Consolidated Kansas

[chicken danz]

Zig they are a lot like kids. Not sure about the teenage part. I can't imagine a bird being quite that difficult!!!

It's raining here again and it makes me hurt so bad. I hate being old. I need to get out and get birds fed and watered but I feel like going to bed again.
Sharol was here this morning and saw my broody duck and her group of ducklings out for their very first stroll. Wow what a group of ducklings she hatched. I'd love for them to survive. They are all Cayuga ducklings and I don't have many Cayugas any more. They are absolutely delicious to eat and good layers. I'm hoping this is a year to fill my freezer with several ducks. They taste so good. It's just too bad they don't butcher themselves!

 

[Prairie Fleur]

[COLOR=0000FF]I agree with the others, don't get a dog whose job is to herd. I have seen others do this & then can't understand why the dog chases their chickens around. The dog doesn't feel it's doing anything wrong, it's doing what they're bred for. Get one of the Livestock Guardian breeds, Great Pyrenees are the most common in this area or Antolians or a mix of the two. They're the easiest to find. They do a great job of protecting birds & livestock. I have two myself & wouldn't be able to keep anything here with our predator load if I didn't have them. I was losing birds before I got them, a whole pen at a time. I agree with what sharol said, don't put a puppy out there & expect them to just do their job & not need guidance. If you get a puppy, which is really the best so they can get acclimated to your situation you will need to give them rules & boundaries & enforce those along the way. They still will be a puppy up to 18 months of age. If you have any questions you can send me a PM & I can answer questions & could give you some referrals as well.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=0000FF]Congrats on the chicks![/COLOR]

[COLOR=0000FF]You will see a little hole in the shell where they start pecking through & probably their little beak sticking out. They can sit like that for hours sometimes before they start zipping out of the shell. Be patient, it takes time. I have had to over time learn to walk away & come back later to check on progress, otherwise it drives you crazy. I hatch a lot of chicks though so usually by the time I come back I have some chicks out & ready to go to the brooder.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=0000FF]I'm so over this rain, I'm ready for it to dry up for awhile. I'm sick of slogging through the mud to get my birds & animals taken care of. I'm sure the birds & animals are tired of standing in it too.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=0000FF]On another note, I have another batch of eggs hatching today. I have some in there for myself so I hope they hatch. I had some early ones hatch yesterday & a few  today so far but I still have more to go yet.[/COLOR]

I respectfully disagree on the puppy part. London played with and killed chickens until I got Willow as a trained one year old. If she's with him he's perfectly behaved around the birds at 10 months old and he's already working guarding the place at night. But that's just my experience so someone else's may be differently. I found it easier (as a person who had never owned a LGD prior to London and Willow) to have a more mature dog around to set boundaries and show London the ropes. Recently my SS were out and London and Willow were nearby. From what I could tell London looked at the chicks and Willow growled. He didn't mess with them and they were at the age where he's most tempted to play with them. I was beyond pleased!!! Willow hasn't been without training needs but she's helped in the areas I've needed it most.

 

[chicken danz]

I raise my pups with chickens so they are just part of the scenery. I think that really helps. The chickens have access to the puppy pen from day one when they are born. At any rate I have found that boredom is what causes dogs to "play" with chickens. Never enclose a pup with chickens cause that spells disaster. Most LGDs are extremely intelligent. Any time I have seen a pup run toward a chicken I give a firm "NO!" and they know that I mean business. Most of them learn the first time. Some other need a little more scolding. I have never lost a chicken to my dogs. In fact if you want to see their bad side just make one squawk loudly. I believe that 90% of it all is in breeding. Either the dog has the right instincts to bond to the birds and animals and protect them or not. I've had Great Pyrs take after a coyote as young as 4 months old which is pretty darn impressive.
Yes it does really help to have an older dog to train a pup but you have to start somewhere. Plus if you buy someone else's dog you could be inheriting someone else's problems. Prairie found a jewel as well as JosieChick who adopted an older dog.
Brittany just went out of heat. Poor Winston got really close but I don't think he managed to breed her. He's young and still growing and learning. I imagine it would be pretty hot having pups in July anyway. Maybe next time. They're a lot of work but I'm looking forward to having puppies again. I want to hold one with badger markings for myself to carry on my Marshmallows lines. She was the best LGD ever.

 

[ashncarson]

I have no idea if this is standard for entering poultry in our county fair or not, because this will be our first year ever entering poultry for 4-H!

Let me know when you show and maybe me and the kids can come over to see you guys and your chickens!

 

[Ralph Moyer]

The two Great Pyrenees we have now tend to stay with the poultry, more than with the goats. They love scrambled eggs, but won't touch raw egg. I trimmed some skin off of some chicken parts I was processing. I put it in the dogs bowls, but the dogs would not touch it. They will find a deer carcass or large cow skulls from a neighbors pasture, but they won't eat anything they knew. I have an outside cat that likes to chase cottontail rabbits, but if the dogs see him after one, they will chase the cat under the shed. They seem to think that since the rabbits live on the place, they are to be protected too. I've had many dogs in my lifetime, but this pair are the best ever.

 

[Trish44]

I know of one person who got an adult GP & she wouldn't stay there. They had her on a trial basis & ended up returning her because she just kept running off. I think if they were never bonded to the stock they will get bored & wander. Some people have had a good experience getting a grown LGD, but that isn't always the case & I agree with Danz you could just inherit their problems with the dog. I wanted my two to be acclimated to my property & my situation & that worked out for me. I guess you have to do what you feel is best for you. I only have 10 acres here & my concern was that my LGDs would stay on my property & not wander. They do a really good job of staying where they're supposed to be. They have visited the neighbors next door on occasion, but not often. I would say 99% of the time they are here doing what they're supposed to because I see & hear them & to me that's doing good. They do watch over my birds, but they really like the goats & sheep better & would sleep with them if I let them but I want them out where they can watch everything.

We're getting rain again today, we just had a gully washer here a few minutes ago. It's supposed to rain all day, oh joy I just love going out there in the rain to feed. I'm finishing up the hatch from yesterday this morning, there are a few stragglers. I have a guy coming to pick up a fairly big order of chicks & ducks so I hope he makes it.

 

[chicken danz]

Ralph, My GPs are the same way. They refuse to eat raw poultry but love cooked chicken. They do eat raw eggs though but prefer scrambled eggs. I don't discourage the behavior because they don't eat them all the time and the only ones they eat are ones on the ground. They do keep their fur nice. They know to never take them out of my egg bucket.
My only roaming problems occur when the female is in heat. She gets playful and doesn't want to stay home. My oldest male never leaves but he is neutered so he has no interest in following her.

 

[Ralph Moyer]

Ralph, My GPs are the same way. They refuse to eat raw poultry but love cooked chicken. They do eat raw eggs though but prefer scrambled eggs. I don't discourage the behavior because they don't eat them all the time and the only ones they eat are ones on the ground. They do keep their fur nice. They know to never take them out of my egg bucket.
My only roaming problems occur when the female is in heat. She gets playful and doesn't want to stay home. My oldest male never leaves but he is neutered so he has no interest in following her.

My female GP may be sterile, because she has been in heat about three times, and hasn't conceived. The male GP bred the female I lost, that was killed by a Nubian buck I had; so he shouldn't be the problem. I really don't have time to mess with puppies right now, anyway.

 

[chicken danz]

I know what you mean Ralph. Me neither. But I lost my best female to cancer a few months ago and I really want some more of her line. I have her daughter but I want her to have pups so I can have badger markings instead of just white pyrs.
I got a ton of chicks moved outdoors today. I hope they aren't too crowded in their new pens. The brooder in the building was becoming an ammonia pit with all those birds in there. I really need to do some major selling. I was going to work on the water system and clean the brooder as well but the day is just going too fast.

 

[josey8]

Should I separate my broody hens from the rooster so he doesn't kill the baby chicks or will he be fine