NY chicken lover!!!!

[stonykill]

Stony, I'm catching up with your hatching. I have 5 so far. (so I'm not catching up very fast.

)

 

[stonykill]

what to eat with candied rooster.....HMMMMMM

 

[ChickPrincess]

480 posts, I'll never catch up.

We've been dealing with a fox. I've been letting them out to free range more often. Everything was going fine. One day last week, one hen never came home. I figured she just wandered too far and lost her way. We found the pile of feathers after we discovered the fox.
They were out free ranging a few days ago, when I happened to look out my bedroom window. I saw all the hens come running out of the woods complaining over something, and the rooster was also complaining. Then I saw a flash of brown right behind the coop. I hollered to my daughter that there was a fox. The window was open and it was enough to scare it off before getting another hen.
I'm mad that the darn rooster did nothing but stand there and squawk. Didn't even attempt to go after the fox. Woosie.

So, those with experience, what's the best way to deal with a fox? I want to use a hav-a-hart with camo over it. We talked about leg traps, but both dh and I think it's cruel. He wants to learn how to snare.
Opinions?

 

[stonykill]

480 posts, I'll never catch up.

We've been dealing with a fox. I've been letting them out to free range more often. Everything was going fine. One day last week, one hen never came home. I figured she just wandered too far and lost her way. We found the pile of feathers after we discovered the fox.
They were out free ranging a few days ago, when I happened to look out my bedroom window. I saw all the hens come running out of the woods complaining over something, and the rooster was also complaining. Then I saw a flash of brown right behind the coop. I hollered to my daughter that there was a fox. The window was open and it was enough to scare it off before getting another hen.
I'm mad that the darn rooster did nothing but stand there and squawk. Didn't even attempt to go after the fox. Woosie.

So, those with experience, what's the best way to deal with a fox? I want to use a hav-a-hart with camo over it. We talked about leg traps, but both dh and I think it's cruel. He wants to learn how to snare.
Opinions?

what rooster would challenge a fox? One with a death wish. He did his job, got the hens out of there.

Best way to deal. .22 rifle. In the chest is easiest. Foxes inbox traps are best caught with live bait in the little cage in a fox trap. I wouldn't ever put a chicken through that.
Use a leg trap and yu will have a one legged chicken. BUT THAT will catch the fox quicker than a box trap ever will.

A friend of mine catches an average of 13 foxes a year with leg traps. He rarely loses a chicken now. Myself, I shoot them.

 

[AQHAchick22]

If I liked the dead bird I bury it.   If it made me mad or was a mean hen I throw it in a bag and send it to the dump.  If it dies in the winter, it's landfill.  If I had to kill it because it had a problem, I cry and cry and cry and then I bury it out by the pond and a couple of mallards that didn't make it.

I've always wondered because usually we bury them, a few have gone to the dump...this one I drove down the road a bit and put it in the woods. Maybe not the best idea but I hate to see a bird go to waste.

 

[featherz]

480 posts, I'll never catch up.

We've been dealing with a fox. I've been letting them out to free range more often. Everything was going fine. One day last week, one hen never came home. I figured she just wandered too far and lost her way. We found the pile of feathers after we discovered the fox.
They were out free ranging a few days ago, when I happened to look out my bedroom window. I saw all the hens come running out of the woods complaining over something, and the rooster was also complaining. Then I saw a flash of brown right behind the coop. I hollered to my daughter that there was a fox. The window was open and it was enough to scare it off before getting another hen.
I'm mad that the darn rooster did nothing but stand there and squawk. Didn't even attempt to go after the fox. Woosie.

So, those with experience, what's the best way to deal with a fox? I want to use a hav-a-hart with camo over it. We talked about leg traps, but both dh and I think it's cruel. He wants to learn how to snare.
Opinions?

I wasn't able to catch my fox(es) last year. And I'm not capable of shooting them. So I gave in and bought a $$$ load of electric netting and fenced in the entire back cleared field with 15,000 volts. No more fox. Also ran wires around the coop and run.

oh, and I don't expect my roos to take down a fox. They need to run the girls to safety but that's about it.

 

[featherz]

If I liked the dead bird I bury it. If it made me mad or was a mean hen I throw it in a bag and send it to the dump. If it dies in the winter, it's landfill. If I had to kill it because it had a problem, I cry and cry and cry and then I bury it out by the pond and a couple of mallards that didn't make it.

I do the same. Had a special young pullet (one of a sweet threesome) die recently and she got buried, as did an older hen I liked a lot that was half eaten by a hawk. If it's winter, I have no choice but to trash them - not keeping them in the freezer all winter. My husband said "we can't bury so many deceased chickens (we're talking like two per year) and I said "why not? we have 26 acres to bury them in".

 

[littlecritters]

Thanks Littlecritters!
You have beautiful birds!! Hope i can buy one from you!!

Thanks so much Coupe! We will meet up one of these days over in Highland...

With all due respect, not even if you paid me. They are an invasive species like so many other things from the orient. My eyes hurt just looking at it.

(be aware I just like to rag on silkies, I don't really hate them. Well ok I do but ..............)

Hey Rancher....I think I have a cure for your aversion to silkies. I can send you a box full of fluffy, poufy, foo foo's so that you can see just how cute these little fuzzballs are. LOL.

I would very much love to take the chick but it has to be a hen. OMG I'm just loving this chick though beautiful! I love little silkie eggs but my partridge lays medium size eggs while my white one lays small ones. But quite tasty in the end!



It's only been raining here at night or when I'm at work LOL, I can't wait till this weekend I took a few extra days off. After Saturday I don't go back to work till Thursday!!!! I love it. I'm going to try and work on expanding my coop all the pieces are there it's just a lot going on. My plants are growing it's so nice to have fresh herbs with my eggs. I can't wait for the rest of my veggies to come in. I will also be looking for more worms to add to the compost pile and putting up more of a fence around the veggies. My flowers are looking great gotta keep the chickens away from them. I'm also picking up a chicken tractor for my babies so I don't have to keep borrowing one, and I will be putting in more nest boxes for my older pullets who getting close to laying one has a red comb and waddle and another one getting red. My son thinks one is starting to crow, I hope not though because I can't stand to lose one.

Anywho I hope all is well have a great night!

Usually, I can't sex the chicks until they are 4-6 months old. The better then lines, the longer they take to develop and mature. But I'm wondering if I see some fine streamers coming from this one's crest...which means it could be a cockerel. If it is a boy, he is going to be gorgeous!

 

[Lynzi777]

Do any of you have these hanging up in your neck of the woods? I just noticed them this morning when I was bringing my son to school.


http://www.wbng.com/news/around-the...ple-boxes-hanging-in-the-trees-124436399.html

 

[armorfirelady]

Do any of you have these hanging up in your neck of the woods? I just noticed them this morning when I was bringing my son to school.


http://www.wbng.com/news/around-the...ple-boxes-hanging-in-the-trees-124436399.html

We have them in our area as well. They are to see if there are any emerald ashborer (sp?) in the area. They are slowly destroying trees & they are trying to track them to try and stop their spread
http://www.emeraldashborer.info/#sthash.4zQchNwq.dpbs