NY chicken lover!!!!

[JLaw]

My fermented feed set up. The gallon of bleach is just for size showing. This is after it settles and the extra water is on top. I love that paint mixer works great for mixing it and so little work. I had to buy a corded drill though or I would blow through batteries on my cordless drill.

 

[rancher hicks]

I starte after 2 days. Fermentation is quick. Even letting the grains soak for 24 ours increases the protein. My issue is I have a bucket near each pen, 13 of them. so its a real time issue for me. and now with the freezing weather, not feasable. If I had just a few chickens and kept the bucket in the house it would be eaiser, but I have too many chickens for that. I appreciate anyone who can do it and keep it up. If I had a heated room in my barn, that would help, but I don't, and for Silkies, they get their crests wet and its a mess. The chickens love the fermented grains though so it you can do it, by all means do it!

I have some questions about these grains. What grains are you talking about? The scratch grains like I buy at TSC? What are the whole oats they sell ? What are the rolled oats they sell ? They're in 50# bags.

Could you use a heated water bucket to ferment grains? I did see a heated waterer that had a 5 gallon bucket wrapped with a heating coil inside another 5 gallon bucket. Would something like that work?

 

[rancher hicks]

red

robin, yum!


Well I'm hearing peeping from Del egg that started pipping yesterday. The EE has not done anything yet.

I talked to Paul Harter and I may not be able to get Del chicks this year. He does have the NH's. Though I don't think I want 25. Still I may order them. Keep what I want and sell the rest. He's nice to deal with and has nice birds.

 

[Tough Old Bird]

Poor Legolas : He sounds like he is pretty smart ..
We dont kill them in front of the other chickens ..we take them down in the woods

I would think that is the best thing to do, too, Gramma.

TOB

 

[Tough Old Bird]

I got my new chicken coop today, for my Orps!!! Another "StonyKill Creation". I love this! Can't wait to move my birds into tonight. (I say move them in because I'm sure they'll roost on top of their old coop waiting for me to open the door).

Wow, that is one dynamite looking coop: pretty and functional. Great job, Stony and enjoy it Lynzi's Orps!!!!!!!


TOB

 

[Tab's chicken obsession]

red, white, and blue

 

[Tough Old Bird]

I just looked and don't have any current pictures of "Pat" Pat to me look like a holstein. White with black spots. And is named Pat after the Saturday night live character.

Pat does not quack and does not sound like a male. Pat refuses to let me know what he or she is

I'll try to get some pics of Miss Penelope and her "babies". Heck Pat and the other mutt are bigger than her

Pat was one of my favorite skits on SNL. So hilarious! Perfect name for an androgynous duck, LOLOLOL!!!

TOB

 

[stonykill]

Miss Penelope and the "babies" who hatched the last week of August.
Pat is all the way to the right. Miss Penelope is all the way to the left.
Front and center is a confirmed Runner male from coloring and voice. 2nd from left next to Miss P is her daughter. She is a LOUD quacker. The last one not pointed out previously is a Pekin/Runner mutt male. Pat is also Pekin/Runner mix.... but a Pat for now...... sex unknown at this point.

 

[marquisella]

Quote: I used whole oats I bought at a local mill. They need to be 65 -75 degrees I think. I do it in the summer so don't have an exact temp to say for sure. The fermenting process starts after just a few hours. Its a natural process. Some people say to add apple cider vinegar, but the vinegar actually stops the process because it kills the type of bacteria that good fermenting uses. I have gone using the same water for 2 weeks, but because its out in the barn it gets other stuff in it, even though I try to keep it covered. So I typically start with new water each week. If you have well water its better. People say that city water with chlorine kills the bacteria, but it works ok for me. After a week or so, you can smell its odor. The chickens love it. Sinnce I use the whole grains, not pellets, I try to mix it up a little with a chicken mash, so they don't miss out on any vitamins. But, they typically pick out the grains, and leave some of the mash. They say you can double the protein in the grains by lettinng it ferment for a few days. So, if you use oats, that typically are about 12% protein, fermenting them will boost th e protein to over 20%. Also, since its wet, they get more water into their systems so in the summer its a good way to get them more liquid. Leaving the grains in the water for a couple of days will start sprouting the grains as well, that is also a benefit. It is a lot of work, I have to strain each scoop full, and then replace the grains I took out so they begin fermenting right away, but if you don't have a gazillion chickens, its not too bad.

 

[Tough Old Bird]

Red............

rum!

(The Shining...A very scary movie!!!!

)



SUNNYSIDE - congrat's on the new egg! Yippee! Do the Happy Egg Dance!

TOB