Michigan Thread - all are welcome!

[preciouskitty]

Quote:
It was 41 when I left our town of Howell this morning at 0440. Glad you got to spend some time with your friend; this whole story truly saddens me. Greed overtaking love for a dear family member...

 

[gladahmae]

I searched and searched, asked and asked.
Never got any good responses.

My advice would be to check out the reviews on here, pick one that looks good and then buy one online from ebay or your best option for price. Plan to spend about 100 for a good one and more for anything that can reliably track temps and humidity.

I just bought this one http://www.gqfmfg.com/store/comersus_viewItem.asp?idProduct=275 with auto turner for $120.
It works ok so far, I dont like the heat adjustment crank and its dry as a bone but everything is looking good thus far.
Had there been something that looked more reliable cheaper, I would have taken it.

I use a digital thermometer (normal one for people) I bought at Meijer to double check the temps of the included thermometer and I'm glad I did. The temps waver a lot, nothing critical, but I'm twisting that temp set knob and adding water a few times a day.

After messing around with a second-hand forced air hovabator for about 5 hatches (I think the heating element is bad in now) I just went ahead and spent the money on a genesis. I already had the turners from when I got the first incubator, and i won't go back to non-digital again. I had to fiddle around with the darn knob/handle on the first one, worry if the wafer was bad, etc WAY TOO MUCH for my comfort, and since I was hatching shipped eggs, trying to get breeds that I just couldn't find locally, I won't go super-cheap on the incubator again. Spend the money on the eggs, or spend the money on the incubator. That's my thought anyway.

In the spring I might fiddle around with the first incubator and see if I can get it running to use as a hatcher.......not quite sure what I'm planning on for it yet.

 

[1muttsfan]

Opa - frail old bones of mine?

It is so sad that your friend has only an unreliable nephew to help him when he is becoming vulnerable. We have been so fortunate in my family, or maybe it is the way we have been raised, to understand that our family is our obligation - which does not mean burden! My aunt is in the final stages of a long and difficult illness, and my cousins have been able to keep her in their home, staying with her and helping her through the last part of her long and happy life. I quite honestly thought Jet would outlive us all, but it is not to be.

 

[1muttsfan]

For those of you with interest in Favarolles, the CSU (Chicken State University) thread is doing them next - we always love to have pictures posted of birds, the good, bad and ugly, as all have something to teach us.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...-university-large-fowl-sop/1890#post_11958267

You may want to read the first post as well -

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/732985/csu-chicken-state-university-large-fowl-sop

 

[RaZ]

Thanks Mary,
Favs are what I have in the incubator.
One more week to go.

 

[RaZ]

Attention all Michigan keepers of livestock. It seems that the Agriculture Commissioners are once again considering the options of small scale farming operations within the state. That is to say that backyard chickens are once again on the radar for how the Right to Farm law may affect us.
The minutes of the August meeting have not been approved or published yet, but a draft can be found at http://www.michigansmallfarmforum.com/index.php?/topic/107-proposed-2014-site-selection-gaamps/

Here is wording from the draft:
SITING SELECTION GENERALLY ACCEPTED AGRICULTURE MANAGEMENT
PRACTICES (GAAMP) AND BACKYARD ANIMAL AGRICULTURE
The Director invited the Commission to address the backyard livestock issue and
discuss how they wish to proceed. She asked Jim Johnson, Director of the
Environmental Stewardship Division, to join the discussion.
The Director acknowledged the department understands the Commission’s situation in
attempting to solve the issues around backyard chickens and other livestock. Following
several meetings, the Site Selection GAAMP Committee recently sent a letter to the
Commission advising that the committee is struggling, was basically again at a standstill,
and requested assistance in this regard. In the meantime, Mr. Johnson has been meeting with stakeholder interest groups to discuss an idea that could potentially solve
the problem.
Mr. Johnson reiterated the challenge has been the use of the Right to Farm (RTF) Act to
justify circumvention of local decision making with regard to land use within areas that
are residential in nature. The Director has very effectively organized several meetings
with various agriculture interest groups to consider the problem from a broad
perspective. It is very clear that this is a legal question dealing specifically with animal
agriculture, and resolution must be made within the Site Selection GAAMP, because that
GAAMP is the one that pertains to siting of animal agriculture facilities.
What is being proposed to the various larger stakeholder groups is language in the
GAAMP that clarifies the definition of a livestock facility and indicates such facilities
located in non-agricultural zoned areas are not in conformance with the Site Selection
GAAMP. If a local community allows for livestock as an exception in areas zoned
residential, the operator must abide by whatever restrictions that local unit of
government has established. … The Director advised Chief Deputy Director Wenk will respond to the Site Selection
Committee’s letter and the department will keep the Commission informed as they
progress with meetings regarding the language addition to the GAAMP.”

It is my opinion that Director Clover-Adams, Deputy Director Wenk and Mr. Johnson are not fans of backyard chickens or even small scale farming operations. I hope my assessment is incorrect, but after attending these meetings for over a year now, they seem to favour Big Farma over all else. I find is telling that the MSFC has been excluded from discussions with the “stakeholders”, except for an initial meeting with the Siting Committee in April 2013.
If you are at all concerned about this, please contact MDARD as soon as you can. http://michigan.gov/mdard/0,4610,7-125-3099---C,00.html Ask them to include MSFC in these important discussions. Heck, why not send a message to the governor as well. http://www.michigan.gov/snyder/0,4668,7-277-57827-267869--,00.html

 

[Totalcolour]

As far as the dog... DH said no, we have enough dogs....I'm saddened because I've always wanted a dane and rarely see them (in this good condition) pass through the shelter. I will try again when DH comes home from a business trip tomorrow. He doesn't know it's a Dane either.... We already have 4 mastiffs so, we really do have enough dogs, though two are very old and won't be with us much longer.. Plus, I have to fork out 400$ for adoption fee ... not that easy to pull the cash without being noticed! LOL!

OMG! We paid $68 for out Lab/Mastiff, and that included all shots, license and neuter. OTOH with 4 Mastiffs already, I can see why hubby said no!

 

[Totalcolour]

I have advised my friend that I think the best way to handle his nephew's averous intent is to simply outlive him. While it is probably prudent to insure the nephew has no legal controls over his uncle, I would must prefer to keep my friend around for many more years.


My flock reduction efforts are still underway and next week I will take a few more hens to the Nature Center. I feel bad about having to dispatch birds that have served me well for the past two years but maintaining birds that are no longer as productive isn't financially prudent. I guess perhaps I am living a double standard in that I would hate for my son's to hold me to the same standard that I hold my chickens.

I hate greed - especially in relatives. I'm glad your friend changed his will, that nephew doesn't deserve such a wonderful uncle.

I'm sorry you have to downsize your chickens. And I don't think you are living a double standard. Chickens is chickens, not people. I am sure (although we have never met) that you look after your creatures well during their lifetime, so offing them when they are old is not a horrible thing.

 

[GrandRapidsGirl]

Thanks for the info on the incubators guys! So is the consensus BUY NEW???

 

[gladahmae]

I wouldn't say that you *have* to buy new, in my case the one we got was REALLY used. The foam was quite dinged up, and the previous owner had done some "modifications" to it, which were actually handy, but still.....it wasn't in very GOOD shape. I'm just one of those people who, if they are going to invest in something like that, would rather pay the extra $30 and not have to wonder how old it really is, if the heat element or thermostat are about to go, etc. I had to do a LOT of 'figuring out' with that incubator (like having to refill the resivoirs every other day to get the humidity up for hatching) and taping the lid shut, etc, etc. With my NEW incubator, I plugged it in and that was about it.

There are, of course, cheaper ways to go about it....building your own and whatnot, but i didn't have the time or want-to to mess around with getting it just right and having to do test hatches to tweak things before setting the eggs I *really* wanted to set, and THEN having to figure out what to do with the chicks from the test-hatches. But I'm a rather impatient person and I want what I want, so yeah. There's that aspect too.