Investing More In American Dominiques

[centrarchid]

Aart agreed with me.


Barn as winter wonder land.

A little closer up.

Gamefowl pens in foreground.

 

[aart]

Ohhhh.....so the chickens are 'snowed in'!

Mine are too today,
not much snow but nasty wind howling,
they are all in the coop or hiding behind the windbreak under the coop.

 

[centrarchid]

Many of those penned outside are not eating feed applied. This happens with first heavy snow each year. Sometimes birds will abstain from feed for as long as 2 days. Some physiological change takes place with this. I think the change in games somehow related to their ability to fly. In those the flight capacity is significant and possibly biologically important when kept in walk settings for literally a few thousand years.

 

[centrarchid]

Further upgrades needed. I have attempted to protect a couple game stags from frostbite by keeping them in the more protected area of the barn. Still loosing comb points and wattles in temperatures that did not dip below 0 F. Next year heated roost will be tried.

 

[Lucky KY Chicks]

Following!

 

[centrarchid]

Snow coming in this morning with cold front. Local forages for songbirds that probe soil; starlings, blackbirds and robins; are exhausted. Starlings in particularly plus some sparrows putting a hit on my feed both in pens and storage. More than 200 starlings. Dogs running starlings hard but will not sustain effort. A merlin was in yesterday which did get starlings to leave while it caught and consumed one in Bradford Pear by barn. The merlin will be able to consume one per day so will provide only limited benefits.

 

[centrarchid]

I am considering putting out traps for the starlings. I do no know what to do with the bodies.

 

[aart]

I am considering putting out traps for the starlings. I do no know what to do with the bodies.

I'd say feed them to the chickens...but pests.
Compost them?...know anyone with pigs?

 

[centrarchid]

Day time temperatures down just above zero resulting a major change in starling behavior. They are consuming more than half of feed put out and defecating all over everything in the barn. Same birds are not working the field pens no more than 75 feet away. Differences in feeding regimen part of problem. Birds in field pens are given a restricted ration leaving no excess on ground sometime before dark. Birds in barn provided feed free-choice to meet needs of hens in lay and late hatch juveniles that are in less than ideal feather and still growing. Treadle feeders may need to be employed next year to beat the starlings. I am also pondering use of pannels of chicken wire to block starlings. That would stop owls as well but make access for me and dogs more problematic unless I can setup the "hippie" curtains.

 

[centrarchid]

This is getting ridicules. Starlings are eating more than the chickens and soiling everything. Additionally the darn birds are only present for an hour or two before moving on. The flock is a lot bigger than 200 birds now.