NY chicken lover!!!!

[Gramma Chick]

. Teddy only sits. He won't even fetch. If you throw a ball he looks at you like you are insane for throwing his things.

I've never had a Rottweiler. I think I'd like a German Shepard next, something really smart and easy to train. Or maybe a Great Pyrenees. Or an Old English Sheepdog....

Heelers are pretty smart ...too ..that is my dream dog

 

[tao chick]

Teddy (the dog) was a rescue, he was about 6 months old when we got him - so he was just the cost of the rescue.  He is a very nice, very tolerant dog, great with the kids. But he is as dumb as a bag of rocks. I thought that a golden doodle would be smart - poodles are smart, goldens are easy to train. Not our dog though. He will sit, and sometimes comes when called. Thats it. I had border collies and siberian huskies growing up. I had a cat trained on voice commands. I had a mutt that knew over 30 individual commands. Teddy only sits. He won't even fetch. If you throw a ball he looks at you like you are insane for throwing his things. I've heard from several folks that their 'doodles' were not intelligent dogs. 
Golden Doodles do shed, almost as much as a golden retriever - it just depends on what 'blend' you end up with. 

I've never had a Rottweiler. I think I'd like a German Shepard next, something really smart and easy to train. Or maybe a Great Pyrenees. Or an Old English Sheepdog....

I'm so glad you rescued him even if he's not bright. Or especially because he's not bright and needs an understanding home. I know that all doodles and designer dogs are over bred so he may be an unlucky combination of poor parents. Many folks see the $1000 price tag per pup and decide to make their own. I considered buying a boxerdoodle once. I'm done with buying pure or designer dogs. If I get another dog after my favorite girl ever, I'll go to the shelter for a lengthy vetting process. My next dog has a lot to live up to. My current dog is exceptional.

 

[AmberKnits]

I'm so glad you rescued him even if he's not bright. Or especially because he's not bright and needs an understanding home. I know that all doodles and designer dogs are over bred so he may be an unlucky combination of poor parents. Many folks see the $1000 price tag per pup and decide to make their own. I considered buying a boxerdoodle once. I'm done with buying pure or designer dogs. If I get another dog after my favorite girl ever, I'll go to the shelter for a lengthy vetting process. My next dog has a lot to live up to. My current dog is exceptional.

He's a good dog, he suits our family well. Next time, I think we are going to need a young puppy - to train from the very start, for the chickens sake.

 

[tao chick]

He's a good dog, he suits our family well. Next time, I think we are going to need a young puppy - to train from the very start, for the chickens sake.

Good idea. I just don't want to spend time training a pup. My dog is great with the chickens. She chases away cats, but the chickens are safe.

 

[AmberKnits]

Good idea. I just don't want to spend time training a pup. My dog is great with the chickens. She chases away cats, but the chickens are safe.

Mine is the opposite! He loves the cats, follows them around and tries to snuggle them even when they don't want it. But birds are prey to him. He once got a wild turkey.

 

[AmberKnits]

Heelers  are pretty smart ...too ..that is my dream dog

I think it's much harder to find purebred dogs these days, and they are so expensive! We looked for a golden retriever pup for a while, but I just can't justify the price. All the puppies I found were over $1000. I love having a dog, but yikes.

 

[Tab's chicken obsession]

Oh! I've been hovering over the buy it now button on Ebay for some Golden Cuckoo Marans.  I love the coloring.  Do you have a breeding pair or are you starting with hatching eggs?

We have a flock and hatch our own eggs. We have been working on blue golden cuckoo maran using a splash maran hen crossed with a golden roo that had "double barred gene" (carried barring gene on each allele) originally a couple years ago.

 

[ashleymroles]

NOW WHY I CAME HERE. Does anyone here own their own carpet cleaning machine? What kind? How easy is it to use? How well does it work? I'm looking at the Bissell "Power Steamer Upright Carpet Cleaners " . $119 at the Christmas Tree shop. Our carpets need cleaning but with grandkids and a wife who dotes on them and lets them eat in the livingroom I'm fighting a losing battle. We'd like to have it replaced with hardwood but carpeting hides a great deal. We once looked at a house for sale where they ran the carpeting right over a hole in the floor!! Anyhow we have an add on to the living room and I just know we'll need to have work don't to level things off.

We got super lucky with our steam cleaner. We have 7 dogs and 75% of our house is carpet, so you can just imagine the filth. Went to rent a steam cleaner from the store (the stanley steamer from Tops), and they were getting rid of all of the old models. I offered the guy a couple hundred bucks, and we've had our own steam cleaner since. It was an excellent investment. Every time my parents or the in-laws come into town, we drag out the cleaner and go to town on the carpets. It takes a day or two to completely dry, which is kind of a pain in the ***, but if you go over the carpet with the cleaner in vacuum mode, you can suck up a lot of the moisture and speed up the drying process.

Anyway, check craigslist for an older model that used to be rented from the store. If you do end up renting, its $30 or so for 24 hours (pricey for someone who needs to steam clean at least once a month). Btw, I got mine at the Tops on Rt 31 in Clay.

 

[Pharkas]

We have a flock and hatch our own eggs. We have been working on blue golden cuckoo maran using a splash maran hen crossed with a golden roo that had "double barred gene" (carried barring gene on each allele) originally a couple years ago.

How has your egg color been. One ebay seller is claiming very dark eggs with their Golden Cuckoos. My BCM's start out their cycle with very dark eggs but I much prefer the coloring of the Golden cuckoo birds. I have 2 mixed breed hens that came from my Blue Wheaten Ameraucana over a Dark Brahama hen and the resulting hens look like Golden Cuckoo hens with a blue laced pattern, and feathered legs. Uh Oh, just looked out window and a Hawk is circling the chicken yard.

 

[Pharkas]

My chicken math has finally resulted in more fresh eggs than I am selling/giving to friends and family by word of mouth. I am pondering a road side sign or stand with cooler. We have a small pleasure horse farm in Onondaga county, town of Onondaga. Does anyone know what regulations I need to follow to do this correct? We have 4 children and are constantly coming and going so no one is consistently at home. I was thinking an ice chest with an honor system can.