Consolidated Kansas

[chicken danz]

Trish I had to laugh at your post. I can't count the times I ran around and around the pen and the house trying to get my stupid birds in at night. Thank goodness for the dogs I don't worry too much about it now.
I spent my day trying to get everything ready for the cold weather. I got a cookie tin heater built. Actually it is a short popcorn tin but will put the 5 gallon waterer up about the right height. I have the waterer sitting on a concrete block now. I am letting the silicone around the cord dry and tomorrow it will be ready to use. I wish I had another popcorn tin that size cause I wouldn't mind making another heater like that for the turkeys.
Built another heater out of a metal pan and the heat element from one of those heated dog bowls that broke. I have to put a new plug in on it and it will be ready to go. I am going to use it under one of those gallon plastic waterers for the baby ducks.
I sealed off one of the food warmers with silicone and I plan to put it in one of the pheasant pens and use one of my oil pan size water bowls on top of it. I have a thermocube so it will only run it when it is under 35 degrees. I wish I had another popcorn tin that size cause I wouldn't mind making another heater like that for the turkeys. I guess they'll just have to use a heated dog bowl. I have so many pens and stuff it is crazy trying to make sure they all have what they need.
I got my heat lamp shipment and used a whole case already (6 bulbs). I put them in the light sockets in the houses just to add a little warmth. I put one more lamp in the brooder house as well just to bring the temp up a little. Darn birds are going to raise my electric bill.
DH is very unhappy with me right now. I know he would prefer I had no birds at all because it is too much trouble running extension cords all over the place. I bought a new breaker box to go on a pole so I could run outlets right out of it. I was going to hook it up but he wants to put all the wiring underground. So it's just one more unfinished project. The birds are my project and I have to use my own money to do all this. So it has to be done in small steps.

 

[Trish44]

Danz, yeah I will be so relieved when these pups get big enough to do their job & I don't have to worry so much about my chickens. I lost the one hen just lately & now have to replace her, she was one of my breeders for next spring, so now I have to find a Speckled Sussex hen somewhere. I still can't figure out what happened to her unless she just wandered off too far & something grabbed her & ran off with her. Wow, you're on the ball with the cookie tin heaters. I got one big tin over the weekend, but haven't gotten any parts for it yet. I plan to look for some more things tomorrow when I'm in Wichita after my Dr. appt. I want to go ahead & make some of those before I need them & then I won't be having to do it when it's an emergency situation. I would rather have them made ahead. The one tin I bought is a really nice big round one. I hope to look around & see what else I can find while I'm out. I was looking at the pics of the heaters on here earlier & they don't look that hard to do. What kind of bulbs do you use in yours? I was wanting to ask you about those other bulbs too that you're using for heat. I may want to get some of those too for my fixture in the coop for when it gets super cold out. I don't have any insulation in my coop & the walls are really thin, it's just an old shed we converted to a coop. It's really not bad in there so far, but if the temps got like they do some winters it could potentially. I know what you mean about extension cords, we don't have electricity to our coop either & have one cord going out there & a power strip fixed on the wall for the timers & such for the automatic door, light, & water heater. I don't think it would be that hard to run electric out there from our garage, but that may be a project for next year. We also have another extension cord running to the dog run for their heated water bowl, so we have two cords running across the walk going to the garage. Our garage is detached & across the driveway aways from the house because they had an attached garage & then evidently decided a one car garage wasn't enough so they built a 2 car & workshop metal building for the garage. That's where I usually keep my brooder when I have chicks, in the workshop part. I'm going to have to clean out some more things next spring to make more room for another brooder in there. If only I could get my son to take all of his crap with him I could have that whole area to have my chicken stuff in. I'm going to have to push for that next spring. I also want to get another refrigerator for out there to hold eggs & extra stuff in, so I really need his stuff out of there. For some reason he seems to think my garage is a storage unit for him. Oh & yeah all my chicken projects are just that MINE, so hubby feels that I need to use my own money for anything to do with them, feed or whatever, even though they feed him breakfast.

 

[chicken danz]

Here is the link to the light bulbs. These are 100 wt red flood lights. I like them better than heat bulbs because the light is actually red not just red cast.: http://www.atrlighting.com/IW_Products.m4p.pvx?;ITEM?ItemCode=30843OSI?company=ATR
The shipping added about 90 cents each but I ordered so many it was a really big box. That is still cheap. They run about $6 each anywhere if you can find them.
I cut a piece of plywood to fit in the bottom of the tin. Then mounted a porcelain light fixture to the board. Ran the cord through a hole in the tin which we put rubber around so it wouldn't accidentally cut the wire. Wired the fixture then siliconed the cord hole to keep it waterproof. I put a normal 60 Wt bulb in it. Then put the lid on. Ready to go. If you are using a cookie tin you might have to set the bulb sideways or something. Mine is sitting up right. Ivy has made a couple, maybe she can shed some light on a different way to mount the light.
Save money where you can. I used an old broken extension cord for my cord and plug. If you have a $1 store near you, you can buy a 6 foot extension cord for a buck and just cut the female end off of it. I always save cords off everything that breaks or I dispose of so I can reuse them for something else. They really come in handy.
I know all about kids storing everything at Mom's. I could fill 3 houses full. I get rid of it and they bring something else. They don't want their homes cluttered, just mine, then they talk about how I have too much junk! Ugh! Love them anyway.
My girl GP started working really hard about 5-6 months old. By the time the spring predators are out in force your dogs will be working. You just need to make it through the winter. I guess that is why I decided I am going to keep a female pup. I don't want to be without a dog if something happens to one of mine. I've read that if you put an outside light by your chicken coop it helps deter predators. I've never tried it so I can't say if it is true or not.
I just counted how many pens I have. I have 14 pens that I need to run heated bowls to and heat to some of the houses. I guess that is why DH isn't happy right now. It would be so much nicer if I had just one big heated building and outside pens for everything. Any one want to buy me a winning lottery ticket?

 

[Ivywoods]

Here is the (somewhat humorous) post I made on the cookie tin water heater thread after I made mine last year:

I just finished making 3 cookie tin water heaters. Once I got started it was SO easy!

Material needed:
3 Christmas cookie tins (Cheap!)
3 Bottle lamp kits ($4-$5 at Wal-Mart)
3 skinny bulbs-I used 25 watt chandalier bulbs

Instructions-Leave cookies lying around so kids and hubby eats them, that way you don't have to and you can eat more chocolate. Search and rescue cordless (or corded) drill from it's incorrect location. Charge the dead battery if cordless. Put a drill bit in it. It isn't important to use an exact size. Drill the hole in the side of the cookie tin about half way between the bottom and top. It doesn't matter which side since the tin is round anyway. If the hole you drill is too small because most of your drill bits are lost or broken, ream the hole out by an improvised measure. The tin is thin and it's a heck of a lot easier than finding another drill bit. I used a lag bolt just a little larger than the hole I wanted and screwed it in and wiggled it around.

Insert the threaded brass thingy into the hole. Screw the bottom of the other thingy that goes next onto that. You'll figure out which part because it's the only thing it will screw into. Insert the wire through the brass thingy and into the cookie tin. Find the part with the two screws that the wires hook to. Unscrew the screws a tad and put the wire under them. I bent them into a little "U" shape and hooked it around the screw and then tightened it. Next snap that piece with the wires attached into the part that covers it.

For insulation I found a couple of 4' lengths of pipe insulation. I cut it in half lengthwise and then put it inside the cookie tin around the edge. Cut it generous enough that it fits snug with the "inside" of the pipe insulation toward the wall of the cookie tin and it will stay securely. My insulation said "fire retardant. I hope that means it won't catch on fire. I would hate to have a retarded fire in my chicken pens.

Next screw your skinny bulbs into the socket. Test to see if it works by plugging it into a wall outlet. Stand back in case it blows up, or let some one else plug it in for your first test if you are scared. Make sure you don't have a husband or other clown around that says, "BANG" the instant you plug it in.

Now you are ready to put them under your chicken's water dishes. Be sure to put the hammer away that you have been using to knock the ice out of the water dishes.

If I remember correctly there was one part I left out of these instructions, but you'll figure it out.

Also, after using them, I decided you really don't need to insulate the sides. The heat rises and it works just fine without it.

 

[Trish44]

Danz, thanks for the link to the bulbs, I think I'll order a few so I'll have them. Yes, I'll have to use the bulb sideways in the tin I got since it's not that thick. IVY, do you have instructions for doing that? I will have a lot of stops tomorrow it looks like to make after my appt.

That's good to know that by next spring my pups will be working at their job. It's just hard right now with no protection for my chickens when they're out running around. I thought they were fairly safe during the day, but I still lost a hen in bright daylight. I do have a huge yard light on a pole in the yard right across the driveway from the coop, so it's really light out there all night. It's just around the sides & back where it's not so light. Because of that light I figure things would try to get the chickens by digging around the back & sides when it's dark, that's where I found the hole something had dug. I plugged that hole with rocks & then more dirt on top of them & so far nothing has dug again. My run has a wire skirt out about 18 inches & covered with rocks & dirt & I hooked hardware cloth to the bottom edge of the coop & down into the ground since it's sitting up on blocks. I then put rocks & dirt up over the hardware cloth all around on 3 sides. But whatever was digging pushed the hardware cloth backwards under the coop on the one side.

Yeah, it will be fun for me next year probably with all the waterers & cords if I get my breeder pens built that I want. I still won't have nearly as many as you. My hubby would have a heart attack if I had that much going on here. Heck he gave me grief about having my water garden pump running in the summer. He said it took too much electricity. We don't have the right area for that many pens anyway, just because of how hilly & everything it is here, the woods in front of the house, & the layout of things. If we get goats like we're talking about they will be a little further out since the horse shed is out past the first fence. We still have a lot of work & things to consider yet before we decide on that project. Hubby of course is looking at how much the fencing is going to cost to keep the goats in. That will be the highest cost, just replacing all the fence we have since it's just barbed wire at this point. We have the dogs now to guard them though, so I would like to get some, but it's ultimately up to him since he will be paying for the fence & putting it up for the most part. I was wanting them mostly for brush control on the 5 acres we don't do anything with. It's gotten way overgrown & the goats could help get it cleaned up some. He wants the goats to do something besides brush control though either be for meat or fiber. He has never had livestock before & I have, so it's all new to him & he is unsure about it. He has to research things to death before he does them, so I just let him do his thing & finally he'll make a decision one way or the other.

 

[Trish44]

Thanks IVY, that's hilarious!

 

[chicken danz]

Made me chuckle. Ivy! Especially the part about letting someone else plug it in. I've done that several times. Either that or extended my arm out an additional three feet from my body to plug something in.

I've done lots of wiring so I don't worry much any more. But that all reminds me of the time I tried to repair a burner on a coffee pot. Hooked up two wires backwards. BIG spark and snap and the outlet melted that it was plugged into!

 

[Hawkeye95]

Trish-- so funny tonight! I mean, I'm sorry you had to run all around, but i can see that totally happening to me. You would not believe all the stuff the horses put me thru on occassion. Even my dogs! When they think I'm not watching, they want to run off. At least you didn't fall down or hurt yourself. That would be something I would do. I think I bought 40 or 60 watt chandelier bulbs (I'll have to look!) -- so they would be long and narrow and not touch top or bottom. I bought a $2 extension cord from Walmart (the lights came from walmart too) and I'll be cutting the ends off of them. I got the light socket from Lowes. That was the most expensive part.

Danz-- so productive! Yay on building your tin heaters! I have two I need to get built like ASAP! The water was frozen this morning. I have everything I need, I just need to do it. Today was a very lazy day. Just did my animal chores and that was it. Oh, and a load of laundry. The times I ran outside I froze my fingers off, and decided it wasn't worth it to work on anything. Wednesday is supposed to be a bit nicer here, and I can get the run finished.

Thinking at that point, I'll put the silkies in the barn, and the chicks in the coop. Keep them separated for as long as needed. I didn't bother putting Seymore in her pen under the deck today-- far too cold. I set up her food and water in the barn and let her hang out there. I did see her hang out with the horses from time to time, but I think for the most part, she hung out in the barn where it was warmer. I brought her in today and she was shivering a bit in her legs. She is fully feathered and heavy, so I think she's fine, but it did worry me. Part of the day she was up in the rafters-- so I don't know how much she sat around and ate. I may need to pen her up a bit tomorrow so she'll be sure to eat. I don't know how much she can eat free-ranging. And just when my DH gets back from Dallas... now he's headed to Philly. Sigh. I'm glad his job is secure, but it's no fun dealing with 3 little kids on my own. It's not for too long this time- just till Friday. Okay, better run, time to get them to bed!

 

[Konza]

Had some interesting visitors this morning. I thought some of you would get a kick out of this pic:

That's the neighbor's goat herd, out wandering. I guess they put another hole in their fence.

They stopped by my place to snack on some acorns. Their LGD is still with them, he's that fuzzy blur on the right on the other side of the garden. I'm pretty sure he's a Pyr.

The neighbors on the other side also have a Pyr, but he's a pet. He wanders and he barks all night, but has never bothered the cats or chickens. I wish I could say the same for his dog-buddy.

The Pyr is welcome to nap in the yard anytime, the other dog....not so much.

Between these two dogs and some of the posts I've read in here, I'm pretty much sold on the breed. Still have a lot of thinking to do before I commit, to make sure I do right by the dog, but I don't have any doubt that the dog would do right by me.

 

[Trish44]

Konza, it looks like your neighbor needs to fix their fence, good thing I guess the garden is gone for the year. Bless that dog though, it's still doing it's job watching the goats even when they're out of their fence.