***OKIES in the BYC III ***

[Ksane]

@lonnyandrinda That would be heartbreaking to deal with, I feel so so bad for you
I accidentally lost 2 chicks this last time I caponized and I still feel sick over it. I'm fine with just the 2 Legbar boys, honestly. Frankly I'm pretty scared of losing more when I go to caponize them.
If we need cockerels for the clinic I've still got a mess of 7 wk old Blue Ameraucanas. Bantam and LF both, just let me know if you want me to bring some.
If we can get Coral to do 2 of the Legbars foy the presentation then I'll take all 4 I just don't trust myself to do all 4 after losing some recently. I do trust Coral immensely though.

 

[bardies]

Had a rough afternoon today. After a full day of errands, activities, and grocery shopping with 4 kids who were rather argumentative all afternoon, I came home to find my babies had "broke out" of the coop I locked them in this morning and managed to chill/drown themselves all day in the deluge while I was gone.

I brought them in and long story short was only able to save about a dozen out of 50. Most of them died in my hands. I had to call my hubby at work to come home and dispose of them and put away the groceries, I had had enough. Urgh! But my 8yo son was so sweet tonight and made me feel much better during our "talk time" at bedtime.

@Ksane I'm really sorry but some of your little boys were lost. I was able to save two of them and I have two other "colorful" boys from a week or two older so you'll still get four. Also lost several of the sexlink boys (Marans X CL) I was planning to use for the capon clinic. I'm sure I still have enough, but mostly I'm sick I lost most of my Langshans, Ameraucanas, and several Cream Legbars (1 boy and 3 girls) I was growing out for myself for next year. Not to mention several Jubilee Orps.

I keep thinking it's been a rough enough chicken year for me and things are bound to be better now.

Should have blocked the door better than I had, I've been kicking myself since I found them.

So very sorry to hear!

 

[MrsDickey]

Going to Clearwater, Florida this weekend!

If anyone has anything they suggest we don't miss (we're parasailing, but that's the only plan so far) let me know! 
We can't afford anything too expensive, but we'd like to enjoy our time (had to go because of sister in law's wedding). 

My family goes to Treasure Island regularly! Love it and I'm totally jealous!! Check out Maderia Beach, awesome little shops and restaurants definitely check it out. My favorite restaurant is Conch Republic..mmmm! Crabby bills is good too. Where ever you go try the conch fritters- I know a few people that don't like them but I love them! Smugglers cove is an awesome little puttputt course very fun and you get to feed baby alligators. Egmont Key is a cool little island, known for sea shell and shark tooth hunting. Always enjoy some deep sea fishing just be careful you don't end up on a charter shoulder to shoulder with 80+ other people . any more questions just let me know! Oh and if you go to Tampa check out Busche Gardens! Orlando has universal, sea world, and Lego land!

 

[lonnyandrinda]

@lonnyandrinda That would be heartbreaking to deal with, I feel so so bad for you

I accidentally lost 2 chicks this last time I caponized and I still feel sick over it. I'm fine with just the 2 Legbar boys, honestly. Frankly I'm pretty scared of losing more when I go to caponize them.
If we need cockerels for the clinic I've still got a mess of 7 wk old Blue Ameraucanas. Bantam and LF both, just let me know if you want me to bring some.
If we can get Coral to do 2 of the Legbars foy the presentation then I'll take all 4

I just don't trust myself to do all 4 after losing some recently. I do trust Coral immensely though.

Thanks, I'll double check what I have sometime this weekend and let you know if we need more boys for "demo." I'm sure I have plenty though! If @Poco Pollo does two legbar boys for demo and you do the other two, then I'll just save a few of the sexlink boys for myself and I think everyone else is bringing their own boys.

It is so reassuring to sit here and hear "chick chatter" from the laundry basket/emergency brooder in the kitchen. And when I checked the baby coop tonight I do have two little legbar girls left, and a boy that I marked at birth as a keeper and am very impressed with color-wise for only being 6 weeks old! We will make do as usual!

Snagged a neat little playhouse on a chicken group on FB; I was going to turn it into a coop but have decided it will stay a playhouse for the kids. Stripped off the sides and laid a new floor last weekend. We will do new walls next weekend. The kids want to paint it red, white and blue. I'm thinking red siding, blue trim and shutters, and white stars on the shutters! We found a better coop for us and it was very reasonable price for what it is. I am going to make a big pen for it next week, cover it with netting, and move my Cream Legbar pen residents into it. Their current pen really only houses about 15 comfortably, I'm sure I've got at least 17 in there so a move is necessary. Got everyone leg banded this week, trying to figure out a system to keep track of hens and their ages. I went with numbered, colored leg bands- this year is yellow. Once the coop is completed my old boy will be sold to another breeder and my two new boys from another breeder are moving in. I also have to start test mating ALL my hens to see which ones are carrying the rouge single blue egg gene!

After we finish that we still need a bachelor coop, two more small breeding coops, a quarantine/breeding pair area and one more grow coop. HA "need".... but no telling when it will really end!

Also found another project for myself, I disassembled the baby crib last week- my 2 year old has been climbing into the window next to her crib so we had to step her to a regular bed. It's an old drop-side crib that I can't donate and it is really too rickety to save for another child (it was used when I bought it 8 years ago and went through all 4 of my kids). I've been brainstorming and I have decided to turn it into two chairs for the front porch, and the leftover "slat" piece will make a bicycle rack for the kids' bikes- no more bikes laying in the sidewalk to trip me! The wire frame that goes under the mattress will make a hay feeder for the goats! Love to repurpose things!

 

[NanaKat]

Rinda, so sorry to hear about the chicks...that is heart breaking. You really have some creative ideas for that crib!

 

[mjgigax]

The injuries are consistant with a big cat. Bobcats usually don't attempt to take down a 75 - 100 pound calf. A small goat perhaps. You most likely have a mountain lion/cougar. They will carry off a large kill and pull it up into a tree for safe keeping. Sometimes the carcass will be covered with leaves and grass. Dogs would explain a disappearance, but they don't leave cuts in the hide like the spoiler photo displayed.

Oh my!

 

[mjgigax]

Rinda, so sorry to hear about the chicks...that is heart breaking. You really have some creative ideas for that crib!

x2 on both

 

[miohippus]

x2 on both

X3

 

[HeyBigRhondaq]

@lonnyandrinda Really sorry to hear about your loss.

 

[Kassaundra]

I don't usually grow sprouts in the growing season for the chickens, figure they can pick their own grass and weeds. But I just got some meat rabbits and so I've been trying to figure a way to grow just a few sprouts for them, that lead me to the old sock idea. I do not have a video, but here are a few pics of what I've been doing for them.


These came up out of order, I have been putting 1/3 cup of dry seed in the sock each day, and b/c of the seed I am using (mistake my hubby got when sent for something else) only soaking 12 hours instead of my usual 24 hours




This is day 4 sprout, I'm taking it out to feed the buns.




They approve!





B/c I'm to lazy to pick seeds off, and the rabbits would chew the socks up, the chicks and broody moms get a windfall.



The socks stay in a to go container after the initial soak, O for odd day


E for even day, so I don't get confused when turning the container



Days 1, 2, and 3 snuggly fit inside.