Michigan Thread - all are welcome!

[Amy PT]

Today's project is the hand sewing and quilting on the coyote blanket...and I have the whole day with no school thanks to my big mouth!

Well done!

Two chickens died last night and one looks close. Have her inside, wrapped in towel, did blow dryer on low. She is barely moving and won't drink. Help. Kids and I have been crying all morning

I'm so sorry.

I just came in from getting trapped in the pen. Funny dang thing now that it's over but not while I was trapped in there! I had to climb the fence to get in and fell into a huge pile of fluffy now. Good landing, so very graceful, hahaha. Then couldn't find a way out! The fence door is blocked so bad that I could not shovel it out, asthma sucks.

This sounds scary! Glad you're out and safe.


Yesterday we built a temporary cardboard coop, and put it on the cold (but well protected) enclosed porch. We put the girls in last night. Their seem a little happier. I'll be a lot happier to not have to get to the coop over the next few wind blowy days.

 

[LoveMyChicklets]

Ok I'm jealous! No trudging to your coop in snow and wind, oooooh, jealousy! I bet your eggs won't freeze before you get to them either

 

[Candy442]

@gladahmae
Congrats on the Marans egg! I a sooo missing mine; both Lela & Maia are molting, so not laying. As is Partridge, so no green, either. My beautiful rainbow of eggs is now just a bunch do different shades of "regular" brown. All,of the people I sell to had never seen anything like a Marans egg & love how they look.

@Candy442
Wow! Your grass project ROCKS!! I have got to try that! Shoveling? Good luck with that. This wind has made me give up!! While my car got "unstuck" yesterday, it is currently buried in snow. I think the truck is supposed to be done today, but there is going to be no way for us to go get it.

Very good chance I will not be able to go to work again tomorrow; and I am pretty sure they will not be shut down again...

thanks It is easy, not a lot of time involved, cheap, and yesterday my "kids" devoured the entire mat I set out! Valor winter barley seed. I have a shelf in the laundry room where we have hung a regular shop light with plant type florescent bulbs. Nice to see that vivid green this time of year

 

[aart]

I do fodder too, for winter greens.
This one a day or so past prime, but I saved it for today as I don't have a constant supply going. It greens up pretty good just in an east window.
Hard red wheat from health food store. Got some soft white wheat from feed mill for half the price, but it molded despite bleaching.

Doesn't that green ease the winter weary eyes in the midst of a frigid blizzard?

 

[chickflick]

So, obviously, I'm not going into Lansing to reserve the park for Chickenstock. Hopefully, I'll still get the date I'm aiming for. Good news, the office is closed today. Going to see if my SIL can do it tomorrow, or, I'm planning on going in to Lansing on Friday.

Glad you got out of the pen. I got locked in my neighbors pen one time. Not fun. It was winter, but nothing like this.

 

[fuzzybutt love]

Quote:Originally Posted by taprock That's the coolest thing ever! I'd buy it! Are you going to make some for chickenstock? You could get pics from people, and make one that looks like their bird!

Quote:Originally Posted by Candy442 Hmm. My old ee girl didn't lay in the winter, but both her daughters do! So i must be doing SOMETHING right in the breeding effort area; but i really don't want them laying every day. I know, some of you are going "why"??? It's because i don't want them to lay all their lifetime's eggs all in 2 years, i want to have them for a loooong time. I have read of ee's laying for 5-6 years; My one girl is 2 now and she's still laying regular. I got my 3 eggs today even in the chill!!!

Quote:Originally Posted by tsetse9
:-( I'm so sorry. Their heart's get affected if they get too chilled; even had you revived her..... I had a bantam roost in a tree that got way too chilled, poor feral little sot. I heat lamped him for days before he died. Make sure your survivors are drinking for sure; make them move in there even if it's just to get away from you; throw something tasty in? Your survivors probably need to get their temps and blood hotter too. Again, so sorry to hear.


Coop news:
Just got back from doing the birds, brrr! The bank's sign says it's 5 degrees and the camper coops thermostat says it's 15 in there; so the snow bank trick really DOES make a 10 degree difference! The foot of straw takes the wind chill and any moisture out of the air. I hung out in there to catch my breath a min after doing the water, had to wade through knee-deep drifts to get there!!! Don't worry i wore several layers of clothes in preperation. Gonna go hit the coffee pot up now, though, lol. Still no heat lamp in there, continuing with the duramycin in the water. Praying a little since i'm sure that the worst is not yet....
Everyone is doing great, nice red combs but they are very testy and peckish. Even hope, who is generally at the bottom of the pecking order is attacking her flock. Poor cold girls. Baby bird is doing great still. I'm not sure if the worst is here yet, it is windy but don't feel like 20-30 mph. (ottowa co, coopersville/ ravenna area)
Lots of snow. Probably 10-12" here, too, with drifts making the roads almost impassable. And my work called our answering machine and asked if i'd come early because of all the call-ins from last night and this morn; ummmm NO! I'll probably go in since it's literally a block from my house, but really i'm a temp and they know it's life threatening out there; also i was lied to and told last night was mandetory to come in and i get there and it wasn't :/ so a little peeved and thus not going early.
Dripping my water both hot and cold so the pipes don't freeze; i had the hot water line freeze a couple days ago from the water heater to the house (trailer) Took until 3 am to unfreeze; i'd rather catch up the utilities as needed than deal with bursted pipes in THIS! Yikes! Stay safe everyone.

 

[AngelaB]

I might just wait until a breeder near me has some then. I don't care if they are mixes, but if you aren't sure they are fertile, then I don't want to invest time on unfertile eggs. Thanks though!

 

[snowflake]

Two chickens died last night and one looks close. Have her inside, wrapped in towel, did blow dryer on low. She is barely moving and won't drink. Help. Kids and I have been crying all morning

so sorry

perhaps they were not well to began with it is so hard to tell some times as they hide it so well,

 

[aart]

Two chickens died last night and one looks close. Have her inside, wrapped in towel, did blow dryer on low. She is barely moving and won't drink. Help. Kids and I have been crying all morning

OhNo! So sorry, just from the cold you think? Condolences to all.

 

[Candy442]

I do fodder too, for winter greens.
This one a day or so past prime, but I saved it for today as I don't have a constant supply going. It greens up pretty good just in an east window.
Hard red wheat from health food store. Got some soft white wheat from feed mill for half the price, but it molded despite bleaching.

Doesn't that green ease the winter weary eyes in the midst of a frigid blizzard?

YES!!! I threw some BOSS in with my barley seed. I got a bushel of barley so I am sticking with that. It is very nice to have the green on my laundry shelf and very inexpensive to grow. I know the chickies love it during these real cold days. The grass and bowls of warm oatmeal with flax seed and carrot shavings mixed in for afternoon treat helps them weather the frigid night temps coming up.

Hmm. My old ee girl didn't lay in the winter, but both her daughters do! So i must be doing SOMETHING right in the breeding effort area; but i really don't want them laying every day. I know, some of you are going "why"??? It's because i don't want them to lay all their lifetime's eggs all in 2 years, i want to have them for a loooong time. I have read of ee's laying for 5-6 years; My one girl is 2 now and she's still laying regular. I got my 3 eggs today even in the chill!!!

Both of my EE girls decided to do a molt in late November. They both lay such pretty light sea green eggs. Hawkie was first and a week or so later Peep started. Peep still looks pretty ragged, but Hawkie is fluffing up again. I agree with you Fuzzy, I would rather have them lay for a long time and your experience is encouraging. I just thought it was strange for Jet to not lay a single egg in her first year, because that is the way it is appearing. Mary has eight others from the same breeder and none of them are laying either. She thought that maybe they were bred for looks instead of eggs since they are show birds. Jet is beautiful, but we want a blue egg .