First Run of Cornish Cross Meat Birds and Super Excited!

[Morrigan]

I make ginger beer every week to stay ahead. It takes about 1-3 weeks to mature and we have had 3 explosions so far. We put them down in the basement near the boiler. After the last explosion my DH now degasses them just a little each morning. Crazy maybe but its definitely worth the wait. Far better stuff than what you can buy in the store.
4 fuzzies in the Bator apparently! On a ferry back to the island now-can't wait to get home!
good luck on your hatch Dandelioness!

What is your recipe and how does your DH "degas" them. I'd be scared they would blow while I was doing it.

 

[duluthralphie]

Chicken talk. I can do chicken talk

Ralphie- you may remember that I have celiac disease and had to get my chicken feed custom milled for me locally, so I have only 23% protein non gmo organic gluten-free chick starter, that I feed all my flocks fermented or at least wetted. I go through a 5 gallon bucket of ff a day between 8 adult ducks, 15 laying pullets and 2 roosters, 8 cx meaties and 30 chicks.

I can't seem to upload pictures here again atm. Agh.

I was going to show ya'lls my chick/meatie set up, inverted kiddie pool shade shelter and all.

It just started pouring down rain here. Oh no. And the way I have things set up is the chicks and cx meaties get the big enclosed bed for a pen because the 4 muscovy ducks and 3 white bresse pullets pick on the chicks, so they stay in the supermax enclosed pen. With the rain though, maybe I should keep them inside the coop and make the ducks and bresse be in the rain and mud? IDK..

Actually I did forget, sorry, BUT as soon as I read it I remembered you saying that and a special diet thingy..... Do not feel special though, my DW accuses me of never remembering anything she says either......

I have a woman that wants to buy muscoveys, She said she would buy all we raise, I will raise none, I had geese for 5 weeks too long last year, NEVER will I have a web footed critter again, unless it is a platypus.....

 

[duluthralphie]

My slow walking, then non-walking CX rooster went to freezer camp today. At least he dressed out at 3 3/4 lbs which is a decent size. That makes 6 "early birds." I have 18 left, and everyone left either ran or walked across the yard this afternoon for their fodder treat. I'm crossing my fingers I can get the rest through at least 10 more days.

I've been wracking my brain for why this flock has had so many more leg problems then my last CX batch. One thing I thought of last night was that I didn't put any vitamin supplements in their water this time when they were young. Also, when I had my last batch, our garden was just finishing up, so I was throwing them a lot of squash and tomatoes as their mid-day treat, whereas now I'm giving them wheat and barley sprouts. Maybe its a vitamin deficiency?

In other news, we need to buy another freezer. We decided to buy 1/4th share of a cow from a local rancher, who free ranges all his herd on grass from beginning to end. They never see a feed lot. He then sends it to a butcher who cuts it all up for us. We just picked it up yesterday and now have 125 lbs of beef in our existing freezer. We had a burger last night with it, and it was really, really good.

The only way to go, we have 4 freezers, Pork, chicken, beef, and a few fish, al free range or wild caught, it is the only way to go.

 

[paulandashia]

Agreed with the Freezers.
We have 3, One for poultry (chicken, duck, turkey, etc), one for herbivores (goat/reindeer/moose, etc), and one for sea-food. We go clamming each year, and Hubby goes fishing and comes home with about 300 lbs of Alaska Salmon and 200 lbs of Halibut, so we need a whole freezer just for that. LoL

 

[Double Kindness]

I'm sick the bf brought home the crud last week and it fell on me like a truck load of bricks last night.

I barely got out to tend to my flocks.. which there are a lot of lately with the hatching.

ok 2 pictures loaded yay!

I make limincello once a year in the winter and let it sit until spring/summer. I do make 3 gallons at a time

 

[duluthralphie]

Only three gallons??


I think you should make 55 gallons at a time..and feel free to send my several gallons.. It looks really good.

Sorry your sick.. I have fought the crud all winter it stinks.

 

[LindaB220]

I make ginger beer every week to stay ahead. It takes about 1-3 weeks to mature and we have had 3 explosions so far. We put them down in the basement near the boiler. After the last explosion my DH now degasses them just a little each morning. Crazy maybe but its definitely worth the wait. Far better stuff than what you can buy in the store.
4 fuzzies in the Bator apparently! On a ferry back to the island now-can't wait to get home!
good luck on your hatch Dandelioness!

I still have my scobies saved from making my Kombucha. Crazy good. Love it with fruit in it for a second wait. Definite degas it every day for 2 days before fridge.

 

[LindaB220]

Agreed with the Freezers.
We have 3, One for poultry (chicken, duck, turkey, etc), one for herbivores (goat/reindeer/moose, etc), and one for sea-food. We go clamming each year, and Hubby goes fishing and comes home with about 300 lbs of Alaska Salmon and 200 lbs of Halibut, so we need a whole freezer just for that. LoL

Now, this just isn't right or fair.

I love fish and in the deep south I'm just far enough away from the coast that just about any fish is just too high. NW Louisiana is expensive because of all the gambling going on in Bossier City. Race Track and the River Boats. Fish in the store is about $7 or a lb and I'm too much a tightwad to pay it. Nobody fishes in our family. sigh. Totally envy you. Except, you know, the snow. I can live without that. So I guess it's a tradeoff.

I did go gambling once. It took them 20 minutes to win my $10. Never went back. I could have flushed it down the toilet faster, but not much. Someone enjoyed my money but it wasn't me. Don't care for that. Years ago my sister won $900 at the track. Her first time going. I would have run like a turkey out of there but she proceeded to lose every thing but $40. Stupidity.

One of my many goals this year is to get another good freezer. Dashia, I envy you those. All we have is the top of the fridge and my daughter keeps a lot of TV dinners for when they don't make it out to pick up pizza. She works too hard dog grooming to cook. I'd like to say that when my knee gets better after the surgery that I would cook for them but they want carryout. So I do my own thing of baked chicken and veggies when I can. NO meat in the freezer so when she went grocery shopping she brought me back a double cheeseburger and fries for supper. sigh. I want FOOD. I'm able to drive now and will go and do my own thing.

 

[duluthralphie]

Now, this just isn't right or fair.

I love fish and in the deep south I'm just far enough away from the coast that just about any fish is just too high. NW Louisiana is expensive because of all the gambling going on in Bossier City. Race Track and the River Boats. Fish in the store is about $7 or a lb and I'm too much a tightwad to pay it. Nobody fishes in our family. sigh. Totally envy you. Except, you know, the snow. I can live without that. So I guess it's a tradeoff.

I did go gambling once. It took them 20 minutes to win my $10. Never went back. I could have flushed it down the toilet faster, but not much. Someone enjoyed my money but it wasn't me. Don't care for that. Years ago my sister won $900 at the track. Her first time going. I would have run like a turkey out of there but she proceeded to lose every thing but $40. Stupidity.

One of my many goals this year is to get another good freezer. Dashia, I envy you those. All we have is the top of the fridge and my daughter keeps a lot of TV dinners for when they don't make it out to pick up pizza. She works too hard dog grooming to cook. I'd like to say that when my knee gets better after the surgery that I would cook for them but they want carryout. So I do my own thing of baked chicken and veggies when I can. NO meat in the freezer so when she went grocery shopping she brought me back a double cheeseburger and fries for supper. sigh. I want FOOD. I'm able to drive now and will go and do my own thing.

BUT you can catch all the gator you want to eat for free!!!

 

[LindaB220]

BUT you can catch all the gator you want to eat for free!!!

Yeah, I'll hop right on that Ralph. Me and a gator. Wonder who would win?