Consolidated Kansas

[Ivywoods]

Lizzy-Congrats on the POWER EQUIPMENT! I love using all of my stuff and am so excited to once again have (soon) a shop of my own I can use for my woodworking stuff. Since I've lived up here, sharing the shop with my DH has made it so there just isn't enough room, and consequently I don't enjoy it as much.

Coyotes and foxes CAN co-exist, but not much! If there are very many coyotes around, there will not be foxes. Coyotes DO kill foxes... species competition, I suppose. Both are very adaptable to different habitats. We had coyotes and foxes when we lived near Solomon. Here, the only place I have seen foxes is in town! We have lots of coyotes, too, which makes our LGD's very necessary.

Speaking of predators, we have a NEW one hanging around. A golden eagle. I wasn't sure that was what it was, because I have only seen eagles around here during the winter. I thought maybe it was one of our many buzzards (turkey vultures) that hangs around. Britt, our youngest GP tends to hang around the house more than the other two, which works out great. She has been barking at something in the trees just south of the house lately. Today when I went out with the little dogs I saw it take off and then fly right back into the trees. A little while later I saw it take off and fly to the north, and it is out there soaring around north of the barn right now. I looked at it through the binoculars and I'm pretty sure it's a golden eagle.

When my DH came by, I told him about it. I also told him I'm afraid I may have lost a turkey hen and was thinking the eagle might be the culprit.. I hadn't seen 2 of them for 2 days, but knew one of them has been sitting on a nest. He came back in and told me the hens weren't lost, but they were both on nests and one of them has hatched a little poult! This will be the first turkey I've had hatched by the hen. I need to go out and get it and put it in a pen and give it some electrolytes, etc. DH said the hens were really hissing at him when he went out. I'm not too excited about trying to get this poult away from two BIG mean mommas. I'm generally not afraid of much, but the thought of getting flogged by two big turkey hens is not very appealing. Wish me luck on that!

 

[Trish44]

IVY, wow that's interesting that you have an eagle, you just don't see those that much in KS. We have some that nest usually every year by the river in Winfield, but they usually come back to the same spot each year. I'm glad you found your turkey hens & that's great about the little turkey poult, good luck with getting it away from the mommas! I had enough trouble getting a chick away from my broody hen, let alone turkey hens.

 

[checoukan]

Lizzy, really all you need to do,
is make sure the ducks are clean.
Make sure they are close to breed standard.
I allow water pans in the coop for the ducks to get into. We have plastic coated wire in the bottems of the coops so it does not bother the feet on the large birds and waerfowl. Of course, you would want to remove the water tub before the show.
We do not dismiss any birds. We have large high volume fans that blow.
But, I have found that people that come to the fair usually come and spend most of the time in the poultry and rabbit barn.
Take your own water for the fowl to drink, and if the birds are going to have to stay at the fair, start them on a oral electrolyte in the water now so they know what it is and will drink it.
I also feed my birds what they have been eating at home, its stressful enough.
Have the ducks easy to handle, nothing like trying to have a judge working, and fighting with the bird to judge it.
when you bring your birds in don't use straw for bedding in your crate. use some shavings. Straw matts down, and the poop sits on top, shavings move around and cover up some of the mess so the birds don't get as messy.
Take so baby wipes so you can clean up your self and any loose mess on feet and beaks
clean tub of water for them to bath in to get any dirt off they got into their body on the way to the show.
And most of all, have some fun, talk with people. You would be surprized how many people want to talk and ask questions about your birds. If you have something unique you could take in color or variety, really gets people looking at the birds.
This year we have 6 turkeys entered, and I am still pondering on how to house them, be a coop or a cattle panel pen for them got to get it figured out today.
BUSY, BUSY, AND MORE BUSY!!!!!!

 

[HEChicken]

I stand corrected on retrievers. From what I knew about the way they are used in hunting, plus how good mine is around my flock, I thought more of them were like her than a problem.

Ivy, that would be great to see an eagle around, unless he does become a threat to your flock. But I know what you can do to thwart him if he does. Move. Move far away. Like to Oswego or something. Bwahahaha.

Well, I know I've been a little coy about the details but I didn't want to say too much in case it didn't work out. Josie kindly offered to watch out on CL for LGD's for me and it didn't take her long. The very next day she contacted me about a dog available in my area. I have been in touch with the owner ever since but we decided to take it slowly. DH isn't keen on the idea of adding another dependent. And I don't want to go behind his back and force him to come around. I raised some of the points you all had made and he understands, but is also concerned that well, basically, people don't often give up great dogs. Usually if they come available for adoption, it is because they are not working out one way or another, and he didn't want us to end up stuck with someone else's problem. He also feels an LGD is overkill on our little property, guarding our small flock. I can't disagree with that in some ways. On the other hand, I don't want to go through that devastation too many times.

So, the current owner kindly agreed to allow us a trial period. If it isn't working out, they will take her back, no questions asked. We can take as long as we want to see how she is fitting in with us.

Tory is a 16-month-old Akbash/Great Pyrenees. The father was full GP, the mother full Akbash. 16 months is, I'm hoping, old enough to be through the worst of the puppy stage, but young enough to bond to us, our property and the animals on it that need protection. The Akbash makes her shorter haired than a GP.

She arrived this morning and we spent 2 hours showing her around our property, talking, asking questions, discussing what might work for her and what might not. The owner felt encouraged after seeing our place that it is a good environment for her. Although they have more acreage, none of it is enclosed or fenced and she felt Tory was confused about what property she should protect and how far she could roam. She thinks since ours is visibly marked by fencing and a tree hedgerow, it will be clearer to her, where she is supposed to stay. We took her down to the chicken yard - not in it - just around it, and with a fence between her and the chickens, she was very calm. She was also very good with our two dogs.

So, she is staying for the trial period. With no dog pen, I currently have her tied to a tree in the front yard where she has shade all day and her big water pail next to her. I am going out every hour to do a perimeter walk with her, so she isn't tethered for too long at a time. I'm afraid when it is all so new to her that if I let her off, she will roam off the property and since she is not my dog yet, I would really hate to make a call to the owner to tell her I lost the dog. So, although I don't like tying a dog and have never done it before, this is how its going to be for a few days until she is used to us.

She is so calm and gentle - I'm really impressed with her. She seemed to take to me right away - the owner said she likes women best. I'm

she will work out well. Anyway, here are some pics of her. These are the pics from the CL ad - not my photos.

 

[ChooksChick]

I stand corrected on retrievers. From what I knew about the way they are used in hunting, plus how good mine is around my flock, I thought more of them were like her than a problem.

Ivy, that would be great to see an eagle around, unless he does become a threat to your flock. But I know what you can do to thwart him if he does. Move. Move far away. Like to Oswego or something. Bwahahaha.

Well, I know I've been a little coy about the details but I didn't want to say too much in case it didn't work out. Josie kindly offered to watch out on CL for LGD's for me and it didn't take her long. The very next day she contacted me about a dog available in my area. I have been in touch with the owner ever since but we decided to take it slowly. DH isn't keen on the idea of adding another dependent. And I don't want to go behind his back and force him to come around. I raised some of the points you all had made and he understands, but is also concerned that well, basically, people don't often give up great dogs. Usually if they come available for adoption, it is because they are not working out one way or another, and he didn't want us to end up stuck with someone else's problem. He also feels an LGD is overkill on our little property, guarding our small flock. I can't disagree with that in some ways. On the other hand, I don't want to go through that devastation too many times.

So, the current owner kindly agreed to allow us a trial period. If it isn't working out, they will take her back, no questions asked. We can take as long as we want to see how she is fitting in with us.

Tory is a 16-month-old Akbash/Great Pyrenees. The father was full GP, the mother full Akbash. 16 months is, I'm hoping, old enough to be through the worst of the puppy stage, but young enough to bond to us, our property and the animals on it that need protection. The Akbash makes her shorter haired than a GP.

She arrived this morning and we spent 2 hours showing her around our property, talking, asking questions, discussing what might work for her and what might not. The owner felt encouraged after seeing our place that it is a good environment for her. Although they have more acreage, none of it is enclosed or fenced and she felt Tory was confused about what property she should protect and how far she could roam. She thinks since ours is visibly marked by fencing and a tree hedgerow, it will be clearer to her, where she is supposed to stay. We took her down to the chicken yard - not in it - just around it, and with a fence between her and the chickens, she was very calm. She was also very good with our two dogs.

So, she is staying for the trial period. With no dog pen, I currently have her tied to a tree in the front yard where she has shade all day and her big water pail next to her. I am going out every hour to do a perimeter walk with her, so she isn't tethered for too long at a time. I'm afraid when it is all so new to her that if I let her off, she will roam off the property and since she is not my dog yet, I would really hate to make a call to the owner to tell her I lost the dog. So, although I don't like tying a dog and have never done it before, this is how its going to be for a few days until she is used to us.

She is so calm and gentle - I'm really impressed with her. She seemed to take to me right away - the owner said she likes women best. I'm

she will work out well. Anyway, here are some pics of her. These are the pics from the CL ad - not my photos.

What a lovely girl, HEChicken! I do hope it works out for you. I would really hate to see you suffer that loss ever again!

I had a miracle last night- I have a mostly blind Isabel Orp roo who is just a doll and can't mate the girls but is a good companion...well, one of my daughters didn't close a gate yesterday while we were out at the farm in the afternoon, and we got out there really late last night to close up. I noticed the open gate, but thought I saw everyone when I looked in on the Orp house. Turns out, Blindy slept out in the pasture last night under the giant sunflowers, and the trail of feathers we pulled up to this morning dropped my heart...but he's fine. I guess he got away despite his blindness! Dunno what he fought with, but I'm tickled he made it.

I'm sure we have a fox out there, and I know coyotes are all over the area chronically...we hear them nightly. We have owls, eagles, etc...but in their covered runs and bear-proof coops, they've been fine. It's when someone gets out of their area that losses occur. I've stopped allowing ranging in the woods, after the early losses this year.

I want to run an electric perimeter so I can allow some ranging. That will be later, some day, etc.

For now, the only rangers are the peas, and they are 40' up a tree at night.

Wish I could have an LDG to allow more!

 

[JosieChick]

HEchicken-

Oh, I hope she works out just splendidly for you! She looks and sounds like a really nice girl! I am glad she is settling in so well at your place too. They are very easy to get along with. I bet she will be barking and chasing away foxes in no time flat!

 

[Deerfield Acres]

I've been to the dentist and now have a dazzling smile.

Hawkeye, I don't think coyotes would deter a fox. Fox are very fearless and extremely curious. Actually they are pretty amazing little animals and at one point I considered trying to domesticate one. When I lived in Council Grove I lived at the base of a huge hill that led out to the lake. There was a female fox that came in and lived on the hill for years. She would come to town late winter and stay on the hill, have her babies there because she was safe, raise them, then move them back out to the country. She never threatened me, my kids, or my cats. As a matter of fact my cats and she would play and wrestle around just like normal cats would play with each other. I had a rock wall at the base of the hill. I would take any leftovers to the rock wall and leave them for her to eat. That is the only time she showed aggression. If one of the cats got near her food she would growl at them. We never had a mouse, a squirrel or a rabbit around while she lived on the hill. That was a blessing to me because they had invaded my gardens until she came along.
When she was ready to breed she would stand out by my car and scream. If you've never heard a fox yell it will make your skin crawl. It is on the top of my list for creepy sounds!

The fox pretty much stayed hidden during the day unless it was a cloudy and overcast day. Then she would be out in the yard a lot. I had a bridge over a stream between two decorative ponds in my front yard. Her favorite spot to sit was on that bridge. She'd sit there and scratch her fleas and just seem perfectly content. The babies are the cutest things ever.
Of course I had no chickens then or I wouldn't have enjoyed her. Fox seem to have a love for birds. I did see her walking with a dead wild bird in her mouth on more than one occasion. I assumed she was taking it to feed her babies.
Please don't misunderstand. I would shoot any fox that got near here now, but in that situation I enjoyed her and learned a ton about how fox live and act.

That fox sounds like it was great entertainment! How lucky you had one to watch. I've seen a few around her but not nearly as many as I've seen coyotes. I know coyotes are necessary in the grand scheme of things but I worry about the chickens a LOT because of them. I think a couple Great Pyr would be great but with DH's uncertainty about his job, now just isn't a good time.

Ok. There's been a lot of talk about showing poultry at upcoming 4H fairs. I've been asked to show my ducks at the local 4H show because they don't get many poultry entries. However, I've never shown anything at a 4H show and could really use some advice on what to expect. Any input would be helpful!

We got .64" of rain on Sunday and .05" last night. It was desperately needed, but we could still use more. There were locations not too far from us that got almost nothing and others that got over 4 inches. Thankfully, the rain brought cooler temperatures. It had been over or around 100 so long, this weather almost feels cold.

Today's high is 78 according to the National Weather SErvice website. It's supposed to be back up in the 90's by the end of the week, but even that is a welcome relief from the heat we've been having recently. It has been so dry here that I have had to postpone bringing my horses out here. Our pasture is dry and crispy. There isn't really anything out there for any livestock. My parents are keeping my horses for me for now. They are farther east and their pasture is at least still green.

All this talk about local predators and such has made me kind of nervous. Today is day #2 of letting my flock free range in the yard. We do have a guard dog, but he is a lab and, as such, is a bird dog. However, he is a really smart dog, and we have been working really hard on teaching him that THESE birds are not to be hunted. So far, he has been doing really well. I even decided to not put his shock collar on him today, to see how he does without it. So far, he's been completely ignoring my birds.

I went to a garage sale on SAturday and found some really good deals. They had a table saw for sale there, and I walked away with it and the miter saw that came with it for $35. My husband was quite happy with my purchase. We are nearly finished building the duck house (just need to put in a couple more windows and finish painting the trim), but we still have to build the duck run and the loafing shed for my horses. He said that the saws would be very helpful for both projects. Now, we just need to make sure that they are both in good working order and get busy building! So far, my DH has been doing all of the work on the loafing shed himself. He's been digging holes about 2 feet in diameter and about 4 1/2 feet deep. It's a lot of work because of how dry it's been, but he hasn't complained at all. I'm so proud of him!

We used to have two labbies. They were sisters and lived till they were 12 and 13 years old. We loved those dogs! Congrats on your saw bargains! That's great. Does DH enjoy the birds too? I can imagine how much work it would be in the hard clay soil here and am hoping that's not what you have, but sounds like it.

Oh my goodness, I didn't realize how much I have missed talking to everyone!! Oh well, my choice.

Ok, the "Boss, or Sabre" is a topical. You place it on the back, I like to place mine topicals on the back right where the neck attaches.to the back. I never place topicals aroungthe vent, if they would injest some of it while they are preening them self, then you have chemical in the bird. These topicals dosage is 1CC/ 30 pounds. SSSSOOO, if you can figure your dosage from that. I usually use 1/4 cc on my standard birds. Now is you have some Jersey Giants, or some of the big buffs, you may want to weigh your bird and use more to cover their weight. Your bantams, since you have so many different types, may use a couple of drops, or you make use up to 20. Just depends on your type of chicken.

Since these are topicals, not meant to be injested, there is no withdraw on your eggs.

Thanks muchly for the info, checoukan! I'm mite paranoid and saw some of the Alohas scratching this morning -- yuck!

Checoukan I guess I was wrong. I just assumed that a coyote wouldn't deter a fox because of the fox nature. I see some of both around this area as well as Bobcats so I just assumed they co-existed as long as they weren't hunting the same food. I'm just glad all of them are deterred by my dogs.

Oh good grief, bobcats too! I've seen only one in this area before, so I know it's possible around here as well. I think I'll have coats of armor made up for the birds, wait that would give them heat stroke for sure!

Well testing a bird is no problem since I am a certified NPIP tester. I don't believe doves are tested though. For one thing you would probably never be able to find a vein large enough to draw blood from. But if I needed to I could certainly do it and fill out the form so she could take it with her.
That reminds me, KarenS, if you want, I can bring my serum and test equipment when we come down, and test your hens and aloha breeders if you like. That way you are good if you have some you want to ship or eggs you want to sell across state lines. Let me know.
Looks like I am going to be doing a lot of testing the next couple weeks for the fair. I really kind of enjoy it as long as I don't have to chase the chickens down. I guess I feel like I am doing something good for someone. So many people were unable to take their birds to town for testing on a week day when they had a test day.

Thanks so much Danz! I'm not planning to do any of that until this fall so maybe we could do it later when it's not so hot? Or maybe someone locally can do it? It's very kind of you to offer!

Speaking of predators, we have a NEW one hanging around. A golden eagle. I wasn't sure that was what it was, because I have only seen eagles around here during the winter. I thought maybe it was one of our many buzzards (turkey vultures) that hangs around. Britt, our youngest GP tends to hang around the house more than the other two, which works out great. She has been barking at something in the trees just south of the house lately. Today when I went out with the little dogs I saw it take off and then fly right back into the trees. A little while later I saw it take off and fly to the north, and it is out there soaring around north of the barn right now. I looked at it through the binoculars and I'm pretty sure it's a golden eagle.

When my DH came by, I told him about it. I also told him I'm afraid I may have lost a turkey hen and was thinking the eagle might be the culprit.. I hadn't seen 2 of them for 2 days, but knew one of them has been sitting on a nest. He came back in and told me the hens weren't lost, but they were both on nests and one of them has hatched a little poult! This will be the first turkey I've had hatched by the hen. I need to go out and get it and put it in a pen and give it some electrolytes, etc. DH said the hens were really hissing at him when he went out. I'm not too excited about trying to get this poult away from two BIG mean mommas. I'm generally not afraid of much, but the thought of getting flogged by two big turkey hens is not very appealing. Wish me luck on that!

I would love to see one of those, just not in my yard!

... Enjoy the slightly cooler weather today! I hope it rains here soon, we need it so badly.

X2!!!!

Hawkeye, I wish you luck with the show & thanks for the photos of the testing, that was interesting. Good luck to everyone else who is doing shows also. I just don't have the energy to do that at this point. Just trying to keep my birds cooled down & alive right now is taking about all the energy I have.

Me too, Trish44! Good luck, Hawkeye! I've toyed with the idea of getting the kids involved in 4H and showing birds -- I don't know. Summer seems to just fly by as it is, I'm not sure I could squeeze all of that in there. We'll see next year.

I need to take a pic of Turkey. That is one silly turkey! He's decided that the lawn mower is a menace. He sees it when we scalp-mow the grass for the electric fence. Otherwise, with all this heat there is nothing to mow! Anyway, funny Turkey sounds the alarm everytime he spots the mower now. It doesn't have to be running. He's just taking good care of his chicken buddies, I guess.

 

[Deerfield Acres]

HEChicken -- beautiful dog! I sure hope she works out for you.

 

[ChooksChick]

I have a Lab, btw...meant to mention it with all this talk of breeds. Henry is absolutely bored with the birds and will bark a few times to protect them, but isn't about to do something energetic. He let a hawk eat a duck right in the backyard in the middle of town this spring. He wouldn't dream of paying enough attention to one to bother it, so the birds climb all over him and try to get his bones. It's really comical. Our Chinese Crested/Chihuahua/Mutt is about the same, and couldn't care less about the 100+ chicks swarming the yard right now.

I think it has a lot to do with the dogs being desensitized early on...I wouldn't dare get a normal mutt and try to mitigate nature's urges...I think that's what's special about LGDs.

 

[Ivywoods]

HEchicken- WOW! She is BEAUTIFUL! I sure hope it works for you, too. We love our LGD's SO MUCH! Out of all the LGD's we've had, there is only one we had to rehome. She was probably the best predator detector/hunter/ killer but she got to be too rough when she played with the chickens. We rehomed her to a large farm without chickens. It worked out well for them.

I sure hope this girl works out great for you!

Chooks-So glad your blind rooster made it. It is easy to get attached to the "handicapped" animals... just like ole' "Rumpy" we got from you. I was SO MAD when our chicken killing dachshund killed that bird. That dog almost got a taste of his own medicine.