INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[Chaneys Ranch]

(Like these....)

This worked for me. Thats what I was trying to find, thanks for sharing! I had water about 3 inches deep in the bottom.

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Quote: I know my OEGBs are my favorites. I love every one, even the roosters are absolute dolls. They wont think twice about hopping on your shoulder, or curling up in your lap. They are regular layers all winter long also. They carry on sweet little chatty sessions when they see you, and know you understand every word they say

If I had to choose one bantam breed, they would be it.


One of my darling lil princesses with her first hatch, who had her eggs hidden well until I heard peeping! Fantastic broody moms too. She raised 8 chicks quite well. She is in the unfinished porch here, it was still very cold so I moved her, the chick and the eggs indoors. She is a Red Pyle OEGB hen. Normally they have a bright pink comb, she was pretty intent on hatching and not looking good here at all.

Quote: I feed my Sassy Cat more in the winter. Summer, she stays around the barn, and patrols the coops at night. No fear of any animal here, they all know HER. Other cats are not welcome. She will rarely come to eat in the spring through fall months, she does love a little milk every morning. I just watch her, and if she appears thin, I give her good kitten food fermented. She wont pass it up! I do worm her monthly, eating birds and mice leave them wide open to parasites. She is spayed, I won't add to the feral cat problem. Once a year she gets her rabies and distemper shot, and THAT is a challenge..she is a somewhat tame cat, and actually affectionate on her terms. She panics if confined. Sassy was a tiny yellow feral kitten we found under our porch several years ago, eyes had just opened. We bottle fed her a few weeks, but she was always somewhat wild. Tried to even keep her indoors. Nope! Clawed at the windows, darted outdoors at every chance, just a few months old. We finally gave up.

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

[COLOR=900000]A few ducky pictures for the evening. These two are too cute!

Trudi:[/COLOR]




[COLOR=900000]Malcolm, chilling. Thus far, Trudi has been a lot more spastic than Malcolm--except when they're in the water, because Malcolm goes nuts.

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[COLOR=900000]Snack time! Malcolm's such a hog and dumps feed all over! They're so sweet together, though. Malcolm will start eating and quack to Trudi, and then they'll have their meal together while chattering the whole time.

You can really tell how much these birds rely on each other's company. They never do anything without the other one close by![/COLOR]




[COLOR=900000]We're almost done with the duck coop, just a few little details left to secure it.

Hopefully, the duckies will pass quarantine in a few more weeks and can move over there immediately. Although, we probably should put the run fence up first.

All this building plus classes and homework and winter preparations and general animal care has me fatigued here lately.

But I'm alright. Hope everyone else is doing well as well.

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Hang in there! My youngest DD is feeling it too. She is at IUPUI studying phsyc and its really wearing her thin. She is working towards a career in the children's field.
Thanks for sharing the pictures, they look so tiny and precious

Looks like you found a very sweet pair.

I know this looks like a bad example! ! Hahaha! This little lover prefers sleeping on my laptop! But I only feed ours once in the evening and even then only a half a cup a piece. They are excellent mousers and other critters!

Adorable!

Quote: Agreed, my first "EE" Bunny did not lay until her following spring. She and Mabel my first BR came here in poor condition. Being new to laying hens, I had bought a piglet and they were thrown in as "worthless" birds. I felt very sorry for them. Very underweight and probably less than 6 months old. Birds just need time to mature according to what they are and how they were cared for. I will say this was my only experience with this! From that point, I found BYC and only went with other members birds I knew from our thread. Not a very nice man. Bunny and Mabel are almost 3 years old and still lay very well, thank you lol!

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

I want to say WELCOME! to our thread if I have missed anyone the last few weeks. Things are crazy busy preparing for winter. Still considering my direction on breeds to keep, what Heritage breed chickens I want to work with. For us, hardy, strong and social breeds are winning out. Same for our turkeys, I have reduced my plans to 3 breeds. Guinea of course, our flock is around 30. Quail will be resuming this spring. Geese, yes, Chinese and Embden. Pekin and Muscovy ducks. My Embden surprised me with eggs this weekend

You betcha I am setting those, wow! So the incubator is still on, ROFL!
Trying to get a solid weekend planned to process our hog, he is just huge! Wilbur has been here well over a year, (August) and its way past time. He can flip a 1/2 cut down 55 gallon drum over filled with water in a second. He is still a very sweet, friendly pig. Love my Yorkshires. Gentlest breed I have worked with yet.
My piglets are getting big, my Big Black boar is a goof.

Have to admit he has turned out to be a real doll too. If I say "BIG PIG" he flops and wants a belly rub .I was hesitant to try a different breed, but he is just as sweet. I am keeping 2 gilts, a york and a bluebutt, and we have our new Bacon (york) for the freezer next year. Hogs are much easier to keep than I thought possible. At the price of calves right now, we may just raise pigs. Every lead I find for cows fall through, or costs $3 or more a pound for a bottle baby with no guarantee.Or travel 3 hours to get them! Its hopeless. If I am fortunate to find brown swiss, or jerseys, I will be keeping a bull and cow here also. I have access to a brown swiss bull, so I may even cross to keep the calves hardier.

 

[Kassafrass]

I recommend the metal cans from the pet food section at Rural King, or the trash can section at TSC.


The mice that we found upon moving here were here due to the prior owner improperly storing pet food. 

Thanks! And just in case what i said sounded wrong, i wasnt implying anything you had done wrong. It was completely my own laziness i was mentioning. We got our cat initially bc of the rodent problem we inherited too, but we just have one tiny building she has to patrol. So she has plenty of extra time to scare the chickens. :-\ I feel so sorry for you guys!

 

[Kassafrass]

Hang in there! My youngest DD is feeling it too. She is at IUPUI studying phsyc and its really wearing her thin. She is working towards a career in the children's field.
Thanks for sharing the pictures, they look so tiny and precious Looks like you found a very sweet pair.

Adorable!

Agreed, my first "EE" Bunny did not lay until her following spring. She and Mabel my first BR came here in poor condition. Being new to laying hens, I had bought a piglet and they were thrown in as "worthless" birds. I felt very sorry for them. Very underweight and probably less than 6 months old.  Birds just need time to mature according to what they are and how they were cared for. I will say this was my only experience with this! From that point, I found BYC and only went with other members birds I knew from our thread. Not a very nice man. Bunny and Mabel are almost 3 years old and still lay very well, thank you lol!

Good to hear!! Our neighbors got some c the same time (but a different breed), and have been getting eggs for months now. They keep teasing me that if i treated them more like chickens and less like pets maybe they would have laid by now. So just wanted to make sure.

 

[ChickCrazed]

They are terrible right now. One coop with a wood floor has holes chewed through it! I am sorry to hear you are fighting with it. The mice are eaten faster than they can breed in the coops, but I have a lotta chickens, and guinea are great at getting them too. I have had success with 2 non poisonous methods. Glue boards placed in areas the chickens wont get to, inside a cereal box for example. The 2nd is the 5 gallon bucket with a pvc pipe or stick. Hope someone can find that info, Mine was thrown away by mistake and I don't remember all the details. It really worked. My barn cat does well, but I went through dozens to find one good one that thrives here. One cat is not enough with so many fields around us for sure..

Thanks, I tried a bucket trap but it was set up slightly different than the setup you posted. I think I will try to set it back up in a couple of weeks, once my poison is all gone and I will set it up like you have shown. I haven't noticed them eating holes in the wood floor (thankfully!), they are managing to get in through a 1/2 inch crack in the shed doors (they don't close tight), and also coming in through the chicken pop doors. Once in they are making themselves right at home! I kept uncovering nests with 20 or so babies, so they breed FAST and a little problem became a big problem, which then became a GINORMOUS problem. I really need to throw out everything that is in the loft, which seems like a waste. It is giving them a nice little habitat to make nests. I'm sure they have invaded all of the boxes stored up there. I am afraid to look at what they have damaged. It will be super depressing.

 

[hoosiercheetah]

I am so bored.

Someone convince me that it's a bad idea to order chicks now and try to brood them in my garage over the winter.

 

[ChickCrazed]

I am so bored.

Someone convince me that it's a bad idea to order chicks now and try to brood them in my garage over the winter.

Nobody here but us enablers!

 

[Ol Grey Mare]

Nobody here but us enablers!