Consolidated Kansas

[Angelbells]

I go out and add ice to all the water and some on the ground and spray them all down a couple times a day then it is hot and they are panting I also have fans on them, they hate being watered down but it sure cools them off and they are dry again pretty quick so far no loses thankfully. I mist the quail a little LOL don't think they could take any more then that.

 

[Trish44]

HeChicken, I too only have tiny chicks available that are extras right now & I'm having a heck of a time keeping mine inside right now. Fortunately we have this utility room & storage room that originally were the old garage on the end of the house. Two walls are underground, so it's warm in there, but not like in the garage, so it's probably about right for the chicks. I have one tub of them in there & the other two are in the utility room, which was originally a kind of walk-through from garage to house, but they moved the utility room out there once they built the detached garage. It has one cement wall at the back. I put a thermometer in there & it gets about 84 in there, so it's not bad as compared to 115 in the garage where the brooders are.

I just got back in from trying to get everyone cooled off again. My lavender Ameraucana hens were honking, so I sprayed them down with the hose. They don't like it, but at least they stop honking for awhile. I found my Y-connector for the outside faucet & managed to get two hoses going out to the grow-out pen & the Ameraucana pen with misters on them. The young chicks know about the mister because I have used it for them several days, but the Ameraucana hens don't get it yet, hopefully they will go over & try it out. Some of the young ones just stood in the spray for quite awhile, especially the Salmon Faverolles, they seem not to take the heat well at all. It's so miserable out there, gosh I can't wait for a few days of respite from this heat. My two GPs are down in the woods in the deep shade, but even there it's still hot, not as hot, but it's hot everywhere. Lily has been standing in the tub thing I have out there for whoever wants to get in it every so often, so her lower legs are just muddy looking. At least it cools her off some for awhile. I feel so sorry for all of the critters that have to be out in this & yes for those stupid people who tie out their dogs with no place to get cool. It makes me want to tie them out in the sun for hours & see how they feel, horrible. They have a law in Cowley County for Winfield & Arkansas City that says you can't keep your dog tied for more than an hour & then they have to be off of it for 3 hours. I wish they enforced it better, but it would take up a lot of time for them to police that.

Angelbells, . We have a KS Poultry Swap if you're on Facebook where you probably can find some people with the quail you're looking for. The link to it is: https://www.facebook.com/groups/275183675880038/. You can put an ad on with what you're looking for & put your location so people will know how far they are from you.

 

[Angelbells]

Thanks for the link I will check that out.

 

[cherwill]

The first thing that comes to mind is that it isn't getting enough of it's beak in the water to wash out food. Other than that ducks can get colds and pneumonia just like any other bird. I would certainly make sure it had plenty of water to get into and really clean out first though. If that doesn't help have her give him some vetRX. In the duck's case I would probably give it a dose then keep a little in the drinking water for a few days.

July 7, 2012

Friends this is amazing! I have a homing chicken. Really! I have a Welsumer roo and hatched two sisters from an Americana. When they grew up I thought one was eating her eggs and that she was laying them on the ground just inside the door of the pen. Catching her with a recent broken egg I went into the pen and clipped her tail back and one of her wings. This I thought would make her easy to pick out. Thinking that I needed to stop this egg eating I offered her to my brother who lives more than 20 miles away in Shawnee Kansas. When he came to get her we discovered she was not an egg eater but laying her eggs up on a plat form just above the pen door. Some of the eggs were being kicked off and they would break and get eaten. So gave her to him anyway. I was sad to hear three days later she was gone. He living in the city I figured a dog or my brother says he sees some foxes in the neighborhood. Last week I started getting two olive eggs a day and one was speckled. I only have 15 hens but figured this hen was really going at it. I have been working so much I hadn’t really done a head count. Last night I noticed I had two hens that looked like Welsumers but had ear muffs like the American. Today I confirmed it, its her! I have not done exact mileage but I am sure its at least 20 miles, the Kansas River, three highways and who knows what else. Has anyone ever seen this before? I am dumbfounded!
Mike

What a great story. Any critter that determined deserves her chance for a long and happy life in the place she so definitely chooses to be!

Well we had quite a scare last night, I didn't have a very good night because of it. I spent a very enjoyable evening with KarenS in her beautiful pool soaking & staying cool & it was late by the time I finally left, I didn't even realize how late it was until I got in the car & started home. Karen, I hope I didn't keep everyone up too late, I'm a night owl. Anyway, I got home at like 11:15 & usually both of the GPs greet me at the driveway by the garage, but this time only Lily was there, hmmm. I drove on in & went into the house to get dog food since the dogs didn't get fed at the usual time & the cats were yelling at me too. I came back out with the dog food & still only Lily, I called & called for Jasmine & she just wasn't there. It wasn't like her at all not to be there & I had the worst feeling. So shortly after my DH got home from work & I told him that Jas was missing & he got a flashlight & walked all around the house, we did go look at the old well after Candace's experience, nothing there, then we walked up to the road & I stayed behind because I didn't want Lily to go out there & he walked down both directions making sure she hadn't gotten in the road & gotten hit, nothing. We looked everywhere that we could get to easily at midnight, but she just was nowhere to be found. We went to bed & I didn't sleep well at all over it thinking maybe someone had taken her, just not knowing. This morning we got up & I go out to let out the chickens before I even have breakfast or coffee, but we're not early risers with DH's work schedule. He got ready to go to do his normal Sat. run & went outside & was yelling for me, so I went out to see what he was yelling for & there was Jasmine with Lily. Oh, what a relief! Those of you that have GPs know how valuable these dogs are & we just didn't know what we were going to do, she is our lead LGD too. So we gave her a lot of attention & checked her over & she seems fine, so where she had been I have no idea. Lily was very glad to see her sister too, they usually are together or not that far away from each other most of the time, that's why it was very strange for Jasmine to be gone alone. I guess we'll never know where she went or why, but I'm sure glad she's back!

Oh & this morning I did find my little peachick that I had hatched had died, it just held on way longer than I would have though possible. It makes me feel bad for it, but I tried everything I knew to try to get it to eat & drink. The other two seem like they're doing OK, keep your fingers crossed that they will make it. I know they have been eating because I refilled the feeder today & saw how much they had eaten out of it, so that makes me feel better. I just love the little sound they make. I'll try to get pics when I can, they're very shy.

I'm sorry about your little pea; I was sure hoping he'd make it. That's great about your dog, though. I'd have been beside myself with worry, too.

I'm from Topeka I have Ameraucana's, Welsummers and Jumbo brown Cot Quail...... soon to get Lemon Cuckoo Orpingtons Love to get more of the Jumbo Cots

Welcome!

Sapphire- Tomorrow, tomorrow it will be cooler and it will RAIN tonight!! Because I said so.

Everybody watch your critters close! It is awful out today. I just finished watering and I think poor Molly was overheating. She was staggering around the yard like a drunk sailor such much to her dismay she got hosed off for 10 minutes and is feeling much better! At least the pup has the sense to lay in the wading pool!

You'd better be right about the rain! We did get 12 drops of rain this afternoon ... I hope that's not all we get.

My chickens were really panting today. I take them ice regularly. Some goes in their water and some I sprinkle around the lilacs where they lay. I hose down the pen and try to get them as well, but they still run away like I'm trying to kill them. I overheated a bit today, myself. We mowed a couple of lawns and then worked in the garden. I thought I was drinking enough, but I suddenly got really tired, got a headache and my lips and fingers went slightly numb. On top of that, our green beans are being taken out by spider mites. DH had me splash cold water on my face, which helped some, and run cold water on the insides of my wrists, which helped a lot. I know several of us have had problems with the heat, so I thought I'd pass that on -- cold water on the wrists.

Well, my Cuckoo Marans that I was sure was a goner after her fox attack, is hanging in there. For a couple of days she just looked shell-shocked. You know when they turn inwards and barely respond to their environment? She stood in one place all day and didn't pay any attention to anything going on around her. I lifted her on the roost at night, off the roost in the morning, and set her by feed and water but she wouldn't eat or drink voluntarily. I felt sure she wouldn't make it. Yesterday afternoon I decided to try to tempt her with an egg and to my surprise, she showed interest and then slowly started eating. Today she is still moving slowly and carefully but is looking more interested in life and doing a better job of moving to the coolest spot. At one point she went to stand in the waterer and best of all, when I took out some food scraps to them a few minutes ago, she looked interested and pecked at a grape. So I think maybe she'll make it. I'm so glad I treated all the wounds I could find with Neosporin. Hopefully it prevented infection and allowed her to just fight the shock and overcome. Fingers crossed.

I am also moving in the direction of a LGD. It is slow going because the DH is not excited about adding a new dependent. Fortunately, the current owner of the dog I hope to adopt has been very understanding and is being patient and allowing me to take some time. I hope to have her (the dog, not the owner) for a few days trial next week and see how she fits in with us. DH thinks its overkill to get a huge dog that has to be fed, wormed, vaccinated and cared for the rest of its life, just to guard a small flock of chickens. I can see his point but....I don't ever want to go out to that kind of devastation again. I enjoy my ducks and guineas in their own way but the chickens have such distinct personalities and I get to know them all. If I lose a duck or guinea it is feels like disappointment that it is a bird that won't be around to eat ticks, or raise a clutch of ducklings but when I lose a chicken, I am losing a bird I knew, individually from any other. It is not unlike losing a dog or cat, as each of them have their own place in our hearts. I still miss the Red Star I lost two years ago to my next-door neighbor's dogs - as many chickens as I've had, I've never had another just like her. So while I see DH's point, I also know I can't go through this heartache too many times before I quit because I can't take the losses any more.

I know if I said all of that to my wonderful, loving and mostly understanding family members, they wouldn't understand. I suspect most of you would.

I'm glad to hear your Cuckoo Marans is still hanging in there.

As for getting a dog which requires care for years, maybe DH can look at it as a long-term investment. That's years' worth of poultry the dog would be protecting. You can feed the dog, or keep buying chickens and coop and security materials, and putting in your labor trying to secure the critters. It's not like the dog would only work for a year and then be a mooch! Like you, I couldn't take having my birds (or any of my critters) massacred like that.

 

[chicken danz]

What an awful day. It was 108 while ago. I couldn't even stand to be out. I lost several birds today and am afraid to go back out and check. I brought in a couple different birds that were particularly stressed and cooled them. Josie my dogs are having a really rough time today too. Fluff is just barely functioning. Marshmallow of course is in the house cooling down. If I try to wet the dogs they run away which makes it even worse for them. Poor things. I am considering clipping Fluff. He just has so much hair.
My granddaughter was up all night so she is asleep on my bed. Ah! I even got a 30 minute nap on the couch. It was really too hot for her to be out much when we got here. She is used to living in the mountains above Denver and the heat nor humidity isn't something she is used to.
Trish so sorry about your peachick. I haven't seen mine eat again but he seems to be doing okay. He has lots of company in the bin.I went on the peacock forum and they all say he will be a white or a silver. That would be awesome! Almost worth spending all that money for eggs that weren't fertile.
I am a bit worried though since Trish had so many problems and it seems to be a common thread.
Trish did you surprise hubby yet with the other two?
I may try to buy some more peafowl this fall at Gardner if they sell cheaply enough. It just takes so long to get any money back on them since they don't breed until they are three years old.
I suppose I should get back out there and check on birds.

 

[ChooksChick]

Devastation here tonight. At 3pm I went to do a welfare check and refill water bowls. At 6:30pm, I headed back down there with a bowl of kitchen scraps. Upon approaching the yard I saw JB, my silkie roo lying in the sun in the middle of the yard and something didn't look right. I called to him and started running. He raised his head at the sound of my voice but when I got to him he was in bad shape. Then I saw a dead body near him, and then another. Between 3pm and 6:30pm, something got in and wiped out a good portion of my flock.

This is the work of dogs. There was no blood and no one was eaten. As soon as one bird stopped fighting, this predator moved onto the next moving target. I built a Fort Knox coop because most of the predators in my area are nocturnal. I've never even seen a dog here since we moved in, other than my neighbor's dogs who never leave her property. Yet a passing dog found my coop and my birds and wreaked havoc. I can't even see where they got in. DH and I walked the yard multiple times after my discovery and there were no gaps in the fence and nowhere that is dug under.

When I first got there I could see only JB and 3 living birds. As time wore on, birds came out of hiding. But I am down 10 confirmed dead and 2 are still MIA. Of the dead, five were roos and one of the MIA's is a roo, which accounts for all 6 of my roos. That tells me the roos were doing their best to defend their hens and paid for it with their lives.

One of the ducks and JB were alive but had broken necks so we had to cull them. We decided rather than let their lives be a total waste, we would process and eat them and say a prayer of gratitude to them when we do.

Needless to say, I am feeling pretty devastated. 3 years keeping hens in Wichita and only lost 2 to the neighbor's dogs next door. 3 weeks living here and 1/4 of my flock is gone in a matter of hours. DH and I were here - but heard nothing. He is livid and wants to know what got to them and kill it. Tomorrow morning we will NOT be greeted by the sound of crowing and I will be reminded of my loss.

Heather, I just saw this...I'm sooooooooo sorry! This is just sooooo heartbreaking!

I fear I may need to avoid going back in the thread to prevent reading about losses...I'm about to head back out to the farm. I'm hauling 85 gallons every other day along with 15 frozen liter bottles of water to put in the buckets daily. Those poor birds. It's just awful.

I'll check back in when I get back.

 

[HEChicken]

Sorry Renee. I know what you mean about not wanting to read about it when you are going to see your birds. It was several pages later so in case you didn't read it yet, it turned out to be a fox. He returned the next day but I had been checking on them so frequently that day that he only got two before I interrupted him. Then I sat and waited for him to return, which he did. I was able to "neutralize" him so HE won't be bothering my flock again.

 

[HEChicken]

You'd better be right about the rain! We did get 12 drops of rain this afternoon ... I hope that's not all we get.

My chickens were really panting today. I take them ice regularly. Some goes in their water and some I sprinkle around the lilacs where they lay. I hose down the pen and try to get them as well, but they still run away like I'm trying to kill them. I overheated a bit today, myself. We mowed a couple of lawns and then worked in the garden. I thought I was drinking enough, but I suddenly got really tired, got a headache and my lips and fingers went slightly numb. On top of that, our green beans are being taken out by spider mites. DH had me splash cold water on my face, which helped some, and run cold water on the insides of my wrists, which helped a lot. I know several of us have had problems with the heat, so I thought I'd pass that on -- cold water on the wrists.


I'm glad to hear your Cuckoo Marans is still hanging in there.

As for getting a dog which requires care for years, maybe DH can look at it as a long-term investment. That's years' worth of poultry the dog would be protecting. You can feed the dog, or keep buying chickens and coop and security materials, and putting in your labor trying to secure the critters. It's not like the dog would only work for a year and then be a mooch! Like you, I couldn't take having my birds (or any of my critters) massacred like that.

You got 12 drops. That's 12 drops more than we've had! No fair.

Heat exhaustion and stroke are not to be trifled with - I'm glad you're feeling better. I will remember the cold water on wrists. Another thing that is supposed to help is a cold rag or hankie on the back of the neck.

That is a good point about the LGD being an investment and I totally agree. To have to keep replacing the flock would be more than just emotionally devastating - it would be expensive too.

What an awful day. It was 108 while ago. I couldn't even stand to be out. I lost several birds today and am afraid to go back out and check. I brought in a couple different birds that were particularly stressed and cooled them. Josie my dogs are having a really rough time today too. Fluff is just barely functioning. Marshmallow of course is in the house cooling down. If I try to wet the dogs they run away which makes it even worse for them. Poor things. I am considering clipping Fluff. He just has so much hair.
My granddaughter was up all night so she is asleep on my bed. Ah! I even got a 30 minute nap on the couch. It was really too hot for her to be out much when we got here. She is used to living in the mountains above Denver and the heat nor humidity isn't something she is used to.
Trish so sorry about your peachick. I haven't seen mine eat again but he seems to be doing okay. He has lots of company in the bin.I went on the peacock forum and they all say he will be a white or a silver. That would be awesome! Almost worth spending all that money for eggs that weren't fertile.
I am a bit worried though since Trish had so many problems and it seems to be a common thread.
Trish did you surprise hubby yet with the other two?
I may try to buy some more peafowl this fall at Gardner if they sell cheaply enough. It just takes so long to get any money back on them since they don't breed until they are three years old.
I suppose I should get back out there and check on birds.

So sorry about the birds. Our thermostat registered 110 at one point but I'm not sure where the sensor is located to know how accurate it is. I keep telling mine relief is on the way if they just hang in there today.

I bet its a hard adjustment for your granddaughter coming from CO. I'm concerned about my parents for the same reason. It feels hot enough to us but when they're acclimatized to cooler weather, its even worse.

 

[chicken danz]

Well a couple more losses! Lost a sussex hen and a polish. But it is actually rained a little. I was out watering and the wind came up and it cooled down a lot. You can see how happy the birds are. I think it only lasted 30 seconds but at least it cooled things down. I just hope it comes back and rains all night. I didn't loose this many birds all summer last summer. I sure hope the worst of it is over.
Maybe the rain will fill your well, Renee.
My granddaughter has been sleeping most of the afternoon and is still out. She was exhausted. Guess I should get her up for dinner.

 

[Trish44]

Danz, I'm sorry for your losses, I was afraid I was going to lose some today, I probably would have had I not gone out when I did & cooled them down. There were several honking & that just isn't good. We didn't get a drop of rain here yet, I sure hope we do. I have let a lot of things just go because I can't afford to keep pouring water on things, it's sad. The grass is long gone, any we had left is crispy. There isn't much for the chickens to go & forage. They were really hungry this evening because of that, I had to fill the feeder because they had emptied it. My little peachicks that I bought seem so far to be doing well. I see them going to the feeder & water, but they don't like me to come too near them yet. I just kind of stand back aways & talk to them so they get to know my voice. I wouldn't mind having another one, but I think I would like to get it from someone else so they aren't related. I won't know for at least a year what the sexes are I was told on these chicks. They sure are cute though & I don't even mind that they're India Blue, we both think those are pretty, but I wouldn't mind another color too if I could find a chick. I really can't afford an adult, they're too expensive & I think it would be better to have them all young to get used to where home is. Yes, I showed them to my DH & he seemed kind of pleased about it, the first birds that he has seemed to be happy about.Of course he doesn't have to take care of them, but what is two more birds to feed?

Chooks, the little lav Orp/porcelain Isabel chicks are doing well. I have them in the storage room right now in a tub. When they get big enough I will take them out to the grow-out pen. I hope to be able with the cooler weather to get that other pen put together. Maybe I can even talk my DH into helping me, but I don't know. I would like to get the little Wheaten Ameraucanas at least out of the pen & into their own so they can get used to that. I plan to put it next to the turkey pen. I'm sorry about your well, that has to be the pits, I hope you get some rain & it fills back up soon. I'm just waiting since it's been so darned dry for them to tell us we're on water restrictions, I hope not, but it's been so dry & if it continues I bet they will.

Speaking of the turkeys I got tickled today when the people came to get that little rooster, they were gobbling & raising a racket because they were strangers, how funny! I'm starting to see signs of maybe another tom in there of the Royal Palms. I hope I don't end up with all toms, then I will have to be trying to trade some off for hens. I know for sure that the Black Spanish is a tom & one of the RPs so far, but I think there may be another one. The guy I got my Cream Legbar eggs from also raises RPs & he said it can take a few months to know for sure. He said one will be the dominant tom & he will mature first & then others will show up later. He had bought 3 what he thought were hens & one ended up being a tom later about 10 months of age. I had hoped I could tell before then, but we'll see what happens. I didn't know I would like turkeys so much, but they are kind of fun to have around.

My dogs were really hot today also, but they do the same thing if they see me with the hose they just run, the silly girls. You would think they would realize that would cool them down, but they just don't want to be sprayed. They don't mind sitting in water or laying in it, just not the spraying part. I did take the mister out of the pens this evening when I was feeding & watering & manage to mist Jasmine's head a little. She didn't seem to mind the fine mist so much.

Oh & the people who came to get the little black Sex Link rooster said they went from 9 roosters down to none & they have 40 hens. I guess they thought they had too many, so they sold 6 & then two of the remaining three got in a big fight & killed each other & the one left just died maybe from the heat. So this little guy when he matures should be a very happy rooster with that many girls. Hopefully they will get at least one or two more though, that's too many hens for one rooster to watch over. I wish I would have had another one to give them, but right now I don't know the sexes of all of my chicks around here. Later on I may be trying to get rid of some when they show what they are.