NY chicken lover!!!!

[rancher hicks]

I will have to check out the Ruby Lavender book you suggested; it sounds like a nice story.

Regarding your eggs...those Dels always seem to be first or among the first to hatch!

Hope you have good luck with the Marans.

TOB

Oh for pity sake yes. Del or EE's. 8 chicks and it's only day 20. Another will be making it out by the end of the night I think so make that 9. 6 EE, 2 Del, 1 CR. Not one stinking Marans has hatched. A couple have started but it looks like if I want more marans I'll have to let the hens hatch them.

I've got five chicks with an EE hen and 3 or 4 in the brooder.

I am planning on setting some BR eggs just to see if any are any good. You know I think that Rooster is just too darn fat! He seems to lay down a lot. Otherwise he seems fine. I'm going to cut the whole coop off scratch for a while.

 

[Cass]

HI everyone! Just found out that I is now a college stoodent. Gotta finish that four year degree before they boot my ASN butt out of the job market. =)

Still holding steady here with 5 broodies sitting on nothing. LOL.

Congrats and good luck.

 

[rancher hicks]

I hadn't thought about that, that EE's are mutts. Are they "bantam"? I would love to have a few, for colorful eggs... but I don't want tiny eggs. How small are the chickens (compared with a usual layer/dual purpose)? How small are the eggs? What are they a mix of? Haven't you (Rancher) been keeping them in a hoop coop?
There are some birds I think are really beautiful, but I just don't want to get them because I don't know that they would be "cold hardy" enough. My coop doesn't have power, and never will. It is nice to get the perspective from those of you who live with the same kind of winters and have had chickens for a while.

In duckling news... yesterday they were out in their new playpen my Beloved Husband constructed for them out of fencing and a collapsible carport/canopy with a baby wadey and an old rabbit hutch. They love it in there, and I love having less to clean up inside. We invented the game of "Bugs!" where I took a lid full of freeze dried mealworms, crickets, grasshoppers and tossed it in the pool while saying "bugs!" and they would be gone in a second. Then I would do "who wants One Bug?" and one duckling (usually Jace, the one we identified as a Swedish duck) would snatch one bug from my fingers. Today I was out playing "One Bug" with the ducklings, and Jace was HOPPING to get it!! Haha cutest thing a little baby duckling JUMPING so high off the ground to get a canned cricket from my hand.

I have some EE hens that are on the small side but they do fine. Father is a Lav Amer mother is EE of some mix. Chicks usually come out black but a few are lavender. Which is what I am hoping for. All the new ones have Black though one I'm not sure. It has some white or gold. That blasted CR rooster has been messing around.

I don't have heat in the hoop coops. But I did hang this to keep the heat nearest to them. If it had been longer I would have hung it down more in the front. My others have nothing, but the snow does add insulation too.

 

[rancher hicks]

If I understand correctly EE's are a cross between an Ameracauna & any other breed.............. to produce a green or olive egg. My EE's are from Tab. I think 2 of them are a Silver Ameracauna over a leghorn and the other I'm not sure, but she's a beautiful blue color

All 3 of them give me a green egg a day that is large to x-large. The EE's themselves are about the size of a golden comet. My girls have a new coop off the side of my barn, it's 12' x24'. It has 4 - 3'x3' windows, that stayed open all winter, unless a strong wind was blowing directly on the girls, then that window was closed for the night only.
This is only my 2nd year having chickens and I'm pleasently surprised at how tough they are !!

I have two EE one larger than the other and she lays a nice sized extra large egg. My point being if you want big eggs from your EE cross that Amer with a big hen and you might get bigger eggs.

 

[rancher hicks]

HI everyone! Just found out that I is now a college stoodent. Gotta finish that four year degree before they boot my ASN butt out of the job market. =)

Still holding steady here with 5 broodies sitting on nothing. LOL.

Well I do hope you do well in your classes and I hope yu wur fuuling around wid the spelling of Student.

Now if you want eggs for those broodies you come and see me and I'll give you some eggs.

 

[rancher hicks]

Hope everyone was able to enjoy some of the nice weather today. Figures it's beautiful out now that I'm back inside working. Got a hint from my boss this morning that it would be in my best interest to update my resume and get it posted on our office's site. I told her I would do it to make her happy but I'm not looking for a job so I better not get any phone calls. I have to say I updated my resume this evening (hasn't been done since 2006, still had my maiden name on it!) and I must say, after being with this company for 12 years it looks good! Too bad I'm not looking for a job, LOL. Owell, I got that out of that way, that was the highlight of my night, seeing all I've accomplished while being with this company for 12 years. Sorry but I'd rather shovel you know what than to work this job another year - literally! Get me in a barn! Thats where I belong these days!

Outside after school and planted some of the raspberry plants. Dug some more on the post holes I'm working on and planted Parsley and Squash seeds. Still have to decide where to plant the black currant and Jostaberry plants. Oh and chives too.

Where is the best place to plant chives? Got a nice clump.

 

[featherz]

Well I do hope you do well in your classes and I hope yu wur fuuling around wid the spelling of Student.

Now if you want eggs for those broodies you come and see me and I'll give you some eggs.

youze meanz I kant spel?

Seriously tho, would love eggs but you are just a little far from me. Hoping to get a few more from county boy in a bit - I don't need any more chickens so everyone's getting like one egg.

 

[Cass]

Where is the best place to plant chives? Got a nice clump.

In the ground

 

[Child of Noah]

If I understand correctly EE's are a cross between an Ameracauna & any other breed.............. to produce a green or olive egg. My EE's are from Tab. I think 2 of them are a Silver Ameracauna over a leghorn and the other I'm not sure, but she's a beautiful blue color

All 3 of them give me a green egg a day that is large to x-large. The EE's themselves are about the size of a golden comet. My girls have a new coop off the side of my barn, it's 12' x24'. It has 4 - 3'x3' windows, that stayed open all winter, unless a strong wind was blowing directly on the girls, then that window was closed for the night only.
This is only my 2nd year having chickens and I'm pleasently surprised at how tough they are !!

Wow! everyone is saying their eggs are large. Your eggs are blue? Or your chicken?
I'm thinking I should open my vent window on my coop..

my best broody and the 1st to sit this year started her hatch today. Pretty soon I'll have a bunch of chicks. 7 broody Sumatra's as of now a broody Runner and it looks like my BO might finally sit and not just run around being grumpy all of the time

That is SO CUTE!

HI everyone! Just found out that I is now a college stoodent. Gotta finish that four year degree before they boot my ASN butt out of the job market. =)

Still holding steady here with 5 broodies sitting on nothing. LOL.

Gud luk wid skool. Im try see 2 git a batchler's degry 2. Priddy hard tho.
However, I have to agree with Lynzi:

Get me in a barn! Thats where I belong these days!

I have some EE hens that are on the small side but they do fine. Father is a Lav Amer mother is EE of some mix. Chicks usually come out black but a few are lavender. Which is what I am hoping for. All the new ones have Black though one I'm not sure. It has some white or gold. That blasted CR rooster has been messing around.

I don't have heat in the hoop coops. But I did hang this to keep the heat nearest to them. If it had been longer I would have hung it down more in the front. My others have nothing, but the snow does add insulation too.

I have two EE one larger than the other and she lays a nice sized extra large egg. My point being if you want big eggs from your EE cross that Amer with a big hen and you might get bigger eggs.

So.... If I get a EE rooster and let it woo my hens, I can have EE babies that lay blue or green eggs which are larger?

Thanks everyone on the Easter Egger info!

 

[pharmchickrnmom]

Evening all! Looks like you all have been busy bees with babies and broodies. Just finished locking up the beasties so I can finally sit and write a bit.

Sunday was a beautiful day and I had the tots out all day in their puppy pen. They enjoyed sunning themselves and dustbathing. A couple of the rir girls came by to see what they were and if they could get any of the babies food. They did peck a couple of the babies when they got too close to the bars but no harm was done. Everyone had a lovely day and I actually got to sit down in the afternoon and do nothing!!! Been working like a mad woman since then but came home to let the silkies out to play first before the terrorists. I found a silkie egg in the run of legolas group today! Woohoo! Its the first one from that quad. Now Legolas just needs to perfect his technique so the girls dont scream rape every time he makes an attempt to mate with them. I told him he could get some pointers from Little Man if he would stop fighting with him!!!

At the rate the terrorists are digging and dusting next to my foundation, I am going to need a dump truck or two of dirt just fill all the holes! Several of them dug them bigger today and boy, what clouds they shook off!

Have a good evening everyone!