Consolidated Kansas

[chicken danz]

It's molting time around here too. My yard looks like it has snowed. The white feathers really show up. I've also checked a couple times to make sure I didn't loose a chicken when I saw a huge pile of feathers.
Hawkeye you are almost there. More pictures soon please! It inspires me to see your work.
We finally got the boards up on the Mandarin duck pen yesterday. I was going to start placing pavers around the pond to work on it but I just had no energy at that point. I just can't seem to catch up. My house is a disaster. Haven't really cleaned it in weeks. Too many projects and no time. Of course it doesn't help when I sit here.
It's fall and I am no where near where I should be. I sure wish someone would give me a winning lottery ticket. Nope I don't buy them. My money is too valuable for that. I would so love to just hire my work done.

 

[Ivywoods]

Quote:
I don't buy lottery tickets, either. One time I was given a lottery ticket as a door prize. I won $2.

I figured I better quit while I was ahead!

 

[chicken danz]

Yeah I got a ticket in a Christmas card and won a dollar. I never went and cashed it in.
I got the pavers laid around the Mandarin pond then took the tractor and hand loaded a bunch of rocks that were here and there. I was on my forth load. A couple years ago I had borrowed a Bobcat and loaded a bunch of rocks that were laying in the ground west of my driveway in an unused piece of land. My septic tank and line is there so we can't really build there or anything. I had piled them all on a cement slab where a barn had once been. I was turning rocks over so I could roll them to the tractor bucket and disturbed a bumble bee colony. Didn't know they nested in the ground. At any rate I had a bunch of ticked off bees that wanted the rocks more than I did. So I decided it was time to come in and get a drink of water and rest a few minutes. Hopefully they'll fly away so I can dig for more rocks.

 

[Ivywoods]

No, they probably won't fly away. They most likely will go back to their hole in the ground. We had a big problem with bumble bees when I was a kid. My sister got stung many times. It's a wonder she didn't end up in the hospital. Dad went back at night when the bees were all back in their hole in the ground, poured some kerosene or diesel down there and lit it. End of bumble bees. The ones that did manage to make it out of the hole tried to fight the fire, and that was the end of that!

 

[chicken danz]

That's not very encouraging. I actually sprayed them with Carburator cleaner which usually kills wasps but it only slowed the bees down. I haven't been back out there since then. I decided to wash dishes and run the sweeper. I think that is a good idea. I might just burn those suckers out. There's nothing there but dirt and rock.

 

[Hawkeye95]

I agree with Ivy- bumblebees don't go anywhere, they protect what they have and don't give an inch. I've been stung by them, too. I LOVE the idea of lighting their hole on fire! We never did that, I think we tried plugging them up or running water down them. The fire idea is SO much better! LOL!! I'll remember that one.

Danz, I've been really worn out lately. That cold I had last week is still lingering around. I've got a sore throat back again today and achy body. I HATE being sick. But I've felt kind of yucky for this last week, and I havent' really done much, other than do my outside chores as always. I guess I'd have to be dead not to take care of everyone outside.

I remember last year I was so sick I had to stay in bed, and I had my DH do the feeding, etc- and I laid in there worrying if he was giving the right rations and if he checked the horses over for injuries. I check their eyes and legs every day- more than once a day. I'm definitely your die hard for doing things right, and I don't even trust my DH to not miss something like a cut or swelled eye, odd behavior.. or who knows what!

Molting, hu? Okay- funny you all said that it looks like birds have been killed, because I swear, if I didn't know any better, it sure does look like there was a turkey attack out there! It was like one day I went out there, and BAM- there are a TON of feathers everywhere! Is she pulling them out??? Or are they just falling out? They seem like they are the smaller fluffier feathers. But there are some of the larger outer feathers too. Just not as many of those. But even the fluffy feathers are about 5 or 6 inches in length.

 

[chicken danz]

I think they just fall out but who knows for sure. They could bite at them to get them out if they itch or something. That is something I never thought of. I just know I wouldn't want anyone to come see my 18 mo old chickens right now. Even my beautiful silver duck winged Phoenix rooster has lost his super long tail.
I worked very very hard today. I have to get up in the morning to go to a retirement breakfast with a bunch of old people I used to work with. Then I'll have to come home and do chores. Then clean up again and head back to town for physical therapy and to check in on my parents. Day shot!

 

[Hawkeye95]

Danz, nope doesn't sound like you'll have much day left to do anything.. and even if you did, I would be exhausted after all of that. But it does sound like you have gotten a few things done.

I went to Barnes and Noble yesterday after I dropped the kids off at Preschool. Bought two magazines-- one is "Backyard Poultry" and the other is "Chickens, by Hobby Farms". Been reading them, and they are so fun and interesting! Backyard Poultry is more technical - and they also had the process of building a really cute coop submitted by a reader. The coop was called Coop de Pollo. But it pretty much looks exactly like the Wichita Cabin Coop-- basically that same concept/look. But still, I really enjoy reading and seeing about everyone else's coops and their solutions for their own situations. The second magazine called Chickens- it's more of a fun upbeat feel with glossy pages and full color. Almost like Cosmo for chicken lovers! ha!

I woke up a couple times last night with such a painful throat it kept me awake. Been drinking tea this morning to help soothe it. I'm guessing I have a sinus infection on top of whatever I started off with last week. Fun. I may need to break down and see the Dr... maybe tomorrow if I don't feel better.

It rained over night, too. Finally-- we're getting rain. The only annoying thing is that it soaks my turkey's feed and I am wasting a bunch of feed. Sigh. I need to just smarten up and drag her feed in every night, too. I plan on hanging it under the coop when we're all ready to move in. For now- the deck offers only a little bit of protection for a light rain or a sprinkle.

 

[Ivywoods]

Hot tea with a little honey in it works wonders for a sore throat.

I usually look at the weather forecast. For the pens that have feed that might get wet, I only feed them what they will clean up in a day. Otherwise I usually have several days worth of feed in their self-feeders.

I've been selling down to just what I want to keep for breeders. It is so hard to decide which ones to keep and which ones to let go. One will have one good trait, another have a different one, etc, etc.

I'm at a standstill on the stacking cages I am building. I need to get some vinyl coated wire. No one around here carries it, so I will have to make a trip to St. Joseph. I think they have some at Tractor Supply. The top tier of cages has a formica floor (scratch & dent kitchen countertop I picked up) and the bottom tier will have wire bottoms. I hope I can make it to St. Joe soon. I really want to finish this project!

 

[chicken danz]

You should have made the trip to the Gardner auction. There was a guy there with a truck and trailer that had tons of it. I didn't stop and check prices because there were really huge rolls. I figured if the price was good I would want as much as I could get. I drove my car on purpose so I wouldn't be tempted to spend a bunch of extra money.
I woke up at 4:00 am and realized I hadn't sent in my NPIP renewal yet. I figured if I waited until morning I would forget it again. So I got up, and then couldn't find my number etc etc until I was wide awake. I had the alarm set for 6:00 so I could go to my breakfast so I just went ahead and made coffee and stayed up. Now I'm getting ready to drive to town for PT and to spend some time with my parents. I may have to come home and take a nap.
I'm in a pickle. I want to go to a swap Saturday in hopes of moving some more birds. But there are two auctions besides that I really want to go to. One is an estate/farm auction and there are all kinds of things I saw I would be interested in. The other is a commercial green house business selling out. I think the greenhouse business will probably win out but I still need to move a bunch of birds.
I'm hoping to pick up some items I can reporpose for the birds and the farm.
Hawkeye, I would almost bet you are having fall allergies to rag weed and maybe some of the stuff in the air from local harvesting. I get sick every fall. I used to think it was a cold or the flu but I've figured out it is all just sinus infection. Get yourself one of those bulb things you clean out a babies nose with. Mix some warm salt water. Fill the bulb and squirt it up each nostril several times. Don't suck in or blow out. Just let it free fall in the sink. It feels a little weird or initially uncomfortable but you get used to it. If you do that once or twice a day I'd bet you get all better. I used to spend 75% of my time on antibiotics for bronchitis and such. Since my doctor suggested doing this I stay well most of the time. I only use it when I feel my nose is getting plugged or stuffy. In my case though that is most of the time. I am allergic to the world!