Consolidated Kansas

[Trish44]

Danz let us know how it goes with the puppies.

 

[chicken danz]

I got one pen set up yesterday. I still need to do a second one but I'm short a gate panel. I spent most of my day cutting 8 foot tall weeds. They really got away from me while my mower was down this summer. I hope to get to town soon and get some spray and kill out a bunch of them that I don't want to cut individually.
It's a lot cooler this morning. I may actually get started butchering if all goes well.

 

[Trish44]

Good luck with your butchering Danz. I have some roosters to dispatch when I come back from vacation as well, some of the Bresse I've been growing out. I'll keep two but I think there are 4 extra ones in the pen that need to go. I can relate about the weeds, I have a whole patch of cockleburs I need to do something with. I just hate those things!

 

[chicken danz]

Never got the butchering done. Then yesterday it rained and rained and rained. I was gone all day and came home to flooding in the basement as well as flooding in my building because it was blowing in through the doors.
I bought some chemical yesterday while I was gone. I plan to spray the goose pen which is growing nothing but noxious weeds these days, then reseed it. I'm trying to find out what kind of grass to plant that will give them some nutrition but that will stand up to their grazing during breeding season. We got several inches of rain yesterday and the roads were flooding from water running too fast in the little creeks and springs. I don't know if I'll ever get the messes cleaned up!!

 

[Trish44]

Ugh, I'm sorry about the flooding! We didn't get a drop here, it went around again & it's getting so dry yet again. I had to go out & water some things yesterday. Where is everybody anyway?

 

[chicken danz]

The forecast shows rain here for every day in the following week. I think the drought is finally ending. I'm just hoping it doesn't continue as snow!

 

[Trish44]

Bite your tongue Danz! I sure hope we have a fall instead of how we totally skipped spring. It would be nice to have some cooler temps to get some things done outside instead of having to die in the heat or put on a coat to do things.

 

[chicken danz]

I finally got some butchering done. I got 14 roosters butchered yesterday afternoon but today I can't move. Messed up my back with all that bending. One of these days I'll figure out what my limits are. I still have probably another 10 or so to butcher but I'm not in much of a hurry for those. I saved back a few for backup breeders as well.

 

[lizzyGSR]

All this talk about winter already! We’ve had a cooler summer than normal here - only a handful of days near/above 100*. I’m wondering if this winter will follow suit and be colder than normal.

So, I’ve had a bit Of a rough week when it comes to chickens. This past Monday, one of my adult Sussex hens disappeared without a trace. I searched the yard and found no evidence of a struggle or any clues as to where she might have disappeared to. My best guess was a hawk or owl got her. Then, this morning, i found one of my favorite juvenile hens dead. I’m guessing she managed to break her neck somehow - and somehow it always seems to happen to the friendliest birds!

This evening (Saturday late evening), my husband took some spoiled milk out to the dogs/cats and flipped over a big rubber bowl to give the milk to the animals in. Lo and behold, my missing chicken was stuck underneath. I can’t believe that the bird is still alive after so long! She was weak and not able to run from me quite like she usually would have but she also didn’t want me to grab her. I was able to corner her against the house, grab her and then carry her to the coop. She is now in a pen by herself but she shares a chicken-wire wall with the pen the rest of the birds are in. She has plenty of food and water and I hope she makes a full recovery. I am so glad the weather this week has been cooler/wetter than normal! I imagine she wouldn’t have survived if the temps had been up around where they normally are for this time of year. Last time I checked on her, she was sitting on the roost beside the other birds (with the chicken wire between her and them).

 

[chicken danz]

As we discussed. It was a very hot miserable summer here. Much hotter and dryer than I remember it being in the past. It's so different from one side of the state to the other.
Yesterday morning was cool. But if they don't change the forecast it's supposed to be a near perfect week.
I'm just exhausted after this past week. I can definitely use some weather cooperation to help me get caught back up with normal things.