Michigan Thread - all are welcome!

[Amy PT]

My daughter turns 7 tomorrow. She wanted a silkie cake. So, this happened.

 

[kimmie6067]

My daughter turns 7 tomorrow. She wanted a silkie cake. So, this happened.

Amy thats the cutest cake ever!!!!

 

[minniefarm]

Great job on the cake! I sorta miss making funny cakes for my kiddo. He's 21 now and past the birthday cake excitement!


On another subject... I started out wanting 2 or 3 chicks and wanting to build my own coop with pallets. I now have 6 chicks and will be adding a couple of guinea keets. My husband has taken on the coop building and how I am getting an 8x12 structure that will have a 4' covered porch. The front part will be my garden shed and the back will be the coop. He's talking about cedar shake siding and adding electricity. LOL it's taking on a life of it's own. We got cement forms for free from Craigslist. They are basically 8x12 walls, already built. That really cut the cost of the build! I will post pics as we go.

 

[HollyDuckFarmer]

Amy-- just beautiful.
Traprock & jrschk. Thanks for the leads, I want to get a sustainable setup here. I might be blowing up your respective pm boxes, just to warn you! Keeping ducks for eggs like i do-- FFshould work well for me. Mine seemed to gobble down the trial ff that I made for my Rouen gal I was worried about. I've read a lot about acid vs. alkalinity in human foods, so FF makes a lot of sense to me. Challenge is finding a workable system for here.

What's up with the weather? One report said all clear, sun, overnights above freezing, another said rain Tues thru Thurs. rain will benefit the Hugel beds I'm building this year but not looking forward to slippery mess in my duck pen.

 

[snowflake]

I did a semi-scientific study on fermented feed last summer, here's a link to my thread https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/672135/meatie-experiment-ff-vs-crumbles

To sum it all up, I did three groups: 1 control eating dry crumbles, 1 eating fermented crumbles, and 1 eating 50/50 fermented whole grains/crumbles. The bottom line is feeding the whole grains was the most expensive because modern broilers are bred to digest fine particles and if fed whole grains, they expend more energy digesting than growing. The fermented crumble group was $0.25/processed pound more expensive than the dry group but they did gain the most weight. It did keep the smell and mess quite managable though.

One thing to keep in mind with the fermented feed is it does change the taste of the chicken, it makes it more "tangy" which is fine for things like bbq but if you roast it, it tastes weird and down right nasty if you try to make a sandwich with it. It does however make eggs taste great if you feed it to layers.

Thanks for the info, I started to ferment last summer when we had freedom rangers. took more time then I had so I quit. glad I did though if it flavors the meat.

My daughter turns 7 tomorrow. She wanted a silkie cake. So, this happened.

LOVE the cake, I made Easter bunnys for my grand daughters 7th B-day last Sunday. never thought of chickens they would have loved it.

Great job on the cake! I sorta miss making funny cakes for my kiddo. He's 21 now and past the birthday cake excitement!


On another subject... I started out wanting 2 or 3 chicks and wanting to build my own coop with pallets. I now have 6 chicks and will be adding a couple of guinea keets. My husband has taken on the coop building and how I am getting an 8x12 structure that will have a 4' covered porch. The front part will be my garden shed and the back will be the coop. He's talking about cedar shake siding and adding electricity. LOL it's taking on a life of it's own. We got cement forms for free from Craigslist. They are basically 8x12 walls, already built. That really cut the cost of the build! I will post pics as we go.

Love to see pics. electricity in the coop is wonderful, makes winter closing and opening much easier, allows heated waters which also makes life easier. welcome to chicken math. before you know it you have more then you planned,

Amy-- just beautiful.
Traprock & jrschk. Thanks for the leads, I want to get a sustainable setup here. I might be blowing up your respective pm boxes, just to warn you! Keeping ducks for eggs like i do-- FFshould work well for me. Mine seemed to gobble down the trial ff that I made for my Rouen gal I was worried about. I've read a lot about acid vs. alkalinity in human foods, so FF makes a lot of sense to me. Challenge is finding a workable system for here.

What's up with the weather? One report said all clear, sun, overnights above freezing, another said rain Tues thru Thurs. rain will benefit the Hugel beds I'm building this year but not looking forward to slippery mess in my duck pen.

Hope to get some outside work done today before the rain starts. would be much easier to get some tarps up over the part of the run I sectioned off. Oh Well were there is the will there is the way.

 

[snowflake]

There is a person on the disease thread with a roo with red bumps around his vent. no one is answering her and I know I saw something like that on here some place. looks kind of like a bite??flea, or mite??

 

[bluebirdnanny]

Congratulations Snowflake

dd and i went to tsc in alpena and guess what i came home with, 3 barred rock, 2 new hampshire red and 1 thinking its araucana or in that family.. dd found a chick with tuft. and said thats her mystery chick.. dang tsc i just wanted 3 more chicks and they make you take home 6.. I am done for buying chicks..
want to set some eggs this weekend.


I saw a sign in the tsc. Alpena. april 27 is a swap meet in the parking lot .. for poultry and other farm stuff..just thought someone might be interested..


Have a great day everyone..

Thanks so much for telling about the Alpena lot swap!!!! Only about an hour from me! WHAT TIME does it begin????

 

[jrsckn]

I just wanted o clarify on my fermented feed post because re-reading it, it sounded kind of negative lol. I'm all for fermented feed. It does take quite some time getting down a routine especially when the broilers hit growth spurts and eat 1lb one day and 2 lbs the next without any warning lol. I especially recommend it for layers, there is absolutely no smell coming from their coop and yard when they eat it. I only wish I could've found a way to feed it through winter because its smelly now that its thawing.

These are my first ducks and haven't been able to remember to put ACV on my list to start them on ff. I'm not sure that I'll be able to either. I have an internship this summer working with poultry so I won't have any contact with my birds due to biosecurity issues and I don't think I can convince my DH or DD to ferment for me but we'll see.


Love the silkie cake soooo cute!

 

[HollyDuckFarmer]

Snowflake---- You have Freedom Rangers????!!!

I want those so bad I can taste them! Next year.

 

[minniefarm]

It's chilly and overcast this morning. I am moving so slowly because of it! The house is quiet. All the animals are cared for. I may just slip back to bed! It's already 10 am. That would be so bad of me! I have so much I could be doing, but those warm covers are calling my name! LOL two cups of coffee apparently are not enough to motivate me this morning.