I would have screamed like a little girl. I know this b/c I've done it before to a foot long baby garter snake. Things with no legs shouldn't move that fast.Derps will attack, harass, pretty much anything but they don't do snakes? Had to relocate a big black snake from inside the coop while they just watched...ok, ok, Lulu broody screeched at it but really? Hubs sitting on his can inside while i'm snake wrangling, at least it didn't poop on me.
The hornets are the worst here. One got my daughter on the foot last year and it took weeks to heal. Monsters.Seriously!!!! Are you wanting ALL of us Squatchers to move there????
Sounds divine compared to most other places.
@apryl29
I put yellow jacket traps out and do catch quite a few. We certainly don't have the variety that you get!
we have honey bees, gigantic bumble bees, yellow jackets, paper wasps, mud daubers, and such as that. It's the yellow jackets and paper wasps that are the most troublesome.
My idiots would be pecking at the rocks and trying to eat them (picture hei-hei from Moana).. at least that's how I suspect they'd act based on how they react to painted finger and toe nails.Oh lordy what a time getting those derps up. I painted the paving stones so of course ya'll know the world came to an end....omg! The rocks are yellow and lavender now ohhhh taters run away!
That's adorable!Morning, and good night. Coffee and water are on, crepes, quiche and French toast are made, and there are gluten and dairy free versions of each.
I've discovered that Lizbeth likes the final performance at the end of the movie Pitch Perfect 2. All of the birds like movies and shows the kids and I put on, but not so much the ones DH watches. I find it funny, except he doesn't change the channel when they let him know they don't like what he has on. I listen to them and if they don't like it, I compromise, which doesn't happen that often. They tend to like shows about destruction and human suffering, as well as most of the shows one Nick Jr. They like animated and colorful stuff, and the parakeets have s picture book that I turn the pages of every few days. The favorite is Paw Patrol. Yes, I buy children's picture books and movies for the parakeets and chickens...
Have a great day. See y'all in a few hours.
Oh wow. That's really scary. How weird that everyone was ok w all the screaming.Morning everyone!
Oooohhhhh breakfast!! YUMMY! Thanks Anansi you sweet breakfast making, book buying, tv sharing wonderful person.
CCCRRRRAAAAZZZZYYYY night here.
Everything started out normal, but then most nights do.
At 2:30am hubby and I are woke up to blood curdling screams coming from the back yard. The coop in the back yard......at least it seemed.
I jump out of bed stepping into slip on shoes. Hubby jumps up and grabs a handgun. I keep several flashlights in the drawer by the door so grab two. This whole time the screaming is going on.
The dogs charge out the door.....it leads into my shop and their kennel. They head to the kennel and us to the coop. I have flood lights out back and turned them on while running by that switch.
The screaming stops......I expect dead birds and a predator. I grab a 3' long 2x4 on my way into the coop while hubby in bare feet, underpants and carrying a gun heads into the run.
Over half my flock is not in the coop!!!!!
They were in the run pressed against the auxiliary pop door.
Weird both pop doors are closed. How did they get out there????
Then I recall not closing the doors at all.
Weird they ARE closed.W
Hubby in bare feet and underpants herds the birds through the now open door.
I do a head count while keeping an eye for injuries. The birds don't seem upset.The
Then the screaming starts again!
I think its from my other coop. The coop with my beautiful cochins!!!!
Hubby says NO its from the neighbors yard.
I head next door to alert the very soundly sleeping neighbor. Hubby is standing on my wooden chair in the veggie bed to keep a watch on their coop for whatever predator may emerge.
Their birds are ok although shaken up. Their pop door was also open and their is no lid on the run.
We did smell skunk out back and have several times the last month or so.
Todays project....... Check my run apron, beef up any weak spots in my entire set up.
I think It was 4am when I made it back to sleep.
I never want to hear that kind of screaming again. Horrifying!
Did I mention that my hubby was barefoot, in underpants AND carrying a gun?
funny NOW.
Everyone who leaves does the 'quality of life' check before making the decision. It's why some people stay. In my case, I knew we'd be better off w/o my ex.. plus the fact that when I asked him how long he expected to live he said 75 & I didn't want to spend the next 50 years w/ a psycho. (Seriously, the mental illness runs strong & his family was so kind to help him hide it.) Regardless.. it's not horrible & you're not the only one who thinks that way. One day you might decide you've had enough but just know that if that day comes that you tried & it's ok.Mine will never learn the art of apology, he's too much in to his own little world where he can do no wrong. Even when he blames someone for something, and another person fesses up to being responsible, he will not apologize to the person he blamed.
Sometimes I wonder why I still love him, and the kids would be happy if we split up, but I have more reasons to stay, like love and military spouse benefits that are kept when I outlive him. (I know, sounds horrible, but that is part of it that I refuse to risk giving up)
He's never been an active parent, and the kids are the happiest when he's either not home or asleep. One refuses to be in the same room with him whenever possible, and hasn't talked to him in years, because he played a cruel joke and never apologized, even though she was in tears. So, yeah...
Congrats!!!!
LOL You've been feeding him, so he thinks anything left unattended is for him. Sounds just like a toddler.Had lots of nuts in it so pehaps he's rocket powered now. Greedy schmuck, iv'e been feeding it.
Maybe she left the broody box to eat or go outside or whatever and then couldn't get back in so she set up shop in a new box. The new egg... if she can get out, maybe she's stealing eggs from other nests.
How's she doing today?
Speaking of broodies... I think my Loki actually is broody this time!!! Yesterday morning I stopped by and she was sitting on the nest, no big deal b/c I figured she was just laying an egg.. Nope! She was still on the nest that evening, looking at me w/ her big black sad eyes. She wasn't even ON the nest, she was on the edge. I grabbed the 2 eggs off the floor and started feeling under her. She had 4 eggs under her so I took Jackie's egg b/c it was broken & moved the other 3 into the nest and when I went to pick her up there was a secret egg hidden in her wing! So I put that egg in the nest too and put her on them. She settled right down. I went and got a sharpie to mark them and she didn't even budge, no pecking or anything. I gave her 1 egg I believe belongs to an amberlink, 1 that could be amberlink or tetra brown, and 2 eggers. One should be Olive's and the other is from one of the white ones. Not sure who the baby daddy is b/c I let Odin out Monday and I'm sure he made his mark on a few of the girls, but Olive's baby daddy (IF the egg is fertilized) would be Willie. So we'll see what happens, if anything. I'm sad that we won't get a Loki baby... I noticed a few days ago that she hadn't been laying, but figured it was b/c she appeared to be molting. The kids are very excited even though I warned them that there's a chance she might just stop or that the eggs won't hatch. Just hoping for no more boys!!! If she's still sitting on the eggs tonight I'll have to move her b/c she's in THE nest... so everyone's going to be really upset w/ her setting up shop in there. I have the small cage, but I don't want her to be trapped in there b/c the coop can get pretty hot some days. I might just put her in there and take the door off for now. Soooooo excited!!!
Was she in good, healthy condition before going broody? If so, I am sure she will be fine. But, pulling her off the nest once a day so you can watch her eat and drink a bit won't hurt anything and may help your nerves. Also, if it seems likely that she is not bathing you will need to watch for lice/mites. Have some permethrin spray handy. Oh and in case you haven't read it already, this article by Pyxis is awesome and answered a lot of my questions about broodies. 
