Michigan Thread - all are welcome!

[WalnutHill]

@meltel Power is back on and all the eggs look okay! Whew! I will deal with the thermostat later, my temporary fix will last the season.

@Folly's place Good thing you built it right. Glad all is sound. Your birds may have just gone to ground with the tree crashing down. They may be roosting in it, and may show up tomorrow.

 

[wcbpolish]

Wind tore a roof off one of my smaller coops. Did not have time to fix it last evening, and will not have time tonight either :-/ I put the sheet metal back on and set a bucket of water on to hold it down for the time being.

At least we have power.
1 chick in the 'bator this morning.

 

[Folly's place]

Happily, we have power, and the fallen tree didn't wipe out the coop. Finding a tree trimmer is going to be hard, and probably the punctured roof will leak and demolish the insulation at least before it's all fixed. Guess we really wanted a new roof out there after all. Two of the missing hens returned this morning, and the third was decapitated in the coop. So far that's three bantam hens dead, and a flock of scared chickens. Not only a predator, but roof damage in the wind. Tomorrow afternoon and Saturday are coop foundation and wall exploration days! Would a martin or a weasel only kill one at a time? Only bantams (so far) and only heads taken. Rats? No owl seen in the coop either. Mary

 

[SunshineMary]

Goodness, that was such a wind storm! Fortunately the chicken coop, duck and geese house, and rabbit hutch are all fine, no damage or lost birds. A couple pieces of siding blew off our house, but it's nothing we can't fix. No power other than our generator though, and we lost a few things into the pond.

Hope everyone else is ok!

 

[wcbpolish]

Happily, we have power, and the fallen tree didn't wipe out the coop. Finding a tree trimmer is going to be hard, and probably the punctured roof will leak and demolish the insulation at least before it's all fixed. Guess we really wanted a new roof out there after all. Two of the missing hens returned this morning, and the third was decapitated in the coop. So far that's three bantam hens dead, and a flock of scared chickens. Not only a predator, but roof damage in the wind. Tomorrow afternoon and Saturday are coop foundation and wall exploration days! Would a martin or a weasel only kill one at a time? Only bantams (so far) and only heads taken. Rats? No owl seen in the coop either. Mary

I lost a buff orpington rooster this past fall. Found him headless. I assumed owl. Pen mates (ducks and geese) were fine before and have been fine since.

 

[Our Roost]

Just last week I lost a hen the same way, headless and eaten from the outside in from bottom up to lungs. Since it was tucked in a corner underneath nesting boxes, I would not include an owl into the equation. Very difficult for any flying critter to gain access into the coop. I first believe the hen died on its own possibly and was then cannibalized from other birds within the coop. The fact that it was headless and feathers plucked down to the shoulders bothered me. I have never seen this much damage caused by other chickens. At most, they will pluck tail feathers. Opossums generally steal and eat eggs but they will feed on a dead carcass. We have not seen fox, coyotes or weasel family in the area. Only opossums, raccoon and hawks. The jury is still out on this one.

 

[wcbpolish]

Anyone else have guinea hens laying yet? I have a young female laying. I have 4 eggs from her. I'll put her eggs in the incubator this weekend, but since they are "pullet" eggs, I don't have high hopes. I'll put chicken eggs in with those in about a week to try to synchronize the hatch.

 

[yochickiemomma]

How old does a rooster have to be to be considered old enough to fertilize eggs? my big rooster is just a year old and my bantam is about 10 months old and the one hen I really want babies from is about 7-8 months old. I'm building an incubator and don't want to waste eatable eggs if there's no chance they'll take.

 

[aart]

How old does a rooster have to be to be considered old enough to fertilize eggs? my big rooster is just a year old and my bantam is about 10 months old and the one hen I really want babies from is about 7-8 months old. I'm building an incubator and don't want to waste eatable eggs if there's no chance they'll take.

5-6 month old cockerel should be getting the job done...you can tell if yolks are fertile by checking when you break eggs to eat.

 

[Outdoorlover]

Hello all
I feel bad cutting in your conversation but I'm looking for a breeder closer to me (so I can avoid shipping) and I feel I have more chances finding him/her on this thread

I'm looking to start a flock of 5-6 chicken (either by incubating eggs or purchasing very young chicks) to have as pets/ fresh eggs...I would like my flock to be made up of chicken of very distinctive colors or breed individual chicken....look is important but temperament is the key factor, all must be very Docile in nature
The breed I'm interested in is the English Orpingtons, Black, Golden Laced, Chocolate or Buff (either or) and maybe more as I learn about different colors, but they must be the very fluffy kind( with long feathers that kinda hide the legs)

I fell in love with EO for their look but more so for their reputation but I'm also considering other breeds like the Polish if is Docile and not high maintenance (I have kids and a full time job) but first I need to learn more about their temperament (and the existence of others lol) so I appreciate all the input I can get
Thank you!