Maine

[joanie_maine]

Quote:
Sorry...The fair comitee posted it earlier!

coops are all set up for the show. the cows are already at the show and will be riding it out there. apparently the cows have been there for the past week. whY??? anyway, the poultry barn is ready and that's what counts.

I have birds entered but I think I'll keep them at home.

 

[jenni22776rn]

With the upcoming Irene...I am concerned with how to prepare my chickens for the storm.....Should I leave them in the coop all day during the rain or allow them to go out and put them in when it gets bad? How is everyone else preparing for the storm? The DH thinks I should keep them cooped up all day until tomorrow when everything passes...how safe are they? The only concern I have is trees coming down with the wind as thier coop is under large trees....if they are out running around..they could escape faster out of the coop vs being inside...I know how I am and I know that if I feel it is really bad..they will all be moved in large dog crates but in the meantime...what is everyone else doing to prepare?

 

[Speed]

I'm locking mine in so they can't or won't go out in the storm. I just cleaned the coop and put a fresh pile of shavings on the floor yesterday. I'm putting another roosting bar in today, just to keep them below the windows. I figured if they are going to be locked in there for a day I might as well make it as comfortable as possible.

 

[joanie_maine]

My birds stay indoors when it rains.

Also I avoid having them out in high winds, since branches tend to fall here.

Keeping birds dry helps keep them from getting cold, developing respiratory problems (especially in the Spring & Fall).

To prepare for this storm, I've filled jugs of water especially for them.

Stocked up on feed too, in case there is flooding that blocks the road to town.

 

[superchemicalgirl]

I'm going to watch the prediction for winds and make my decision tomorrow morning whether to let them out. Usually I only keep them inside when it's actively snowing, but if there will be wind gusts in excess of 50 mph, they'll probably be forced to stay inside.

I got food for them earlier this week, so I'm all set in that regards. I'm going to fill up a kiddie pool with water today in case we lose electricity so I can still water the birds.

Other than that, I'm making sure the laundry and dishes are done today here, picking all the veggies out of my garden that I can possibly pick, and cleaning up the few objects in my yard that could potentially become flying missiles.

 

[jenni22776rn]

Thanks..great advice! I never thought of the extra food for them..and I am going to put extra shavings in there also...I guess I will be keeping them in..good thing we finished the new coop wiht extra room for them! My silkies..well they won't even come in the coop during a little rain..so they will be staying in all day! Good luck everyone with the storm!!

 

[Widget]

Okay. Got up at 7 this morning. By 730 was on the road to Lowes and Walmart. Bought the last 5 cinder blocks at Lowes plus rope, Gorilla tape and Pepsi. Then went on to Walmart for paper towels and some junk food. Got home and started getting things ready. By noon I had almost everything done.
Horses' shelter (a portable garage) is tied down as much as I can. I also used the Gorilla tape (think duct tape on steroids) to secure all the joints. Water tanks (two 70 gallon tanks) are filled. Hay is now covered by a tarp inside the horse trailer. Two bales are set aside to go into the back of my car to make it easier to feed out tomorrow. The two Rubbermaid storage bins I have are tied shut since the tops love to fly off in any sort of wind. Goats have two five gall water buckets. Front porch is cleaned off. I even mowed most of the lawn before securing the lawn mower. And I brought in the bird feeders from the back deck.
Now all I have left to do is change that water in the ducks' kiddie pool, take care of the laundry and fill the empty milk jugs with water just in case. Food is all set for the poultry. I have about 150 pounds. Thank goodness I just got my hay and grain order delivered this past week. So I am all set through next weekend.

 

[buckabucka]

We have a covered run here, so I'm going to let the chickens have access to that, although if the wind is blowing sideways, they may want to hang around inside.

I'm more worried about our giant hoop houses blowing away. It's the first year that we've had them. One will have both ends open, since we never got around to putting the ends on in the first place, the other we plan to close up. It will be an interesting experiment!

 

[Widget]

Quote:
Good luck with your hoop houses. That is what I use for my horses. The first one did blow away the first year I had it. The current one is a few years old and is starting to shows signs of weather abuse. Between the Patriot's Day storm a few years ago and some heavy winter snows the cover is a bit worn. Some of the supports are bent and the whole thing leans forward. But it is still standing. And it is tied to the surrounding fence posts to prevent the blowing away thing from happening again. And I have cinder blocks holding the sides and back door down. I also had one for hay that was flipped and turned sideways during the Patriot's Day storm. It didn't collapse but the whole thing moved about twenty feet. It collapsed a couple years later during a heavy snow. But we have several at work that are still standing and look new even after several years of use. Probably because they were put together better than I did mine. But then again I put mine up by myself so that made it more difficult to really get the cover tightened down securely.

 

[buckabucka]

Wow! It will be quite exciting if the hoop house decides to travel! DH somehow anchored them with pipes, but I'm not sure exactly how, - he built them this spring. They are both large 20 x 24'. The one that will be closed has all of the tomatoes, peppers and eggplant (first year I could grow eggplant!), but I wonder if the doors will hold. It will be interesting to see what happens.

I hope your horses stay covered!