perfect timing. I need a hatching break. I really have to get some birds sold before I add many more to the incubators. With the game birds starting up I need the extra room too. Peacock eggs trump chicken eggs!!! Just let me know.
It's hard to believe people are short on rain. I couldn't get in my garden if I had to. Well I could, if I didn't care how muddy I got. The grass and weeds seem to be thriving. I only have a couple things planted and most aren't up yet. I am waiting for warmer weather so I can get some vine type plants in. Those are my birds greens all summer. I had planted a bunch of very expensive iris in my veggie garden last fall for lack of having a new bed made for them. They are budding up which tells me it's time to get started on making a new iris garden but there just isn't any time. Plus I still have to figure out where I am going to put it. I made my original iris bed using composted cow poop. Boy was that a mistake. I have never gotten rid of the millions of weeds and stuff that keep coming up. Plus I can't do the bending and stuff I used to to maintain it.
It's hatch day again. At least the little turkeys have someone to teach them to eat now...hopefully.

 

[Deerfield Acres]

It is chilly and windy out there today so I haven't gotten a thing done in the garden and I'm wondering if I will. DH is out tilling an unplanted section. What I really need to do is put some wheels on my brooder pen so I can roll those birds outside once they are big enough to do without heat, but I am lacking any motivation at all.

Yesterday I sprayed all that has been planted with compost tea, including all the grape vines leafing out around the pool. I can't believe it but I have some purple Thai beans coming up already. That was a surprise because I knew I planted them too early but I have plenty of seed so I thought I would try it anyway. You can use them for green beans or pole beans. The older 3 girls planted 7 earthboxes with carrots and radishes, so that was nice of them. I still have a 4' x 16' bed that needs to have more strawberries transplanted into it. I have one more of that same size ready for fill dirt and (3) 4' x 8' that also need fill dirt. I am so glad to have the boxes but I certainly didn't expect this many!

In the meantime, the chickens are keeping the orchard completely weed free for me. We put a lot of wood chips out there and they love digging through and pulling up any shoots. I am so glad I changed their fence to include the orchard. So far no damage to the fruit trees and I am hoping they will keep the bug population down.

I wanted to be sure I knew which eggs were coming from my Aloha, so we put blue food coloring on her vent. Worked great! The egg came out with some blue streaks. Alohachickens recommended this method so I thought I would just pass along this tip. The kids put the food coloring back in the kitchen cabinet.

I don't recommend storing any dye used on a chicken's arse in the kitchen cabinet. LOL!

 

[Ralph Moyer]

Did I sleep thru spring and summer and it is now October?? I know it is Kansas, but this cool weather, the last of April, is ridiculous! I haven't had a cold all winter, but I got chilled doing my chores today. My two Pyrenees thinks its great, and have been playing like a couple of puppies all day. I've also have several hatches to get moved out of my laundry room.

 

[Deerfield Acres]

Did I sleep thru spring and summer and it is now October?? I know it is Kansas, but this cool weather, the last of April, is ridiculous! I haven't had a cold all winter, but I got chilled doing my chores today. My two Pyrenees thinks its great, and have been playing like a couple of puppies all day. I've also have several hatches to get moved out of my laundry room.

I hear you on that. I hope it doesn't keep this up too much longer.

 

[sharol]

The weather is odd. Of course I just put out the plumeria (they aren't supposed to get below 40) so I snuggled them up against the south side of the house this evening. I've had the oldest one since 1992, so I hope it does ok out there.

 

[Deerfield Acres]

The weather is odd. Of course I just put out the plumeria (they aren't supposed to get below 40) so I snuggled them up against the south side of the house this evening. I've had the oldest one since 1992, so I hope it does ok out there.

Keeping my fingers crossed for you!