Michigan Thread - all are welcome!

[taprock]

I'm loving the heat, the bugs not so much! Hubby added a secure room to one of my large coops. It is a 16'x20' building. The back third was made secure and the rest was storage. Now I have an additional room secured. My Polish will be going in the back because it has a separate pop door and run. The free range guys will be in the front. No ones going to be happy when I move them around. It means a coop tractor I've been using that is deteriorating and let in snow this winter can be gotten rid of.
Hubby also welded up a movable run for the geese to use until they are a bit older and used to all the other critters. Our male duck is fascinated by them.

 

[SillyChicken]

Nice Tap! Love the building too! Weathered old wood is so cool!

 

[rachelsflock]

Hey, I heard someone mention hay. Anyone do hay or have a favorite hay guy they'd like to promote? Around second cutting time I'm going to be looking for a delivery of somewhere between 20 and 40 bales depending on weight to put up for winter. I've been told goats like hay, but so far I have not seen much indicator of that. So far they just eat the "shrubbery" that is trying to eat about a third of my yard. I think these things might be cheapish to feed for much of the year in my jungle during the growing season. Useful too.

 

[1muttsfan]

One of my January pullets laid her first egg yesterday.

Love first eggs

Tap the coop looks great

 

[SillyChicken]

Hey, I heard someone mention hay. Anyone do hay or have a favorite hay guy they'd like to promote? Around second cutting time I'm going to be looking for a delivery of somewhere between 20 and 40 bales depending on weight to put up for winter. I've been told goats like hay, but so far I have not seen much indicator of that. So far they just eat the "shrubbery" that is trying to eat about a third of my yard. I think these things might be cheapish to feed for much of the year in my jungle during the growing season. Useful too.View attachment 1409826 View attachment 1409828

they're so cute!! You'll want grass hay, not high in alfalfa, it will cause calcification in the urine for the boys.

 

[dyorto]

I use a heating pad cave for my chicks. I’ve never started them this late in the spring before. The pad is set at one and my 2 1/2 week old chicks are sleeping at night like this. It has been very warm out, do you think it’s ok to transistion them to the outside coop without the heat pad?

 

[rachelsflock]

they're so cute!! You'll want grass hay, not high in alfalfa, it will cause calcification in the urine for the boys.

Thanks! They're all ladies right now, so we could go either way as long as it's fresh, at least 2nd cutting, and properly dried. I think the breeder suggested alfalfa if possible, but as long as I keep offering free choice pellets they'd be fine. The ladies need a balanced at least 2 to 1 Ca : P ratio too, but I get the impression they've got more wiggle room...and lots of pellets.

Edit: I don't actually expect to get hay until later this summer(...although the way the grass is growing...) but contacts are always good.

 

[bigmrg74]

Our guy should be cutting sometime in the next week or two I think. Lord knows that the grass has grown enough for it already.

 

[wcbpolish]

I think that the warm, wet weather woke up the coccidia :-/ Corid in the water for the next few days, hope I don't lose more. Didn't help that I just started letting the 1 & 2 month-old chicks out to run on the dirt (littlest ones keep going through the fence too...) The good news is... natural selection, I guess... but it's no fun.

 

[Candy442]

Regarding CS18, how about if we bring already grilled hot dogs kept hot for the potluck? It would save a lot of hassle than firing up that grill, bringing charcoal and the fluid. Unless people think that takes the fun out of it?
Let me know please!