Montana

[montanachicks]

I haven't found Bragg ACV anywhere here in town =/ I'll have to see if I can order it online... All the crap I find is watered down nonsense

Let's see, we're getting into the upper teens at night and pushing 40 during the day right now. The chicks have done really well being outside. They cuddle, but they're surviving. I had them locked up in the stock trailer for over a week to make sure they could hack it, and now they're using the dogloo in the chicken/hay barn

Sadly, I'm thinking many of them are roosters... only time will tell since they're all so different- The only one I know is a pullet is my little Wheaten Am from Azriel's eggs

have you looked in your local WalMart? I had never seen it before (but then I had never looked for it before) ... but when I went looking ---- it was there; never hurts to ask them if they can start carrying it if they don't have it.

 

[RoyalT]

Nope, Just diluted Heinz ACV at my WM Maybe I'll try the local organic grocery stores...

 

[appychick]

Azure Standard truck would deliver Braggs or Bulk Organic "raw" vinegar if you are near a delivery stop. I get it from them on a regular basis but house not warm enough to ferment in the winter.Maybe next winter I will try the fermenting & sprouting(growing fodder thread) for the birds as not happy with packaged feed as lost a pile of birds from recent bad lot of feed. We have gotten back down to near zero night temp again & nice blizzard last night with several inches of snow-impossible to tell how much snow fell as 35 + mph wind,not good calving weather so hope the rest wait awhile.............Ever time the temps drop I have to talk myself out of looking for chicks,then find myself back online-looking-And looking...................

 

[lunacroon]

I just scraped all the crap out of the coop.... gross, man! These critters are lucky I love them so much! Now for the more detailed cleaning and spray down. Woohoo!

Ha ha! I was planning on cleaning out the coop today but everything was frozen solid! Nice that I didn't have to feel guilty about not cleaning it~

 

[RoyalT]

We're supposed to get up into the low to mid 40s this week, didn't want to wait for it to STINK hah! I got it all cleared out, tomorrow I'll add all the sand and fix the nest boxes up.

 

[ReptileMom]

Hi everyone. I was hoping we were over the bitterly cold and windy weather, but it is 4 degrees here right now.

I cleaned out the 'teenagers' coop on Sat, and was going to do the main coop yesterday but decided it could wait. Now it is even worse. I put a bunch of zeolite in with the wood chips, so the smell is down. Just need to redo the nesting boxes and put new chips in.

I have two girls that have been broody for several weeks now. But they seem to have an issue - there are 6 laying nests but when one goes to get a drink and a quick snack, another will go in to lay an egg. When the broody girl comes back she finds the box filled and goes and sits on the eggs in a different box. I have candled alot of eggs only to find that they only got partially developed and then died because of being abandoned. Poor girls, they are starting to get pretty thin. I keep thinking they will give up soon, but they seem to be pretty determined to have some chicks.

Hope everyone is tucked in and warm on the cold night!

Welcome new Butte area member! We can always use new voices on the Montana Forum!

 

[karlamaria]

Hi everyone, looks like you have all been busy, same here. Cold and windy. The wind ripped the lattice off my porch. Just wanted to say Walmart has act, but you can also order it on amazon.com as that is where I have gotten it before. Also any health food store will carry it.
So it's coop cleaning, I laughed so hard, you mean I'm the only one who cleans hers every 2 weeks? I worry about moisture, never seen any but I worry so my coop is cpmpletly emptied out every two weeks and refilled . Even next boxes are cleaned out and everything is given a diatomaceous eath dusting. I even add that stuff to my chicken feed.
I wish I had broody girls, funny last year I was not to hip on them always broody, until I realized how awesome it is to have them raise the babies for me. Since my broody passed away I miss her so bad. I'm happy to announce all 8 girls are laying, we have for the past two days gotten 8/8 and there happy girls. There out even before the sun is all the way out lol, laying real early and nice big eggs ! I will admit, I have been using a heat lamp in my coop for over a month now, and they love it. I turn it off during the day and put it on by 5:00 in the evening.
Reptile mom, when my girl went broody I put her in a dog crate , she was safe with her eggs and did a wonderful job of hatching out her babies. I let her out each day to poop, and eat and drink, in fact after 4 days she came and went and loved her crate. I took the door off after she got used to it and all her babies were born in it. I just added a dish of chick food and small water bottle and she and babies did awesome.
I hope one of my girls decides to go broody at some point this year, i found it to be the best way To add more chickens to my pen and coop.
Well it's 4:30 in the morning, woke up at 11:30 , 3:00 and then just decided to get up. Seems I have a small cold, yuck. Decided to get my azure standard list going again, man I love them. I ordered these hemp and flax crackers, hard as heck but tasting soooo good with hummus.
I'm off to watch some tv and try to get back to sleep, wish me luck lol

 

[montanachicks]

Hi everyone. I was hoping we were over the bitterly cold and windy weather, but it is 4 degrees here right now.

I cleaned out the 'teenagers' coop on Sat, and was going to do the main coop yesterday but decided it could wait. Now it is even worse. I put a bunch of zeolite in with the wood chips, so the smell is down. Just need to redo the nesting boxes and put new chips in.

I have two girls that have been broody for several weeks now. But they seem to have an issue - there are 6 laying nests but when one goes to get a drink and a quick snack, another will go in to lay an egg. When the broody girl comes back she finds the box filled and goes and sits on the eggs in a different box. I have candled alot of eggs only to find that they only got partially developed and then died because of being abandoned. Poor girls, they are starting to get pretty thin. I keep thinking they will give up soon, but they seem to be pretty determined to have some chicks.

Hope everyone is tucked in and warm on the cold night!

Welcome new Butte area member! We can always use new voices on the Montana Forum!

ReptileMom: what's the Zeolite you are talking about here?

 

[ReptileMom]

http://www.galleries.com/Clinoptilolite

Zeolites are naturally occuring minerals in nature. Several different types, but the most commonly used one is Clinoptilolite. I attached a link to it above. Some of the farm stores will carry a granular type of it that is used in horse stalls to control odor. I use it in the coop under the wood shavings and then add more when I mix the shavings up. People take food grade quality it for various homeopathic treatments also. It is nontoxic and does help with the moisture and odor in the coop. I don't remember right off the top of my head the brand name I bought, it was Zeo_____. It was $12.99 for a (I think) 20 lb bag. I have seen that MannaPro has put out a small container of it for Chicken Coops that cost about the same for about 16-20 oz. A crazy way to buy it when you can get it in large bags for the same cost!

 

[Azriel]

Good Morning, Montana peeps, its my day off, so I'm having a relaxing morning before I start my day. I had a hawk IN my coop Sunday. I heard the chickens raising he_ _, and ran out thinking it was a fox or weazel, I grabbed a big stick on the way (5 foot 2x4), when I opened the door there was the hawk sitting on the roost. It had killed my only white egg layer before I got there. I have been around and around the pen, and can not find where it got in. So the girls have been in lock down, I'll let them out for a bit today. I've really had a bad run with predators this year, coons, weazels, hawks and eagles. I'm going to have to keep a bunch of my chicks just to replenish my flock. You all make me feel bad with your coop cleaning, I only clean mine once a year. I add more bedding all winter as needed, and then do a major cleaning when it warms up in the spring. I also need to restain my coop this spring, thats going to be a pain as I'll have to move the chickens some place for the day.
RoyalT, you should be able to get the Braggs at any health food store. I'm going to have to wait till it warms up to try the frementing, its just to cold to work right now.
I have not seen or tried the rabbit wringer, I just butcher my birds the old fashioned way, hang them upside down, slit their throat, and after they bleed out chop off their head. That does look interesting, but I would want to try it before I bought one. I would really like to get a plucker, that would sure make things easier.
Let me know how much you want for your 1588, I sure like mine and wouldn't mind having another. I think I have a Little Giant in storage I should get out to use as a hatcher.
Well I guess I better get busy with my day, I REALLY need to do some house cleaning. Hope everyone has a great day.