Pennsylvania!! Unite!!

[dheltzel]

I have 4 of the Mottled Black hens (3 from Porters) and they are wonderful pets, and very pretty. Last I checked Porter's site, they were sold out for the season except for a very few varieties. I don't think you will be able to get BM poults from Kevin until 2015 (and even then you should get on his list soon, I would think).

My problem is that I need a tom now. The hens are squatting constantly for us and I expect they will start laying soon. Does anyone know where I can get a full grown tom, preferably a Royal Palm (or Black Mottled, but those are quite rare compared to the RP's). A RP tom will produce 50% black mottled with my hens (and 50% RP's, hopefully extra nice because of the outcross). Kevin Porter told me that he uses that cross to get more Black Mottleds (they don't breed true, but throw RP's and Black Marbleds, which are a little different)

If you can help me find a RP tom, I'll try to get some Mottled Blacks hatched and you'll be first on the list!

 

[SilkieSensation]

I can get you a bourbon red tom if you want him. He's 1 I hatched last spring & my friend took him & spoiled the heck out of him. She is moving soon & has to return him. I was going to see if I could make some red palms or red slates with him.

 

[dheltzel]

I was hoping not to introduce red genes. I think I can find BR's more local if I need to go that route, but I will keep you in mind. It's quite a haul over to Ohio from the Philly area. I know a few people that have royal palms. I really didn't want to get the tom until the hens were ready to lay. I'm not sure if the fact that they want to be bred means they are close to laying, or if they are just wanting to have some fun. Anyone know if 1st year turkey hens start laying this early?

I wish spring was here so that adding more pens for quarantine and such wasn't such a hassle with the water freezing.

Actually, I just wish spring was here cause I'm sick of winter . . .

 

[Sally Sunshine]

What I made yesterday and today:

It's a hat for a two year old. Are the eyes too far apart or are they ok?

LOVE!

 

[Sally Sunshine]

to Sally Sunshine and

anyone else who has used pallets to make a coop.


I am looking at the HInkel Haus in the coop section to help me in my ideas.

I might make a little smaller.....to save on some wood costs.

Altought all the walls are pallets you are still covering the pallets with plywood...........
and the floor as well.



anyone else have coop designs with pallets for up to 10 chickens?

Actually, if you can find DISCOUNTED sticky tile or rolled lenolium on the tight wood pallets that would work, some people add ripped strips of wood in between the slats, I just use really thin cheap plywood since the structure under it is already so strong. And the roof we use 2x3s and if you add more 2x3 you can get away with cheaper thin ply as well.

IF you ask for SHINGLE pallets those are pallets with close together boards, and my favorite to work with. Did you see the hoop coop that was featured on the main page? what that pic didnt show is the WHOLE BOTTOM was PALLETS! I wish they would have adjusted the image to show that! Glad I opened it, we may do for meaties since its easly taken down, we wont use pvc though we will ust 2x3s again as they are extremely cheap. https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/the-chicken-chapel



edit to add, they do have those ugly commercial tiles that you need glue to stick at lowes but they only cost 50 cents or something, those are strong and thick!

 

[Sally Sunshine]

Things are coming along, this is where we left off on Friday.


Framing things out for the hen boxes, and roof on..



This side is pretty much done, two windows up top, and lids for the hen boxes. Still need some work inside, and gota finish the sides and the doors. Then once weather breaks, going to outside.

perfecction

 

[PeakyBeaky]

Things are coming along, this is where we left off on Friday.


Framing things out for the hen boxes, and roof on..



This side is pretty much done, two windows up top, and lids for the hen boxes. Still need some work inside, and gota finish the sides and the doors. Then once weather breaks, going to outside.

 

[chippysmom327]

Hi all you wise & wonderful keepers of the birds.....I have been noticing for the past week or 2 that I am getting eggs that are a tad oddly shaped, shell is rough to the touch & the color is much paler than I usually see.  I just have the 2 Buff Orpingtons that are laying right now but I'm not sure which on is laying that egg.  Is this something I should be concerned about?  The cracked eggs look good inside & taste as delicious as the nice brown ones I had been getting prior.  We just introduced 2 new members to our 2 resident Orpies and they seem to be integrating pretty well but I was wondering if stress could cause it.  This seems to have started a little after the time the new birds came.  Thanks.

What do you give them for calcium?

You got new birds!!! I remember you saying you wanted some! What breed?

 

[beaglady]

I'm curious, why did you pick Narragansett? We spent the day looking at turkeys and comparing the different breeds, I thought the Narragansetts were beautiful, but my son is leaning toward the Bourbon Reds, which I hear are delicious.

IIRC, the Slow Food study where they decided that the BR's were tastiest didn't include any heritage breeds. I've had BR's, slates, black Spanish over the years, and never noticed a difference in taste between heritage breeds. We will be investigating the taste of a Narri tom next weekend.

Does anyone think the chicken run has too much fertilizer for planting? I am still trying to understand that kind of stuff. Along with the poo, there is sand, pine bedding, and leaves. Hey, a lot happens in two years.

Oh, and Lisa, the apps say that a lot of the seeds should be started in early February.

A lot of us want turkeys this year. I am pretty sure we will let others know what/when we are getting our poults so others can get some too.

I've planted right on top of areas that used to be duck runs. As long as it sits for a year, you'll have no problem.

If enough people want BB Bronze turks early in the season (late May or early June) I would be willing to get a large order and brood them for a few days. I like to get mine early, so they can spend most of the summer eating clover, then process most in October for sausage and turkey parts. I usually just keep one until Thanksgiving. They will be around 25# dressed by October. Shoot me a pm if you might want to be in on this. OK, I just checked pricing. I may end up with BB whites, cause I can get them from one of the local hatcheries for a lot less per bird.

 

[LittleMissPurdy]

LMP, the Tylan 50 is like a "regular" antibiotic. The Tylan 200 is an "extended release". .1cc and 1mg is the same thing, you are on the right track. For the Tylan 50, as long as she is still eating with the bread method, give her .1cc per pound of body weight. So if you hen is 5 lbs. her dose is .50cc The antibiotic should be administered for at least 5 days. If you bird does not show significant improvement with in the first 48 hours, give for 7-10 days. Because you are giving her the meds orally, do not give her any pro-biotic within a couple of hours before and after the dose is given. Wait until she has had time to properly absorb the antibiotic. Then you can give her some yogurt, or whatever you use for pro-biotic. Don't put it in her drinking water, unless you keep it from her for the 4 hours around dosing time. If you have any questions, or feel like the Tylan is not working for you it could be: viral, change in surroundings, fungal, or environmental (change in shavings, feed, etc.). There are antibiotics that is not Tylan the work really well too. Hope this helps! I feel like I need to give a disclaimer, I am trying to help you with your Tylan dosage. My brain goes crazy and tries to cover every aspect, and forecast any questions you might have, or keep you open to the possibility that this treatment might need altered.

Thank you Heather. I had done quite a bit of research..took awhile to find exactly what I needed to know. You have also summed it up very well too..Thank you again- Danielle