Michigan Thread - all are welcome!

[tdhenson86]

I think we're all ready for sunshine. Didn't the groundhog tell us that spring would come early this year????

 

[Maah]

 

[Maah]

 

[tjbeckman]

I am ready for some sun shine! We are going today to pick up a play house that we are converting to a coop. I'm pretty excited. It's much larger than I originally planned for. The foot print is 7x8, it has an opening for windows and a people door. We will have to cut in pop doors and install windows and the door. There may already be a ridge vent in the roof, but if not, I am planning on a vent along the full length of the back, right at the roof line.

Right now my chicks are in our basement. It's 50 degrees down there and they seldom go under the ecoglow for warmth. Feathers are really coming in nicely and they are chest bumping and playing king of the hill off of the water-er and feeder. They grow up so fast! I have a question about dust baths. They have not had one yet. The ground is frozen. The only thing I have is wood stove ash. Do they need to dust bathe or can that wait until they are outdoors?

My husband wants some guinea hens. Do any of you house them in with your chickens? I understand you have to keep them cooped up for about 6 weeks so they are coop trained. If I get some, I can section off the coop so that I can let the chickens out and keep the guinea in. Hopefully that sectioning off will let them get to know each other without the guinea picking on the chickens!

I do have a guinea hen. We got her a few months ago. I will be honest. all we did was let her out with the chickens. She stayed outside, HIGH, in a tree for the first two nights then got the idea to go inside...She is not friendly at all. Very Timid. I am planning to get more though soon

 

[Lisa and girls]

I do have a guinea hen. We got her a few months ago. I will be honest. all we did was let her out with the chickens. She stayed outside, HIGH, in a tree for the first two nights then got the idea to go inside...She is not friendly at all. Very Timid. I am planning to get more though soon

Beautiful birds. Are they normally skittish? What do you do with them? Are they layers or for meat?

 

[tjbeckman]

Beautiful birds. Are they normally skittish? What do you do with them? Are they layers or for meat?

My understanding is that they are not a friendly bird in general. You can use them for meat, very popular in Creole cooking. They are a seasonal layer. I keep mine around as a "guard dog" if you will. If they sense danger they will let everyone know in no uncertain terms. They are also great hunters for bugs, snakes and rodents. If you get a flock of them they will walk shoulder to shoulder across the grass and when they spot something they circle it and eat. I think they are just fun to watch.

 

[gladahmae]

What is in this picture taken with my blurry iPod touch camera? They're Araucana eggs! The first of the season I will try hatching. If I have a good rate of hatch, I'll be sending out some test batches to willing BYCers to see fertility rates after being shipped (free eggs, just cost of shipping).

Me me me!!!! I volunteer!!!!

 

[taprock]

My husband wants some guinea hens.  Do any of you house them in with your chickens?  I understand you have to keep them cooped up for about 6 weeks so they are coop trained.  If I get some, I can section off the coop so that I can let the chickens out and keep the guinea in.  Hopefully that sectioning off will let them get to know each other without the guinea picking on the chickens!

We have Guineas and love them. They are in with the chickens. You do have to watch the males as they tend to be the bullies. If you have more than one male they pick on each other which is better. They are also noisy....I love it. They are noisier when they are younger. The eggs are really close to chicken eggs and I haven't eaten a bird but friends have and loved the meat. I started with them as the watch dogs for my Polish, now I just have them because I like them around. We don't have any bug problems at all.

 

[tdhenson86]

HA HA HA!!! Poor Phil!

 

[ladyrsanti]

I'm finding it fascinating, the difference between the chicks I have now and the batch I had last year. Because I hatched these, they're a straight run and last year's batch was supposed to be all pullets (but I had one roo). The first batch was playful, tearing up and down the brooder like you'd expect. This batch does that too but they spend at least as much time butting heads, figuratively speaking. They're just over a week old and they're chest bumping A LOT. Most playful runs end with a face-off. Sometimes three or four will join in at once. I can't help but think it's because of the number of roos in the bunch, even though I can't tell which are which yet or how many. Then again, it does sort of appear to be breed-specific too. My EE/BO mixes tend to be the instigators, my chick mafia. Kind of fun to watch.