Michigan

[thewaggonerfami]

Hi everybody!
I am another newbie. We are going to be getting chicks hopefully this week. Just starting out. We just found out through the loooooong thread about the Michigan RTFA that we can have them even though we are in town! Yippee! We are working on getting a chicken tractor (or two) built and I think a permanent coop and run. We are also going to do what needs done for the GAAMP. I pm'ed the lady who offered a copy of her 12 page chicken notebook in that thread, but I haven't heard back from her yet. Anyone else have something similar they would like to share? We want to set things up right from the get-go. We have already had rabbits for 4H that we have sold, so I think technically we can already qualify as a farm, just need to do the GAAMP stuff to make it official. We have 7 kids at home, so we will hopefully be doing some chickens for 4H. I think we are starting with some Black Copper Marans and some Ameracaunas. Then we'll go from there. We live on the Lenawee/Monroe county line, down near Cabelas. This place needs a warning: "Huge time suck, proceed at your own risk!" LOL

 

[Farmerboy16]

Telluria! Glad that you found us!
I like your feed choice! I really want to raise my flock that way. This is my feed bin, it can hold 3000 pounds of feed-

Maybe I can help you with the processing of the meaties? I really need to learn how to process my own roosters. I don't want to, but I really need to. Again, Welcome!

 

[Farmerboy16]

Thewaggonerfami! Glad you found us!

 

[Farmerboy16]

Its official!!! Spring is really here!!!!!!!!
I saw lots of robins, AND Purple Crocus flowers under the deck!!!

 

[yorkchick]

Henry: I'm the bigger goose! I'm the bigger goose!

Yorkchick: Yes, Henry. Except I'm the BIGGEST goose.

Henry: ::sigh::

YORKCHICK!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I spied you in the window up there! How are you? Where have you been? Any gooser eggs yet? Hows Henry?

Give them a kiss for me.

Sorry for the slow reply, Mom, I was having "internet problems' so I wasn't on BYC for a few days, then had to "catch up" with the Michigan thread due to "internet problems," so it wasn't till today that I actually saw your post.
"Internet problems" meaning that I couldn't figure out how to get my I-Pad to connect to the wireless system after we had a power outage several days ago. Could have walked all the way to the South Wing to use the desktop computer, but ... no. Finally yesterday the DH helped me figure it out. He can't understand why this is so hard for me.
To be fair, he just did show me (again!) how to post photos. And did it very patiently.


Anyway, we have goose eggs!!!

First one Wednesday. Then one Thursday, one Saturday, and two today.

These are the first two gooser eggs, with a bantam Sebright egg in the middle.

My dinner last night. (Was too full after eating the egg to finish off the quarter, though.

).
Very, very rich eggs. Scrambled the one above. Tasted like I'd added cheese to the eggs, it was so rich. Had another for breakfast--over easy. Delish.

Had to look up how to cook goose eggs--very slow heat keeps them from toughening up.

They have been using the beautiful new Goose Chalet to lay in (Thanks again, RaZ!)
That's Marvin, the Farm Dog. He looooves going out and doing chores. This was the first night after RaZ helped me get the thing. I have since put down vinyl flooring inside plus an entire bale of straw. The tires to use as nests??? Still a work in progress.

My Sawzall will s-l-o-o-o-w-l-y cut through the tire. Can get a few inches before I have to recharge the battery... So working on that intermittently. But they are hiding their eggs under the straw in the Chalet.

I got worried when there was no goose egg on Friday--started to wonder if they were hiding a nest somewhere--because they may have noticed the eggs were disappearing from their first spot.

So yesterday I got some big wooden goose eggs at a craft store and put a couple of them in there. Not sure if they will be fooled by those like the chickens are--but today there were two eggs in the Chalet.

And Henry? Well, both of the eggs I've opened so far had "bull's eyes." He da man! (As he will tell you). And today for the first time I saw a "romantic interlude" between Henry and Penelope.

What has been seen cannot be unseen.

Actually, it was kinda sweet. It was in the wading pool, and they did some "canoodling" first, wrapping their necks around each other. Anthromorphisizing, I know. But... awwww....

 

[NovaAman]

I need a chemical mast... One of those masks you see in the movies where contagious are rampant... Leaf blowers are awesome for cleaning coops! Gonna start a fire. Bring on the marshmallows... Not really... I think that would be just. Gross. Lol.

 

[Cattle Cait]

Holy moley, there's a LOT of Michiganders here! Anyone from down near Howell, by me?

 

[yorkchick]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Farmerboy16

Telluria! Glad that you found us!
I like your feed choice! I really want to raise my flock that way. This is my feed bin, it can hold 3000 pounds of feed-

Maybe I can help you with the processing of the meaties? I really need to learn how to process my own roosters. I don't want to, but I really need to. Again, Welcome!

Who processes their own birds? I keep thinking about this, thinking I should learn to do it. Haven't decided whether to take on meaties, but I do eat chicken, so I feel like someday I should raise my own, for their sake and mine. Opa, weren't you going to process a few here shortly? I have felt like FarmerBoy, I might want to volunteer to help someone who knows what they're doing, in order to learn and decide if it's something I want to do. Maybe someone would be willing to host an instructional processing party? I worked one summer on a dairy farm and once was part of a big group that worked to process the group of meaties the farmer had raised--but that was a long time ago, and I was only on plucking detail.

As far as the feed--I just got a bag of organic non-GMO layer from the place RaZ went to, in Superior Township, who gets his feed from Raub-Rae Farms in Brown City. They do have non-soy also. The guy says Raub-Rae tests for GMO contamination, which is not required for organic certification. I know Brown City is not too near to you, Telluria, so that may not be a big help to you...

 

[RaZ]

Just checking in quickly. I've been outside all day cleaning up dog poo and yard debris. I just came in for a cold beer, 2 dogs came in with and my Cata=healer was still outside. I hear a tapping at the back door and some whining. One of my BSLs is tapping at the door and Bella is just sitting there watching. Now all 3 dogs are in and I have to go do some chicken wrangling. I'll check in later...

 

[Telluria]

Thanks yorkchick and farmerboy16 for the nice greetings. Looking at a busy summer and the processing is my next challenge to meet and knock down. Nice grain bin, wish I had one now. Scaling up is something I will do if things work out and margins are good. Great site and glad people are willing to share. Thanks, Fred