Kentucky people

[Larkspur88]

Anyone around georgetown? My hubby is up there for the holiday weekend. If any of you guys are close enough to where he's at and have something neat I've been looking for I can send him on a chicken hunt. XD

 

[justacouplemorechicks]

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Hi Zonoma, I live in Carrollton, about 1 hr from Florence. I am looking for 2 to 3 pullets that are different than the breeds I have. Currently have 3 roos (Orp, RIR, BR) and 2 hens (LH & BR) about about 12 weeks old. Would love to see what you have. Do you have any pics? Thanks!

 

[thechickonthehill]

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So its not just my imagination. I thought it it seemed like the predators were bad this year. We too have been fighting the racoon wars - 4 caught so far. I had a big nasty boar coon come in broad daylight and kill my best Faverolles rooster in his temporary pen!

That rooster weighed 8 pounds too! Of course, it only dragged him off and chewed him up a bit and then left the carcass. What a waste! We caught him that same night (at least I'm assuming its the same one) and have caught 3 younger ones. I haven't seen any foxes - maybe they'll stay over in Stamping Ground and leave me alone.

 

[BluBug]

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Same here for me & chickens~goats~cats~rabbits~Wild Geese goslings~all lost

~must have been the long Winter & wet Spring. The only Welsummer hen left now crows~complains~stopped laying & is molting after 4 of her Coop sisters were taken by a FOX larger than most dogs ! While they were free ranging.

 

[dawnwinds58]

We had one sly fox that took us for granted and didn't live to make that mistake again.

We keep Rat Terriers, standards from 15 to 30 lbs, not the 'dust bunny' sizes and they do their job. I once had 45 goats, 47 if you count the bucks. Not once did I lose a kid or bird to the two separate packs of coyotes in our area and they were pasture born with the most at one time being 27 new kids. When the pack of coyote would sing, my pack answered challenge. They may not have known the size of the dogs, but they knew the heart of the dogs. They accept no tresspassing in their territory. All we ever did was hear them.

Producers around me lost dozens of kids, lambs, chickens, and once they pulled down a 3 month old calf on a close neighbors place.

Would I trust my Ratties in with my birds? No, their prey instinct is too strong. Do they hunt my birds? No! They have never in 7 years gone out of their way to attack, or try and get to my poultry. The chicken yard shares a wall with my largest boy's kennel and he's 36 lbs of Rat Terrier. My geese share the same yard as all the dogs in a pen of their own. My grandkids share the same yard. Before anyone starts to 'ewww' about dog 'poo', we have snakes. In that yard, we have no snakes. The dogs won't allow it. For something to get through the fence and into the chicken house it has to come through my Ratties. That doesn't happen. The yard stays clean and the kids wear shoes.

The main thing is I don't worry about snakes biting my grandbabies or anything marking my birds as an easy dinner. One mile down my road a friend killed a 3 ft cottonmouth viper on his pool deck. One that big means there are more. You can bet they'll give my yard a very wide pass distance.

 

[colby318]

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Last weekend I found a nest of snake eggs the size of golf balls. I squashed everyone of them. Kevin saw a huge black snake on the trail down from our house. I just lost 18 juvenile birds to the darn fox again yesterday. The dogs must have followed me into the house when I went to nap - came back outside and there was carnage everywhere. Lost half of my new black wyandottes.

A couple of them were going to be NICE individuals. It didn't grab any of the adults (guess they had gone the roost for the night). 21 birds lost. I thought I was going to barf...
This fox is very used to dogs and people. Kevin almost tripped over it riding his mountain bike today. Bold little bugger. Going to invest in a .22 rifle this weekend if I don't go to the Foleys to pick up more wyandottes...

 

[Larkspur88]

Any Kentucky people near Georgetown breed seramas?

 

[dawnwinds58]

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That fox, the sly one I mentioned, was the same. Before I had my Ratties we moved to this farm. I'd dispersed my flock to start with new blood in a new hen house. The first ones, 12 or so mostly barred rock and Rhode Island Reds with a couple of Golden Comets thrown in were massacred. We followed the tracks, in blood, across the road. It didn't go fast, but casually like he didn't have a worry in the world. This wasn't getting dinner. This was killing for pleasure. There were eaten birds, mutilated birds, and ones just gutted. We watched and when we had our chance, we made sure no bird would die by him again. I vote for the 22 or a good shotgun.

Now I have my Rat Terriers and no birds lost since they went on guard.

 

[shoopman]

i bread bout 10 didfrent lines of bantams., and sell guinea keets Liberty ky

 

[spydertoys]

I have a Great Pyrenees on the inside of my chicken yard and an English Mastiff on the outside..no predator issues at my house except an occasional snake when they cut the hay behind my barn. I wouldn't trade that Pyr for a million bucks!!