Consolidated Kansas

[maidenwolfx80]

I live 10 mmins from louisburg and love love love the cider mill. We go often because it is close. The fall fests they have every year are wonderful always, now I am hungery for a cider donut

Chicken Danz- I too started with the reading and researching and studying and asking locals until I met one lady in town who has agreed to "mentor" me in the ways of brooding lol.. She has always had beautiful hatches and all her chickens turn out great so I feel alittle more confident that I can call her and ask questions and I know I have all of you to ask as well, but I dont think any of the anticipation and hoping I am doing ok will completely go away.

 

[chicken danz]

We love chicken tutoring! And no question is silly....so keep asking. You really aren't that far from me and even closer to JosieChick.
I never do anything fun like that any more. Sometimes it is more trouble to get ready to go than anything. Does the cider days go over more than one weekend? Or was it just this weekend.

 

[sunflowerparrot]

Went out about 7:15 to start getting everyone in their pens for the night and all the guineas were way up in a tree.. I hope they do well tonight.... I feel like a mother whose 10 children are all out on dates and unsupervised!

 

[maidenwolfx80]

They usually do more than one weekend. There will be another few in oct with corn mazes and hay rides etc. I will have to grab those dates. Here is a question, how much space do I need for 10 chicks? I was thinking of just using the extra bath tub noone uses but I think it is aroud 8 sq ft. If I use cardboard to make the sides taller would this be enough space until it is time to join the others in the coop?

 

[JosieChick]

Wish I'd known you were going to Louisburg. I love Louisburg cider for making spiced cider.
You really are reducing for winter aren't you? I am trying really but buying more hatching eggs so I don't know how far I am actually getting. You don't practice danzsizing very well!! I am sending you a PM cause I have a question for you.

I am up that way sometimes anyway when I run errands. I can always stop by for you! I don't practice danzsizing very well. I really need to cut back so I don't have to deal with so many heated waterers. I am just keeping my favorite breeding birds and some of my layers. I will cut down on the pullets here in a few weeks, it helps me to do it a bit at a time instead of all at once. It is nice to have less birds out there already. We have also had some issues with hawks. I lost a duck and a rooster from pens that weren't covered yet so I realized it was time to make sure I could protect the birds that were my breeders and make more time for them.

I have been letting Lucie out at dusk with Molly and bringing her in at bed time because the coyotes have been so bad. I would like to find someone to bait them in and thin out the pack for us. DH thinks we can do it ourselves but I am going to have to practice, practice, practice my shot! They are getting brazen and it makes me nervous. Molly stays in the yard and barks but Lucie will go out after them so I am hoping her out in the evenings will deter them!

I live 10 mmins from louisburg and love love love the cider mill. We go often because it is close. The fall fests they have every year are wonderful always, now I am hungery for a cider donut

Chicken Danz- I too started with the reading and researching and studying and asking locals until I met one lady in town who has agreed to "mentor" me in the ways of brooding lol.. She has always had beautiful hatches and all her chickens turn out great so I feel alittle more confident that I can call her and ask questions and I know I have all of you to ask as well, but I dont think any of the anticipation and hoping I am doing ok will completely go away.

You guys must be right over the state line huh? We live in Rantoul which is about 20 minutes east of Louisburg. We had a great time! Loved the cider donuts. I moved here from southern Maine so I really miss Macintosh apples and super sour cheek puckering apple cider. I got a caramel apple which are my favorites and was a tad disappointed that the help was so bland. But it was still good and we had fun!

They usually do more than one weekend. There will be another few in oct with corn mazes and hay rides etc. I will have to grab those dates. Here is a question, how much space do I need for 10 chicks? I was thinking of just using the extra bath tub noone uses but I think it is aroud 8 sq ft. If I use cardboard to make the sides taller would this be enough space until it is time to join the others in the coop?

I know on the website it said this weekend and next they were doing it but I didn't see anymore dates? That sounds like it would be plenty of space in the bath tub. It will be crowded once they are 6 weeks old but shouldn't be too bad. I have had that many chicks in much smaller spaces.

 

[maidenwolfx80]

Josiechick- yes you are very close to me. I bet things are alot different here and also hope that you are liking it here even though out apples are different

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Well I feel better now.. Hopefully the chicks will be close to ready to going outside by that time. I just dont want them to be crowded. I worry about space. I have a kiddie pool but no where to set it up in my small house

unless I take over one of the kids bedrooms and that is out of the question. I have a cat and would need to keep it predator proof

I need to have a box built. Maybe I can convince everyone (DH and kids) to give up the larger master bath tub

 

[sapphireblu76]

Wow I am so excited that would be so wonderful.. I will try my heardest to dig up some money and see if I cam sneak them past the DH

LOL, I will PM you when they hatch. You can also go to my FB page, Two Chicks- https://www.facebook.com/TwoChicksKansas I always post there when I have new chicks ^_^

sapphire, I would love to have some blue copper marans, but right now I don't have the room for any. We'll see how things are going next spring. I love my big black copper rooster, he's just gorgeous & he's from Elaine too. He is my main flock rooster now & he is very docile so far & hasn't caused me any problems. He does a good job of watching over his girls though. I may try to produce some olive eggers from him next spring. My DH for once didn't notice the mud since I got the biggest part of it off & all off the sides of the car, so whew that was good. He would have killed me if he had seen what I did. Oh well, stuff happens!

I think I am going to try to get some from another source as well, just so they are not all so closely related. But, yes, this spring, maybe we can work out a deal on some chick trading I will have to post an updated pic of the little EE roo that came from you via RVroman. He is such a doll! He follows me around like a puppy dog and pretends to be indignant when I pick him up...until I rub his wattles, then he melts and coos at me, lol. I'm hoping to have some OE's next spring, too. I have a Cuckoo and the BC and a slew of EE's to choose from. Glad your DH didn't notice the mud!

I did walk out in my jammies and check mouse traps. 49 mice this morning and my dumb dog had taken two traps, and opened them and ate the peanut butter. I had rocks on top of them and she still got them!!! So the count for the last 4 days is pretty close to 200 mice!!! That's just crazy.

Hope you're feeling better this evening, Verna! That is a lot of mice, go you! I can't wait to get my traps. I know we have mice in the shed, it reeks of mouse urine and I'm sure there are some in the garage. As a matter of fact, the other night, I opened the laundry room door to go down to the basement and there was a baby mouse on the landing. I think it came in under the door perpendicular to the one I opened; it goes out to the mud room which goes to the garage. I picked it up by the tail, showed hubby, then drowned it in the bathroom sink. He says, "Whadya do, drown it?" I said, "Well, yeah. I have no pitty for wild mice around here." lol.

Sunflower, my guineas used to get out of their yard sometimes too, and all they did was pace the fence looking for a way back in. I found that I could "herd" them towards the nearest gate and open it when I was close and they would run in and be relieved to be back with the others. I don't know what to tell you about not wanting to go back to the coop at night though. Mine slept in the coop every single night and I think they were older than yours - about 3 months old. They had been raised with chicks and ducks and were quite bonded to the ducks so at night they would go in the auto door and sleep on the roosts with everyone else. Although I have a tree hedgerow on the west side of my yard, it apparently never occurred to any of them to try to roost in the trees, thank goodness. Were yours locked in the coop for awhile before you let them loose?

Tweety, congrats on finding a good home for your birds - that is not always easy to do.

I need some rooster advice. I love Cyrus - he is huge and a great flock protector. He isn't rough on them at all - none have bare backs or feathers notieceably missing. Fertility is good. He is beautiful. But he seems to see me as a rival. Me and only me

. Anyone else can go in and he is good as gold. Recently DD took one of my friends in to meet them and when she told me afterwards, my heart was racing to hear how this went. DD is afraid of the adult birds and the friend is terrified of all birds period. But all they could both do was rave about Cyrus, the chicks, the ducks, how beautiful some of them are. DS and DH can likewise, come in and wander around and Cyrus leaves them completely alone. But I go in and wham - there he is trying to flog me again. I've tried everything that has been recommended. I've picked him up and carried him around, I've picked him up by the legs and let his hens see his humiliation as he is held this way, I've even sparred with him until I "won" and he backed off and acted submissive.

After each flogging attempt (no spurs so he hasn't done any actual harm yet) and each punitive measure, he is good for a few days and then I can see from his behavior that he's planning another attack. Today's attack was only 2 days after the last, and that resulted in him spending some time dangling upside down so I thought it might work for longer.

So - how likely is it that this is hormonal (he's only 7 months old) and will outgrow it, and how likely is it that it will only get worse?

I have had 3 roos with attitudes. One was my SLW that I have mentioned in the past. He is now as sweet as a lamb and I can even trust him around my kids ages 3 and 5. It just took sparring SEVERAL times and carrying a stick to finally get it through his head that *I* was boss. It did take several months, though. I really thought there was no hope for him. The second is my Sicillian Buttercup roo. He only attacks my 5 year old son. I taught my son to defend and then chase him down and carry him around, now he doesn't bother my son anymore. The 3rd was a Spangled OEGB roo. I put him in a little cage and would just pull him out every day until he didn't fight my hand anymore. My hand did get torn up a few times, but he finally quit. I recently sold him, though, and I think he started his nastiness with his new owner, because now she's selling him. I'm sure there are just some that can't be rehabilitated, but I sure try my best. I understand some just don't want to deal with it, and that's okay, too. They do make good soup!
We have started working on the coop again, since DH took a week of vacation time for his birthday. We got all the framing done this spring, then it just got too hot to work on it any more this summer. I only have my DH around to help me a couple of days a month because he works nights, so it was slow going. Today we got the wooden form for the cement foundation built and set down, got it level and got almost the whole inside area filled in in the low spots.
Tomorrow, he has to go to his new job to get fitted for his uniform, then has to go for a physical and drug test. Hopefully, we will have time to finish filling in the rest of the low spots and maybe even get the cement poured. I bought some carriage bolts to set in the cement before it completely hardens that will fit through holes we will drill in the bottom of the frame. Then, we will use some nuts and washers to bolt the frame to the foundation, once we get the walls raised. We get some pretty crazy winds up here on our hill, so I don't want to take any chances of it blowing off or lifting off the foundation (learned my lesson from the pen we built this spring!).Then, we have to put on the roof and side the building and build a door...and run the electric to it and....LOL! I have high hopes we can get it all finished before he goes back to his old job, Thursday, to finish out his two weeks notice, but I'm not going to hold my breath. As long as we can get it done before it gets cold, it's all good.
I have a question...I have 3 red hens. One is a Production Red and lays a large, very light brown egg. The other two, I have no idea what they are. I thought New Hampshires, because they are more orange with black tipped tails. One lays a pink-brown egg and the other lays an almost buttery yellow egg compared to the other two. So, my question is, what breed would you think the two orange ones are? They are from different places. One I got this spring in a batch of Fryers (the only pullet in the bunch) and the other came from a lady in McPherson that got her from the TSC there.

 

[maidenwolfx80]

LOL, I will PM you when they hatch. You can also go to my FB page, Two Chicks- https://www.facebook.com/TwoChicksKansas I always post there when I have new chicks ^_^

Great thank you.

 

[WichitaKidd]

Quote:

Did David keep her in a pen all the time when he wasn't socializing with her? Maybe that is just what she is used to.

Glad to hear that Betty is doing well. I think that some of her wanting to be by herself at times may have to do with the traumatic episode she survived. She never did that with the rest of my flock. She always had to be in the middle of things no matter what. She also wasn't one that liked to be held or even hand fed. It wasn't until she was the only one left that she wouldn't run away when I went to pick her up. I'm glad that she has found a friend in Heather. I'm sure she'll come around as time goes on & old wounds are healed.

 

[HEChicken]

... another "just curious": I have the incubator and brooder in the basement, and was wandering what temp i should have the brooder pre-warmed to? i think it's at 80 or so right now, AND i have pine shavings as the bedding on the floor of it and since it's in my basement i Definately would'nt want a fire, i don't think the heat lamp would catch the chips on fire? do you??? My dad said he thot it'd be fine soooo... i just can't say enough how much of a help everybody on here as been! i can assure you that the hatch i'm doing right now would be NO WAY possible without your advice! THANKS A TON!

I don't turn my brooder lamp on until shortly before putting the chicks in, since it is usually about 24 hours from the time the first hatches until the last is ready to be moved. Once the hatch is over and they are all ready to go in the brooder, I turn off the incubator, and move them all as a group. So it is easy to turn on the lamp and get it pre-warmed just a few minutes before moving them. I keep the brooder lamp plugged into a rheostat (lamp dimmer). That way I can turn it up or down as needed. I don't measure the temperature with a thermometer, but base it on their behavior. If they are huddled under it, they are cold and it needs to be turned up. If they are spread out and staying outside the perimeter of the light, they are hot and it needs to be turned down. If they are cheeping happily and running around, some snoozing under the lamp while others are at the far end of the brooder eating and drinking, its just about right.

Thank you for all the advice re roosters. At this point I have done the sparring numerous times and done the pick up and carry around thing numerous times as well. I've also gone in and deliberately walked up to him and made him back away from me almost daily. Since he has not shown any sign of improvement, based on what you all said, it sounds like maybe he won't. I think I will give him just a little longer though to see if he settles down with a little more maturity under his belt.

Our cat has been sort of missing since last Wednesday night. I say sort of because I knew where he was - under the front porch - but couldn't get him to come out and its too narrow to get under there and get him. I've been getting increasingly concerned about him as days went by and he didn't come out to eat or drink. I figured he must be sick or injured and lay awake last night worrying about how to get him out of there to check him out. So to my dismay, when I went out at first light to re-assess the situation, it was to find that he wasn't even there any more. He didn't show up all day and this evening I told DH I was concerned we weren't going to find him alive. So I was relieved when I was dishing out food to the dogs to have him run between my legs and up to his feeder, but the relief turned to new worry when I realized he couldn't even stand. He is staggering around like a drunk sailor. Even the act of looking up at me caused him to fall over.

I checked him over thoroughly for injuries and found three areas where the fur is matted as if there had been some bleeding there, but each point is small and didn't seem at all tender. I.e., he was letting me poke and prod him without complaint. The good news is he was most intent on eating - going at the food like he was trying to make up for the four days of missed meals. I figure that is a good sign, since I associate not eating with an animal that is on the way downhill. After he had eaten his fill, I carried him to water and he drank. DH and I then set him up with a comfy bed, litterbox where he doesn't have to move far to get it, and the same for food and water. He should be comfortable tonight. Throughout this time though, any time he tried to move, he staggered and fell. He also seems to me to be holding one ear at a funny angle. I checked it out and couldn't find any injury although there seems to be a lot of mud in the fur around that ear. And he also seems to be holding his head at a funny angle.

He is purring like crazy though and it doesn't seem like the kind of "I'm scared, comfort me" purring that cats will do when they are nervous - it sounded like his "Love on me, its been a rough four days and I've missed you so much" kind of purr. So I loved on him and he leaned into my stroking him and lifted up his butt the way he always does when I stroke down his backbone.

While spending all this time with him I was running through various scenarios as to what could be causing the apparent neurological problems and I didn't like the possibilities. First it occurred to me that if he tangled with any kind of wildlife, he could be rabid. He is not acting like a rabid animal though, so hopefully that is not it. The second is that he could have been bitten by a snake and the venom is causing the neurological problems.

Hopefully the fact that he is eating, drinking and looking for affection are all good signs. For now he is in a safe place with everything he needs to be comfortable, and I'll check him over first thing in the morning when I have daylight to help me out.