Dixie Chicks

[BriardChickens]

@hennible I use both in my coop, straw and shavings. But then we currently have 58% humidity here. Gives the chickens something to scratch through.

 

[hennible]

Deb I thought you'd like this...
Now I can post pics what the H!
Huh just can't post the pic I took... Weird

 

[Alaskan]

Good morning @RavynFallen &
@vehve

How's life? I have decided on Martin Luther King day, since little girl is off school & I am off work that day, we are going to make our official list and maybe order the chicks we want. Does anyone else do mail delivery? Never done it yet, and we will still be hatching some out, but I want specific breeds.

I have mail ordered lots.... it usually works out well, no worries.

Tell us what you decide to order, and who from.

Karin hasn't liked the dried leaves we tried.

Why didn't she like the leaves?

Okay, then some chick pictures. They're 2½ weeks old now, should be some sort of Cuckoo and Wheaten Marans mixes. Anyone care to venture a guess on genders? I say all boys. It's a bit hard to get decent pictures though.

I think the really light wheaten is a girl. The colors of their first feathers (wheatens) are sex-linked.

Also, none of the combs are all that big. My male Marans all hatched with some quality points on their combs...

Butchering bunnies is much harder than chickens. I'm OK with hunting them though. Always wanted to raise Flemish Giants rabbits.
@Outpost JWB I have Brown Leghorns for the white eggs, I like them, pretty birds, just don't expect to catch them when they are loose their like road runners. I'm going to get rose comb ones next time, those big floppy combs look like frostbite catchers.
@RavynFallen Welcome to BYC! Sounds like you already have a chicken obsession, this place is bound to make it worse!

I was trying to take pictures of my birds, convince people to pay me for chicks, and WOWSERS!!! My rose comb dark brown leghorns are skitish! They REFUSE to sit happily if I am looking at them, even with heaps of scratch tossed out of them. The rose comb white leghorns are lots more laid-back. Interesting. My RC Brown Leghorn rooster isn't so bad. He will let me take pictures of him and such...

The production white leghorns sure do lay impressively.... I am thinking that my RC leghorns aren't going to be close in the egg production race.

Maybe I will mix them all together.... leghorn mutts..... and see what I get, I dunno though... hummmmm

Quote:

Spouse cooks meatloaf with a bunch of quinua in it. Actually tastes good, and keep the cost down.

I like horns, and that's a handy size. I've got a intact skull that has one horn left on it down in our outdoor storage, but apparently hanging a whole skull with a single horn and using it as a hook is morbid and macabre.

I am actually very pro Macabre.

I had a FANTASTIC skull collection growing up. But, I moved around so much....that I left it at my parents' house, spouse wasn't that impressed with it anyway. Well, my mom put them all in her garden, so that she could see them from her book room (yep, my mom is a bit twisted.... like me), and the squirrels ate them all up.

broody somehow managed to get out of her box ....

did I mention it's -25C outside so eggs would get cold very fast....

that is HARSH!

silly story is what can I get a feed store owner as a thank you present?

I agree with all of the "bake something" suggestions. I actually really like cookies.

Yay for the feed store owner! Bake him something, guys love food, lol. Or bring him some eggs, say it is a direct thank you from your chickens and a byproduct of the feed he let you buy.

x2!

Quote:
OK, going to do that now! thanks everyone!

ohh and here @Alaskan is all warm and toasty with a fire and I am on my last pellet for the wood stove......hoping I can spread it out for three more days so can get another ton of pellets to finish winter off

ONE pellet? ONE pellet lasts 3 days????

All of the boys went to the in-laws for the day, and there is NO WOOD in the house!!! SHEESH

I might need to go haul my own wood in about an hour... or freeze.

 

[punkychicken]

Glad to hear about the humidity Hennible.
Bitter cold here, really miss the warmth of home

 

[hennible]

@hennible
 I use both in my coop, straw and shavings. But then we currently have 58% humidity here. Gives the chickens something to scratch through.

I use both too, shavings in the poop trays and hay on the floor but I think I'm going to go full on with the shavings and see if it makes a difference...

 

[Amberjem]

Winter ha!
( stupid phone! can't post a pic )
Lucky for me... Or more lucky for the roosters the humidity dropped down to the 50s today and their combs actually already look better thank goodness. I'm thinking maybe I can help deal with humidity by switching out the hay I use and use pine shavings like I was told to do a while ago...

could be I use pine shavings about like 6 bucks at the feed store for I forget exact amount but it's huge amount lol...........Part of why I wanted peacomb birds.. I somehow realized in last few days orpingtons didnt have peacombs I dont know HOW come I missed that...maybe because I usually associate Englands weather as good for my area in the garden...musta just assumed...my lil full orpington chick is doing good though....seems to be the low dude on the pole and the orpington and orpington cross were my last hatchers...I was surprised one hatched I had seriously questioned it when I went into lockdown hadnt realized they were such lazy hatcher chicks before though lol

 

[Alaskan]

Quote:
we use children

@hennible I think that dry wood chips/shavings are way better than hay or straw at keeping things dry. You should be able to get it free from any sawmill or lumberyard if you bag it yourself. Some places charge if they have to bag for you, but usually it is very little.

Also, any wood worker might have a bunch. (but ask if he was doing cedar ... too aromatic for the chicken coop.... or if he sanded down varnished wood, or soemthing else toxic, etc.)

 

[Amberjem]

Glad to hear about the humidity Hennible.
Bitter cold here, really miss the warmth of home

heya guy nice to see ya

 

[Amberjem]

we use children

@hennible I think that dry wood chips/shavings are way better than hay or straw at keeping things dry. You should be able to get it free from any sawmill or lumberyard if you bag it yourself. Some places charge if they have to bag for you, but usually it is very little.

Also, any wood worker might have a bunch. (but ask if he was doing cedar ... too aromatic for the chicken coop.... or if he sanded down varnished wood, or soemthing else toxic, etc.)

LOL can I send my son to you @Alaskan he had spoke about moving there awhile as a teenager I think he figured he'd be safe from mom visits if he moved there knowing how much I dislike living in snow..

 

[Amberjem]

Deb I thought you'd like this...
Now I can post pics what the H!
Huh just can't post the pic I took... Weird

omgosh ekk! lol ...I have a mega phobia about wild snakes... I LOVE knowing where I live there are NO poisonous snakes