She said/He said Who's right? Who's wrong? No one!

[WVduckchick]

I hear you. Breaks are good. It's been over 80 every day, and I'm out working with a pick axe, digging holes for posts to make a hawk proof chicken run. I wish I had an automatic pick axe. BTW, the natural soil in my area consists of a bit of clay loosely sprinkled between piles of big stones. The B*****d was back again, hovering overhead, and flashing his wings, inviting his friend to the chicken buffet this morning. So, I had to round every one up, and at least get them behind a fence, put the babies back in the tractor. Babies were too content foraging, so I had to alternately chase them with a mop and lure them with scratch. My neck, hips, knees, biceps, triceps, lats, and hands are paying the price for the pick axe work. This weekend, it'll be mostly upper body: pouring concrete, setting posts, stretching wire, and pounding a gazillion staples. Cooler weather scheduled next week.

I resemble that remark!

I ache just reading all that work! Be careful out there, and stay hydrated! I know you'll get that bale eventually!

I can toss scratch in the run, and they are on it like flies on .... well, you know...

 

[Cockatrice6420]

I hear you.  Breaks are good.  It's been over 80 every day, and I'm out working with a pick axe, digging holes for posts to make a hawk proof chicken run.  I wish I had an automatic pick axe.  BTW, the natural soil in my area consists of a bit of clay loosely sprinkled between piles of big stones.  The B*****d was back again, hovering overhead, and flashing his wings, inviting his friend to the chicken buffet this morning.  So, I had to round every one up, and at least get them behind a fence, put the babies back in the tractor.  Babies were too content foraging, so I had to alternately chase them with a mop and lure them with scratch.  My neck, hips, knees, biceps, triceps, lats, and hands are paying the price for the pick axe work.  This weekend, it'll be mostly upper body:  pouring concrete, setting posts, stretching wire, and pounding a gazillion staples.  Cooler weather scheduled next week.

I resemble that remark!

Do you have any vegetation for cover? The brown kiwi fruit grow very well here in my yard and have made wonderful cover, grapes, rugosa roses, Japanese honey suckle, raspberries, lilac and lowland huckleberry especially do well for my flock too. My flock is around eighty chickens and eleven ducks and they all find somewhere to hide from air raiders.

 

[Sally Sunshine]

I hear you. Breaks are good. It's been over 80 every day, and I'm out working with a pick axe, digging holes for posts to make a hawk proof chicken run. I wish I had an automatic pick axe. BTW, the natural soil in my area consists of a bit of clay loosely sprinkled between piles of big stones. The B*****d was back again, hovering overhead, and flashing his wings, inviting his friend to the chicken buffet this morning. So, I had to round every one up, and at least get them behind a fence, put the babies back in the tractor. Babies were too content foraging, so I had to alternately chase them with a mop and lure them with scratch. My neck, hips, knees, biceps, triceps, lats, and hands are paying the price for the pick axe work. This weekend, it'll be mostly upper body: pouring concrete, setting posts, stretching wire, and pounding a gazillion staples. Cooler weather scheduled next week.

Ugh I feel for you, I dug all our back acre in the mountain here, hubs did two and said "how the bleep did you dig those holes yourself!" sometimes indurance is better than strength, women sure got endurance and paired with will power of a mule... well you get the idea!

Thats Y I love BYC too, there are a lot more women on here that do the same stuff as I do.

 

[Cockatrice6420]

Ugh I feel for you, I dug all our back acre in the mountain here, hubs did two and said "how the bleep did you dig those holes yourself!"   sometimes indurance is better than strength, women sure got endurance and paired with will power of a mule...  well you get the idea!   

Thats Y I love BYC too, there are a lot more women on here that do the same stuff as I do.  

Yuppers, farming, ranching, culling etc. are not for the faint of heart. I have a black thumb nail from securing rodent holes, the nail polish doesn't cover it very well, lol.

 

[AmyLynn2374]

It sure is... hard for us though, we live way out in the boonies, lol...
Wait'll he tells you how long it took to get here... think he was a bit worried we were kidnapping him...

LOL

I'll have to try this when mine start laying, don't want too many roo's. I don't have the heart to process them and most people don't want roo's, even free 1's

ETA:Thats 1 big a** squash!! That's crazy!

In the spring/early summer I can find buyers for the chickens even the roos after that forget it. I can't even give them away.

well I guess the cats out of the bag . yes I went to Our Rayven's today . could have spent much more time with her and Jim and all of those pretty chickens .she has so many different breeds I can't remember all of them . I even liked the ducks . came home with three dozen hatching eggs . when she says they live on a hill she means it. to get a view like that I would need to climb on top of my house and still not be close . little chickens big chickens and everyone just beautiful . you leave thinking wish I had enough coops to have some of those and some of those and some of those . went there to get Am splits Marans and Cream Leg Bars. came home with a couple of Aruacana's and a couple Sulmtalers too . now to get them hatched . Rayven is just as nice and funny in person as she is on here . got a big hug . getting there and leaving . meeting someone from the gang was great . thank you Ravyn for having me . and thank you Amylynn for starting this thread without you today would not have happened .

and I loved it

That is so wonderful to hear. You know I got the idea for this thread because SC and I always ended up on the same thread and almost always had opposing view points not to mention opposite end of the line bators. I took the suggestion of doing a thread together to share our differences to him and he agreed to participate. Sure I could have started a differences thread without him, but I think we all know it would be a totally different animal w/o his (sometime annoying) personality. And w/o you guys having came and stuck around, we'd just be arguing with ourselfs and probably wouldn't even be speaking at this point. lol So thank you for the thanks, but it's all of us together that make this what I think is an awesome thread.

yep you live way out but I have taken longer to get to work than it took to get to you. it was only a 54 mile drive one way . but I know short cuts 26 miles to meet Jim and 28 fast miles after that. average morning drive to the city hour and a half . next time I follow Jim I 'll bring a race car. well worth the drive to me .and would do it again without thinking twice . but I am afraid of the dark and maybe was a little worried .

now was that two rights and a left or one right and a left .

was daylight when I came here. I want my mommy

That's so me....lol

I'll bring the eggs, but not a chicken..nope, not eating any of my girls. I know I probably could .. IF I had to. If..I had to.

I was thinking the same thing-I'm not bringing the chicken! lol

Ya'll know it would have to be a chicken BBQ. not hot dogs burgers or pork . although if we have it at Walnuthills new place we could eat some of her home made hot dogs I'd be ok with that .

Sausage!

Lmao, nobody knows where the h*** Heathsville is!! We're real close to the Chesapeake Bay in the Northern Neck of Va.

Hey, no one even says "Gouverneur" right....lol

I personally have had very little luck (or experience) with my incubator but had three hens go broody with clutches ranging from six to eighteen eggs. I venture that they were about 90% hatch rate with only a couple duds in the bigger clutches, of course my trying to put other birds eggs in the clutch may have had something to do with it, in that when I moved them from coop to nest the DNA may have scrambled. I'm actually a little scared of the incubator, I will try again, but I'll have this voice in the back of my head reminding me that just because I can cluck doesn't make me a broody hen, LOL.

What kind of incubator do you use?

 

[RubyNala97]

Look what came in the mail today! I took Don's advice and I ordered a "preview" issue before making any commitments. There is a $3.00 off coupon for Purina. I don't use that but if anyone wants it, pm me and I'll stick it in the mail. Off to read...

I am in That boat. Lost 24 last month, my first attempt. Attempt # 2 looks like i will have around 20 babies...

I'm in that boat with you guys. Lost 29 eggs in the last month!! It's just crazy! But we can't give up!

Oh and Amy and Ruby are coming to my camp someday!! 

I think next fall would be perfect for us to take a road trip down there!! I just need the baby to be done nursing, so I can take a break for a few days!

 

[RubyNala97]

I did an upgrade on my phone today, to iOS9 and now the app won't let me add photos. I think it's Ravyn that knows who I should talk to?? Any suggestions?

 

[sideWing]

Thank you and nice seeing you as well!
My bator is a LG (little giant 9200) still air with an automatic turner. My broodies just do such a great job, exception going to the cuckoo marans hen with the spurs...she tries but fails from poking the eggs

, but the speckled susex girls and my faverole that disappeared were great! The susex girls each hatched two batches...no worries on my end, lol. BUT, I'd like to have more control on what hatches and when, hence the scary incubator.

Welcome to the thread! Have you popped her spurs? I have seen it done on cock birds before. Makes them much less dangerous/sharp/thick.

I have dug my bator out after years of neglect. Hatched chicks, ducks and quail in it this year.

Had 1 silky hatch 2 and have a frizzle and another silkie on duck eggs.

I am in western MD. In the pinched in part. Cumberland. Anybody within a days drive? There aren't a lot of chicken people around here and DH has learned way more than he ever wanted to about poultry. Lol

Welcome to the thread!

Come on down! We aren't far.

We should have a Ut BYC meeting in the spring Cynthia.

C'mon lil babies

Still trying to sex our Wyandottes. They're 2 months old now.

How many do you have? Have you posted pics here? It seems like you have.

Hey SC, I found this and thought of you....

Good find!

 

[lazy gardener]

Do you have any vegetation for cover? The brown kiwi fruit grow very well here in my yard and have made wonderful cover, grapes, rugosa roses, Japanese honey suckle, raspberries, lilac and lowland huckleberry especially do well for my flock too. My flock is around eighty chickens and eleven ducks and they all find somewhere to hide from air raiders.

I have a good sized lawn, perhaps 1 - 1.5 acres, am surrounded by trees on 3 sides. The chicken yard is backed up to the woods that border the neighbor's property line. We cleared to the line on that side, b/c the trees were encroaching on our buildings. A lot of dead wood in those trees, all on the neighbor's property, so we're taking that stuff down as we're able. He's happy to have us cutting the trash out. I intend to manage it (with his permission) as I would if it was my own: let the smaller trees grow up, favoring hardwood. But, the hawks wait till my birds go behind the garden to an area that is sheltered from our sight. Then, they pounce on any hapless bird that happens to go there. I've twice caught hawk ripping 2 of my birds to shreds in a 50' area.

Yuppers, farming, ranching, culling etc. are not for the faint of heart. I have a black thumb nail from securing rodent holes, the nail polish doesn't cover it very well, lol.

The only time I use nail polish is to try to glue a split nail together. I'm not much of a lace and satin type of gal! Much more at home with my muck boots and a dung fork.

Ugh I feel for you, I dug all our back acre in the mountain here, hubs did two and said "how the bleep did you dig those holes yourself!" sometimes indurance is better than strength, women sure got endurance and paired with will power of a mule... well you get the idea!

Thats Y I love BYC too, there are a lot more women on here that do the same stuff as I do.

When I discovered BYC, I was totally amazed. It was like finding out for the first time that there are actually women out there who are like me! I get so bored with the typical conversations in a gaggle of women. Family stuff, yeah, that I can enjoy. But all of the other social frippery... I just don't get it! Women gotta work smarter to accomplish the same tasks b/c of our decreased stature and muscle mass. I'm pretty proud of some of the hulking rocks I've hauled out of the ground.

 

[sideWing]

Look what came in the mail today! I took Don's advice and I ordered a "preview" issue before making any commitments. There is a $3.00 off coupon for Purina. I don't use that but if anyone wants it, pm me and I'll stick it in the mail. Off to read...

I'm in that boat with you guys. Lost 29 eggs in the last month!! It's just crazy! But we can't give up!

I think next fall would be perfect for us to take a road trip down there!! I just need the baby to be done nursing, so I can take a break for a few days!

I thought I signed up for it too, but I may not have. Did you still have 4 that looked good for the 22nd?