INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[chick rookie]

Hang on for some rain tomorrow and Wednesday! We really need it. Getting our posts set for the new pastures has been a real headache. Our friends, local farmers are breaking the plow blades and rippers in less than 90 acres! We need to turn over our garden plot and our lil JD790 is struggling to do it. My chickens love when we turn the garden over, lots of awesome bugs. They follow the tractor scratching and gobbling them up.

It is spitting rain here now, need more than that. Our birds go nuts anytime we have to dig for any reason too, I get a kick out of it and of course I help!!

Raccoon or possum is my gut feeling on this horrible event. I had cooper/sharp shinned hawk go after the silkie trio I had last year, and my frizzle rooster was left in a similar condition. Another possible predator. There was a pair that my guineas attacked and killed but was too late for my frizzle. I had my trio in a mastiff sized wire crate in the shed. They actually squeezed between the bars and got my roo, had to grab the 2 hens out, and it attacked me! Let the hawk out, came right back. My guinea got it. Not 20 minutes later the other hawk was back, and the guineas nailed it as soon as it flew into the shed. All that was left of my poor fells was his head, feathers and skin.

Didn't know they would go inside a coop after anything. That is not good. Good job to the guinea!! Sorry about you roo. Don't know if that hawk was brave or just plain stupid!!
To attack a human and then to come back after it's free???? Stupid Hawk!!
I dont know when that happened to ya but I know I'm sick of Hawks and Falcons this year!! always see them but this year they just wont stay away!! Even when I go running towards them, I have to get real close before they will leave. I know my neighbors think I'm nuts, lol not that I care.

 

[chick rookie]

I bought eggs from Mermaid's Cottage Farms in Virginia. The 2 cockerels seem to be fine. I might try and retape her legs.


Quote:
Thank You will definitely read.





Thank you, I will check for lice or mites, even though my eye sight is not that great anymore. The brooder is a large plastic rabbit cage (like a bird cage) in my basement, but I do use pine shavings. So will check for little creepers. In case I do find something, I have Ivermectin pour on for cattle, can I use that on chicks? I have been working on stocking my first aid kit.

I cant see them, I have to have my kids check for me.... lol My sight gets worse the old I get... it sucks!!

 

[tmarsh83]

Hang on for some rain tomorrow and Wednesday! We really need it. Getting our posts set for the new pastures has been a real headache. Our friends, local farmers are breaking the plow blades and rippers in less than 90 acres! We need to turn over our garden plot and our lil JD790 is struggling to do it. My chickens love when we turn the garden over, lots of awesome bugs. They follow the tractor scratching and gobbling them up.

Up north isn't much better. I've had less than two inches since the middle of July. It set the peppers nicely but our ground has just enough clay that it's gotten rock hard. Had to bury our outside cat last Thursday and it took an hour to accomplish that.

Need to turn our garden over as well.

Where is the time going?

 

[SallyinIndiana]

Hang on for some rain tomorrow and Wednesday! We really need it. Getting our posts set for the new pastures has been a real headache. Our friends, local farmers are breaking the plow blades and rippers in less than 90 acres! We need to turn over our garden plot and our lil JD790 is struggling to do it. My chickens love when we turn the garden over, lots of awesome bugs. They follow the tractor scratching and gobbling them up.

We are getting rain here too. I actually found a few cracks in the dirt under our large coup the ground is was so dry. Then again it made trimming my goats hooves a touch bit easier this past week. No muddy feet and the hard ground had wore down the hooves more than usual.
My ducks are happy right now as their pen has a low spot (on purpose) and its a mid sized 3 inch deep puddle.

 

[Faraday40]

This article may be helpful: http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2013/01/repairing-chickens-broken-beak.html

Thanks. That was very helpful.

Today I trimmed her beak tip to reduce the weight & possibility of further tearing. I attempted to superglue a bit of "tea bag bandage" but it didn't want to stick & I was afraid of using more glue. Because the tear doesn't seem to go past the living tissue, I decided to let it be. (I only trimmed some of the excess - not the whole piece. I stopped about even with the lower beak.)

I gave her a softened oatmeal, wet pellets & mealworm sundae. I had to wipe her beak afterwards. LOL I reapplied some Vetericyn & sent her back to the coop. I may have to give her some soft food treats to make sure she's eating, but otherwise she seems OK.

 

[Faraday40]

We have decided to get our numbers down before winter. We're not a farm, so if my DD decides to hatch in spring, then we must get rid of some chickens in the fall.
We're across the border in IL - near Chicago.

We have a loving, hardy, strong layer available. "Honey" is definitely a spoiled "pet" Comes when called & will cuddle if you pick her up. She's a mix (or hybrid) & just under 2 years old.


We also have 2 Bielefelder pullets available. Hatched April 12, 2015 and already laying.
I'd love for them to go to a home with a handsome Biele roo, but any loving home is welcome.



PM me if interested in prices or want more details.

 

[SallyinIndiana]

We have decided to get our numbers down before winter. We're not a farm, so if my DD decides to hatch in spring, then we must get rid of some chickens in the fall.
We're across the border in IL - near Chicago.

We have a loving, hardy, strong layer available. "Honey" is definitely a spoiled "pet" Comes when called & will cuddle if you pick her up. She's a mix (or hybrid) & just under 2 years old.


We also have 2 Bielefelder pullets available. Hatched April 12, 2015 and already laying.
I'd love for them to go to a home with a handsome Biele roo, but any loving home is welcome.



PM me if interested in prices or want more details.

If you were closer I'd be interested in the Bellies.

 

[tmarsh83]

Just want to talk a couple things out with people that know far more than me and can point out the error of my ways...

New coop design is almost complete (will share when drawings are finalized so you can tell me what I'm forgetting), and I have been researching quite a bit exactly what birds I want to add in the spring as I grow the flock. I want dual purpose birds, as once the ladies have moved beyond their use as layers I plan to pressure can them, so I'm looking at the heavier breeds. I like the idea of a mixed flock at this point. Not planning any breeding or hatching, just a nice mix of birds for laying. I'm semi-collaborating with my neighbor (who supplied my starter birds this year) on planning our spring order of chicks. He gets his chicks every spring from Murray McMurray and has had extremely good luck with healthy, productive birds.

At current I have the leghorn and ancona.

My short list is:
Cuckoo Maran
Delaware
Australorp

Also considering:
New Hampshire
Sussex
GLW

Anybody see something glaring where I've missed the boat with my choices/thinking?

 

[SallyinIndiana]

Just want to talk a couple things out with people that know far more than me and can point out the error of my ways...

New coop design is almost complete (will share when drawings are finalized so you can tell me what I'm forgetting), and I have been researching quite a bit exactly what birds I want to add in the spring as I grow the flock. I want dual purpose birds, as once the ladies have moved beyond their use as layers I plan to pressure can them, so I'm looking at the heavier breeds. I like the idea of a mixed flock at this point. Not planning any breeding or hatching, just a nice mix of birds for laying. I'm semi-collaborating with my neighbor (who supplied my starter birds this year) on planning our spring order of chicks. He gets his chicks every spring from Murray McMurray and has had extremely good luck with healthy, productive birds.

At current I have the leghorn and ancona.

My short list is:
Cuckoo Maran
Delaware
Australorp

Also considering:
New Hampshire
Sussex
GLW

Anybody see something glaring where I've missed the boat with my choices/thinking?

If you are wanting heavier breeds then maybe look into the orphingtons and possibly heritage breeds from local breeders. Hatcheries make more money from lighter weight birds for the most part so for heavier birds I have found breeders to be a better option.

As for the birds on your list the Deleware and the cuckoo maran are both much smaller than my heritage RIR and even smaller than the hatchery buff orphingtons I raised this year. The australops I have raised in the past were a nice sized bird smaller than my heritage RIR but almost as large as the hatchery buffs. The New Hamps I have had in the past were only slightly larger than the white leghorns but wow those NH birds could lay. Wyndottes tend to be fluffy and a touch harder to skin come processing time. They get to be a good size for a hatchery bird though.

 

[ChickCrazed]

Just want to talk a couple things out with people that know far more than me and can point out the error of my ways...

New coop design is almost complete (will share when drawings are finalized so you can tell me what I'm forgetting), and I have been researching quite a bit exactly what birds I want to add in the spring as I grow the flock. I want dual purpose birds, as once the ladies have moved beyond their use as layers I plan to pressure can them, so I'm looking at the heavier breeds. I like the idea of a mixed flock at this point. Not planning any breeding or hatching, just a nice mix of birds for laying. I'm semi-collaborating with my neighbor (who supplied my starter birds this year) on planning our spring order of chicks. He gets his chicks every spring from Murray McMurray and has had extremely good luck with healthy, productive birds.

At current I have the leghorn and ancona.

My short list is:
Cuckoo Maran
Delaware
Australorp

Also considering:
New Hampshire
Sussex
GLW

Anybody see something glaring where I've missed the boat with my choices/thinking?

How about a blue or green egg layer? You might already have some, but they make for a fun egg basket! I think you should keep the Delawares on the list, they are a threatened breed so they are a great breed to support. I personally have had great luck with Marans, super friendly and personable birds. I hate my Wyandotte. She is flighty and a jerk to the other birds. I know others who have had that same problem, and others who love them.