Maine

[buckabucka]

My chicken just exploded in my kitchen. 3-5 days worth of **** came spraying out of her. It went 4 feet down the hall. The smell is unimaginable. I work in a hospital.... the smell in here right now has my husband in fetal position with a sweatshirt over his face. How do I get myself into these situations? The smell is a combination of death and rotten chicken ****. It won't go away.

It could be worse... it could be on the carpet in the office where her nest is. I guess she is super broody (or super stupid), because she won't leave her nest voluntarily and after she eats/drinks she hunkers right down where she is like she is still on top of her eggs even when she's not. I have to pick her up and put her back on her eggs. She does turn them, because they are in different places under her when I check. So, tonight I brought her all the way into the kitchen and kept poking her to make her stand up and not fluff down. The 3rd time I poked her and she stood up, well she exploded. Really. Exploded. I brought her in on Wednesday... I don't know when she may have pooped before then.... but not since. I think my husband is going to divorce me. We might have to burn the house.

 

[buckabucka]

It was negative 10 out this morning when I opened the pop door. The girls were more than happy to come out and they've been in and out all day. I am surprised they're still not roosting, but they love being outside. I had 3 frozen eggs today, despite going out multiple times to collect.

I wish mine were tougher! There are many that want to go out no matter what the weather is, but I have several that spend all day either on the roost or hunkered down in the community nest box. I let them out to free range for a bit this afternoon, and they were all flying around to not have contact with the snow.
One seemed to be frozen in place on a snowy step. I finally picked her up (usually mine run from me) and carried her back to the coop. She was shivering. I'm not about to start heating the coop, so I hope they'll toughen up! I'm glad this cold snap is short-lived.

 

[superchemicalgirl]

Today they are not so brave (maybe the cold was more novel yesterday?). Right now the only birds that are out besides the rooster are turkens, and one of them is molting. I also have a couple chickens hunkering down in nest boxes, but they're molting, so I can understand that. At least it keeps the eggs warm! I also have a blind-in-one-eye phoenix hen that spends 23 hours and 55 minutes on the roost every day, regardless of whether it's summer or winter. She only gets off the roost to lay an egg (which she does so rarely, the last time was July), or to go broody or to eat and drink a little bit. I feel bad for her, but she seems to enjoy life. She sits on the same roost spot where she can look out the window.

I'll be getting 4 more hens today, from my coworker friend. At least they're free. I'll more than likely try to sell them, I don't have much room in the coop, and what room I had I wanted to fill with speckled sussex, not barred rocks ,a BLRW and an EE. Since they've spent their entire lives outside since hatching I'll be worming and treating for lice/mites first.

 

[Speed]

I picked a frozen egg up from the floor yesterday. I set it aside so as to not mix it with my carton. What does one do with a frozen egg? Let it thaw and use it like it was never frozen, throw it away or?

It was negative 10 out this morning when I opened the pop door. The girls were more than happy to come out and they've been in and out all day. I am surprised they're still not roosting, but they love being outside. I had 3 frozen eggs today, despite going out multiple times to collect.

 

[superchemicalgirl]

If they're cracked I consider them contaminated. I let them thaw and then feed them back to the chickens, shell and all. If they're not cracked, then they're treated like a regular egg.

 

[m.kitchengirl]

My ducks spent most of the day hunkered down in their enclosure behind the hay bales. Smart. I filled their pool with warm water & brought them several buckets of warm water.
It was -8 yesterday morning. I also brought everyone warm oats.
Ugh.
Saturday the chickens came out of their pen & roamed around but did not go back to the coop at dusk as usual. They were too cold & roosted in weird spots around the yard. I had to carry them back to the coop. They were kept in their enclosed yard yesterday & given warm leftovers of some soup I'd made. They are fairing pretty well though.
Poor girls. I hope this is a short lived cold snap. My ducks should be laying soon & I don't want frozen eggs, I want fertile eggs.

 

[superchemicalgirl]

Can I see a picture of your duck enclosure? We still need to build one for our 5 ducks, but I don't know what I want, yet.

 

[Marinarawr]

Hi all! Rockland Maine here. I've only raised Coturnix quail so far but I just don't like keeping them in little pens all divided up... If I do quail again it'll only be in the warm months. The boyfriend is generally not a fan of my homestead aspirations but he's an egg nut so he's collected all of the materials for our coop and is picking away at it for the unveiling in the coming spring. We're starting small and I've got my eye on a few Buckeyes. If anyone has any suggestions on where to get some good stock (hatching eggs or chicks preferably but I'd take pullets if the price was right) please drop me a line.

 

[JacksFlock]

This place is not to far from you and runs a program where you can get free birds if you raise some breeding stock for them:

http://www.shadyhollowfarm.com/specials.html

 

[Coldweatherbirds]

frozen

I used the 2 cracked frozen eggs that I collected yesterday to make pancakes this morning. It's the first time that I've eaten the cracked ones, I'll let you all know when I come down with salmonella (jk). The not cracked eggs, well I can't tell if they are/were frozen or not so they go in the cartons as usual.