Montana

[RoyalT]

Wow, that sounds like too much work for me. You know its only the last 3 months of pregnancy you have to worry about, and if they have enough grass/hay or other foods to eat and haven't gotten use to eating pine needles there shouldn't be a problem.
Well we finally got all the field work done, we were out untill after dark both Fri night and last night getting finished up. The ground is plenty wet right now, and a few more good rains should get everything growing good. I'm being lazy this morning taking my time having coffee, but need to get busy with a fencing project that will take me a few weeks to complete. It looks like it might rain later today, so I better get busy and get what I can done before it starts.

Yes, it's a royal pain, but the yak are browsers and will eat pretty much anything, including the brown needles on top of grass which still contain the Isocupressic acid. I've got pictures of the heifers pulling the little needles off of fir trees and they love that moss stuff that grows heavily on the ponderosa branches. I'm not going to isolate them now (they're due this summer) from all the pine trees (which are quite evenly distributed 2+/acre), or I'll be haying all summer. This is more work, but more sustainable in the long-run. Plus, we will cure the wood for a couple of years and have nice fire/craft wood. It works, it's just annoying for now. If I ran a larger herd, it wouldn't be as big of a concern, but I don't have many females and the ones I do have need to be producing viable calves for this to make any kind of sense.

Still no lambs from the Icelandic ewes, they just keep getting wider by the day. Hoping for multiples since I really don't like assisting, and those would be HUGE singles! Picked up some used/in need of TLC rabbit cages yesterday, so that's a fun new project!

I'm planning on going to the Hamilton show to watch, I don't want to isolate chickens in my peak breeding season, so I'll just observe this year. Sounds fun, though! I'd like to see what breeds are shown around here, I heard that there are a bunch of Silkies coming to show from Florida- didn't catch the breeder's name, though. I could use a few Ameraucanas, so I'll bring cash

 

[montanachicks]

Does anyone have a problem using cedar shavings in nesting boxes or in the coop? I read elsewhere in one thread about this, and there are as many people saying they've used it for years with no problems, as there are people saying they would never use them --to just use the pine shavings.

I've always used pine shavings, but I had someone give me a big compressed bag of cedar shavings for in my coop -- never been opened -- but I don't want to use them if it's not a good idea.

Any advice?

 

[RoyalT]

I've never used cedar just because of growing up with smaller critters that have issues with them. If you do use them, maybe use half cedar/half pine and just monitor your birds for any adverse reactions? Or maybe do a test in one/a couple nest boxes and leave the rest pine- see if the hens avoid the cedar?

 

[montanachicks]

I've never used cedar just because of growing up with smaller critters that have issues with them. If you do use them, maybe use half cedar/half pine and just monitor your birds for any adverse reactions? Or maybe do a test in one/a couple nest boxes and leave the rest pine- see if the hens avoid the cedar?

Good idea. I'll try that. Thanks. !

 

[RoyalT]

Np let us know how it goes? Cedar smells nice...

 

[montanachicks]

Np let us know how it goes? Cedar smells nice...

I will.

I'd like to know , if it is so "toxic" to animals, why do they even sell it?????????

We had beautiful weather today -- yesterday it was warmer but hurricane winds blowing........ today, not as warm but just breezy.

Ended up with 14 eggs at the end of the day!! -- so excited, hope this means things are picking up.

I have 16 hens, and it's been forever, it seems, since I got that many eggs. Another few weeks, and I hope some of my pullets start laying -- I have 10 Lohman Browns then 6 EE's/OE's which I got from Azriel. I'm very anxious for them all to start laying.

 

[karlamaria]

Sold moms coop, it was worthless as far as getting to the chickens, cleaning te coop, the egg boxes would only open half way, everything was a pain! Ariel your girls went to a gal in Whitehall who has 60 girls and said your girls mixed right in and are doing extremely well. I could not keep them, I tried but my pen was to small for yours mine and mama and six chicks. My mom went down hill and I would have had to care for the chickens as my son is just to lazy and I'm to stressed to deal with mom, dad, my son ( who lives at my parents) my job, and the grand kids I raise. I should have listened to that inner voice months ago before purchasing them. the coop all the money I blew getting te coop, the birds, the stuff I'm done! On a better note my chicken let two babies live ugh, one looks like a Banty? Will take pictures tomorrow when she is not so crazy.
Oh and snow on Wednesday, again oh boy

 

[RoyalT]

I will.

I'd like to know , if it is so "toxic" to animals, why do they even sell it?????????

We had beautiful weather today -- yesterday it was warmer but hurricane winds blowing........ today, not as warm but just breezy.

Ended up with 14 eggs at the end of the day!! -- so excited, hope this means things are picking up.

I have 16 hens, and it's been forever, it seems, since I got that many eggs. Another few weeks, and I hope some of my pullets start laying -- I have 10 Lohman Browns then 6 EE's/OE's which I got from Azriel. I'm very anxious for them all to start laying.

Cedar is really good at repelling bugs, which is why it's used to fill dog beds and such. It really depends on the animal as to how the oil in the cedar shavings will affect them.

Good egg day here, too Spent the whole day Spring Cleaning crocks and boxes for the buns and feeders for the chickens. Tomorrow going to disassemble/reassemble my new bun cages then torch them- fun!

 

[DuginMT]

Finished the run and feeder box this weekend - ready for chickens! Got the rest of the chicken wire wired together and built a feeder box with scrap 2X6's, 2X4's, and 1/2" plywood. The feeder box will hold about 70 lbs of feed. Have not used it yet, but can't see why it would not work. We also placed straw on the floor of the coop and pine shavings in the nesting boxes - that was a little premature but maybe some of the pullets will practice in there. Looking at the weather report, it looks like we will put the flock out there this Saturday. My boys are really looking forward to it. Planning to gradually cool the chicks down this week, by removing some heat every day in the brooder. They don't seem to mind 60 Degrees now at all, and are about seven weeks old and fully feathered except for a tiny area in their "armpits"! I put a GFCI receptacle (covered, NEMA 4 exterior type box) inside the coop (see plug-in sticking out front of coop) that I can hook up to an extension cord for heating water in the winter and any supplemental heat, if needed. We put "Sonny" a barred rock out there for a while to check everything out!

 

[Azriel]

Very nice DuginMT, I like your feeder box, is that one that opens when the chickens stand on the bar, or is it open all the time. I would close the nest boxes off till the girls get closer to laying, other wise they will get used to sleeping in there and will poop in them and your eggs will be dirty. Its best to make sure they are used to sleeping on the roosts before you let them into the nest boxes.