Consolidated Kansas

[tweetysvoice]

Cute pea-chicks and turkeys! I love seeing pictures of birds that I can't own I'll have to live vicariously through everyone in that regard
Everyone is loving the spraying patio. We've now seen all of the birds in there, but of course the weather has calmed down now that we have it set up. I'll keep it going because I know the day I shut it off the heat will skyrocket again!

Venting on work frustrations. y'all know I work in the emergency room. Well, last Friday i got a call from the business health center asking me to go to pharmacy because I was exposed to meningitis and needed to take a Cipro (antibiotic), well just last night I got a call from them again telling me I was exposed to Pertussis (whooping cough) and need to take more antibiotics (because of course the round I'm on now is different and ineffective against this) as well as a immunization shot. Good grief! I've been here almost 2 years now and never been exposed to anything horrible before, and now two thing in 4 days time. I guess it's the hazards of the job, but I really don't want to get anything and give it to my grandbaby!

Hope everyone has a great day!!

 

[chicken danz]

I've got quite a busy day ahead of me but I'm not moving fast at all today.
Josie I had been told to raise peafowl on wire too. I'm just not sure how to do that. 1. What size wire do you use and does it need to be vinyl coated? 2. How big of a cage do you need for peafowl and does it need a lot of height and a perch? I am going to have to make some provisions for this and any others I hatch. I particularly want this white one to live. It was on my bucket list. How did Leggs have things set up for his peachicks? Can you describe it? Of course I have my baby in a bin in the house right now but that can't last for long. He is pretty sweet and hasn't gotten wild yet.
Also Lindsey, I am getting some more lavender Orp eggs from a person tomorrow. She told me a lot about genetics and you may already know this but I thought I would pass it on to you because you wanted the splash.
True Lavenders only produce lavenders. The blues and blacks will produce splash. My understanding is if you breed blueXblue you get 50% blue, 25% black, 25% splash. BlueXsplash = 50% blue, 50% splash. BlueXBlack = 50% Blue, 50% Black. BlackXSplash = 100% Blue. BlackXBlack = All black. SplashXSplash = All Splash. Black can not parent a splash and vise versa. So your friend will need to find either a splash or blue mate in order to have more splash babies.
The chicks I have and the eggs I am getting are all from Hinks lines so they are true lavenders. No chance of having splash. Sorry. I was hoping to get hatch some for you.
I can see that DH is going to be unhappy with me again. Here I do all this planning to downsize but I am trying to get more specialized breeds. And now I am going to need to make special areas and pens for my projects like my peafowl. Since I already had to build a building for them he is going to think I have totally lost it. I have to get new facilities built for my turkeys before too long as well. The building we built is only half of the size I wanted and I see I definitely need it the full size. Fat chance I'll get him to build me the other half.
Hawkeye congrats on the bread. I hope the birds take purple as well!
I have lemon cuckoo chicks hatching today. They are a day early but I am relieved they are hatching. I sure hope these are a little more viable than the first batch I hatched. I guess I need to set up yet another bin in here for them. So much for getting birds out of the house!
Trish where did you get your last Swedish flower hen eggs? They seem to be doing so much better than the ones you got before.
I would like to hatch some but really prefer the crested ones over the others. The gal I have lined up to get chicks from has both but it looked like more were non-crested.
I can't wait to see what you hatch KarenS. I could easily drive to pick up eggs from her.
I've got to get eggs gathered and take them to town to my customers. I need to spend some time with my Dad. With my granddaughter here I haven't had as much time with him.
I really need to get the kennels set up for the turkey but just can't see leaving them outside all the time yet because of the heat. They are so crowded in the bins. I am afraid to put the younger ones in the brooder because I've had so many birds in there I don't want to chance them picking up anything even though I do clean a fumigate in there. It is never totally empty.
I should get out and get everyone fed and watered before it get any hotter but now I need to do a little more research on the peafowl site to see what I need to do for sure.

 

[chicken danz]

Josie, I questioned my mentor on peafowl and a couple other exotics. He says you need to keep them on wire for 90 days and do not worm them until they are 90 days old. I am waiting for an answer on what he uses to worm with. I also asked him how often to worm the adults. I have so many questions. I am so proud of this one and only baby I have that I just don't want to mess up. Help more and more info please!!!!

 

[JosieChick]

Darn it, I just typed a whole message and my computer shut down in the middle of posting it!!!

Hawkeye-Congrats to the kids and the bread, that is awesome!! Silkie chicks are under a broody hen right now but I know I have at least one vault and several decent looking toes. I do have one chick that has a pink toe tip? That is kinda a bummer.

HEchicken-Small birds/chicks are confusing even for LGDs. They are quick and squeeky and I have read to be very careful with the dogs and chicks because they don't always understand that they are a chicken. The best thing to do would be to set yourself up somewhere where she can't see you and put a shock collar on her. Set up a situation where she will be exposed to the birds and if she gives any interest, staring, chasing, pouncing etc give her a buzz. She will quickly learn that chickens are "electrified!" and she should leave them alone. Nip it in the bud now. Don't play around with it and don't think that scolding her will work because she will turn into my puppy and be on her best behavior when you are around and chase your birds when you aren't. I have found that the dogs also don't like it when the birds are out and I haven't let them out. So if one flys over the fence they will run over to it because it is "out of place." They are like super organized people with OCD. They want all their ducks in a row and birds running outside a pen they are usually inside of is out of place.

Danz- I couldn't figure out what you were talking about! I want lavender mottled, not splash. The original hinkjc lines of lavender orps carried a mottling gene that only expresses if both parents are carrying it. It has been culled out of most lines nowadays but I think would be really beautiful on a orp. The chicks hatch all yellow with a round lavender dot on their back. You would know when you hatched one because they look very different and many people assume they got an accidental buff orp egg mixed in their order. Because it has been bred out the mottling is very faint in the orp still but eventually with a lot of work they could look like a mottled d uccle like these:

Alright folks, gotta get out the door! Danz I will post more about what I learned about the peas tonight but DH is gonna kill me if I don't get on the road!

 

[HEChicken]

Venting on work frustrations. y'all know I work in the emergency room. Well, last Friday i got a call from the business health center asking me to go to pharmacy because I was exposed to meningitis and needed to take a Cipro (antibiotic), well just last night I got a call from them again telling me I was exposed to Pertussis (whooping cough) and need to take more antibiotics (because of course the round I'm on now is different and ineffective against this) as well as a immunization shot. Good grief! I've been here almost 2 years now and never been exposed to anything horrible before, and now two thing in 4 days time. I guess it's the hazards of the job, but I really don't want to get anything and give it to my grandbaby!

Tweety, I thought of you this morning when I was at Ace and they had kids wading pools. They were a pretty good size for $17, but I've never priced them before so don't know what they typically go for.

Sorry about the exposure to those diseases. Do you have to take the precautions even if you've been immunized yourself? I had Whooping Cough when I was about 6 so assume I now have immunity but perhaps there are different strains and even if you've had the disease or the vaccination, you still have to take precautions after exposure? Bummer.

I can see that DH is going to be unhappy with me again. Here I do all this planning to downsize but I am trying to get more specialized breeds. And now I am going to need to make special areas and pens for my projects like my peafowl. Since I already had to build a building for them he is going to think I have totally lost it. I have to get new facilities built for my turkeys before too long as well. The building we built is only half of the size I wanted and I see I definitely need it the full size. Fat chance I'll get him to build me the other half.
Hawkeye congrats on the bread. I hope the birds take purple as well!
I have lemon cuckoo chicks hatching today. They are a day early but I am relieved they are hatching. I sure hope these are a little more viable than the first batch I hatched. I guess I need to set up yet another bin in here for them. So much for getting birds out of the house!

Danz, you crack me up with all your projects. Congrats on the Lemon Cuckoos - I'll be interested to see pics of them when you get a chance. They sound very exotic.

HEchicken-Small birds/chicks are confusing even for LGDs. They are quick and squeeky and I have read to be very careful with the dogs and chicks because they don't always understand that they are a chicken. The best thing to do would be to set yourself up somewhere where she can't see you and put a shock collar on her. Set up a situation where she will be exposed to the birds and if she gives any interest, staring, chasing, pouncing etc give her a buzz. She will quickly learn that chickens are "electrified!" and she should leave them alone. Nip it in the bud now. Don't play around with it and don't think that scolding her will work because she will turn into my puppy and be on her best behavior when you are around and chase your birds when you aren't. I have found that the dogs also don't like it when the birds are out and I haven't let them out. So if one flys over the fence they will run over to it because it is "out of place." They are like super organized people with OCD. They want all their ducks in a row and birds running outside a pen they are usually inside of is out of place.

Thanks for that info. This morning I left for a couple of hours, for the first time since she hasn't been tethered. I was so happy to arrive home and have everyone, Tory included, run out to meet me. The rocks I put around the perimeter of the fence seem to be working. The little chick who has loved his "free-range" for as long as he can remember, is upset about it and is running around looking for another way out but its for his own good so he'll just have to adjust. I will look into getting a shock collar. Years ago we had a dog who dug like crazy any time he was left out alone and I considered getting one for him, but when I researched them, the cheap ones (under $150) seemed to have very poor reviews, with many people saying they worked great for 2 weeks and then quit working altogether, and in order to get one that had any staying power, I was looking at spending $500. I decided holes could be filled in.

But perhaps the technology has improved. Or maybe 2 weeks is all I really need to curtail the unwanted behavior.

One thing Tory has NOT done is bring home any treasure. You all have cracked me up with your descriptions of your Klepto dogs and I figured it was just part of the package so it has surprised me that she doesn't seem interested in collecting things.

And, I saw the first sign of food aggression last night but....it wasn't Tory! Our other dog, Sammie, who is a 37lb lab/border collie, and the most joyful, easy-going dog you could imagine, apparently decided she needed to assert dominance over Tory from the get-go, before Tory realizes she is three times her size. I hadn't even set the food bowls down when the snarling started and I looked down to see it was Sammie going at Tory. Right next to my bare legs. One quick reprimand nipped it in the bud, I set the bowls down and they all commenced eating, but it did come as quite a surprise to me. You think you know your dogs....

 

[cherwill]

well, I don't have much time, our judging starts here in a bit. We were at the fair yesterday until a little after 8pm. The poultry superintendent isn't going to do this next year and she is training me to take over for next year. So we set up cages and she showed me the process of how she organizes the LF by their classes. I learned that Houdans, Polish, etc are all Continential -- I had no idea what they were, I have polish! LOL SO much to learn, I was trying to keep up best i could. She was showing me how the cages torn down and how to flip the tables to get bigger cages on. Sigh. We worked for a few hours yesterday and got tags on the cages and then waited for everyone to show up with their birds. OH!!! and when people started arriving, we left really quick to have my son's yeast bread judged... and the judge was so impressed with the bread, he got a PURPLE!!! I'm so excited for him! When she discovered he did not use a bread machine, and he rolled it out, etc...she was thrilled and then told him the consistency and moisture was perfect and that the crust had the perfect color, etc... She never even saw the little finger dent in it! LOL!! The other loaf had sloping sides and this one was perfectly even. SO I'm glad we took it anyway. Okay-- have to run and be sure we have the Lab coat, our grooming supplies, etc... I'll post pics when I get back later... don't know when that will be as this should be a long day.

Josie--- yes please!! lets see those chicks!!! Did you get any vaults?? How did your toes come out? Congrats on your new littles! OH-- and I want to see your peas, too!

Congratulations to your son!

I'm slow getting around today, too. We have some mowing and gardening and I guess we're going to wait until it's good and hot before we do it! The good news today is that my nephew is finally moving out today! I love him dearly, but I'm ready!

 

[HEChicken]

I'm slow getting around today, too. We have some mowing and gardening and I guess we're going to wait until it's good and hot before we do it! The good news today is that my nephew is finally moving out today! I love him dearly, but I'm ready!

Yay on getting your house back to yourselves! Stay well hydrated out there - it feels like it is going to be a scorcher. The forecast says it will stay under 100 but at 10am it was almost 90 out here so it feels like its going to get hotter than they said it would.

 

[Trish44]

Danz, go look at that link to that guy's web site Josie had on her post & he has info on there about how he raises the peafowl chicks & how long he leaves them in each area. It looks like by 2 months old he has them on the floor in his building area with shavings on the floor. He certainly has a lot of birds & has been raising them for years so he should have it down pretty well I think. I hope to be able to go up & see his farm while I'm up that way. He has a lot of different colors of peafowl & some he has developed himself. I spent some time looking at different colors last night & think I know what chicks I would want to get if he still has some when I go. Maybe those will be my birthday present if I'm lucky so I won't have to buy them myself. I have spent so much money on eggs & chicks this year it's not funny.

I will try to get pics later of my Swedish Flower Hen chicks. I ended up with 8 that hatched with one having some issues I'm treating right now. I'm going to get them all except the one into a crate later on & set up & then I'll get some pics of them & my Cream Legbar chicks. I had a request to post pics of those on the Legbar thread, so I need to get that done too. For some reason I did have 3 that died in the shell, it seems like you just have some that do that when you have shipped eggs, maybe just too much trauma from the shipping. They develop but then don't make it. I had one hatch also & then die shortly after. I'm hoping I can get this one little guy on his/her feet, it's got some flipping problems. I have only had a very few chicks have that problem. Usually I can treat them & they end up being OK, I hope this one will be also, wish me luck. Anyway, with what I already have & this bunch I should have a good selection to choose from. Danz, I will have to read up on it more, but I'm not sure about whether you have to have both crested parents to get crested chicks or what the deal is on the cresteds. I believe that Eileeen's Swedish Flower Hens are the non-crested, correct me if I'm wrong. Well I just read something that said the crest is dominant, so you only have to have one parent with a crest to get some crested chicks. So far I know that one of mine out in the pen is crested, but I won't know about the babies until they grow some, it's not really apparent until they start feathering out & get some color. I also read that if you have two crested parents that you can get a bird with a huge crest, so maybe two crested together isn't such a good thing?

I got that dog pen put together for the most part after trying different things, it was kind of like a puzzle there for awhile that you don't have a picture to use for a guide. I was missing one upright pole until I went & looked inside of the rolled up fence & saw it in the middle of there, so I will have to roll it out in order to get it out of there. I need to bring the fence down now from up on the hill, it's kind of awkward & doesn't fit in the wheelbarrow, so we'll see how I can figure out to get it down here. We had all that stuff in the back of the truck & then needed the truck at one point, so we just unloaded it all up there where it has stayed until now. I guess I will see how I do trying to get this fence on by myself, wish me luck on that too. They made it look so easy on this video I watched for another type of pen. The one I have doesn't have brackets to fit over joints, they just slip together. This was a used pen when I bought it, so I didn't have instructions.

 

[tweetysvoice]

Tweety, I thought of you this morning when I was at Ace and they had kids wading pools. They were a pretty good size for $17, but I've never priced them before so don't know what they typically go for.

Sorry about the exposure to those diseases. Do you have to take the precautions even if you've been immunized yourself? I had Whooping Cough when I was about 6 so assume I now have immunity but perhaps there are different strains and even if you've had the disease or the vaccination, you still have to take precautions after exposure? Bummer.


And, I saw the first sign of food aggression last night but....it wasn't Tory! Our other dog, Sammie, who is a 37lb lab/border collie, and the most joyful, easy-going dog you could imagine, apparently decided she needed to assert dominance over Tory from the get-go, before Tory realizes she is three times her size. I hadn't even set the food bowls down when the snarling started and I looked down to see it was Sammie going at Tory. Right next to my bare legs. One quick reprimand nipped it in the bud, I set the bowls down and they all commenced eating, but it did come as quite a surprise to me. You think you know your dogs....

I hadn't thought of looking at ACE hardware - We've got two in town, so I'm for sure going to check them out on my way home! Thanks for thinking of me hehe

Yeah, you do have to take precautions. I had to be put on 5 days of Azithromycin and take the TDAP shot.. my arm is killing me! I also had to let my daughter know what was going on because apparently I can be a carrier within 24 hours of exposure and even though I might not have symptoms, I can still pass it along. GRRRRRR. Luckily her and Kaylea (grandbaby) have been immunized already as well, but they still need to keep an open eye. From the talk here in the Er, they are really hoping that this doesn't become an epidemic.

Dogs do have the tendency to turn face very quickly. I don't trust my bulldog around other dogs because he can be completely friendly one minute, playing and then all of a sudden snap at the other dog.

 

[chicken danz]

I had some upset while ago. One of my neighbors came to get eggs. He has these little terriors that follow him on his ranger whereever he goes. Well the little dog decided to start chasing roosters. My dogs ran to protect the roosters but were unsure about whether to attack the dog or not. Fluff was right on him but rather than growling he was whining. You could tell he was very confused. Marshmallow of course was in the house and she would have shreaded him I'm afraid. The pup was jumping on him. The dog came to his owner and I called my dogs off. I shouldn't have. Because the next thing I knew he had hold of my best bearded gold laced polish roo. This roo is the only one I want to breed with. I have nursed him back from a broken leg and a few other maladies. Anyway the dog wouldn't let go of his head. I was running and screaming at it. The roo finally got loose and went under my front porch. He won't come out and I really don't want to belly crawl in there to get him. I hope he comes out when some time has passed and he feels safe. I really need to check him out and see if he has wounds I need to treat. It really upset me. This is a good neighbor but now I'm afraid this little dog will come back to chase more birds.
Trish, there has been some talk that this local guy has a reputation for some unhealthy birds. I have an acquaintance who has been sort of a mentor and his advice varies some. He says 90 days on wire and that it isn't safe to worm them until they are 90 days old. I plan to do some more research because I want to be sure this little guy thrives.
Josie I guess you would be confused if you meant mottled instead of splash. See how good my memory is?? Well all of my lavenders are from the Hinks line and the eggs I am getting tomorrow are as well. I guess we'll see what hatches from this batch of eggs in about 3 weeks or so.