Hey ya'll...long time no write. Life has been hectic lately, but I'm going to try and get on this forum more often again. We went on vacation to South Carolina at the end of July and from then on, it's been go go go...school starting, and all the activities involved with that (cheer and football games, band, choir, girl scouts, etc.), working, me going back to school for my bachelors in nursing, and just life in general.
Birds are doing good...I had a few chicks come and go over the summer...lost a lot of them and some of my hens also during the summer. A lady I work with has a daughter that works the chicken barns for a grower for Tyson and they go through chicks like you wouldn't believe. I got some from her that she saved, but out of the 10 only one is still alive and doing really well. I got a couple of started hens from her too that were horrible looking when they arrived, but look really good now. I'm not sure what they are as they are just plain white chickens. I got a trio of birds from my mom a few weeks ago. She got them as chicks from the Prague auction and was told they were buff cochins, but they are almost as dark as RIR, so I don't know. Yesterday I found an absolutely *gorgeous* RIR rooster, about 8 months old, and huge that I picked up for $5 from a yard sale...LOL. If he and the cochin rooster start fighting, I'll have to find a home for the cochin, cause the RIR is too pretty to get rid of.
I'm giving away my Pekin ducks to a lady I work with. I just don't have the room to give them what they need...they are so big now and just mess up my chicken coop. I don't have enough room to make a pen for just them that would serve them well enough and my co worker has ponds and such on their property. I'm just hoping they don't become coyote food....
Here's a question for ya'll...my hens have been on strike forever! I feed them layer mash and scratch and keep the watered, but I've got only a few eggs in several months. It's been since my last rooster died....do you think that since I have a rooster in there again, they might start laying again? Some of the pullets are just getting to laying age, so I have hope.
Talk to you all soon....missed chatting with you.
Sonya