Dixie Chicks

[WVduckchick]

I lost a bantam cochin hen, one of my favorites of course. Came home after dark one evening, and she wasn't inside with the rest. Looked for her, high and low, several searches, but couldn't find her.... Until I found the feather-covered kill site a few days later.

I think my biggest failure now is that I can't get the seramas to go inside on their own at night. They insist on sleeping on top of their coop. They are locked in the roof-covered run, but on top of the coop is out in the wind! Silly birds.

 

[minihorse927]

I did have one hen, a Easter egged crossed with a golden comet, laid the biggest, brightest blue eggs. doesn't make sense with brownXgreen egger but anyways. She laid that morning, everything was fine, acting normal. Went to work and came home to find her laying dead, like she just collapsed in the middle of the run.

 

[hennible]

Crappy deal
Always the favourites... I've gotten to a point where I try not to develop preferences, if I do I lose them. But I can't really stop myself, someone always out shines the others.
The saddest of my muscovy losses was my little brown hen, Brownie. She didn't produce viable eggs but she was so sweet (about 5 years old)... ate from your hand, let you pet her. Sweet duck

 

[Alaskan]

Thanks Ravyn

What are the rest of you doing bird wise next season?
Anyone else have an epic fail to share?
(Along with my duck loses I have two roos with frost bite

)

My year sucked rocks.

My weedy over grown grow-out pen was poached for over half of the contents before I noticed..by a great hirned owl.

Then a weasel killed my super sweet broody anf her four chicks, then killed almost all of my bantams including my excellent, drop dead gorgeous, Wheaten Ameraucana rooster and all of his hens.... the day after I had sold all of the cockerels (I got one back...not as good as his dad).

Then my kids for the first time in ages "forgot" to feed coops like they should...and my picture perfect bantam white leghorn died...and a couple of grow out muscovy were in bad shape.

Then, with child's money, I bought three dozen bantam white leghorn eggs, and I set the temp wrong in the incubator so hatched out ONE chick ( now a few weeks old, and actually looks like a boy, whew, and so far looks like a good one)

And I have lost BOTH papa drake and baby drake. Papa drake felt well fleshed and had a full crop, no wounds...so not sure about him. Baby drake was maybe not getting enough to eat.... the giats keep breaking into their pen to eat their feed...


-sigh-

Still, with all of the losses...I still have 4 standard breeds and three bantam.

I just split up the 4 standard breeds. In one month I will start hatching.

 

[hennible]

Gees
Well I'm not alone I guess
I also lost three rouen hens early this year (yeah to that fox), and the only one to hatch out was a drake (terrible moms my girls)...

Dropped the top of my incubator... Breaking it (probably repairable but arg)
I also lost a perfectly sweet and georgeous partridge cochin rooster (and proceeded to keep three mutts roosters, two who had combs far too big for the winters here... Dumb*ss)
Oh well I feel bad for the birds I lost of course but can't dwell on it, can only learn from it. If I think someone is missing I should lock them up and make sure the dog is outside 24/7.
Bright sides, I got better at butchering and punky can now take a head off on his own humainly... Hmmm not many bright sides if you're one of my birds

Any who... merry Christmas

etc chicken peeps
Here's to the new year

And continually learning

 

[Alaskan]

Yep!

I am pretty hopeful about the new year.

I got both goat does bred to birth at a prime time of year.... Mid and late march... I still have breeders in the chickens... and come Sunday and glorious Christmas I get to start chowing down on meat.

We got a great big store bought turkey to eat with cornbread dressing and gravy , and a bunch of sausage for biscuits and gravy.

 

[hennible]

Right on!

 

[WVduckchick]

I guess the end of the year is a good time to look back at what we've done badly, and hope to improve next year!

Speaking of male ducks, my lone female from my first hatch of her and 3 drakes, went broody and hatched 10 this summer. Lost 2 the first week (one blind died, one went missing on day 2), but of the 8 left, I ended up with 2 girls and 6 drakes!

So now I have the mom, 2 daughters and one son at home, and 8 drakes on my camp pond.

 

[perchie.girl]

were doing ham.... and for new years a big pot of beans with the hambone....

I am also going to attempt Candied Yams from scratch... Oh and doing baby grean beans simply steamed in butter with some parmesan...

deb

 

[Cold Canadian]

Had a "pet" go bad a few weeks ago...............Story as follows ,

I've had this group of four turkey toms ( five years old ) are all that is left from around 12 ( forget how many , could have been more ) in total including hens .....ordered in Sweet Grass from Porters .....which the coyotes took out one at a time . Got my self a Catahoula Leopard dog cross which was to allow for some peace on the yard which has free range rabbit's , chickens , and my beloved toms . But one day I came home from work and I was not meet my the toms as was there habit ....always started gobbling when I pulled on the yard ......the yard was strangely quiet , no toms , no chickens , .....and then I saw the leash , torn ! Now the dog was used to the animals as it grew up with them , but I checked and the dog house is empty ( he did get free run time , was in training ...was ) so I started calling and went to the chicken / turkey shed in case they had flown back in ( tried to keep them penned but ) and nothing ? started seeing tracks / skid marks in the wet soil so the picture started painting itself . I went and checked again and he had returned into his house .... quite guilty ! , Tied him up and started looking for my birds . Found the first tom in our small pasture , mauled beyond belief , but still barely alive , dispatched him to end the suffering . I had two trio's of hen's , one lone turkey hen I had managed to hatch from the last hens eggs before the yotes took her .....none to be seen along with two roosters . It was late in the day , but I figured they might have taken off into the neighboring property as it has a large wooded section .......!/4 mile away found the largest tom dead on the trail , the next day I found one more ......yotes had pretty much devoured it .......the last one I never found along with my three hens , the small turkey hen reappeared along with the two roosters .Regardless , I had to do some soul searching and in the end the "dog" was no longer , and he was a good dog , listened well , etc .......but I truly miss my toms , there morning ritual of being at the door at sunset gobbling for there bread treats , following me around etc .......everyone says the same thing , to quiet .The dog was two years old , and I've resolved that he is the last ........don't ever want a repeat .......................and that's how my year ends folks .................Merry Christmas