Pennsylvania!! Unite!!

[OneMountainAcres]

well, I put Fria back out in the coop a while ago. I put her right with her mama, brother and sister. First thing Midnight did was pick up a piece of food and give it to her lol. Everyone just accepted her back like she was supposed to be there. The other adults didn't even glance twice at her Fria is the one in the middle and Wynter is off to the right. You can still see the blue kote on his neck.

 

[hendricks115]

Can I get some opinions on incubators?

For the past few years, we have used this big gigantic one from my husbands gun club (they stopped hatching pheasant) but we had a lot of problems last year. First batch of 40 eggs fried due to a temp spike. We set a second batch of chicken, slate blue turkey and Muscovy ducks and all was going well but then the motor started to freeze up and it wasn't turning the eggs. We had to watch it carefully for temp issues. I believe it may be taking a poo so we've decided to look for something else. We took it apart but something still is not right. (it wasn't taken care of very well before being given to us)

I want to buy eggs this year as well as set our own but I refuse to do it in a machine that's malfunctioning.

 

[Free Feather]

well, I put Fria back out in the coop a while ago. I put her right with her mama, brother and sister. First thing Midnight did was pick up a piece of food and give it to her lol. Everyone just accepted her back like she was supposed to be there. The other adults didn't even glance twice at her

Fria is the one in the middle and Wynter is off to the right. You can still see the blue kote on his neck.

What happened to her?

 

[fisherlady]

Quote:
Awesome!!!

 

[OneMountainAcres]

Can I get some opinions on incubators?

For the past few years, we have used this big gigantic one from my husbands gun club (they stopped hatching pheasant) but we had a lot of problems last year. First batch of 40 eggs fried due to a temp spike. We set a second batch of chicken, slate blue turkey and Muscovy ducks and all was going well but then the motor started to freeze up and it wasn't turning the eggs. We had to watch it carefully for temp issues. I believe it may be taking a poo so we've decided to look for something else. We took it apart but something still is not right. (it wasn't taken care of very well before being given to us)

I want to buy eggs this year as well as set

when I was looking for an incubator, a lot of people recommended the hovabator. I have my loaded right now for the first time. Most of the eggs are developing, temperature is constant and humidity looks great. I recommend it. I have the model 2362E.

 

[OneMountainAcres]

What happened to her?

Fria had been inside for a week, recovering from sour crop. Wynter had somehow had the skin and feathers ripped off the back of his neck about a week and a half ago but he's recovering nicely

 

[chippysmom327]

Our egg basket is becoming more colorful!... ...and so are our chick colors. Day olds. Cuddlebugs almost a week old

Wow... flock goals

Congrats!

 

[LittleMissPurdy]

I use it for especially cold days. They gobble it up in a jiffy, even if they are "full" from the mash. It's supposedly a "heat" grain, they digest it quickly and easily and convert it to heat. So they say. The chickens haven't told me otherwise anyways, lol.

i have read the same..that is why i am more interested in it this time of year...thank you.

To can or freeze primarily depends on intended use and freezer space..... though having a freezer go bad or a long power outage can result in loss of all product in a worst case scenario. So canning some and freezing some guards against that.

I don't do anything special to the meat, nor does it have any different taste really but it does shred easier than fresh bird. The biggest benefit is that even a skinny bird or an older bird becomes soft and easily used rather than needing special preparation to make it chewable or appetizing.

We like to do a lot of stir fry and other recipes that call for chunked chicken. Having it already cut up and ready to go into a recipe on short notice makes it simpler for meal prep if I have forgotten to get something out to thaw.
The canning process actually cooks the meat so you can even have it as is out of the jar, we do a lot of fresh salads which I add chunked pepperoni, ham and/or chicken to for a meal, and DH likes 'chicken salad' sandwiches, so all it would need is dumped out of the jar, drained and just add mayo and any other wanted ingredients for a quick lunch.

Our first run of the canned chicken was 5 extra roosters, we stripped all of the meat off of the bone without any real effort, and processed all of the normal 'scrap' right away in a large bulk to make our 'chicken balls' to feed back to the birds or give to the dogs as treats over their food. By doing all 5 roos at the same time we ended up with about 15 cupcake sized servings of protein treats which we have in the freezer also. When we freeze the chickens individually and pull it out to make a single meal you end up with a rather small quantity of bones each time, you would either need to store it until you have enough to make it worth processing or throw it away, which to me would be a waste.

With it just being DH and I the majority of the time we only need 12 to 16 oz of meat for a meal, this is about a pint size jar, so serving size wise it means fewer left overs.

There are times you just can't beat pulling out a bag of legs/thighs and making a good old pot of chicken and dumplings, or a roast of whole breast baked in a bed of home made stuffing (dinner last night, actually) but having the variety options available with the canning just means chicken can be used even more often than it was before.

i my gosh..seriously..I was reading this and my mouth is watering so bad right now..i need a napkin..hahaha, gosh i do miss this...
I want to do some of our meaties like this. I have a small pressure cooker/canner, was given to me..it is an old one, but will do the job..I just need to work up the 'will' to use it....(.

, me trying to be cool about Not blowing it all to the ceiling)

 

[LittleMissPurdy]

Such a special sound...
Do you smile with each ping like I do ?

Didn't do meat today, did a bunch mandarin oranges and some kiwi.

you canned the oranges and kiwi?...I am very curious now....

 

[troyer]

Awesome eggs! And the chicks are so cute!

. Thank you again for the fertile eggs. Having the chicks has really brightened my spirits when I've needed it.

You are quite welcome. It was our pleasure to be of service to you.

So cute. Now I want to run out and start looking for a new incubator right now. I so need to buy some eggs from you.

Well now, that is a probable option.

Getting worried....has anyone heard from CC, his profile says he has not been on here in 3 days...
Would it be rude to just pop in at his house.

Just pop in.