Michigan Thread - all are welcome!

[SillyChicken]

OK - word up! Will the ladies who purchased turkeys from me at chickenstock this summer - that ended up as toms instead of hens, if you want to trade as we discussed, please contact me ASAP!!! (I'm sorry I forgot who it was). I will be processing all the spring turkeys shortly before Thanksgiving, they are all sold. If you want to trade your toms for hens PLEASE let me know now!!!!! IF you want to keep them, please let me know and we will consider our transaction completed.

 

[snowflake]

Oh yes, the buff orpington is another one I like. Especially because they're pretty, which will help to bring my wife around. I want lots of eggs (I eat over a dozen a week by myself), but also want a friendly breed. Here's another one: is there a good egg layer that won't roam too far if allowed to free range? Too many dogs around my 1.5 acre lot.

you really should get a couple EE's, blue eggs, who, could resist that?? keeping them in the garage is a good idea and I have not tried the pine pellets,,, those Cochins look to sweet to resist also, I have EE's, Orpington's, speckled sussex, laced wyandotte's, delawares, austrolorp,and black copper french marans...and one leghorn. the leghorn stopped laying at about 1 1/2 we had to put her sister down due to internal egg laying, also have spanish bisque . I think the spanish,Buff and sussex are the friendliest. they all come running when any one goes into the yard but the buff's and sussex will let you pick them up haven't had the delawares very long they seem very friendly also

and if you aren't totally confused as to what to do by now hang around a little longer

I also have a cat, keep them safe when they are small, covered box but my cat never bothers the grown chickens and she mingles with them all the time...she is a avid hunter but never bothers my chicks. had a broody with her chicks in the yard and she blew up like a ballon and charged the cat just for looking at her chicks,,, minx(cat) backed off real fast

it sounds like....... you have an active working/sport/prey driven type dog that is incredibly BORED. Bored dogs get into trouble. He needs daily exercises or a job. He needs to be TIRED out....... then you should start doing some obedience training with him, basics at first, even if he knows them, it helps to get them to focus. Then move on to specifics... he needs trained to leave the birds alone. It takes time and work, if you want to keep the dog, you're going to need to invest some time in him... maybe 15 min or so a day, it's doesn't need to be a lot, but a little every day.

x2,,, we had a husky he tried to kill a chick once(grabbed it right out of the brooder when I was changing the water, killed a rooster that was going at another rooster,,,, I never let him alone with the birds after that till he got to old to bother chasing them.... he was good as long as I was in the yard with him.... they are natural hunters and can't be trusted with out a lot of training and even then if you aren't around

 

[RonEstrada]

We've tried it all with the terrier (he's a mix border and jack russell). Great dog but bred to kill small animals. I'm hoping he'll get used to the chickens like he did the cats. He'll still run 'em out of the room but it's not the frenzied cat chase like it was the first few months we had him. I plan on keeping the chickens in a run, anyway. My biggest concern is that he'll bark at them so much they won't lay. That's when the shock collar training comes in handy. It's the only thing that has ever worked with him. On the other hand, he'll keep other preditors out of the yard.

 

[snowflake]

not sure what just happened but, I have a chicken question.......one of my BO has a red rash looking area on top of her foot, it is now puffy and has scab,,, could be bumble I guess. so I have treated the foot and bandaged but I am unsure of the dose of antibiotic... I have Tetracycline on hand and I mixed 1 ts in a quart of water, soaked some bread in about 2 ts.. of the mixture. is that enough and how often? 2,3 times a day for how long? 5 days? she does not act sick, has had the redness for a couple of weeks I had put ointment on thinking maybe mites, now it is puffy and scabs posted a pic on the emergency thread. not very good hard to see; can't get it to post tonight

 

[Amy PT]

I was really surprised by how much down has grown in under the feathers of my Spring chicks. Now I understand why they'll be okay out in a coop in the winter. That alone confirmed that - for us - waiting until Spring to add to our flock of 2 is best.

Nova, each of your photos made me grin. They are so beautifully absurd looking. Thanks for posting. Hey, how is your sister doing?

 

[caz426]

I use it for almost all of my pens. The only ones I don't use it in are the ones where the roost is 4' high, as the pelleted bedding is round and sort of....rolly for lack of a better word(?) don't want anyone hopping down on it & then slipping due to the pellets rolling. It's fantastic in my duck coop, too. SO absorbent.

Do they sell it at Tractor Supply? Right now I'm using straw mixed with pine shavings, but am looking for something better for the ducks. They are in a small dog house at night and I have to change the bedding and hose it out every few days... I am thinking that is going to not be so fun in the winter. It would be nice to find something that I'd only have to change out 2x/week if possible!

 

[NovaAman]

Yes they do caz.

 

[Trefoil]

Well so much for being a little worried about the hawk that circled over the field for 4 hours yesterday.

This morning my husky killed one of the chickens. One of 2 things happened, although in both scenarios the dog went over the backyard fence: the chicken got out of the run (4ft fence, no 'lid', so definately possible) and he caught it, OR he climbed (yes, he climbs, he's not a jumper) into the run, caught the chicken, climbed back out and took it into the field to munch on.

An electric wire won't cost much, the biggest expense will be the fencer, Electric fence worked well for my dogs, but you must be careful the chickens don't get at it. The best solution for your dog problems is to have your hubby take him to obedience classes,if they work at it, it makes a huge difference in their behavior and will help them bond as well.

 

[RaZ]

After stacking firewood and doing other chores, I went out back to check on the chooks.
The lady behind me was out and watching the birds. She finds it just as relaxing as I do.

So while we were chatting, a hen started jumping straight up in the air to pluck a raspberry leaf. Within seconds, it was "monkey see, monkey do" and all of the hens were jumping up in the air to pluck a leaf.

Every bird that I have got into the act; they were all jumping straight up, plucking leaves. It was the funniest thing that I've seen in ages. The more we laughed, the higher the chickens jumped. Then the duck started jumping too.

I don't think I have laughed that much in years.

 

[teeville5]

Hi everyone. Been awhile since I've posted.
Looks like my flock is molting. How long does that typically last?

Raz, that would've been hilarious to watch. I get a kick out of it when I see one of mine doing that.