Michigan Thread - all are welcome!

[Folly's place]

Get well soon! Last night I locked my birds in, dusk, no flashlight. Counted several times, and short one. Tonight, lockdown time WITH flashlight, and down two. Favorites, of course. I recounted several times, no luck. Then finally glanced UP in the rafters of the new coop section (eight feet up, no ladder!) and there they were! YES!!! counting 67 birds in HARD, and can't be done during the day when they are busy. Reminded me of my bantam hen at Chickenstock... Mary

 

[wannahomestead]

Here closes a rough weekend on the homestead. I lost 2 of my 8 week old chicks (the barnyard mix my broody hatched) this weekend. One on friday disappeared (the day they turned 8 weeks old) and another went missing sometime today. We're on lockdown for now until I can figure out what's going on. My initial thought is maybe a cat, since I've seen a feral cat roaming the area. I can't think of what else might take a little chick but not one of the full grown chickens, other than maybe some aerial predator.

I also have reached a point w/ one of my ducks that I need to put her down. The poor girl was disabled from get go, and she was doing fine for a while. Now, she's a little over a year old, and her health has quickly deteriorated over the last few weeks. I originally was going to do that today, but time didn't allow.

Too much death on the homestead this weekend. I'm learning how hard it can be sometimes.

 

[WalnutHill]

Here closes a rough weekend on the homestead. I lost 2 of my 8 week old chicks (the barnyard mix my broody hatched) this weekend. One on friday disappeared (the day they turned 8 weeks old) and another went missing sometime today. We're on lockdown for now until I can figure out what's going on. My initial thought is maybe a cat, since I've seen a feral cat roaming the area. I can't think of what else might take a little chick but not one of the full grown chickens, other than maybe some aerial predator.

I also have reached a point w/ one of my ducks that I need to put her down. The poor girl was disabled from get go, and she was doing fine for a while. Now, she's a little over a year old, and her health has quickly deteriorated over the last few weeks. I originally was going to do that today, but time didn't allow.

Too much death on the homestead this weekend. I'm learning how hard it can be sometimes.

It's an unfortunate part of being a flock keeper, but a necessary one. In the wild, your disabled duck would not likely have survived leaving the nest, so celebrate her life. As for the chicks, just about anything can take one as they don't put up much of a fight. If you don't have a trail cam, see if you can borrow one to try to see what you are up against.

I lost one of my young turkeys this afternoon. She was one of the smaller ones, and I don't know what happened, but found her dead in the yard with others standing around looking at her. I regret these rare accidental deaths far more than the necessity of having to cull roosters after hatching eggs.

 

[Flock Master64]

That sucks, a few weeks ago I lost my only rooster and one of my hens to some racoons

 

[wannahomestead]

I regret these rare accidental deaths far more than the necessity of having to cull roosters after hatching eggs.

That's exactly how I feel as well. Real talk, I'll have to eventually cull some of these little ones because there will be roosters. Still, it's the "what if" of the 2 I've lost, they may have been girls. It's also the fact that they disappeared under my care so I feel some guilt there. I wish I could at least find some kind of evidence of what's happened. I can't find any feathers, chicken parts, nothing.

Most certainly one of the "not so great" parts of keeping a flock. Gotta take the good w/ the bad though, right?

 

[Flock Master64]

Wish I could just take the good and ditch the bad

 

[WalnutHill]

That's exactly how I feel as well. Real talk, I'll have to eventually cull some of these little ones because there will be roosters. Still, it's the "what if" of the 2 I've lost, they may have been girls. It's also the fact that they disappeared under my care so I feel some guilt there. I wish I could at least find some kind of evidence of what's happened. I can't find any feathers, chicken parts, nothing.

Most certainly one of the "not so great" parts of keeping a flock. Gotta take the good w/ the bad though, right?

Some bad always comes with the good if you keep it up long enough. As long as you learn from mistakes and don't let the same one happen again, it's all good.

Chances are even that they were boys, not girls. Don't count your pullets before they're sexed.

 

[Flock Master64]

Walnut Hill, what breed is your profile picture?

 

[WalnutHill]

He's an Ayam Cemani. I just acquired him a few weeks ago. The photo is deceptive, to the eye he looks jet black.

 

[Flock Master64]

Cool, I just got a new cockerel he is a Chocolate Cuckoo. I was only aloud to get him because my Black Copper Maran rooster was killed. My parents only slow 1 rooster at a time