Consolidated Kansas

[mommahen10]

Someone asked about washing machines a while back, I have an LG set front loader, we got the most basic front loader we could as we really don't need a lot of fancy settings and the more electronic stuff there is the more stuff that can mess up. Anyway, we've gone 2 years without a repair, knock on wood. That's a big deal, I do 4-6 loads per day.

Danz, I totally believe what you are saying about knowing about the eggs. I can't tell stuff like that yet but I can see how. I can look at and smell my bread starter and know if it's ready to make bread, I can touch my bread and know when it's about maxed it's rise and will fall if I don't bake ASAP. You get to where you just know things. My eggs in the incubator, this time, I put them in and they fit kinda more tightly than I would have liked but I left them thinking that I will pull a few if they get stinky or don't develop upon candling, I can't candle them all some are too dark, then they'll fit again. How did they get looser? Do they shrink? You wouldn't think they would shrink, heat would make them expand. I could be dreaming, but they really are easier to mess with now.

Can you put the chickens in separate carriers so they don't poop on each other? Good luck!!!

 

[ChicknBaron]

this is the chick that hatched out of the "australorp" egg

 

[JosieChick]

Check the link in the bottom of my signature-- I made up a mini website with pictures on how to make the cookie tin heaters. Also-- shipped eggs usually only have a 50/50 chance of making it in the mail. They get shook up, their air sacs get broken, and sometimes, the yolk is broken, too. So you can have all fertile eggs sent to you-- and most likely you are, but you'll still get about a 50% hatch just because they got shook up. Even if the egg looks fine-- that doesn't mean that some genetic link in the egg wasn't disrupted enough to go ahead and develop. There are lots of threads about shipped eggs here on BYC. Lots of things can go wrong. So, don't be too quick to say the eggs weren't fertile.

I've had 0 hatch from shipped eggs and I've gone to the other end by having most of them hatch... you never know!

I think I may have to make a couple of these this winter. I have heated bowls but probably not enough to go around. Ditto on the shipped eggs, you just never know what you are going to get, it is such a gamble.

Good luck at your interview today! You may find you stay warmer this winter than in previous years

Thanks! I am looking forward to being warmer for once, like my own personal tiny furnace!

Cyrus jumped me again this morning. Sigh. I knew he was working up to it, so I walked up to him a few times to make him walk away and submit. He did the first few times, but I guess it just got to be too much for him and he had to have another try at me. If only he weren't such a good rooster in every other respect. He is so constantly vigilant - always with the flock and nothing ever escapes his attention.
Sounds like soup!!

BRRRR it's so cold here today, I mean compared to what it's been only a couple days ago. The wind is blowing today again too & that makes it feel even more cold. I went out to feed everyone & the birds in the grow-out pen seem fine. I've got to get out in awhile & start getting things ready to move rabbits into their cages in the garage & I have one more cage to put together that I had gotten before summer & didn't get it assembled since the rabbits were outside anyway. I'm supposed to have a lady come this evening to pick up the rabbit for her little boys for a pet, I hope she shows. She has been looking for an inside cage for him, but with her budget it's going to be hard to find one for that price, those inside cages are really pricey. I told her that she could probably find a dog kennel with a tray just to use for now if she has to. It would work for awhile until she could find a rabbit cage.
Has she checked craigslist in the pet section? Sometimes there are some pretty nice cages for fairly cheap.

I have been so tempted several times to buy chicks or eggs, but I have to keep reminding myself I can't get them right now. There is one more breed of imported birds I want & they're pretty expensive so I'll probably have to buy hatching eggs & have them shipped. I hate having to have eggs shipped, but with some of these breeds that is the only way to get them. I know of nobody even remotely close that has that breed, in fact I don't know of anyone in the state that has any at all. I wish I knew where the breeders were & then if I was going somewhere close I could go pick up some eggs instead of having to have them shipped, but there just aren't good directories of bird breeders, it would be nice if there were.

Hawkeye, good luck with showing your birds, I hope you do well. I salute you for doing that, I just don't have the energy any more to do things like that.

checoukan, I hope the celebration goes well & you sell some birds at the swap this weekend. I wish I could come, but it's not to be this time. It does sound like a lot of fun though. There is a big huge swap going on at Jacob's Cave in Missouri this weekend, I sure wish I could get to that. I looked at their web site & it's just a huge thing that goes on for 4 days. People drive from all over I guess to go to that one, some people from KS go I know on the Poultry Swap they were talking about it. Here's the swap info if anybody is interested: http://www.jacobscave.com/jacobscaveanimalswap.htm There is also other info on the cave & all on their web site.
The lady that your legbars came from told me about this swap. It is supposed to be awesome!

maidenwolf, I have arthritis too & the cold just makes it all hurt worse. I hate winter just for that reason, I'm always ready for spring.

Someone asked about washing machines a while back, I have an LG set front loader, we got the most basic front loader we could as we really don't need a lot of fancy settings and the more electronic stuff there is the more stuff that can mess up. Anyway, we've gone 2 years without a repair, knock on wood. That's a big deal, I do 4-6 loads per day. Thanks! So far I have gotten lots of good reports on LG so that may be the way to go.

this is the chick that hatched out of the "australorp" egg

Cute, who knows? It will be interesting to see it start to feather in. It is your mystery chick! We all get them, I hatched a few cochin eggs from my mille fleur pen last month and they are solid buff so far....very odd and not sure where those genetics came from!


Well the interview went well. I was tuckered right out after it. I had to groom both the owners dogs for him as test dogs. They were good dogs but I am a bit out of practice so they took me a bit longer than usual. I think if everything checks out ok I will start next Wednesday. Its only a couple days a week to start because they are still drumming up grooming business but at least its something. The facility is beautiful too, everything is new and the grooming area is enormous!

Well Danz and I got back a bit ago from our goose pick up! I really wanted a nap pretty badly but by the time I got home and unloaded and banded all the geese it is almost time to start feeding. Sigh. I got clocked in the chin by a giant wing when I took one of the ganders out of his box and I was seeing stars for a minute! They are so much stronger than they look!

 

[chicken danz]

Josie I just reached in and pulled this girl out of the box. She flapped a little when I had her in the air but jumped down and ran to my geese. So I said what the heck. They act like they have been together their entire lives. I would probably quarantine if I didn't know how she cares for her birds. But I think she is a good healthy girl. I just got in from feeding and watering. DH hadn't done any but he has been putting up fencing. If I get one more gate made and put the netting on top we should be ready to rock and roll.
DH even approved of my wiring job but said I didn't have to use that large of gauge wire. I told him I was doing it by code, and he said, "But this isn't a house." He usually leans the other way. If I had used the smaller gauge he would have said it was too small. Men! I think he just likes to think he is smarter than me. OH well, I am sure he is, but I know I did it the right way. He did say that was how he had planned to wire it. So at least he validated me to some extent.
I am exhausted. It was a long long day.

 

[Hawkeye95]

Can you put the chickens in separate carriers so they don't poop on each other? Good luck!!!

Yes, that would be the best idea for sure! I have thought about it. I need one of those 2 or 3 hole poultry carriers! But until I build one, or buy one (expensive!) I have to use my dog carriers, and I only have two of those. I'm bringing 8 birds, so I was going to put girls in one and boys in the other. I think I need another carrier and split them up even further. I've been hunting CraigsList every night, so I'm on it... but only bought one more carrier 2 days ago. They have to be the right size, too-- not huge. But not too tiny. And then, when you find the right one, they want nearly brand-new prices for it. Sheesh!

I think I may have to make a couple of these this winter. I have heated bowls but probably not enough to go around. Ditto on the shipped eggs, you just never know what you are going to get, it is such a gamble.

Well the interview went well. I was tuckered right out after it. I had to groom both the owners dogs for him as test dogs. They were good dogs but I am a bit out of practice so they took me a bit longer than usual. I think if everything checks out ok I will start next Wednesday. Its only a couple days a week to start because they are still drumming up grooming business but at least its something. The facility is beautiful too, everything is new and the grooming area is enormous!

Well Danz and I got back a bit ago from our goose pick up! I really wanted a nap pretty badly but by the time I got home and unloaded and banded all the geese it is almost time to start feeding. Sigh. I got clocked in the chin by a giant wing when I took one of the ganders out of his box and I was seeing stars for a minute! They are so much stronger than they look!

I love it! Glad you'll be warmer this winter! Yeah, those cookie tin heaters are awesome, but they need to be put out of the wind and elements. So glad that your interview went well! I bet you'll be back up to speed in no time at all. You're going to have to be more careful about not getting taken out by a goose-- or anything else! Yikes!


Today was a crazy day. My youngest is sick and probably has strep, but it came back negative, but her throat hurts, her lungs are all yucky and she can't talk and she is coughing. The Dr gave her an antibiotic and steroids for her lungs. Then my middle child had a dentist appt this morning. My DH and I had to split up and he took our DD early this morning while I took our DS leaving the house around the same time. I ALSO found an x-pen on CraigsList a couple days ago and I hooked up with the girl today and bought it from her! So now I can separate my boys and girls in the outside pen. Whew! And I'm sure it will come in handy next year when I have chicks. It looks like brass! Isn't that crazy? It's really pretty, and it's nearly too tall for me to walk over. I'm guessing it's about 36 inches in height. Since my birds can't fly, it's really overkill. But I can kind of hitch myself over it, so it's working. I did have to buy another water fount to put on the boys side. I already had an extra feeder. I'm still looking for an easy plastic dog crate so I can carry my birds easier in the car without pine shavings going everywhere and so I can tote the cage easily without needing a wagon!

 

[JosieChick]

Josie I just reached in and pulled this girl out of the box. She flapped a little when I had her in the air but jumped down and ran to my geese. So I said what the heck. They act like they have been together their entire lives. I would probably quarantine if I didn't know how she cares for her birds. But I think she is a good healthy girl. I just got in from feeding and watering. DH hadn't done any but he has been putting up fencing. If I get one more gate made and put the netting on top we should be ready to rock and roll.
DH even approved of my wiring job but said I didn't have to use that large of gauge wire. I told him I was doing it by code, and he said, "But this isn't a house." He usually leans the other way. If I had used the smaller gauge he would have said it was too small. Men! I think he just likes to think he is smarter than me. OH well, I am sure he is, but I know I did it the right way. He did say that was how he had planned to wire it. So at least he validated me to some extent.
I am exhausted. It was a long long day.

Good! I didn't want to put one group of six in with another group of seven. That seemed like asking for trouble!! I will slowly integrate them over the next couple weeks. I don't want the newbies to feel bullied. Your girl probably just didn't want to be alone! Glad they are getting along so well. I am sure we won't have any trouble here either. That one "naughty" boy hissed at me when I opened the box then gave me the stink eye while I banded the rest of his friends. I had to laugh at him and his tough guy demeanor!

Good job on the wiring! I fell asleep on the sofa for a bit which was nice but now I have to go back out and make sure all my seramas are in the coop and feed the dogs. It is so cold out. Sigh. I hate the cold.

 

[chicken danz]

Ha! Ha! That reminds me. They threw one of their squeaky dog toys outside their pen today. I picked it up and squeaked it in my head gooses face when I went out to feed them . He hissed at me. First time I had heard that from any of them. I don't know if he didn't like me squeaking it or if he was mad cause I had his toy. Silly birds. Then when I threw the toy in the pen he was all normal again. I wasn't intimidated at all. I guess I know him too well. I'm too used to the sissy scream and running with his wings in the air!!! I must say I am glad I didn't see all those birds in person before I talked to her. I would have bought the whole bunch. Those lavenders are gorgeous. I think I am going to have beg you for eggs!!!

I got a message and it looks like I am going to get some more chicken hatching eggs this weekend some time. Yeah I know! More danzsizing. I'd rather be hatching for myself this fall and then hatching for profit next spring any way.

 

[mommahen10]

maidenwolf, my dh said no to potbelly pigs.

All this talk about beauty sleep. My youngest was sitting on the potty and he always sits there forever and I get so bored waiting on him. He asked me to get a balloon out of the bathtub and I did and he said, "You can get it becuase you have looooooooong arms", and while I was completely bent over getting it he blurted out, "and you have a biiiiiiigggggg butt". He wasn't being stinky, he was just jabbering like they do. I had to walk out, I was cracking up. Then the other kids asked what was wrong because I was laughing to the point of tears and my 8yo said "It's okay Mom, you don't look hideous!." OMGOSH!!!!!

Hawkeye, do you think that your good hatch from shaken up eggs was due to them sitting with the big end up for a couple of days? If it's perfect shipping temps and I have lots of indoor area ready, maybe I should take advantage of it? Are hatching eggs priced better at different times of the year? I keep admiring the pics of the silkies and they're so cute and fuzzy it makes me think they're little, but I realized that it's just becuase they look so fluffy that I think they are little. They remind me of babies. How big are they? This event that you are going to sounds like a huge deal, and a lot of work. I'm so sorry that you have sick kids, that's a lot going on. I hope they get better quickly.

ChicknBaron, that is an amazing chick pic. It is very unusually colored, I've never seen one that looked like that. It's reddish on the top layer but more gray underneath? That picture is amazing, very pretty, but I'm curious, I've never noticed before that chicks stand with their weight on the back part of their feet. The pic is so clear you can see the shadow beneath the middle toe. I can't wait to see how this one feathers out. Maybe it's some recessive gene being expressed, who knows? What do you think on this one? Rooster or hen?

Josie, awesome news on the interview. I hope you get your job, it sounds like a fun one.

Well, looks like I get to turn in early tonight. It's sad when 10:30pm seems early. Goodnight!

 

[maidenwolfx80]

Danz if I start danzsizing, which I think I already have since I went from zero birds of my own in may of this year to 36 as of yesterday, my DH will run away from home lol... I grew up raising birds on my grandmas farm and her birds were auctioned off when she passed since none of us had property to take them so it had been 8 years and I couldnt take it any longerjust had to start my own since we finally had property. Now it wont stop, I told DH this before I brought the first ones home and I am asking for an incubator for xmas lol...
So the new pullets I adopted, I took one more today,, yea I know but I didnt have a buff orpington and she just looked at me and didnt run when I came to her and she was free and I am saving her from having to go to a home were she will be treated terribly. I was going to take all 10 but knew I could not.. These girls are the ones I have isolated and they have gotten out twice and foraged among my flock, I am glad they are healthy but I am still worrying..

 

[JosieChick]

Ha! Ha! That reminds me. They threw one of their squeaky dog toys outside their pen today. I picked it up and squeaked it in my head gooses face when I went out to feed them . He hissed at me. First time I had heard that from any of them. I don't know if he didn't like me squeaking it or if he was mad cause I had his toy. Silly birds. Then when I threw the toy in the pen he was all normal again. I wasn't intimidated at all. I guess I know him too well. I'm too used to the sissy scream and running with his wings in the air!!! I must say I am glad I didn't see all those birds in person before I talked to her. I would have bought the whole bunch. Those lavenders are gorgeous. I think I am going to have beg you for eggs!!!

I got a message and it looks like I am going to get some more chicken hatching eggs this weekend some time. Yeah I know! More danzsizing. I'd rather be hatching for myself this fall and then hatching for profit next spring any way.

Yeah, they are giant dorks. My gander will bluff at me during breeding season but he never follows through! They are so funny when they hiss.

Wait until you see this lavender boy! He is fabulous. Awesome head and neck and a beautiful color. He is the nicest of the bunch! Hope I have some lavender babies in the spring! They should be really nice baby goobies.