Consolidated Kansas

[CayugaJana]

The cayugas are still a bit too young. Give them to about the end of January or Feb. The pekin will probably start as soon as the winter solstice has come.

Okie dokie. Have you ever made brooding boxes for them? I’d rather not go fishing for eggs every morning. I thought about buying some golf balls or ceramic eggs.

 

[Trish44]

My anconas laid all spring & into summer & then took a break. They did lay again in the fall but are on another break. Last year I think they started up again in February or March. I really don't mind that they don't lay in the winter because then I don't have to deal with getting the eggs when the weather is nasty. They would freeze anyway.

 

[chicken danz]

@CayugaJana , try using 5 gallon buckets. Build a framework out of scrap lumber just to keep the buckets from moving. Lay the buckets on their sides. Then put another board across the front of the buckets and the frame to help keep the contents inside. Maybe a 1 X 4 or so. Fill the buckets with shavings or straw. It gives them a place to lay in private which they like. I did the same thing but on a grander scale and used 55 gallon plastic barrels. they love them, but the problem with them is that they are so deep it's hard to reach the eggs and they lay completely in the back. If I were to do it again I'd probably cut at least a third off the front of the barrel. My ducks have short duck houses I made from this and that but they really like the barrels better. One side note: They hold the heat somewhat and the bedding insulates them from the ground so the eggs don't freeze as easily. Also if you can place them in a shady area they like them even better.

 

[Trish44]

I just cut rings from a plastic barrel & lay them on the ground in the shelter & fill with straw, mine love them. I tried the barrel thing, but as Danz said it's too hard to reach the eggs because they lay way in the back.

 

[CayugaJana]

That’s good to know! I had bought several plastic containers from Dollar General and cut the front open. They aren’t too deep so pulling eggs out shouldn’t be too hard. They obviously aren’t interested in them now but I wondered if they would later. I guess I will find out!

 

[Dani4Hedgies]

this is great info as my ducks just started mating and I was trying to decide how to do their nest boxes or if they would use the same ones that the chickens do.

 

[chicken danz]

I hatched three new cayugas yesterday. The girls are still laying.

 

[CayugaJana]

On a different topic, my neighbor is going to keep his steers pretty brindle hide for me when he butchers it this next week. Have any of you actually tanned a hide? And if so, what do you find works the best and makes it the softest?

 

[chicken danz]

I've never done one because it is so labor intensive. Quite a process I know just from butchering a few fur bearing animals.
You need to first cool the hide immediately after it is butchered. The next step is to scrape the hide free of all flesh and fat. You need a fleshing knife to do that cause other knives could damage it. Then there are variable steps to curing but the most common is to lay it flat and use several pounds of salt to cure it.
There is a second way to cure it using the brain of the animal. If I were you I'd research the different methods and do the one that sounds like it would work for you. Your advantage right now is the cold weather. Just be sure you put it where no animals can get to it. I'm going to try it one day but every time I've had a hide I thought was worthy I was too busy to mess with it. It would help I'm sure if you didn't have to do the butchering yourself.

 

[Dani4Hedgies]

I wish I could help you but this is something I am wanting to learn myself since our hope to live "clean" off the land will be using all of the animals that we kill (be they raised by us or hunted) so look forward to hearing what you find and end up doing so perhaps I can be more ready when its time to do it myself.