Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[Molpet]

The wildlife specialist are happy the wolf returned in the Netherlands for a natural balance of wildlife. The wolf causes problems too and many people don’t like it that the wolves live here. Our country is so densely populated and many people like to recreate in the forests. Some wolfs are very daring and even come in peoples back garden.

Recently a mean wolf attacked/has bitten children (not kill) out of the blue and a large forest has warning signs not to enter. In general wolfs are protected, but for this mean wolf there is allowance to kill. The increase of the number of wolves seems to get more and more problematic. But biting incidents with dogs still outnumber the incidents with wolves.

I think there are also more sheep getting killed by dogs than by wolves in the Netherlands (not sure , I have t seen recent statistics).
People tend to blame the wolf after a kill. Investigation (to get paid) often shows it wasn’t a wolf but a dog who killed the sheep. And there us another strange thing going on. Many sheep farmers dont want to make better fences. The cost are low bc the government helps to pay for the materials. But some farmers dont bc if a wolf attacks their sheep, they get paid for the damage.

Lots of issues in Western USA with wolves they reintroduced and livestock. The wolves won't stay in the national Park, gee ya think The livestock is free ranging. It takes close to a hundred acres for one cow in these dry areas so fencing is impractical. When a carcass is found, others have been feeding. So it's difficult to know what it died from. The government does pay for those proven to be from wolves. But it's few and far between that get paid. So it's quicker and easier to dispatch any predator near the herds.

I have mixed feelings about the subject.

 

[Molpet]

Congrats @Molpet on your wonderful chicken tractor photo being chosen for the caption comp this week!
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/byc-poultry-caption-contest-08-08-25-pic-by-molpet.1673354/

Thanks there's some great caption

 

[Mother of Chaos]

An article from The Garden Professors about “The Dirty Dozen” and its validity. The Dirty Dozen is a list of the top 12 types of produce, ranked by the amount of measurable pesticides. It is developed by the EWG (Environmental Working Group), which also publishes a “Clean Fifteen” list of produce with the lowest residues.

tl/dr summary: the list isn’t useful because it doesn’t evaluate risk
- the pesticide level is meaningless, because it doesn’t address actual harm (toxicity is dose-dependent)
- when dosage (number of servings) is taken into account, it would take many hundreds of servings of spinach or strawberries a day to create a harmful level of exposure
- it can discourage consumption of fruits and vegetables

Neither list goes into detail regarding what these residues actually are, and whether they are even harmful to the consumer, and are therefore continually challenged by many scientists as lacking in scientific credibility.

https://gardenprofessors.com/the-dirty-truth-behind-the-dirty-dozen/

 

[Mother of Chaos]

Tax for pesticide post (sorry for the pics through netting - the Littles are still very flighty). Tessa and Willow, especially Tessa, love the leaves and blossoms of anise hyssop:

 

[Labsandchickens8]

A hawk was circling over the chickenyard last week. We ran out and waved our arms, but it wouldn't leave, so we slapped our legs and told the big hound dog, "Go get that hawk."

This prompts him to rush out and run in circles, barking. He's not sure why he's doing this, but he enjoys it, and it's the best way to scare off a hawk.

Except it didn't work this time. Further, the chickens seemed unconcerned about this large hawk circling over them. Confusing!

We kept waving arms and barking until the hawk flew off a minute later. Crisis averted, I walked into the woods to collect sap.

Through the trees, I heard and saw the reason for the hawk's unusual behavior: 2 bald eagles over the upper field! That hawk could've cared less about us noodle-winged ninnies, and the chickens knew the hawk wasn't hunting; it was agitated about the eagles, which are massive, like 4 of those hawks taped together.

We aren't close enough to big water to see them often. I peep them maybe once a year. They're amazing, but it would be stressful to have them around more. They'd grab a Henry or Andre the Giant Chicken-sized rooster in a single dinosaur bite.

View attachment 4046529

 

[Labsandchickens8]

We have bald eagles nesting nearby and flying overhead. They're amazing to see but I thought they would be extremely dangerous to the chickens. Very quick research said they mostly eat fish - I live close to big water- but I'm guessing they wouldn't pass up an easy chicken dinner.
Looking for a picture of the hawk that sat on our back porch.

 

[Perris]

sorry for the pics through netting - the Littles are still very flighty

it might help if you try focussing on the chicken rather than the netting

 

[Mother of Chaos]

it might help if you try focussing on the chicken rather than the netting

It’s a phone camera, I don’t really have that level of control.

But I’m taking a digital photography course this fall and will have a for-real camera finally!

 

[thistlewick]

Depending on the phone, you absolutely have that level of control - my Pixel can capture RAW and you just tap where you want to focus - it's completely manual, with depth of field adjustments and everything. No reason to lug a big mirrored camera around anymore.

Source; professional photographer for a few years, amateur for about 15 years before that.

Anyway - all this Rooster talk!

I removed Chuck and Oscar up to the bachelor pen. Cream and Cracker now have the opportunity to rise to the occasion or.... not -- we will see. They will get a month or so to figure out how to be a leader.

But right now, they're derpy AF and haven't a single iota how to do anything and I am concerned. lol They don't tidbit, they don't escort, they don't mind hens fighting (only at roosting time it seems), they are terrified of the hens LOL

Soooooo, we will see how it goes. If they cannot muster the courage to lead, into the bachelor pen they go, and the next generation will have a chance.

One of the next generation for tax; just love this pic

 

[HiEverybirdy]

Yes! I'm from the South and we ate company casserole! I use my late mother-in-law's recipe

No way! I wasn't sure it was a Southern thing, but that makes sense. My mom was a recent immigrant to the US when I was a kid, so the dishes we ate growing up were a mix of Danish (meatballs, meatballs, and more meatballs) and recipes from either her internationally diverse university friends or multigenerational-deep-South-local friends.

Tax for company casserole: Handsome Stilton looking scruffy as the molt begins. He's been dropping calico feathers everywhere.