Michigan

[SillyChicken]

Its been sprinkling off and on here.
SillyChicken- I am pretty sure one of your Uggos is a frizzle-wanna be. Or maybe its a silkie/Uggo wanna be...but its definitely different than the others. Naked neck, fluffy feathers- but not so much..lol. I think the littlest one- the Polish Uggo is a boy, Well, it has a red comb that looks like a silkie comb. Its the tinest chick of them all. I will try to get some pictures of them today. Your enhanced six- the black silkie/Uggo is growing too.

Awesome!!!

 

[SillyChicken]

I think I will try to make arrangements with a raptor rescue organization to see if I can borrow one of these guys for Chickenstock. Hopefully I can get him to circle my truck on Uggo patrol. The hardest part may be convincing him that something that ugly is edible.

Hey now! Play nice!

 

[SillyChicken]

Yeah. These things are only a nickel more than the cinder blocks: http://www.homedepot.com/Building-M...splay?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&storeId=10051

On my way to get some of those shortly. I'll put them on top of the apron (and try to screw the apron into the coop, too for good measure.)

I'm upset about the birds but I'm mostly upset with myself for not doing this in the first freaking place.

Anyone have any chickens they want to sell me? I promise I won't kill them... I hope.

Nigellas has some faverolle chicks 3 hens, 3 roos... she wanted to rehome, I was going to take two hens, but you can have mine too.

 

[BobBry]

Yet with all of that I intend to find a few moments to thinking about why we are having this holiday weekend. For too many families this weekend commemorates the sacrifice of their loved one. We all need to give thanks for all we have because of them.

There is that too. It might be cheaper in the long run too... A few 2x4s across the bottom... and they have those nifty little 2x4 brackets you could use to attach them, and then lay the ply over, nail down. Then you wouldn't have to worry about an apron not working...

I would try really hard to not leave a crawl space large enough for rats to use under the floor, if that's the way you go.

 

[chicken grandma]

Good to see you Bobbry!

Good luck with that roof!

 

[vjwilmoth]

I just skimmed a gazillion posts! I've been so preoccupied lately with our decision to home school our 3 boys next year. I've been trying to figure out what curriculum I'd like to use and how to do that with them going into 3rd, 5th and 6th grades. I've got it figured out now though and I ordered everything today.

We are all pretty excited. Well, the oldest isn't beyond thrilled but he's starting to get mixed up in girl drama nonsense and he's not thinking straight anyway.

All my chicks and...do we call them chickens now if they are so big? Anyway, they are all doing well. I haven't lost any and I'm so surprised! I overbought thinking there would be some casualties but not so far. All my Waffles crew banties think I'm some awful monster coming to eat them though. They hear the click of the main gate and you see them make a bee line to the coop.

Especially that little polish chick. I swear he is part roadrunner!


I have a few pics to share because who doesn't like looking at pics? Then I have responses!


Here is our little door we made, it swings out and we can latch it and lock it up at night. It's 1" solid oak. My chick's ramp is a piece of a tree that split off when we cut some trees down. haha They love it. That big window is all hardware cloth screwed in and then wood trim over that. We're going to make shutter type doors for it so if we want to close it we can.



Oh my gosh look at her cheeks! Cupcake is one of my favorites. She is so friendly and loves to be held. She's the EE with the super fluff.




The matriarch. She's been top hen since day one. She doesn't really give anybody any nonsense but she refuses to take it too. She's also super lovable. She will chase you down so you can hold her.


She is just the prettiest thing. If you manage to catch her she stretches out her neck and feet and screeches! Neither of my SLW like being touched though.


Dottie has always been darker than Lacie...I wonder how different they will look as adults.



This one was SUPPOSED to be sexed a pullet but clearly is not. We can't bring ourselves to give him a different name so Buttercup the Rooster he is. He is top Roo...He's very nice to his flock but seems to keep everyone in check. He's got some really gorgeous saddle and hackle feathers coming in.



Also supposed to have been a pullet. Cutie WANTS to be top roo but Buttercup wants it more I guess. Cutie will be chicken soup if he doesn't get over his bullying ways. He picks on the other a bit but Buttercup usually gives him a smackdown.

Maybe I like this bitty chicken who likes special attention! She's keeping me company while I do all my office work today.

Did you find a home for your blind little silkie yet? I'd take her if we were close to each other.

Daron, congrats on all the new additions to your growing farm.

Theron, congrats!

Broodies and more broodies! Anyone need/want chicks??

I don't know that I'd stick my hands anywhere near these two!

You know what I really hate finding at my front door?

Black widows.




This guy hung out on my door all day. From the position he was in, I couldn't see the red spots on his back, just a little white stripe, and I didn't think much of it. Went in and out of the door a million times, looked at him a few times. It wasn't until this evening when I began to wonder if it was even alive, (he didn't move a muscle all day long, even through opening and shutting the door,) and I started poking him with a stick, that he moved and I actually saw the pattern on his back. The body shape of the males is so different that it didn't even occur to me.

P.S. I feel a little bit dumber every day.

Juise that spider is creepy. What did you end up doing with it?

I have been trying to get things done here but I am having some aweful issues with my Lupus, so I am not getting all the stuff I want and need to get done. Darn lupus always trying to keep me down. Anyway thought you guys would like to see some pictures of my babies and my coop. By the way I am going with "The Chicken Shack" for a name now.


My son putting the walls up, I still need to put all that stuff in the barn that's sitting there, the barn is full of who knows what.



Here's my run 7 X 16, my son is digging around the bottom and burying wire mesh. All the try roots is causing him problems but he is almost done, just waiting for a cool day.



Heres a pic of what I think is a Jersey pullet I can't believe I had to put a wire top on the brooder already they were only 9 days old when I had to put it on.




My son made me a little roost for the brooder, it's starting to look like a playpen, haha

Looking good!!! Cute babies too!

I guess the great weather is keeping people busy. This thread has been kind of slow for the past couple of days.

I know I have been busy. I got the cedars planted and mulched in. I've been spreading the 2 yards of triple-shred mulch and still have to dress out the north border bed. I have some of it sitting on the driveway and you can really smell the deep earthy aroma.

I have another bee hive coming today. Needed to get one in a hurry because the bees are getting ready to split and I just haven't had the time to construct new bodies. With all these projects, I need to clone myself.

Hopefully I'll get the compost pile tilled in the chicken run. I know they will like that.

Lupus sucks! My BIL and his mom both have it. I have to retrofit my brooder today as well. Chicks are only 5 days old and one of them managed to climb out of the kiddie pool and get wedged inbetween the pool and the gate (keeping the dogs/kids out) this morning!


Here's a picture of our coop-in-progress. We're hoping to get it pretty much finished up this weekend. Of course, we've already changed it, and the floor now goes another 2ft out on the right, and the lower roof section on the right is going to have a more flat pitch to accomodate the extension. I'm painting the 2x4s for the run frame today as well. Oh, and I get to go pick up my wyandottes tomorrow night! I showed DH a picture of what they *should* look like fully grown and he thinks they look really neat. Bwahahahaha!!

Oh I like that! It's going to be very snazzy.

And just for good measure, my hives (I was a bit more liberal with the paint job than some seem to be. But it was fun to do)

Those hives look awesome!!!

Not a fan of butchering, but I am getting better at it. I decided to off one of the drakes so we could have it for dinner on Sunday, since my grandmother is here visiting. I think she'll appreciate home raised duck for dinner!

Before long I am going to have a bunch of cockerels to do it. Of all the chicks I've hatched recently, only two are female (one Araucana, one olive egger). I chose one keeper cockerel, but the rest are just excess boys. All I wanted were a few new pullets D:

I don't know if I could butcher. It makes me ill just thinking about it.

Ok... What time is it? ITS PICTURE TIME! Only cuz I just know you guys love looking at pictures...

First off, we have a Roger pic. He is a grouchy boy these days. I am guessing those pin feathers growing back in on his head do not help...


These two girls are darn near identical until you get to the their legs and feet... One has yellow naked legs, the other has pinkish, feathery legs.


Leila and her babies...


Miss Criptoe. She has to be the fattest pullet... This is the cute little sweetheart that had the curled toes. As you can see by her size, they haven't slowed her down. She even roosts.


The black one behind her is Ely... The one who flew over and lost her tail. The one way back is Miss Criptoe's sister, you can see the twins in the bushes... And there is also another one in the bushes, but she blends so well... Brown with black... I have no idea what a mess of mixes she is.

Love the pics! Our rooster Buttercup has a curved toe on each foot. Doesn't seem to bother him and I didn't notice until a few weeks ago. Wonder what causes that?

Well that was a hard lesson to learn.

I thought I had the apron around the coop set down and in good enough but apparently not. 11 chickens gone including Opa's gorgeous bantams. Well not gone, they were still there, but...

I'm kicking myself, I knew I should have checked the apron better but it looked ok. OK isn't good enough though. Learned that the hard way.

OMG Eeyore! I'm so, so sorry.

We have two layers of 1/2 plywood for our coop floor. I would maybe do plywood or OSB just to be safe.



Edited because apparently I can't spell today!

 

[Opa]

Eeyore, I've got seven 12 week old ISA brown pullets. I don't really need to add them all to my flock so you are more than welcome to 4 of them.

You might want to consider adding an electrified perimeter wire. Six inches off the ground deters most critters. Something about an electric current running through their nose makes them want to avoid a second encounter.

 

[NovaAman]

Pretty chickens VJ! Nice novel too! Taking lessons from Juise? Hehe

 

[Hillbilly Hen]

Eeyore, so sorry for your loss

vjwilmith, good luck with the homeschooling adventure. I homeschooled my two youngest and it was wonderful getting to know them better and spending more time with them. I love your coop and your chickens are pretty!


Is anyone in west MI interested in buying a "camper coop"?

 

[vjwilmoth]

Pretty chickens VJ! Nice novel too! Taking lessons from Juise? Hehe

Maaaaybe..... I guess that teaches me not to take a few days off!

Eeyore, so sorry for your loss

vjwilmith, good luck with the homeschooling adventure. I homeschooled my two youngest and it was wonderful getting to know them better and spending more time with them. I love your coop and your chickens are pretty!


Is anyone in west MI interested in buying a "camper coop"?

The camper coop is a really neat idea!


Thank you, I'm really excited about this. Not only to spend time with my boys but the history curriculum looks amazing! I'm probably just as eager to learn it as they are. I asked my boys the other day to tell me what they've learned this year so far in history and science and I was floored when they could hardly recall anything at all! THAT WILL CHANGE! I love the idea of being able to tailor their studies to their personalities and learning styles. Now...remind me of this when I'm running around ready to pull my hair out okay?

My sister is beginning homeschool with her little girl too so we are pretty happy to do this with each other. Too bad she lives in Battle Creek! We see each other about once a week though.