EDUCATIONAL INCUBATION & HATCHING CHAT THREAD, w/ Sally Sunshine Shipped Eggs

[DwayneNLiz]

dunno

@BantyChooks shes looking great, how is maple and the other house-chicken?

 

[daxigait]

Indeed, my friend had lost almost all its flocks to a flash flood that covered his birds coops with 2 feet of water and mud.
A 3 years work went down the drain!
I am trying to convince him not to give up entirely.

That is horrible. Please offer my condolences. With as limited as your access is that is double tough and expensive. Not to mention the sad clean up.

 

[campingshaws]

I think it was a setup.

 

[BantyChooks]

dunno

@BantyChooks she's looking great, how is maple and the other house-chicken?

Maple is still the same. Soaked her feet last night, rewrapped. Eating and drinking well, so she has that going for her....
Georgia is fine, starting to get a bit hyper so I'll probably take her outside for a bit to get her energy out.

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

Quote: Phil!

Quote:
Ugh - sorry to hear.

Good morning all.

seeing my family for a bit and chicken stuff.. thats about it

@Akrnaf2 thanks for the hugs yesterday-greatly appreciated

Here are some more for today:

Well autocorrect had me taking a toilet to the vet instead of a pullet.
I edit a lot because I am always mobile, and the reply box is too hard to check. So I often fix it after I can see it in the thread.

I edit a lot as well - I catch typos, crazy autocorrect, etc., and I just can't bear not to correct it.

Quote: No kidding!!! Definitely going to can some of them - only so much room in the freezer.

Quote: Aw, Mel, here are some more...

Quote:
Thanks! He's a German New Hampshire that I got from Luanne at Eight Acres. He has two brothers that look a lot like him - he's just the best one at the supermodel poses.

I was doing the read back this morning and heard a ruckus and alarms, so I headed out to check, and sure enough, there was a hawk perching in a tree watching the birds in the two paddocks in back (the three GNH boys and Tank and his three GNH girls). The hawk (a BIG one) flew away as I walked up, but it was hysterical to see the three GNH boys - they stood up really straight, spread their wings REALLY wide, and flapped hard and crowed. I think they were trying to tell the hawk "You want a piece of THIS?!"

Hawks tend to watch them sometimes, but I think that between the cover and tree branches in the way, the sheer size of the birds I have back there, and the presence of several big cockerels as well as Tank, who is a VERY vigilant rooster who has everyone duck and cover immediately, they have no chance. But of course, they are always looking for an opportunity. (I would never put smaller birds back there.)

I was extremely worried I'm starting to feel a lot better

Not sure you have had the chance to read the incubating info at the beginning of the thread (I know there's a lot and it's overwhelming), but this might be good to read:

HAVE A PLAN IN CASE YOU LOOSE ELECTRIC ITS THE SEASON! see post #522

GOOD MORNING, WEEKEND WARRIORS! I HOPE EVERYONE HAS SURVIVED THUS FAR THIS MORNING!

Well, so far... Thanks! I REALLY needed that! (I REALLY need another REAL cup of coffee. I think I might cheat this morning - I was so good this week...)

Quote: Oh, me, too - please?!

Quote: I love these tractors - they are 6 x 10. It's the Stress Free Tractor Plans if you're interested. I have about 4 of them, will build more. For the first one I built (with no roost, platform, nest boxes), it wasn't all that hard to move (easier than I thought) - because it's designed well, and it has lap cuts that help the frame flex over uneven ground. All that being said, I have a sort of hilly yard, and dragging it around day to day only lasted so long before I decided just to park it. When I moved it I would also move and place these long 2' wide strips of HW cloth around the edges and anchor with cinder blocks to discourage diggers, so I just made that a permanent part. I modified the plan to add a platform in the back for roosting and I added nest boxes and a door for them. Later added automatic doors. I'm not sure there's enough protection to use it in a very cold climate, though.



They are great as smaller coops or breeding pens. In my experience, they will very comfortably hold a rooster and 5 LF hens long term, provided they have a paddock during the day. My Eggplant crew (which granted includes some much smaller hens) is 7 hens and 1 rooster (previously 9 and 1), and it's... OK. Doable. But snug. I'm building them a new big coop, so it's temporary, and they get to roam daily.

Regarding using it as an actual daytime tractor rather than coop for those numbers, it could work, I suppose, but in my minds eye, it seems they would be cramped.

I just move the fences like Pens and rotate. I'm actually overdue doing that - current paddocks look like a wasteland. This weekend I'm working on having two semi-permanent paddocks for each group, to be able to switch back and forth. If they are already set up, I can switch them as frequently as needed (some of my flocks are more aggressive diggers than others). Per my Raising Poultry on scraps book, you go for a minimum of 72 sq. ft. of lawn/grass per bird and have an alternate one set up. You can switch them before they do too much damage to the first, and can maintain grass cover for them to browse that way. I'm aiming for that minimum for the Eggplant (which is in a spot in the yard where it'll be hard to carve out more than that), and aiming for more than that for the NN group (who are VERY hard on the ground).

Part of why I'm going ahead with the more permanent set up is the chronic escapees - if it's more permanent, it's easier to put net over the top.

(Sorry for the long answer!!!!)

- Ant Farm

 

[DwayneNLiz]

Maple is still the same. Soaked her feet last night, rewrapped. Eating and drinking well, so she has that going for her....
Georgia is fine, starting to get a bit hyper so I'll probably take her outside for a bit to get her energy out.

just keep doing what youre doing

I think it was a setup.

ROFL!!!

 

[daxigait]

Hey, it really was late and he won't go to bed without me. He'll just complain until I go to bed too lol

How old is he?

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

Chrissy pics... Kari was being a stinker and insisted on getting in the photo.

I think it was a setup.

OK, so I've now (already!) consumed my second (forbidden) cup of coffee, and must begin my day. See you all later!!!

- Ant Farm

 

[kwhites634]

Quote: Phil!

Quote:
Ugh - sorry to hear.

Good morning all.

seeing my family for a bit and chicken stuff.. thats about it

@Akrnaf2 thanks for the hugs yesterday-greatly appreciated

Here are some more for today:

Well autocorrect had me taking a toilet to the vet instead of a pullet.
I edit a lot because I am always mobile, and the reply box is too hard to check. So I often fix it after I can see it in the thread.

I edit a lot as well - I catch typos, crazy autocorrect, etc., and I just can't bear not to correct it.

Quote: No kidding!!! Definitely going to can some of them - only so much room in the freezer.

Quote: Aw, Mel, here are some more...

Quote:
Thanks! He's a German New Hampshire that I got from Luanne at Eight Acres. He has two brothers that look a lot like him - he's just the best one at the supermodel poses.

I was doing the read back this morning and heard a ruckus and alarms, so I headed out to check, and sure enough, there was a hawk perching in a tree watching the birds in the two paddocks in back (the three GNH boys and Tank and his three GNH girls). The hawk (a BIG one) flew away as I walked up, but it was hysterical to see the three GNH boys - they stood up really straight, spread their wings REALLY wide, and flapped hard and crowed. I think they were trying to tell the hawk "You want a piece of THIS?!"

Hawks tend to watch them sometimes, but I think that between the cover and tree branches in the way, the sheer size of the birds I have back there, and the presence of several big cockerels as well as Tank, who is a VERY vigilant rooster who has everyone duck and cover immediately, they have no chance. But of course, they are always looking for an opportunity. (I would never put smaller birds back there.)

I was extremely worried I'm starting to feel a lot better

Not sure you have had the chance to read the incubating info at the beginning of the thread (I know there's a lot and it's overwhelming), but this might be good to read:

HAVE A PLAN IN CASE YOU LOOSE ELECTRIC ITS THE SEASON! see post #522

GOOD MORNING, WEEKEND WARRIORS! I HOPE EVERYONE HAS SURVIVED THUS FAR THIS MORNING!

Well, so far... Thanks! I REALLY needed that! (I REALLY need another REAL cup of coffee. I think I might cheat this morning - I was so good this week...)

Quote: Oh, me, too - please?!

Quote: I love these tractors - they are 6 x 10. It's the Stress Free Tractor Plans if you're interested. I have about 4 of them, will build more. For the first one I built (with no roost, platform, nest boxes), it wasn't all that hard to move (easier than I thought) - because it's designed well, and it has lap cuts that help the frame flex over uneven ground. All that being said, I have a sort of hilly yard, and dragging it around day to day only lasted so long before I decided just to park it. When I moved it I would also move and place these long 2' wide strips of HW cloth around the edges and anchor with cinder blocks to discourage diggers, so I just made that a permanent part. I modified the plan to add a platform in the back for roosting and I added nest boxes and a door for them. Later added automatic doors. I'm not sure there's enough protection to use it in a very cold climate, though.



They are great as smaller coops or breeding pens. In my experience, they will very comfortably hold a rooster and 5 LF hens long term, provided they have a paddock during the day. My Eggplant crew (which granted includes some much smaller hens) is 7 hens and 1 rooster (previously 9 and 1), and it's... OK. Doable. But snug. I'm building them a new big coop, so it's temporary, and they get to roam daily.

Regarding using it as an actual daytime tractor rather than coop for those numbers, it could work, I suppose, but in my minds eye, it seems they would be cramped.

I just move the fences like Pens and rotate. I'm actually overdue doing that - current paddocks look like a wasteland. This weekend I'm working on having two semi-permanent paddocks for each group, to be able to switch back and forth. If they are already set up, I can switch them as frequently as needed (some of my flocks are more aggressive diggers than others). Per my Raising Poultry on scraps book, you go for a minimum of 72 sq. ft. of lawn/grass per bird and have an alternate one set up. You can switch them before they do too much damage to the first, and can maintain grass cover for them to browse that way. I'm aiming for that minimum for the Eggplant (which is in a spot in the yard where it'll be hard to carve out more than that), and aiming for more than that for the NN group (who are VERY hard on the ground).

Part of why I'm going ahead with the more permanent set up is the chronic escapees - if it's more permanent, it's easier to put net over the top.

(Sorry for the long answer!!!!)

- Ant Farm
Thanks for the info; doesn't seem like tractors would work for me, though. However, what you're trying to do with alternating paddocks is nothing more than rotational grazing on a small scale. Works great for sheep & cattle; no reason for it not to work with chickens. Were I to do it, I'd probably go with at least 4 paddocks, all joined together, and pop doors in all common fences. That way, you could start at one end & progress down the line to the other end, then start at the beginning again, giving each paddock plenty of time to regrow, even in hot, dry Texas.

 

[kwhites634]

zzzzzzz