INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[goatluver20]

So what is this chickenfest?

 

[leslea]

I wrote a few short fictional kids books once. I used to be able to right a lot better but the more English I do in school the less I enjoy writing. Wish I still could :'(

No time like the present.

 

[leslea]

I love my clothesline! I had a local welding business make my posts. I have 2 end T-posts that are about 4 feet wide across the top. Each end of the top bar has a pullout with places to hang about 10 hangers (I like to dry t-shirts & dress shirts directly on the hangers). The posts are wide enough for 5 lines. I have a center t-post for extra support (no pullouts there, though). I just have to make sure it's not too windy & to pin things tightly out here in the open country. Some days are just too windy (or rainy), so laundry gets put on hold for another day in the summer!

That's a great idea.

Growing up we had the traditional line, then once Mom decided to put up an umbrella clothesline, instead. Hrm, I will have to think about this. Seems like it would be a good chore for the kids, but the door closest to the laundry might be too "busy" already. With a big family, though, we do so much laundry. I'm sure this would help with the electricity!

Another honeydew item!

 

[SallyinIndiana]

Really busy today. Added lots of bedding, this next week is below zero again almost every night.
Need to scrape out the waterfowl houses, but its all frozen! I feel icky for them if I can't scrape out the bedding once a week.
Found several pekin eggs frozen in a new nest. Moved my ceramic eggs there and took them for the piggies!
Usually they all lay at the back of the big trailer, but this one was at the front.
Several water changes. Hold my breath when I go out, am so worried for all the birds. Giving an extra treat of scratch mixed with game bird feed and live mealies.
Anything I can do to boost proteins and keep them warm, they just go crazy on it! Put hay down around all the feeders, waterers in the waterfowl coop.
Looked over all the geese and ducks, feet are all looking good so far. One Chinese gosling is a little underweight for my liking, so I gave him straight gamebird food tonight.
I will bring him and his hatchmate in the porch when we get the negative teen temps. with the scovies also. No more late summer hatches on geese!
They still "weewee" call like a gosling, and I am so worried for them.
Chickens, turkey etc REFUSE to leave the coops. so they did get feed and water indoors.
Can't say i blame them!
off to catch up.. Hope everyone is well!

Our coops have frozen bedding right now. It is just so cold.

I have a question for those of you that process your own chickens. Do any of you have a plucker? Getting the feathers off is the most time consuming part for me, and it makes for a long day when you are by yourself. I've looked on Craigslist to see if anyone has one for rent, but haven't seen anything. I've got a batch of birds coming up on their 'one bad day', and I'm going to buy one. I'm thinking of offering it for rent also to help get back some of the cost.

Have any of you ever thought of renting or bartering for one when you have a bunch of roos to process? I'm buying it regardless, but wanted to see if my thought process matched up with others.

I could totally see this enabling my chicken math......."Sure you can use my plucker, just give me a dozen eggs/chicks of xxxxxxx....." lol.

I have seen the already mentioned ad on CL. The price sounds fair to the plucker owner since he drives the plucker to the renter's house, the plucker is clean, and the owner cleans it after the renter uses it. But from a renter's standpoint, I have never taken the bait. I would need to have many birds that needed plucking on the same day for it to be worth while. Even at a $50 all day usage fee, if I only have 10 roosters, that is $5 a rooster. But if I had raised a year's worth of cornish crosses at one time, I would be all over renting a local plucker. Crackle has a great deal on the white meat birds if someone wants to order 100 or so at one time. That would be a long day for a group of people.

So what is this chickenfest?

a teaching time followed by a pitch in meal for posters in this thread.

 

[chisNchickens]

Here is an updated picture of the little white and grey chipmunk striped chick I hatched out several weeks ago. I'm loving the colors on it and hoping it turns out a silver partridge!
Right after hatch


And this evening

Looks like a mix of splash and partridge (or silver partridge). Partridge and SP shouldn't have yellow or white down/feathering.

Here are the 5 fuzz balls.

You take the cutest silkie pics. I have chick fever, my last hatch sucked. Only one hatched and I had to cull it. But I have six dozen eggs cooking now;-)

So what is this chickenfest?

There is a plan for a chickenfest??

 

[leslea]

Here are the 5 fuzz balls.

Adorable. How many days old now?

 

[leslea]

leslea~ I quickly checked your links, and I am impressed! As you know, your niches of fantasy and romance are hugely popular. I like that your photo reflects each genre! When I have more time, I will look further into those sites.
I'd have a hard time waiting all the way until May, too. Why did you decide on a place that wouldn't have them until May? I don't mean to sound rude, I'm just being nosey because I know it's killing you to wait so long. Plus, we like to enable impulsive decisions! hahaha

It was the only way I could get the six I wanted. They won't ship less than 15 or 25 depending on the site in the cold weather.

I really wanted to just get four, but when I realized I was getting bantams, that meant I needed six (chicken math!). It was an ordeal finishing up that order.

It's a pain waiting, but at least this way I get all hens and I get what I wanted (the bantam BRs and EEs, and the silkies just for fun). And DH and I are really not as "handy" as we'd like to be, so I guess it's a blessing...as soon as it's warm enough outside to work, we can take our time and mess up and learn from our mistakes and finish the run the way we like it before the girls get here.

And goodness knows you all are teaching me so much about the basics of chicken care. Maybe I over-prepare, over-research everything (maybe? ha!), but hopefully it'll lead to less anxiety when they actually come.

 

[CRSelvey]

So here it is at 7 in the evening and I noticed my light flashing on the answering machine. It was Perdue with gross findings...I can call them during business hours to talk to them. It would figure that its a Friday night and now I can't call her until Monday. I really wish I had seen the light earlier. I thought they would be emailing them to me.

Goatluver20- Poultryfest (as it was called last year) was just one of the most fun days I've had this year. We all met at Patrick's house (racinchickins), where he and Wade kindly let us have a poultry processing party (I missed that part), eat great food brought by all, and talk about chickens until we were tired. Their very eco-friendly house was beautiful and so was the flock of many colors out in the yard. It was so nice to meet many of the people we talk to every day on the thread and exchange ideas.

Speaking of talking every day....I know Old Salt is now busy with this girls but for the record, I miss his snappy wit and funny stories.

M2H- Your post earlier today about chia seeds made me laugh out loud. And...you were right...I probably shouldn't have everyone over. The one thing the Dr. left on my answering machine is that they did find something that looks like Marek's but I don't think its definitive yet. As much as I like you guys, I'd feel horrible if something spread to your flocks.

jchny2000- I appreciate your comments and I hope something good comes of this.

 

[kabhyper1]

Adorable. How many days old now?

4 of them were born Saturday and the last one on Monday. They are so small though they look like hatchlings. The whites are way smaller than the colored ones.

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Quote:
Thanks! I would pm racinchickins before you commit tho, he and his SO were our gracious and generous hosts last year.

He can scare you off of the offer, or point out the things he would have done differently.

seriously tho, we all had a wonderful time, but ran OUT of time! We didn't get to the FF demo.
I remembered about halfway home.