Michigan Thread - all are welcome!

[WhatAboutBob?]

Nice weather here also! But, the result is an onslaught of melt water.....The run is a bonafide swamp at the moment...

 

[RaZ]

Hah. I took the blades off a couple of days ago.
Cut, split and stacked wood yesterday. Going out to do some more of that.
Neighbor called early this morning to tell me that a fox was headed in my direction. The dogs and I went for a stroll but didn't see it. Chickens are safe behind a welded wire fence.

The rivers, streams and drains are all running high here. I should ride back to Rush Lake and see what it looks like.

PS, the skunk went to a good home with a lady whop already had a pet skunk.

 

[aart]

Cut, split and stacked wood yesterday.

How's your hand/wrist(can't remember just what was done to what) healing coming along?

 

[rachelsflock]

...stupid question, especially coming from a country transplant living in the city, but bald eagles totally hunt chickens, don't they?

 

[rachelsflock]

Never mind, found mention of it. Yep. They do.

 

[RaZ]

How's your hand/wrist(can't remember just what was done to what) healing coming along?

They removed 3 bones from my wrist. The pain is gone but I only have 15 - 20% mobility. Finding new ways to do chores.

Bald eagles have been spotted here in the last few days. I hope to see 1 or 2...at a distance.

 

[aart]

They removed 3 bones from my wrist. The pain is gone but I only have 15 - 20% mobility. Finding new ways to do chores.

Had one bone removed from wrist, at base of thumb, then they snipped an index finger tendon from halfway up my forearm and wound it up to replace that bone and create a new thumb joint. It was pinned for 2 months and in a plastic removable cast. Took ~18 months after pin removal to get full 'new' range of motion and get hand and forearm musculature restored. I feel for ya.... BTDT...hang in there, it'll come back-in a 2 steps forward 3 steps back kind of a way. Sorry for the ramble.

 

[rachelsflock]

Bald eagles have been spotted here in the last few days. I hope to see 1 or 2...at a distance.

Today I looked outside when my rooster was going off to find all the birds nervous and watching something and a bald eagle was sitting in a tall cottonwood tree watching them. I may or may not have gone out in the yard and talked loudly and rudely with wild gestures until he left. I used to live in a small town in rural corn country where they were about as rare as buzzards and I don't have a very high opinion of them. I didn't think they'd come this close to Detroit considering how busy and different it is here. I was hoping they didn't go after chickens since they majestically prefer roadkill or other predead food, but NPR (of all places) and a few other people on the internet say no such luck. Penning for a few days.

 

[gladahmae]

So here’s a question for run-planning. We have sumac that if I didn’t keep it mowed, would take over my yard. I allowed it to grow up to about 10ft from the run last summer because we push mow about 3 acres and that area wasn’t a priority. ANYHOW, there are a few that will probably be around 4-5ft tall this year and I am considering leaving it to provide shade in the run and then mowing off a new perimeter so there’s a definite gap between the field of sumac and the fence. The only potential issue I see is when we take the netting down for the winter....the potential tangles and general irritation. Thoughts?

 

[aart]

we push mow about 3 acres

a few that will probably be around 4-5ft tall this year and I am considering leaving it to provide shade in the run

That might not provide much shade unless ...unless it's to the west of the run then might provide some nice late afternoon shade.

Not sure how the netting plays in either.....maybe I'm just blind without a picture or diagram.