Maine

[hoppy]

i never said they are not cute or useful, I just said I DON"T raise them although others might.
nothing snooty about it. it's just not what I raise. I DO raise Paint silkies, Khaki silkies, blacks, whites, blues, splash, as well as sizzles and large fowl blue laced red wyandottes, working on lavender wyandottes and a few orpingtons. I don't really need to spread myself any thinner then that.

Was your nose in the air when you said that? LOL I could hear it! I know, I keep asking and you keep denying. Come on. If I can say that a used Kleenex that lays eggs is cute then you can admit that large Silkies are useful and cool. (nudge nudge)

 

[ashandvine]

Aw. Well, I understand you. I have the Marans, the Ameraucanas, the meat, the turkeys, the Favorelles and now two lovely Plymouth BR... yeah, too thin. But that's where the swaps come in lol

 

[Mainechick168]

ohhh my power is out! My sister and I were in the middle of making peppermint bark...took a break to look at the tree...and then it was dark. I hope it comes on soon- it's kind of warm outside, and I'd like not to lose the contents of my fridge...!

 

[hoppy]

call your power company and let them know. many times i'm out and they don't know, either way it will generate a work order and you will get restored faster. (once I waited 2 hours only to find out it was just me and the neighbors, now I call after 15 mins to be sure they know- Im' not impatient or anything)

ohhh my power is out! My sister and I were in the middle of making peppermint bark...took a break to look at the tree...and then it was dark. I hope it comes on soon- it's kind of warm outside, and I'd like not to lose the contents of my fridge...!

 

[CoopChick719]

We lost satellite but not the power...yet! No biggie on the satellite just more time for BYC!! Hope you get yours back soon, Kelly!

 

[buckabucka]

Our power flickered, but didn't go out. The wind seems to be dying down now.

I was disappointed to hear that my neighbors across the street got a dog. They haven't had a dog in several years, but they have NEVER tied their dogs. She told DH that the dog is a 3 year old golden retriever, and that it doesn't chase cats. And she said she doesn't think it has ever ventured across the street yet. I'm not sure if she was tip-toeing around the chicken issue or not, but I have a feeling that if the dog comes over here while the chickens are out, they will be toast. I hope I'm wrong, as we like these neighbors. I'll be watching to see how often we see the dog over here this winter, while the chickens are safely locked up (and his reaction to their scent).

 

[Mainechick168]

The power came back....when I was just about asleep...and of course, every light in the house was on!

Hoppy, I thought I should have called as soon as I got in bed...but I didn't want to get out. I was hoping the neighbors called . I told DH this, and his response was " they know" to which I told him that was Bologna! I'll have to show him that I was right!

All of the snow has melted, and it's sort of nice out this morning, so the chickens are happy. I need to clean out the coop- the deep litter method has been working...as far as smell goes, no smell, but it is very damp, and I know that is not good, so I'm going to start over

 

[hoppy]

I found a paint ball gun works well. you can hit the dog, it leaves a mark that shows the owner, it could have been a dead dog but it's not. they will think twice about letting it run.

Our power flickered, but didn't go out. The wind seems to be dying down now.
I was disappointed to hear that my neighbors across the street got a dog. They haven't had a dog in several years, but they have NEVER tied their dogs. She told DH that the dog is a 3 year old golden retriever, and that it doesn't chase cats. And she said she doesn't think it has ever ventured across the street yet. I'm not sure if she was tip-toeing around the chicken issue or not, but I have a feeling that if the dog comes over here while the chickens are out, they will be toast. I hope I'm wrong, as we like these neighbors. I'll be watching to see how often we see the dog over here this winter, while the chickens are safely locked up (and his reaction to their scent).

 

[hoppy]

the smart meters are supposed to let them know when the power is out and they don'thave to still come to the house to read them, so I asked the power guy when he came last month, he said they are equiped to read remotely yet. so if you were out of power, and you have a smart meter, they still might not know.

The power came back....when I was just about asleep...and of course, every light in the house was on!

Hoppy, I thought I should have called as soon as I got in bed...but I didn't want to get out. I was hoping the neighbors called . I told DH this, and his response was " they know" to which I told him that was Bologna! I'll have to show him that I was right!

All of the snow has melted, and it's sort of nice out this morning, so the chickens are happy. I need to clean out the coop- the deep litter method has been working...as far as smell goes, no smell, but it is very damp, and I know that is not good, so I'm going to start over

 

[superchemicalgirl]

Thanks for the advice SCG! Mine love people food as well.My family already thinks I'm nuts so when I've stopped them from scraping the dinner plates into the garbage disposal to scraping them into a bowl by the sink for the chickens, they just rolled their eyes!!

They said I need to post a list of what goes where--chicken bucket, redworm bin, or definitely the compost pile.

I have a covered run under some big pines but I swear the snow & rain are blowing in sideways. I have a low spot right near the door that is now a mini-pool--had to dig it down to level the pen. Funny, I don't remember that area being wet until we put the pen there!!

Told the DH that we are tarping the North side of the pen now I'm thinking maybe the West side (where door is) as well. Are you throwing fresh shavings into the run or used stuff from the coop?

Oh no, Hoppy, a fisher?! Glad your flock was safe!!

The only tracks I've seen around my pen have been deer & my dogs. I hope that's all I see this winter but we live near the power lines which is like I-95 for the wildlife. I'm pretty sure I've heard a few coyotes in the fields across the road. That makes me nervous for all my animals.

Used shavings. I won't waste fresh ones on dirt. I find the landscape changes with chickens, they dig holes, they pound soil down... again, I just add shavings. The really nasty ones get composted but the nicer of the nasty ones get thrown outside.

I found a paint ball gun works well. you can hit the dog, it leaves a mark that shows the owner, it could have been a dead dog but it's not. they will think twice about letting it run.

The other option is SSS (shoot, shovel, shut up). Your dog? No I haven't seen your dog. I'm an animal lover so I prefer to not go this route first. I've had a couple run ins with neighbor dogs, and I've let the owners know that my birds are very important to me and the issue has improved. The biggest issues I have though are neighbor kids. They'll come up and shoot at my flock with bb guns when I'm not home. The cops made that one stop, I think. Haven't caught them on the game cam in a long time.