Maine

[Paulajon]

Anyone looking for silver laced wyandotte chicks, aracuna,partridge rock,or bronse breasted turkeys Aubchon Hardware in Lisbon Falls still has quite a few left. the chicks come from murry mcmurry.....just posting in case anyone has been looking for some........

 

[annabananaandfamily]

I have the most unusual group of meaties. They fly out of their pen and free range (granted, their walls are only about 3 ft high), they arent growing nearly as fast as the other ones we had, and they have started coming to me when I call them and following me around (Its kind of mean, I call to my little "meatie pies" and they come running....makes me feel kinda guilty). I wasnt expecting such social behavior from them. Our last batch was a pain in the booty and I was not sorry to see them go. But these guys...

 

[Widget]

Whatever broke into the coop had to force its way in. So raccoon makes the most sense. A weasel could easily squeeze in between the wire spacing. Yet any climbing predator could have just gone over the fence and grab a duck with no issues. I did loose the last turkey today. She didn't appear to have any injuries so it could have been the stress of the whole ordeal that did her in. The pullet seems to have recovered since she is very active and laid an egg today.

I let everyone out this afternoon to free range for a bit. Forget "Release the Hounds" Around here is was "Release the Ducks". They made a beeline across the yard quacking the whole way. They then roamed around for a bit before arriving at the freshly filled kiddie pool. I almost thought I would have to hire a life guard the way they were acting. Jumping in and out and splashing water everywhere. Heck if there was a slide attached it wouldn't have surprised me if they had used that. Now they are all relaxed and snoozing.

 

[ScienceTchr]

Awww I really want ducks -- maybe one day.

Good idea on the quick roosts maybe this weekend I will have DH instal some and we'll see of the Nuggets will use them.

 

[gracejr]

I am SO thrilled to say - our coop is DONE! Ok, well... Done enough for chickens to live in it. LOL We still need to wire around underneath where the ground isn't level. Need to make up some nest boxes to put in there. And still need to build a run so they can go outside... It is SO nice having them out of the house though! How horrible is it to keep them locked up in the coop for a few more weeks (10x10 coop, 7 birds)? We're totally busy this week, gone up north all next week, so we wouldn't be able to work on a fence until after that... I don't dare let them loose because the neighbor has a dog that eats chickens which roams into our yard regularly.

In other news, we got our two Buff Orps today. I brought my oldest with me and let him pick them out. Of COURSE he picked a male for one of them! Now to decide whether to keep him or exchange for a pullet... We were planning on getting a roo *eventually* just wasn't in the plans right now... Any thoughts? To make it more complicated, my friend offered us her Deleware cockerel. So I could keep the male orp, return him for a pullet, OR return him for a pullet and get a deleware cockerel... What to do????

Our plans for a roo would be... Letting some eggs hatch out and be raised up for meat (selling off any excess we don't keep). So I'd want a roo to be a good sized bird. But with the kids, I can't have any mean birds, friendly is very important. For females, we already have a Brahma, Amberlinks, Red Sexlinks and the Orp/s. Will be adding some easter eggers, maybe an olive egger, maybe a marans or other random birds. I won't know for sure until I head up and see which birds she has that I like. lol

 

[buckabucka]

I am SO thrilled to say - our coop is DONE! Ok, well... Done enough for chickens to live in it. LOL We still need to wire around underneath where the ground isn't level. Need to make up some nest boxes to put in there. And still need to build a run so they can go outside... It is SO nice having them out of the house though! How horrible is it to keep them locked up in the coop for a few more weeks (10x10 coop, 7 birds)? We're totally busy this week, gone up north all next week, so we wouldn't be able to work on a fence until after that... I don't dare let them loose because the neighbor has a dog that eats chickens which roams into our yard regularly.

In other news, we got our two Buff Orps today. I brought my oldest with me and let him pick them out. Of COURSE he picked a male for one of them! Now to decide whether to keep him or exchange for a pullet... We were planning on getting a roo *eventually* just wasn't in the plans right now... Any thoughts? To make it more complicated, my friend offered us her Deleware cockerel. So I could keep the male orp, return him for a pullet, OR return him for a pullet and get a deleware cockerel... What to do????

Our plans for a roo would be... Letting some eggs hatch out and be raised up for meat (selling off any excess we don't keep). So I'd want a roo to be a good sized bird. But with the kids, I can't have any mean birds, friendly is very important. For females, we already have a Brahma, Amberlinks, Red Sexlinks and the Orp/s. Will be adding some easter eggers, maybe an olive egger, maybe a marans or other random birds. I won't know for sure until I head up and see which birds she has that I like. lol

I would think the birds will be fine locked up in the coop, as long as it doesn't get too hot in there. Better than living crammed in little cages, or exposed to the chicken-eating dogs!

 

[buckabucka]

Does anyone sell Blue/Wheaten Ameraucanas? I had tried some hatching eggs, only one hatched, and while it is a pullet, apparently, it is not a what I ordered. I'm having such a hard time trying to get this breed, that I'm not sure I even like them anymore.

 

[Mainechick168]

I am SO thrilled to say - our coop is DONE! Ok, well... Done enough for chickens to live in it. LOL We still need to wire around underneath where the ground isn't level. Need to make up some nest boxes to put in there. And still need to build a run so they can go outside... It is SO nice having them out of the house though! How horrible is it to keep them locked up in the coop for a few more weeks (10x10 coop, 7 birds)? We're totally busy this week, gone up north all next week, so we wouldn't be able to work on a fence until after that... I don't dare let them loose because the neighbor has a dog that eats chickens which roams into our yard regularly.
In other news, we got our two Buff Orps today. I brought my oldest with me and let him pick them out. Of COURSE he picked a male for one of them!

Now to decide whether to keep him or exchange for a pullet... We were planning on getting a roo *eventually* just wasn't in the plans right now... Any thoughts? To make it more complicated, my friend offered us her Deleware cockerel. So I could keep the male orp, return him for a pullet, OR return him for a pullet and get a deleware cockerel... What to do????
Our plans for a roo would be... Letting some eggs hatch out and be raised up for meat (selling off any excess we don't keep). So I'd want a roo to be a good sized bird. But with the kids, I can't have any mean birds, friendly is very important. For females, we already have a Brahma, Amberlinks, Red Sexlinks and the Orp/s. Will be adding some easter eggers, maybe an olive egger, maybe a marans or other random birds. I won't know for sure until I head up and see which birds she has that I like. lol

Way to go on the coop! it was a happy day when we moved our 5 from the brooder to the coop...and it was just in time because we picked up 5 more ( that were the same age) and there was no way I was having 10 in the house! we did the same thing too..the coop was not "finished" per say, but done enough for the chickens to live in it. Bravo!

 

[Paulajon]

Does anyone sell Blue/Wheaten Ameraucanas? I had tried some hatching eggs, only one hatched, and while it is a pullet, apparently, it is not a what I ordered. I'm having such a hard time trying to get this breed, that I'm not sure I even like them anymore.

I was at Aubchon in Lisbon Falls and they have aracuna/ameraucana chicks variety of colors, I don't know what the blue weatens look like when they are little, I do know they had some that were all white, and a couple that looked all white but with tan brown coming in on the wings and quite a variety of colors I purchased a couple to go with my others, they are really good at holding chicks for you if you can't get there right away. I have gotten chicks from them for the past couple of years and have always been healthy, they come from murray mcmurray, the have silver laced wyandottes, turkeys and partridge rocks.

 

[buckabucka]

Thanks Paulajon,
If they are coming from McMurray, they are probably Easter Eggers, rather than true Ameraucanas. Now I'm starting to think maybe I should try Icelandics .....
So many breeds to try!