Consolidated Kansas

[Trish44]

HeChicken, I hope you find your dog today, how heartbreaking! I'm sorry about your turkeys too. After I get these & grow them a bit to see what sexes I have I may have some extras to sell, we'll see what happens with the shipping & all. I'm hoping they make it here in good shape, they got on a plane yesterday & will be here tomorrow.

IVY, you will have to share your turkey hints with us since some of us aren't having such a great time hatching them.

Well I'm off to Derby & Wichita again today, so I'll check back here later on. I have to finish my pen this evening & am hoping I won't be out there until 11:30 p.m. again doing it.

 

[pikeman94]

Yikes! Everyone is crazy busy!

Everyone that is sick, get better. Being sick sucks.

Everyone else hang in there...this roller coaster called Life is always up and down, but the ride sure is fun no matter what.

I am no exception to the busy. I have all my materials sourced and purchased for what I am call Coop v2.0. So far I am $100 into it. I created an album to show my progress.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/gallery/album/view/id/6215133/user_id/66378

The photos in the album are from last night. I hope to get the decking on and the legs attached this evening. I will add more photos tomorrow and post an updated.

Poppy the hen that was starting to get a cold, is now better. I ran her through duramycin-10 for 3 days and she is all cleared up! Now I have to wait 20 something days before I can use her eggs again. The craptastic part is that she is my best layer. Oh well. I would rather have a healthy bird.

Back to the salt mines.

Everyone have a good day!

 

[JosieChick]

HEchicken- I hope you find your puppy. I am sure she is ok, maybe she will find her way back to the farm you were at? It is good she is friendly because she will look for people. Put posters up near where you lost her, that is how I found Molly. A guy who didn't even live near us was driving to a friends house and spotted her!

Tweety- I feel you, I didn't read for a day and it took me forever to get caught up!

Hawkeye- Huge can of worms I have opened with these birds. SO, I thought all 3 were bearded? I was under the impression that non bearded birds looked like this????:

It is funny, a lot of the silkie stuff is much like cochins. The males tend to have lower wing carriage and that is problem. Look for overall type vs culling for one flaw. I do like the blue boys overall shape much better and even when he walks around he looks nicer to me in his overall stature. I should mention they are young still, 7-8 months maybe? I have found from this breeder that her pullets are very slow to mature and I bet this girl has a lot of filling in to do still. My last hen from her was not fully developed until well past a year of age and she just blossomed into an incredible bird which is why I hatched more eggs from this lady after I lost that little hen last summer to heat exhaustion. I will look at wings again today. So when you fan the wing out there will be a separation visible between the primaries and secondaries? I was looking at his wings yesterday and they appear to roll out away from his body and I didn't think that looked right.
I like this pic of the blue cockerel but it wouldn't load last night! Thanks for all your help lady!!! Sometimes I can't bring myself to post pics on the breeding forum because it seems like it just starts arguments over what should be culled for and what shouldn't and some people would cull both these boys but if its all you have to work with sometimes you have to start somewhere!

 

[cherwill]

Last night my DH went back to work for the first time since his heart problems. He did pretty good. He still had some chest pain, but no worse than what he has been having all along. It's been kind of a pain because it has been so unpredictable.

Well, this isn't chicken related, but I'm a happy camper right now. I just got home from physical therapy. I have been working HARD at rehabing my knee. One of my goals was to be able to flex my knee 130 degrees. I never made it until today!

I made it to 130 by myself, and 133 with a little help from the therapist. My Doctor appt is Wednesday, I know he threw that 130 degree thing out to me as bait, but I took the bait, hook line and sinker, and I made it! My therapist said almost no one makes it that far. I passed all my strength and balance tests with flying colors. So now if I can just get this foot thing figured out I'll be good to go.

Woohoo! I had some nerve damage when I broke my arm. It's frustrating because there's not much that can be done; it just heals on its own, in its own time. Don't be too discouraged if it seems slow.

Here is a funny story about the roos. I have a friend down in Mulvane area that is going to come help me butcher all the boys this summer so I have a handful of her roos growing out too and then we split them out when we process them. Makes it go a lot quicker and slightly more tolerable experience! Anyway, she had them penned up a few weeks ago so she could drop them off with DH to bring up to me and her granddaughter who is just a little peanut, maybe 4?, asked where the roosters were going. SO she told her they were going to boys camp up in Kansas City and her granddaughter exclaimed "Boys Camp!!!!, Grandma, they are going to have SOOOO MUCH FUN at Boys Camp!!" Those lucky chickens!!!! Meanwhile behind her the 7 year old brother was making a silent slicing motion across his neck!!! I think Grandma could barely contain herself!!

LOL! For some reason, that makes me think of the cartoon about the dog who's all excited and bragging about going to be "tutored."

I just got out of the incubator

and I'm happy to report I've stopped flipping and actually got some rest. DS did a great job with his homeschool work today without Mom overseeing every move. Proud of that guy! I'm feeling a bit better so I have hope I'll be able to muddle through this evening without being too terribly incompetent.

I enjoyed reading up on everyone and, of course, ya'll have made me smile!

Glad you're no longer flipping!

I am even getting panicked that out Ameracauna (Orschelens) or EE pullets from the pullet bin may not be pullets..... They don't have any bigger feet than the Ameracauna ( true) pullet I bought from Next to Nature. If one of them is a roo, odds are they ALL are :-( Their combs are all about the same size and are pink. They are 10 weeks old. I have asked on the EE threads if anyone can tell, but so far no replys. My kids will be so upset. They are counting on colored eggs.
Also, these birds are very friendly and sweet. Our youngest EE, is just 4 weeks and I have no idea if she will be a she either, as with the Silkies..... I am sure my Marans are pullets and my BO is, but if we end up with only 3 pullets out of all these chickens I am going to scream....



Ahh.... I am off for a hot shower. I moved my classroom today and am feeling my age and several muscles I wish I werent! Hot shower time Sera has promised me to put the chickens to be on her own tonight. We will see!

Sera's adorable and sassy in all the right ways. You've obviously prepared her well for the ignorant and/or cruel people she will meet from time to time. As for the dirt, I'll say what I always told my niece when she worried that her mom would be mad because she was dirty: "You're washable, right?"

I don't want to scare you, but 2 of the 4 Ameraucana/EEs we got from the Orscheln pullet bin were roos. We knew one was within two weeks because his comb began developing and no one else's had, and it was getting red. The second roo didn't show signs until a couple of weeks after that, but his comb got bigger and redder, while the remaining two still had very small, lightly pink combs developing.

Oh, forgot to mention that the chick that was stuck and having a hard time standing up and was flipping over-- he died this evening. I was expecting it, he just was not doing good at all. Ah well. The others are all doing great-- including Sticky. Who isn't so sticky anymore after his bath this morning.

That's too bad about the stuck chick, but good news about Sticky.

I spent yesterday on day 3 of the coop build but the day did not start out well. It began when the alarm went off and I rolled over moaning. I put my shoulder out in my sleep, I guess. I don't get it - how can you exert enough pressure on a joint to put it out in your sleep and then not be able to exert the same pressure to put it back when awake? I always seem to end up at the chiropractor when something like this happens. However I didn't have time for that yesterday so dosed myself with ibuprofen instead. At first it was spasm-ing so badly that I couldn't even talk from the pain during a spasm but over the coarse of the day it quieted to a dull ache.

Some of you will remember my adventures last week stopping at Lowes to get lumber and the dog jumping out of the car. Well, on this trip to Lowes, I did need to hang a couple of 10-footers out the passenger window but it was a far tamer car ride, and the dog seemed happier. However I had agreed to meet my helper at our barn with his trailer, so that we could pick up some roofing materials that were donated to me by our barn manager. My dogs love the barn so were happy to get out and run around while we loaded. It came time to leave and I called them both and put them in the car. I had transferred the 10-footers to the trailer too so I didn't have any long lumber hanging out of the car for the drive to the coop site - about 8 miles. We started off and about halfway there, something made me turn around to check the dogs in the back of the car. I could only see one - not usually a big deal, but this time something felt wrong so I pulled over onto the gravel shoulder to get a good look. Only one dog back there. I had driven 4-5 miles from the barn, never heard her go and had NO idea when she jumped out. Must have gone through the open back window which was only open to give them good ventilation (and only opens halfway for safety anyway). She has NEVER done that before. So I did a u-turn and retraced my path, looking for her all the way but saw no sign of her.

I won't bore you with the details of the rest of my day. Long story short, my dog is still missing and I am morose. She is microchipped AND wearing a collar that has an ID tag on it. She is also very friendly and would approach anyone so if someone sees her, they won't have any problem grabbing her to see the collar and call me. I've kept my phone in my hand ever since, and every time it rings, hope it is a good samaritan who has found her. My big fear is that she is such a nice dog - everyone who meets her loves her - that some toad will find her and decide to keep her even though she is clearly someone's loved pet. I've alerted all the people who use our barn to be on the lookout for her. I'm still hoping she jumped out there. After we had loaded up to go, we sat idling for a couple of minutes because each of us was waiting on the other to drive out first. It is *possible* she jumped out then and I didn't notice. If she jumped out while I was driving....well, I'm really concerned about injuries. I didn't see her on the side of the road while going back and forth over that road but that doesn't mean she didn't land in a ditch somewhere. I'm going back out to the barn first thing this morning.

she is waiting there for me with that happy grin on her face.

As for the coop progress, looking for the dog really cut into my day and my concentration but since it was the only day this week my helper is available, I wanted to at least make some progress. I had been concerned about triangulation on the roof so we spent the first part of our morning strengthening that. I am now confident that roof is not going anywhere but it didn't lead to any progress pics as there wasn't much to see. However after that we got a few sheets of OSB up on the sides and that is a good feeling because one sheet and you have a good portion of a wall looking like a real wall. I took pics but they are still on the camera - will try to get them downloaded later. We had to stop early as I had to take DS to a baseball practice so with a late start and early finish, it was not the most productive building day ever.

I hope you find your dog today (in fact, I hope you've already found her).

Visit with my family went fine - I guess. My brother did bring his dog, but we kept her fenced on the back porch - which made it hard when my dogs wanted to go outside to potty. When we were out of the house, we just put her down in the computer room locked up. She didn't like that, but I refused to let him keep her in the car like he wanted to. And wow.. my nephew is a little hellion on wheels. He's 5 and talks back more than in 10 minutes than my kids did in one year! He's a whiner too, I don't think I heard him say more than 10 full sentences that weren't whining about something. It really made me realize how lucky I was with my kids - they were nothing like that! Funny thing is that as stressed out as my DH was about the dog, he said the dog was better behaved than the kids! LOL. It was really nice seeing my father though - I don't get to see him as often as I'd like - He's in St. Louis. Graduation went well and it was so nice for everyone to go home yesterday! Nothing's better than a quiet house after 3 days of non-stop activity!

Don't sell yourself short. It isn't luck that your kids are so much better behaved, it's YOU.


I don't have much planned today; just some housework. Tomorrow is my niece's 8th grade recognition, then lunch at her house. After that, we have a yard to mow and gardening. It's time to hoe weeds at the community garden, and we should have a bunch of peas ready to be picked, and possibly some more beets. I pulled a few radishes at the bonus garden yesterday. They're doing OK, but I think baby rabbits are eating the carrots. Did I tell you we killed most of the leeks? DH thinks the grass clippings we mulched them with had been hit with weed and feed. I bought 60 starts and I think there were even extras in the bundle, and there aren't even 10 leeks out there right now.

I'm frustrated to death with my nephew and his girlfriend. It's hard to watch people waste so much money and then complain about how poor they are. Sure it's just a dollar here and five dollars there, but it all adds up. And now, when he could be saving hundreds of dollars on gas, he keeps having to make this 50+ mile round trip back home several times a week because there's always something ... but I think it's really that the girlfriend can't be without him for very long. She has no hobbies at all and she's bored out of her mind being stuck there; I guess her kids don't count as companionship? DH keeps saying he's going to talk to him because he's putting 100s of miles on my very old, high mileage car. I only drive it around town. It has a shimmy and an oil leak and shouldn't really be out on the highway anyway. But of course he can't bring himself to really say anything. Then I make meals that I think he will like, and he doesn't eat here because he has to go get her or take her home or take something to her. The good news is she thinks she's found a rent controlled apartment available here in town at the first of June. I guess I'm
just a crotchety old lady who can't take disruptions in my routine!

 

[chicken danz]

Piasanos is where my son and his wife had their wedding reception. They had another venue but the business closed and they only had a few weeks to find someplace else. It really worked out well. We had the basement to ourselves and great food.
My stupid internet keeps going down today. It's irritating.
Cherwill, you're funny but you're in with a bunch of other crotchety old ladies here. And I HATE to have my routines changed.
HEchicken, I sure hope you find your dog. You might call the vet clinic and the sheriff's office to see if someone picked it up in case it was injured.
I have such a full day ahead and I didn't even get started on most of it.
Prairie was just here and took 2 broodies and a little brahma pullet. Just a little more of the population to go.
I need to get the birds fed and watered and get the ones that are going, caged up after they eat. So why am I sitting here again??
Anyway we ate at Pizza Ranch which I always love, last night. I can graze the salad bar and never have to eat pizza there, even though it is some of the best pizza ever.
I ended up buying 16 hot pepper plants. They are all different varieties. I need to get those planted then water the garden. I still need some sweet green peppers, a couple of tomato plants and some jalapenos.
I got an email that said my chicks were shipped today. The turkeys will be shipped tomorrow. I figure about Thursday I'll be heading to Waverly to the post office early in the morning.
I have to go set up a pen to keep birds in until the buyer gets here. Then move a ton of birds. I'll probably wait to cage them until she calls and says she is on her way. I don't want them suffering any longer than they have to.
So reading about the silkies I have determined mine are crap. I might take them to Topeka Saturday and see if anyone wants some ugly black silkies. The only thing they have going for them is their feet.
Yeah Ivy share you diet secrets for turkeys. I have the eggs in the bator that only have a couple more days and the babies I ordered coming this week. The more I know ahead of time the better off I will be. Speaking of which I'd better be getting those brooder bins disinfected and get ready for them.

 

[JosieChick]

Meda- I keep forgetting to tell you how I smile every time I see your little girl with her silkie! She is just precious!!

Danz- Where is pizza ranch? I have been so disappointed in the pizza we have had up here so far. I told DH we would just start making it at home because I think our homemade pizza is better than anything I have had so far. That is one thing I miss about the city, good pizza...

 

[Ivywoods]

I have a reason for sitting here posting so often. My excuse is I can only stand to be on my feet for about an hour or so, then I sit down and rest them.

That's my story and I'm stickin' to it!

The turkeys that just hatched: Royal palm, blue slate and some mixes of the two and one lone guinea (the lavender one to the right in the pic.) I loved the way some of them were sitting there on their fat bottoms looking up at me.


I had no idea this many would hatch. I've had pretty good hatches in the past, but this one was nearly 100%. Now if I can just get them past that critical 2 week stage!


A little closer shot. They are so fat and lazy at this point. Well, I better go finish up that new brooder area for them. Obviously there are too many to stay in that little tote!

 

[JosieChick]

OHHHHH Ivy, they are so cute!!! I just love turkeys!!! I didn't know you had RPs laying!! You won't be selling any will you? I have wanted some RPs but haven't found any lately that aren't a mix. I just want 2 or 3 as pets. I just love my bronze feed store turkeys, they are the funniest little characters!! DH is quite disappointed that we won't be having farm fresh turkey for thanksgiving but I have fallen in love with them. I promised we could raise a poult or two next year for thanksgiving. At least then I would be able to detach myself from the little buggers! Let me know if you decide it is too tight in that bin.

I need to get out and get the trailer cleaned out. The good pony is going to the vet to get castrated today! Yeah for him. The vet told me I had to gentle the other pony down before I brought him in but I don't know how gentle this pony is gonna get, maybe manageable at best...

 

[Ivywoods]

I've never had any problems hatching turkeys... but keeping them alive for the next ten days or so has been the tricky part. With all these hatched and more in the incubator, I'm sure I WILL be selling some poults.

Your little pony... the ornery little booger. Can he be tied with a halter? Sounds like he needs to learn there are things stronger than he is. Has he been "spoiled" by someone, or was he just left wild and never messed with?

 

[chicken danz]

D--- IT! I just got a call from the Hatchery and they had a poor hatch. Now I don't get my turkeys until June 29th. I've been waiting so long. And now if I have any hatch from these eggs I have there will be severe size difference in them. Scream! I have been waiting since last fall to get these babies. It makes me so sad!!
I need to get back out and work on penning ducks and chickens. I just lost all my enthusiasm with that phone call. Maybe I'll make a little money today off the birds and will be happy. I may be stuck with my dumb blue slate turkeys if things don't start looking better.