***OKIES in the BYC III ***

[MacGuyver]

Welp, today I spent the morning trying to fix my mistakes from yesterday. It's super hot, so the big new coop is in the coolest part of the yard where it's shaded all day long. I moved the bantams in with the Dominiques, and I've spent the day catching guineas and shoving them in there too. It's 64 square feet with lots of perches and I've got six large fowl adults, three bantam adults, nine large fowl juveniles, and eight guinea juveniles. So far no aggression between anyboy, except of course the silkie who is a terrible grouch. and keeps beating up anyone who looks at her crosseyed. The Dominique rooster and the bantam Cochin rooster looked at each other, walked to the center of the cage while everyone else scattered, and they looked each other up and down. The big guy postured, and the little guy looked at him, turned around and walked away. I imagine the thought process went like this: (Big guy) "I can whup your butt, pretty boy." (Bantam) "Yes. Yes, sir, I do believe you can." I was standing right there with a net just in case, just so y'all know I wasn't setting up a cock fight or anything. They won't all be in there together forever. The guineas are coming out as soon as I can de-snake the old coop, and the bantams will come out as soon as the mama hen gets done raising chicks in the ark. The new pullets and the grown Dominiques will have the hoop house to themselves, and the new cockerels are going into a bachelor pen in the barn. Also, after a couple days in there, I'm going to set them up with a fence so they can run all day. I just need to make sure they know where home is first.

Oh, forgot to mention. I tried putting Charlotte in with the other bantams but she didn't like it. Every time I opened the door, she'd jump out straight into my arms. I guess she's just a pet chicken.

 

[okracefan]

Dang it, Joe!! Stop posting pictures of these gorgeous different colored Cochins! I already promised my husband that the little blue frizzle pullet I bought from you would be my last chicken, cross my heart! How am I supposed to keep my promise if you keep posting these drop-dead-gorgeous birds and I keep thinking, "well, I could get just that one, or that one, or that one"?

Seriously though, those are some pretty birds.

My mom has a family reunion in Sallisaw next weekend. Might have to take her and drop her off and dron over to your place and check out your birds. Love that LF BLG Cochin. Did you get red of Brown / Red LF Cochin?

 

[Elwood Lightfoot]

Poco, I never answered your eggmobile question.

I have been mostly testing it out on the two front pastures and haven't moved it that often. But I will be moving it this week to the back pastures, will run 328 feet of electric poultry netting around it. I plan to move the the netting around once a week until an area is used up, like spokes of a wheel using the wagon as a hub, then move the wagon and start over again.

Been thinking about the misters and shade thing again and think Joe is right that there is a time and place for it depending on your needs. All my layer breeds are very heat tolerant, but I am worried about my Cornish Cross, which are not heat tolerant AT ALL. I'm thinking misters on a timer might be the answer of getting them to butcher weight. I had planned on having them done by now, but alas they have grown slower than advertised. I'm thinking operator error.

Obviously, if you have no shade on your property, then shade fabric would be the way to go. And if you need to keep them separated in small pens, Joe's setup is probably ideal.

Joe, where would you recommend getting shade cloth, what density do you use, and how much does it run?

Hiya Buster, my next door neighbor gave me a couple of old trampoline covers and one frame the material has made a great shade cover for one of my pens I was thinking about adding some height to the frame and making a round pen for young birds, it could be moved easy enough and has a built in cover as long as the chickens didn't start jumping on it LOL I suppose one wouldn't have to raise it but I have issues with crawling into low spaces,
I have misters in one pen only cause it's out in the open (most of my place is wooded) I rarely use it cause it made such a muddy area it did keep the temp down but kept everything too wet, I keep an eye on Craigslist for anyone giving away old trampolines only problem is I live too far out most times to make a trip if they aren't willing to hold it till I get there but I would like to acquire a couple more for pens.

 

[okracefan]

macguyver, sent u a pm.

 

[MacGuyver]

macguyver, sent u a pm.

Got it.

 

[Oceanseve]

Aaawww. You mean everyone who's posted in these last 4 weeks don't have fun or good info?

I have to respectfully disagree <g>. Who is it from a month ago that you're referring to?
I've killed 2 'baby' rat snakes. I feel bad killing anything that's a baby, too. But I know what those 'babies' will have on their dinner menu when they grow up.
Can you engrave your name & phone number on the tortoise's shell? Or even a small plaque super-glued to his shell with your name and number? We found our late Pyrenees, Quinn, protecting a box turtle once years ago. (I miss that dog so bad, he was perfect with critters). Anyway, we painted a "Q" on the turtle and named it "Quinnie's Terrapin". That same turtle hung around for years, probably longer but the paint finally wore off.
Maybe once the initial infection goes away in the turk it takes awhile for the swelling to go down or something.
This heat is the reason I've been in a panic the past few months to get these yards built around the different trees. The willows and Cottonwoods that sprouted last fall are 8-10 ft tall now, I've been babying them. So next summer there'll be lots more shaded areas

I am going to get a dog tag and super glue it to his shell.

 

[mjgigax]

To GotGame Greybear an Oldcowboy an peep with game chicken's prise'es wer still good at the auction . A grey hen went for 15 an a young stag went for 20..They did have a pr of Blue EE's good size an a big beard on thim that went high 20 something each... They sold some nice produce it all lookd good ..Ben out washing all the water bowl's an moving some pen's around so i can mow later ..All the talk about how keep your bird's cool is verry interesting ..Hope to hear more....[[[ cathiesue ]] My bird's did like staying under are porch to tel my wife got out her gun an said put thim up or some wer els or ill kill thim...Keep thim out of the yard so any way you peep keep cool an have a nice day..

I saw that nice EE pair. The hen had the biggest beard that I have ever seen on a female. Her's might have been ever bigger than the Rooster's. We left the auction before they sold and I was wondering what they sold for. $20 is high but, to me, they were worth it.

 

[NanaKat]

cleaning up the house.

fixing up the house and getting ready for when my babies get a little bigger.

some free wood i picked up.

Ready made nestboxe or broodie boxes.....

what happened to everybody that was here a month or so ago? there was always something going on here, now it is very slow.

use dto be a lot of people haveing fun and tons of good info, now not so much of either.

It is a seasonal thing....gardens, children out of school....we all get busy during the summer and some of us only get on line early in the the day or later in the evening.....

I was going to say the other day when people were talking about using the plastic feed sacks for shade or for growing things in, if you will roll some regular acrylic house paint(white usually but your choice) it will slow down the ultra violet rays of the sun that helps to deteriorate them faster, and way back when i was raising lots of game fowl for sport, we used to make 4'x4' round top pens from 2"x$' welded wire 4' tall, using a 12' long piece I think, with a 2"x6" board from for the bottom, then on the ends use the 2"x4" welded wire, some trimmed it ti fit some don't, some put doors in some don't, then I used paper feed sacks laid out flat on the back half over a roost pole centered under them, I would take the feed sacks and lay one out on the sides and see where I needed to tie off long pieces of baling wire, usually centered one and one on each end in about 6 inches, then I would layer the feed sack up both sides like shingles over lapping the about half a sack for better insulation and then when they met on the top I'd use one for a ridge cap like on a house roof, pull the wires up as you go and tie them snug in the middle, you could paint them with house paint also but we didn't, usually replaced them once a year, usually in the spring!!! Sounds complicated but it really isn't, I put cut out bleach or detergent bottles on the front inside corners for waterers and tossed feed on the ground, we didn't enclose the ends so that you had good air flow for ventilation. If I had problems with wind Id use re-bar stakes at an angel on the corners, usually moved the pens at least once a week or more. These pens work great for one or two large chickens, i have made some longer to accommodate a trio or quad of chickens also. Maybe this will help someone. Lynn

Do you have a picture?

I am going to get a dog tag and super glue it to his shell.

So glad you found your tortoise!

Canned more pickled beets today. Yesterday harvested the corn and pulled the stalks for the cows. We have a calf tht has a broken front leg. Most likely another cow stepped on it. We finished getting him and his momma into the front lot and will keep it in the shade. Had to lay across the calf in the back of the Ranger while Momma was blowing snot trying to keep up with us. Brahma moms are truly good mommas.
Why is it these things happen on weekends? Going to rig up a splint and cast for it in the cooler morning hours when BIL is here. The calf gets around nicely on three legs...even runs, but the break is clean and the lower leg kind of swings....for lack of a better descriptor. The calf is two weeks old and I recall Bill's description of his encounter with his 250 pound pig getting a shot...surprising how big a fight these babies can put up when you try to pin one down for doctoring.
As for the heat...104 degrees right now in Meeker. Lost a 9 week old pullet in the brooder room under the swanp cooler. I still have a big bolt of drapery fabric for shade cloth for this year....OSU orange. Worked good last year and those stand up hose misters are nice too for a pen. I use one attached to the swing door of the dog pen yard.

ell, going back out to move the water sprinkler in the garden and to check on the geese.

 

[Poco Pollo]

Buster52 - Thanks for the egg mobile information. Mine isn't built yet, but the plans are on paper and the lumber is in the barn. My boat trailer has hay on it right now, but it's destined to be the movable base for my venture. I'm collecting the necessary accessories, like the electric netting, so that I can have an operational egg mobile next season. I like the wagon wheel description for access to fresh grass. That makes a lot of sense to me.

We spent the entire day (Saturday) in OKC attending MIL's & FIL's 50th wedding anniversary party. I took photographs (about 250) and now need to sort through them to see which are worth burning to a disk for Mom and Dad. I got to meet a lot of extended family, and next weekend we'll repeat the trip to OKC to attend Opa's 105th birthday party. It was a great day. I milked the does early and then late when we arrived home (after midnight), so they are off their schedule. I hope they will be back on track before next weekend. I took frozen milk to Mom, and all the eggs I'd gathered Saturday morning, and was not in the least surprised to hear, when I was introduced to friends of MIL and FIL, "So, this is the Chicken Lady who is married to your son." I'm not Coral, or Cory, or even John's wife: I am the Chicken Lady. I hope this isn't a bad thing.

Keep posting, everyone. I'm enjoying all the photos and talk.

 

[artsyrobin]

Quote:
usually after a get together it is quiet for awhile, and with summer and the heat- it can be expected....

my faverolles aren't even panting today, they are snuggling the ice jug..