Pennsylvania!! Unite!!

[Joyryder]

Glad to hear your dog is doing well!!
yeah..they are flying from the coop door to the pallet sitting in the snow..it is a whole 3 feet from the door..

..crazy birds....
I shoveled an area for them..they were all huddled together there throughout the day..no-one wanted to stand in the "mean 'ol snow"...

We had about 2 inches of snow this-morning..just enough to have to move..it was a heavy, wet snow too..glad we didn't get more!! It is beautiful out there though....life through a glass half full...

Hello & welcome from Clinton Co

...the middle of the state...very sure someone here will be able to enable ya!! I mean HELP you..

..
We are definitely going to have to look into some of those birds..cause this store bought stuff is...not so good

..love the birds we have, but really feeling disappointed in the egg numbers-0, but then they are not being given extra light..keeping it all natural does have it's down side..

Enabling is fine. I can over do it. I love hatching and getting all the different colored eggs. Once I was up to 75 chicks and hens, but I lived in Orange Co NY and selling the extras were easy. Now I'm in the mountains. Our town is so small when the campground is full we double the population.

 

[stake]

My Mable and Vicki have not laid since Nov 4. How long do I wait before I worry? And I don't know who is laying the brown eggs but by shape and shade, I would say the other 4 girls are taking turns.

LB:

Most of mine are 'off line' at present...I have a GLW, an OE, and a BCM laying occasionally....

 

[stake]

Someone here absolutely adores the snow....I'm not going to name names.

B:

The other "B"....my pint sized pup is going nuts in the snow...brings out the pup in any pooch....

 

[SilkieSensation]

is that 33 feet by 8 feet? If so, 66 birds would fit quite comfortably. The way I do them, closer to 100 would be in there...lol

I know you stack eggs in your incubators to get more in, but I didn't know you could do that with the adults too. Do some just ride on the backs of the others? I guess that means you don't count the roos either . . . Really, I should just keep quiet, I've often slipped in a few extras too. It keeps them warm this time of year to have the extra bodies in there, at least that's what I tell myself.

Roos don't count if they are headed to freezer camp. Only count breeder boys. Turkeys mixed in with chickens do not count. Meatbirds do not count. Any bird not old enough to lay or crow does not count. Bantams do not count. Any free range bird does not count. This means I currently have less than 12 birds in my 4x12 coop. Yup, I'm sticking to that count...lol

They keep extending this winter weather advisory. It started as being over at 1. Then it switched to 3. Now it just switched to 7! Argh. I wouldn't care if I didn't have to go get the kids from school and then finish Christmas shopping tomorrow lol. I feel really bad for the chickens today. They've been hiding in/under the coop all day. It's so cold and the snow blowing. So I heated up some tomato seeds and juice that we saved for them when we were canning tomatoes this year. I added some hot pepper flakes to it when I was heating it up. Hopefully, that will warm them up some and maybe help them lay some more eggs.

wow...i can't let my birds see this..they would really revolt & leave....

[COLOR=0000FF]Ahhhh, yes. Tweaking the finer points of enabling....[/COLOR]

[COLOR=0000FF]Someone here absolutely adores the snow....I'm not going to name names.[/COLOR]

LOVE!!!

I just don't count the banties at all. They slip in between the big birds wherever there is space...lol

Okay..this is gold...i am going to blow-this up, print it out and mail it to the DH for Christmas!!!..hahahahha.... ****You ALL are really the best group of nutters a person should get to know! ...i am so glad I had some time to check in here!!

My banties are actually in rabbit hutches...so definitely don't count for coop space...lol

 

[AnneInTheBurbs]

Someone here absolutely adores the snow....I'm not going to name names.

Awesome! What breed is she (he?)?

I just don't count the banties at all. They slip in between the big birds wherever there is space...lol

I've noticed that phenomenon too!

I know you stack eggs in your incubators to get more in, but I didn't know you could do that with the adults too. Do some just ride on the backs of the others?

I guess that means you don't count the roos either . . .

Really, I should just keep quiet, I've often slipped in a few extras too. It keeps them warm this time of year to have the extra bodies in there, at least that's what I tell myself.

We can all rationalize a couple more chickens, especially this time of year when they can use the extra heat. Lol

Right now I'm REALLY guilty with the whole extras thing. I have 24 in the main coop right now. .... which is built for 16 :/ BUT 10 are half grown babies, 2 are tiny little bantams, and I have 20 feet of roost space lol. Once the boys that will be processed in the spring get just a bit bigger and I move Midnight and her babies into the main coop, I'll be moving those boys over to the little coop. That way, I can try to distance myself from them a little bit and keep things a little more balanced lol.

Raise your (Internet) hand if you don't have more than you thought you were going to have. That leaves.... Nobody!

 

[AnneInTheBurbs]

I mentioned this in the broody thread but I am going to re-ask it here. Do any of guys with broody ever see them have a little "freak out" session when they get off the nest occasionally? Some one else described it as a "Broody Tornado". The chicken runs-flaps it's wings-flies across the area while sqwauking loudly. It only lasts about 5 seconds. Strange chicken behavior!

 

[chiques chicks]

Enabling is fine.  I can over do it.  I love hatching and getting all the different colored eggs.   Once I was up to 75 chicks and hens, but I lived in Orange Co NY and selling the extras were easy. Now I'm in the mountains.  Our town is so small when the campground is full we double the population.

Campground full in summer. Most eggs laid in summer. Sounds like a built in market! Just put a fridge outside under cover and watch them sell.

 

[OneMountainAcres]

I mentioned this in the broody thread but I am going to re-ask it here. Do any of guys with broody ever see them have a little "freak out" session when they get off the nest occasionally? Some one else described it as a "Broody Tornado". The chicken runs-flaps it's wings-flies across the area while sqwauking loudly. It only lasts about 5 seconds. Strange chicken behavior!

yes! My Midnight did that a couple times but it was the first day or two after her babies hatched. She almost knocked them all over with the force of her wings lol. She hasn't done it since though and isn't a very protective mother.

 

[troyer]

I mentioned this in the broody thread but I am going to re-ask it here. Do any of guys with broody ever see them have a little "freak out" session when they get off the nest occasionally? Some one else described it as a "Broody Tornado". The chicken runs-flaps it's wings-flies across the area while sqwauking loudly. It only lasts about 5 seconds. Strange chicken behavior!

Imagine yourself sitting for hours at a time and then getting up and not stretching. I always assumed it had to do with keeping their muscles in shape as they don't tend to get exercise from being broody, so they exercise all in one big wild burst. I also like to think they are expressing a type of chicken joy and excitement of the forthcoming chicks that are forming in the eggs. Mine do it regularly, it's very common here on my farm.

 

[fisherlady]

Imagine yourself sitting for hours at a time and then getting up and not stretching. I always assumed it had to do with keeping their muscles in shape as they don't tend to get exercise from being broody, so they exercise all in one big wild burst. I also like to think they are expressing a type of chicken joy and excitement of the forthcoming chicks that are forming in the eggs. Mine do it regularly, it's very common here on my farm.

x2.... and I still get a chuckle out of it every time!