North Carolina

[JadedPhoenix]

Good morning folks

It's just a touch on the chilly side outside at the moment......
a whole 19 degrees. I am hoping all the craziness is over
and everyone driving out there is being very careful. I really
don't want to play bumper cars.

hope everyone has a good day

19, huh? You must be miserable in that kind of heat.

It is 9 here at work and I'd hate to think about what the temp is at home. As for the bumper cars, PLEASE, wait until I get home. Once I am home, everyone has until 5 this afternoon before I'm back out.

One thing that I don't look forward to is trying to keep water out for the chickens. It will freeze two minutes after changing it. Oh well, put it down and tell them to drink up real fast.

 

[6275Smith]

It got down to 8 here this morning which is actually better than what they forecast. Tomorrow morning is supposed to be colder, though.

 

[ChookAtThis]

My cold weather water solution is 4 plastic food clamshells (the ones that lettuce comes in from the grocery store) and a watering can. I take hot water from the sink and pour it in the clamshells in the coop. They are sitting in little cardboard trays that my cat food comes on. I can fill them multiple times a day if I need to and only have to carry the watering can, not trying to balance containers of hot water. The chooks love it, I don't care if they get it all dirty and every few days I throw them out and use new ones. Classy, right!

 

[gfiman]

I bought me a heated 3 gal. waterer at tractor supply. I love it. Don't leak, and will supply my 10 chickens at least 2 days, sometimes 3.
Just flip it over and fill. Set it on the cement block(helps keep it clean), and there you go.

 

[Coop Scoop Boogie]

Good morning folks

Hope everyone can find a way to stay warm and
keep their birds watered. Hope no one has to deal with
frostbite on combs either.

hope everyone has a good day

 

[JadedPhoenix]

Well, I just got home and was pleasantly surprised that I didn't see any of the chickens on their coops. Usually there are a few if not the majority. They've never liked being "cooped up". Well, when I went looking further, I saw two sitting at the entrance to the larger coop. One got up and happily came to get the strawberries I was tossing to them. The other one didn't. She was frozen solid. Stubborn thing couldn't fit into the larger of the coops and stayed at the entrance while two coops sat completely empty.

I picked her up and took her out which signalled to the rest of the flock to all crowd out of the coop to get some fresh water and food. So now I know the limits of the hardiness of my flock. Three degrees it is. They did just fine sleeping on the coops last night at nine.

 

[ramirezframing]

Sorry about your girl.

 

[Hollowoakfarm]

Ouch. Sorry about your hen.

Still cold enough in the chicken houses to freeze the water, but not solid at least. I can break the ice top. Outside water is block ice, though. I've done a couple runs out with fresh water today, and am grateful I am off today. The bunny bottles of course freeze faster. I know there are people who swear by crocks. One of the new rabbits isn't taking to the bottle very well, and she's bred so I got her crocks. It'll be a test for me to see which I like better! So far filling crocks gets my hands and gloves wet, which makes the rest of the chores rather painful. There must be a technique I'm missing on that.

Broke down and spent the big bucks on a rabbit wringer with poultry attachment. Expensive. When hubby is around, he can dispatch anything that needs it. When he is not, I'm stuck. I no longer have the hand strength to do it. I had to kill one the other day, and did a lousy job. Caused more pain than I needed, by far. So I decided to "invest"? in one. Hope it's as good as the videos show. Would be nice to have it go smoothly, for both animals. And then I can return to doing the small animal butchering without needing the hubby. That'll make a difference for me.

Hope everyone is staying warm! Should be better this weekend, even if rainy.

 

[ScenicViews]

King, NC

 

[dutchlion]

Oh that's terrible!! It's a cold day to be doing repairs!! I'm not to far from you in Archdale

Here in Randleman too! Not only have we been putting the posts back up from the wind tearing down our pasture gates ... I've had the flu! Ugh... finally getting back on track! hope everyone is staying warm!