Consolidated Kansas

[prairie]

Danz, thanks -- going to get the brewer's yeast or niacin today. But this morning they are moving much much better! I will look for the game bird feed too. I scrambled 2 whole eggs for them and they gobbled a bunch of that down. Think I might take them some yogurt this morn too.

They are free to run in the chicken house or the run now but they don't like to come out of the house. Maybe they will in a couple of days. The 3 little guineas I got are still in the pen in the chicken house and I don't think the ducks want to leave them. They huddle up on the outside of the pen with the keets on the inside of the pen!

 

[Ivywoods]

Good morning all!

Welcome Tiny chicks!

It looks like I am going to be busier than a one armed wall paperer. Talked to the realtor about the new house. She said the owner was in a better frame of mind and the sale was back on. She wanted a time frame from us, so I told her we would get back with her Monday on that after figuring out what we needed to do to get our land sold. So I talked to her yesterday. Now the owner is not wanting to draw up a contract on her house until she knows for sure she can get the house she wants. So we are in a holding pattern again. That's okay. I'm relatively comfortable that she will go ahead. I don't blame her for wanting to have things tied up on her end, and I don't blame her for being reluctant to move. She and her late husband have put a lot of themselves into the place over the years.



This is the little chicken coop they have behind the guest house. I thought it was really cute. It's not big enough for all my chooks, but it is certainly big enough for a few layers to keep the house supplied with eggs. There are other barns and buildings where I can put all of the birds that I decide to move. They haven't had chickens in there for about a year I think, and there were some "mud daubber" type wasps in the egg nests, which you access from the back by pulling down a door. I checked and it looked like the nests had always been dry, so that is a good thing. I think once I get my girls used to their new digs I will be able to let them out to free range during the day. If our GP's do their job there as well as they do here, we shouldn't have to worry about predators.

Speaking of GP's this morning, they scared the S**T out of me this morning. I was walking the little dogs for the morning, when Runt suddenly took off after something. With a low alarm bark, Britt took off after him. Well, that was all fine and good, except then Bella, the momma havanese took off after Britt. I tried to call her back, but it was like trying to call the GP's back when they are after a coyote. She was deaf to my calls and went running full tilt across the cornfield, headed out of sight. With two total knees, I don't run worth a hoot, so I hollered at my DH and by the time we got back out, Runt and Britt were headed back this way and they brought Bella back with them.

I think I have new homes for ALL of the birds that I don't want to take with me on the move. I have chicks and some poults in the incubator that need to come out today, then that is IT. I will shut the incubators down and give them a good cleaning. I'm ready for a break from incubating, anyway.

Sunday night was my first night back to work. I barely made it. Half way through the night my foot hurt so bad I could hardly walk, but I sat down over my lunch break, and it really got a lot better and I was able to make it through the night. Then yesterday I went to physical therapy for my foot, and after that it hurt so bad I didn't want to do anything and I ended up not going to work. I will go again tonight, but I'm trying not to overdo it and set myself back too far.

HAWKEYE-----I know how it is being in limbo with a possible job change and a possible move looming in the future. I have put a lot of myself into everywhere I have lived, and each move is like closing a chapter on your life and starting a new one. It's not all bad. The chapters are what make the book. It's part of what defines us. Whatever happens with you, your DH's job and family, I am sure it will all work out.

I'm going to be so busy for the next few months, I may not be on here near as much as I have been. I promise not to abandon ya'all, though.
Catch ya later.

 

[chicken danz]

Oh dwip! I just wiped out all I wrote. Heather that sounds awesome. Everything but being in the basement. At my age I don't like doing stairs at all. I had thought about adding a second story on this house and decided that would mean climbing stairs. I have a basement that had been finished at one time and all the walls have been ripped out. We were going to rebuild and use that as our area to entertain in but at this point we probably never will. We'll be lucky if we get walls back around the bathroom!
Trish I ordered some more lemon cuckoo orpington eggs from the same gal. She is going to wrap them differently this time. If these don't hatch I will give up. I've got too way much money invested in them already. She gets her chicks from Greenfire farms at $35 each at day olds so they are quality birds. I am waiting for her Swedish flower hens to start laying. They are 6 months old. They weren't on my want list but if I could hatch some eggs at a fair price I could see making some profit on future chicks. You see that is some more of how my mind is working on downsizing!

I sure hope I get more done today than yesterday. I just couldn't get going.

 

[checoukan]

Hi to all, doing ok, busier than a two chickens. Welcome to all new comers, Had some quality time with Ivy. You have to know that when the five of us kids flew the nest, we never lived anywhere near each other. So, with the prospect of Ivy moving close by,

like not much over 30 minutes away. I can hardly wait. Its going to be a long summer waiting.

Looks like my by poulty, goat barn is now going to be one big barn. But combining the two barns into one I am going to end up with double space, as he is going to put a loft in for all my "stuff". So all pet taxi's, cages, and extra waterer's and feeders will go upstairs and out of the way. I'm still going to have my room for incubator, hatcher, and brooder. But I also get a fridge, and cabnets, sink and water in the room.

May end up spending more time out there than in the house. NOT!!!

Better go, not much else. Fair is only a month away and lots to do.

 

[chicken danz]

I'm so envious. I wish I had a nice barn. Maybe some day the wind will blow this one down and I'll have to build a new one. I keep thinking I could pour concrete, re-side it, and put on a new roof but why not just build a new one if I am going to put that much into it? It all comes down to dollars and cents. You gotta have it to spend it.
Good to see you here checoukan. It's been awhile.
If I didn't sit down here I would never get a break.

 

[Hawkeye95]

Yesterday, Sutherlands had all their plants and trees at 50% off! So I bought another acer maple tree (red maple) to go in the back yard for shade. Sigh. I could probably plant 20 more and still barely make a dent. Anyway, this summer, I've put in 6 trees-- all of them at least 5ft tall or more. I've been watering them and feeding them root stimulator. Makes them really grow out. I noticed that Sutherlands still has fruit trees-- pear, peach and apple. I think I'd like to get a few pear trees, too. But I'll wait another week or so-- they are going to go to 75% off soon. But this maple was really nice and tall that I got, I didn't think it would last for the price to drop again. They also had double knock out roses, and I am sooooooo tempted!!!! I may run and get a couple to put next to the patio. But of course... two would look 'off', so it would have to be 3 plants...

hehe!

I ran my oldest into Wichita today and dropped him off at church for his day camp today at Camp Horizon. He should have a good time, and then I came back and did all the yard work. I need to get on that little coop, but I am unmotivated. I need a companion or someone to keep me company out there. It's actually a nice day out there, too! I really need to get my butt out there. How to convince myself? I spent 2 hours out there already watering all the trees in the back.

Danz, sorry to hear that a coon got those birds.. did you say it was your sister's? I had to get thru 3 pages to catch up. Now I've forgotten. But that would make me pretty made. I am wanting to leave my silkies out over night in the pen under the deck now, but I need to secure the top wire better I think. I'm thinking an opossum could squeeze in thru the top. But it's getting too hot to put them back into the garage at night in their stacked cages. The enjoy being out there anyway. Yeah... your "downsizing project" don't sound too much like downsizing. Unless you are swapping out a bunch of chickens for a few different breeds that will give you better investment return. I'd be a selling fool and getting rid of a lot of birds if I had your feed bill. I can tell the difference between my layers out back and how much they eat compared to my silkies and the little amount they eat. They eat so little.

Ivy, sounds like if the owner is waiting to see about her prospect, then you have some time in there to get your house ready and on the market! This may all work out perfectly. I sure hope so! I said a prayer for you, and will continue to do so that this place works out. I LOVE that cute little chicken house! How adorable is that thing?!?! I'm going to add that picture to my "dream" folder. If nothing else, maybe I can convince my neighbors to build one like it. They are overly daunted by the coop I built and I've been trying to show them it doesn't have to be that hard. That little coop looks like a garden oasis-- something that would be just so stinkin' adorable to walk up to everyday. I agree with the moving, it doesn't all have to be bad. But this is the place I've put so much work into and I'd hate to leave it. I've moved somewhere around 18 or 19 times already in my life. With my dad being military growing up, we would pack up in the middle of a year and head to the next job. Made it hard to make friends. That is the other thing-- it has taken me several years to find my close girlfriends here and we have a GNO (girls night out) once a month and they are all my age, we have a similar faith and belief, and it's nice to have prayer warriers on your side that are also your best friends. I would take me several years again to find relationships similar to that. Limbo.... so we'll see what happens and in the mean while, I'm going to continue on like we're staying and keep doing what makes me happy. And if we stay, then I won't be kicking myself for not planting more trees or whatever it was this year and the next while we were "waiting". I'm really excited about your move! It sounds like Rosie is over the moon, too!

Checoukan-- SO nice to see you on here again! Hey, our fair is July 11-14th. But on July 1st, we have a fair ground clean up day AND I have to take all of my chickens in to be tested before the fair. We had to make appts, so I'm glad that it's finally getting done. Whew! I'm going to take one or two of our WCB Polish as well. They are not near as nice as the ones I had when I was a kid-- they have some silver leakage in their tail and one or two spots in their wings. BUT--- I'm hoping this will just be a great learning experience for him to show him what we're looking for. We have our baking projects to get underway and our rocketry, and of course, to get the silkies in good condition. I've been leaving my rooster out of the pen for long periods to keep him off the girls. The new barn sounds fun!! Can't wait to see how it turns out!

HEchicken, well, your set up does sound pretty fun. That will be neat to have a mini kitchen down there. We thought about building a bar downstairs and decided against it. I just don't think we'd use it and really we're the opposite-- our downstairs is all of our comfy furniture and it's a war zone. It can easily been hidden away by not inviting anyone down there! My sewing room, and my oldest bedroom is down there, etc... But there area usually toys everywhere. The upstairs is the "show room"... not really, but it's the cleanest floor in the house. Usually always picked up, and fairly clean. When the kids have friends over, I send them downstairs where it won't matter what they do. This will be a neat idea for your house and I'm sure you will really enjoy the space all to yourselves.

Josie, well it's a great thing you got to lease the mare before you bought her. Sometimes they just don't work out. I bought a little gelding a few years back (before kids) and picked him up for $100 when he was just a yearling. I started ground training him and by the time he was 2yrs, I had him accepting a saddle and very well mannered on the ground. I used a combination of Parelli games and John Lyons techniques for sacking out. (Parelli doesn't sack out and I firmly believe in it) Anyway, he was turning out to be an awesome little boy, very well behaved and very light to the touch on his mouth. His mouth was SUPER light! But he kept kicking and biting my other horses. After taking my other gelding to the vet again to have an injury on his butt debrided from a bad bite, I decided that horse had to go! I sold him, and the new owners told me they were buying him for their 7 yr old boy and I warned them this horse was 3yrs old (by this time) I had JUST finished this horse, and didn't know if he'd spook or what with a kid. They called me back 3 months later and said that he was the best trail horse they'd ever had by far and the best behaved and they'd had him out every weekend to lakes and drug him around everywhere. All my hard work paid off, but I was sure glad to see him GONE! LOL

Prairie, I hope you get your ducks sorted out.

Well, I'm off. Going to see what motivation I can kick up.

 

[bobgent]

I made this in anticipation of having to rescue six birds, but before I could go get the chooks, the lady gave them to someone else. So now I'm left with this groovy little tractor and nobody to live in it. I had planned to sell it to a couple of friends who turned out not to be ready to jump in just yet, so it's up for grabs. first $375 takes it. It's 4X8 and about four or five feet tall. three doors and a built in feed trough. All materials are new except for the metal roofing, which is re-purposed, and the tires which are off a snapper mower, and can be jacked up (or down) to two different heights for ease in moving.
I'm in Lawrence, and can deliver it for mileage costs....
I'm experienced in building all sorts of custom poultry housing, in case you want something different

Bob Gent
785-843-1590

 

[Trish44]

IVY, that is an adorable little coop, I love it! It's not big enough for all of my birds either, but I wouldn't mind having it anywhere to put a few in. I sure hope your house works out that you're wanting, it sounds like it would be perfect for you. I do empathize with the present owner though because after living in my place in Derby for 23 years it was really hard for me to leave there, even though I was going somewhere with a bigger, newer house & more land. When you put so much work into a place & have so many memories there it's hard to leave it. I raised my son in that place & there were just a lot of sweat & tears there. It is true though that when you move it's just a new chapter in your life. I haven't moved a lot in my lifetime like a lot of people, this is just my third house since I first left home & got married the first time. I lived in my first house in Wichita the shortest time, about 3 years & then moved to Derby. I have been here in this house now for 14 years this summer.

Hawkeye, you need to get that coop done for your brother! I know what your hang up is with it, but you will find a solution, you're so creative. Let me know when you plan to deliver it.

HeChicken, your new place sounds nice, what a heavenly thing to have an all adult floor of the house, wow that would have been nice when my son was younger. Your kids sound like good kids though, very helpful. I don't envy you the packing & unpacking, I absolutely hate moving. I'm not looking forward to the day when I have to pack up this house & move, ugh. It sounds like you have some good help though, I won't have that. I was kind of hoping I wouldn't have to move again in my lifetime, but I'm sure there is at least one more move in my future. This house has stairs to the 2nd floor & I know the day is coming with my arthritis that I won't be able to handle them any more. My DH says he isn't retiring in Kansas anyway, so we'll see. I sure don't want to live in that tiny town he grew up in though, so that will be a discussion at some point too.

Checoukan, it was nice to see you on here again, it sounds like you've been busy. Your new barn sounds wonderful, I would love to have a barn again, but it won't happen here.

Well I do have some things I need to do today. I started working on the livingroom wall again last night, I need to put the sealer on the last cement wall & then paint it so we can move the whole big screen TV & stand & all over so my DH can see better from his recliner. He's been complaining every since we got the new furniture, but I need help moving the TV so I can paint the wall behind there. I don't think he thought about that part, sigh. I also want to work some on trying to build some nest boxes tonight for my coop. I'm not very happy with my present ones, so I'm going to see what I can come up with using the scrap wood I have left in the garage.

 

[chicken danz]

I need to do so much in this house but I just have to be outside working unless the weather is too extreme. The storms got my arthritis acting up even though we didn't get the rain. It makes it hard to do much. I really hate getting old!!!!
I actually went out and was going to work in the trailer again yesterday but couldn't find the box of nails that goes to the nail gun so I stopped. It was really hot in there. If I'd just get started I could get a lot done. Seems all I do is feed and water and have time for nothing else. I think this following weekend is free of commitments. I may try to sell some more birds then.

 

[JosieChick]

Well gang, it has finally happened. I have this darn dog from the humane society. He is one of our house dogs and he is a flat coated retriever with a ton of prey drive. We have worked tirelessly with him and the chickens but he still wants to hunt them. He dug out of the privacy fenced backyard while I was gone to Kansas City yesterday and went on a killing spree. I lost 8 cockerels that were growing out for butcher, my best splash cochin roo, two of my precious turkeys and one is seriously wounded and one of my cayuga drakes.

I am still in a state of shock. I got home and there were dead birds everywhere. It was horrifying. The dog is gone with DH to find a new home or be euthanized. I don't know that anyone will want him after what he has done but he would be fine with a family that lived in town. He is just a bird dog with an insatiable drive to hunt and we never should have kept him this long. I am absolutely heartbroken over this. It is bad enough when a predator kills a bird but when your own dog that sleeps on the floor at the end of your bed every night betrays you the pain is just unfathomable. I feel like I let these birds down so badly I can hardly forgive myself. The poor turkey upstairs look terrible and I don't know if he will survive. I feel so badly for the cayuga drake that survived. I thought he was fatally injured last night so I brought him in with the turkey but couldn't find anything wrong. I think he was just completely traumatized by the ordeal and watching his best friend get killed. Those two were inseparable. The other hand full of roos who survived were way off in the woods hiding and it took me over an hour to coax them down out of trees and back into their coop for the night. One bird is still not accounted for and I can't find his body or any remnants of him. It is a tragedy here today.