Pennsylvania!! Unite!!

[barbiegirl]

I had hatched out a clutch of eggs this May. I had 9 boys left, sold the girls and we were going to be processing them sometime soon. My main roo is in a run with his girls. They have been free ranging for a couple of months now. They always came home at night but tonight I didn't see him. I hope he is hiding somewhere. Even though we were going to eat him I don't want him to suffer.

I love watching them run around all over eating bugs and having great little chicken lives. I am loving the less bugs around my house. Today it was cooler and raining and my cat didn't go out for most of the day. I don't know if that had something to do with the missing rooster.

I don't let my layers and golden laced breeders out to free range because I am afraid of something getting them. Last year I had the cougar prints around my coops.

 

[barbiegirl]

Just found out the schools will be closed tomorrow. That armed guy that shot and killed the state police lives around here and hasn't been caught yet. This is scary.


http://wnep.com/2014/09/16/some-sch...l-be-closed-wednesday-due-to-safety-concerns/

 

[Blarneyeggs]

I have no idea if this link will work or not but I'm trying. Hypnotizing a chicken. I don't know if this is common knowledge among chicken people or not but I've used it and it's amazing lol. I actually just did it to my main roo earlier today to check his feet since there were blood spots near his place on the roost (turned out to be a broken feather). You don't need to actually draw a line though, you can just trace a line with your finger a couple times on the ground and it works

I am totally trying this tomorrow!

So I finally made a decent run that the girls can't escape from. 6 foot high fencing all around. It actually looks much better too, since the fencing is black. Do you think my girls have enough weather protection? They can either go into the coop or hang out underneath it. They were not amused at being penned up today, they only laid 3 eggs and were a bit noisier than usual. I sure hope that dies down after a day or so! They were all rushing the fence whenever they saw me. Do all your chickens do that, or is it just because mine were unhappy at being restricted?

I loved letting them free range but they were digging big holes in my grass and just leaving bare dirt. My DH would have let me go if I let it continue. They will be able to free range after the grass grows back a little. . And then my one girl went broody again....

And although you can't see it, there is clear fishing line run back and forth over the top of the run to deter hawks.

Love it! Especially the fishing line, with the hawks migrating. How did the hypnotizing go?

 

[Blarneyeggs]

I gave little Cookie her 4 eggs this morning how do you all usually mark a broody ' s eggs? I just wrote "cookie" twice on each egg (opposite sides) in pencil but being Marans eggs it's hard to see. She actually got kicked out of her nest this morning by one of my silkies who wanted to lay her egg there (before I gave her the eggs) who I relocated to the nest "next door". Cloud stayed content with that and Cookie gratefully took over her nest again, puffing up and chattering at anyone who showed any interest in it lol. Most of them have been pretty good about using the other 4 boxes. She just happens to be in one of the BIG boxes which are favored. I figure the big ones are perfect for when her eggs hatch. They should have plenty of room to move in it lol. I was concerned that she wasn't getting out at all to eat so while Midnight was laying (the last egg I was waiting on so I could give them to Cookie), I kicked her out and took her to the food dish to eat. She seemed like she was starving but she was still walking around all puffed up, legs splayed a bit and chattering like she wasn't happy to be off the nest but was thankful for the food. This is going to be a fun experience, I just hope she turns out to be a good mommy. She's so tiny, the only bantam hen we have. Those chicks (if she's successful) will outgrow her so fast I think lol

Love this story! Any broody hen story really. I use marker too, pencil can wear off. I just put eggs under a broody this week. I swore I was not going to hatch again until New Years, but I just couldn't break this girl, and there's nothing like watching a Momma hen and her babies.

@Barbie, YIKES! That's some scary stuff. Stay safe!

 

[Blarneyeggs]

Anyone interested in the Montgomery County 4H, there will be an open house this weekend, not just poultry but all clubs. Pony rides, ect. In 1015 Bridge Rd, Collegville Saturday, 11-3?

 

[dheltzel]

Love it! Especially the fishing line, with the hawks migrating. How did the hypnotizing go?

I would not take the chance of something getting through the fishing line. I cover every opening with welded wire or hardware cloth. I figure if a hungry coon climbs the fence, once he gets to the top, I want him to find -- more wire. I hate those coons, and the foxes. I think I might learn to shoot a gun and start trapping the coons myself, just for the satisfaction of plugging those varmints.

I haven't seen any kills by hawks, but then the only uncovered birds are the free ranging ones that we don't care a lot about anyway. I have considered getting an electrified poultry fence, but that won't keep the hawks and owls out, so I'm still using permanent runs and tractors that I have to move every week.

 

[casten]

Located in Allegheny county near border of Westmoreland county!
Any one know where I could pick up a few hens preferrably pullets just about to start laying! Looking for timid birds that are great egg layers! I'm just starting out and new to raising chickens!

 

[barbiegirl]

Located in Allegheny county near border of Westmoreland county!
Any one know where I could pick up a few hens preferrably pullets just about to start laying! Looking for timid birds that are great egg layers! I'm just starting out and new to raising chickens!

Hi and welcome from the Poconos! I am sure someone close by you has some hens for you! We all seem to be enablers here

 

[sharron]

Located in Allegheny county near border of Westmoreland county!
Any one know where I could pick up a few hens preferrably pullets just about to start laying! Looking for timid birds that are great egg layers! I'm just starting out and new to raising chickens!

welcome, westmoreland county here

 

[OneMountainAcres]

Cookie left the nest this morning to eat and everything and I found another egg in there that I had to take but I came back an hour later and she was in the wrong nest covering a plastic egg and someone else's egg. I think she may have been confused by the barrier that I added to the front of her nest box to give her some privacy. Do you think her eggs will still be ok? I moved her back to her box and she's been there the rest of the day. It was a bit chilly this morning when she was off. It's only day 2 :/ how long can she be off the eggs without causing a problem for them?