Should I buy eggs or wait it out?

[cheeka]

I have 11 girls, ages 14wks to maybe 5mo, and got my 1st egg on Wednesday and 1 today. I am so excited! I just wish i knew who to kiss and am wondering when the rest are gonna start. Yay!

congrats on your first eggs! I say kiss 'em all!

We were sooooooooo excited to see a big pile of Soy Beans beside our house where the farmer had spilled when they were loading up the truck after harvest!!! i went and asked the neighbor/land owner if we could have them, and she had no problem saying yes!!! (she loves our chickens)

extra snacks are always great for the girls and boy

from the little I've read, the actual soybean is somewhat toxic and most chickens won't bother eating them... the leaves from the plants are okay and they like them enough... do your chickens like them?

 

[Bayside Chicks]

dang it... i was excited cause they are eating them... i mixed a bit of millet with them... i dont wanna feed them any toxic stuff... thank you for the insight

 

[cheeka]

we should do some additional research... if they are enjoying them, moderation is usually the rule for things that aren't "great" for health... you're using them as a treat, it's not like it's their entire diet... I wouldn't toss em yet... my gang thinks millet is like ice cream... yum! (I like it too... it's gluten free, tastes kinda like corn, with the texture of rice when it's cooked...)

 

[Wishing4Wings]

dang it... i was excited cause they are eating them... i mixed a bit of millet with them... i dont wanna feed them any toxic stuff... thank you for the insight

I think if you cook them they are no longer toxic- at least I've read that about beans.

 

[Achickenwrangler#1]

There is a list of toxic plants on byc, just in case you are wondering. I'd Google it. Chickens are pretty good about eating what's good for them and leaving the rest behind...as long as they aren't starving they seem to make the right choices.
Funny, maybe if you sold eggs by the carat you'd get more??

 

[jahphotogal]

Arg still no eggs here - the coop has been lit for two weeks (starting 4am) and they are 27 weeks old. They're big birds - Wyandottes - so mature late, but they should be ready now! (Bright red combs for weeks already.) The two others are EE's, 23 and 25 weeks, respectively, so should be going now too.

 

[Bayside Chicks]

moderation on the Soybeans!!! also i was preping the yard for the storms that are coming, so i let the girls out... i heard the crows making all kinds of noise over my head... all of a sudden i noticed a hawk... the crows were beating up on the hawk so it wouldnt get down near the ground and hurt our girls... Crows and Chickens must be Close Friends

 

[cheeka]

I thought I lost my Blu this afternoon... I let them out so I could rake up and give them fresh leaves... and right after I dumped a new load in, one of the RIR's came screeching from the edge of the woods, I immediately thought fox... and scrambled to count heads. Blu was nowhere to be found. I was kicking myself for letting them out (it's really overcast) and was coming to terms with the fact that she was gone when she suddenly appeared in the "little woods" next to the garage. oh man... what a relief! while I'm Wilma's favorite and i think Isis is the most beautiful... Blu is my favorite, has been since she was 2 days old. when I lost Lily, I thought it was Blu then too... makes me sick... so... I'm done cleaning up the outside as far as things that can be blown away by hurricane winds, still have some raking to do, but i may not get around to it, got a new sump pump and am having the devil of a time getting the old piece of pvc pipe off of the old one, so I can install the new one... I called my buds for help, but no go, they have their hands full. back to work, bbl

oh. 2 eggs so far today, Betty's in the nest box, hopefully to be followed shortly by Miss Blu.

 

[Bayside Chicks]

after the hawk came threw the hens didnt want to get near the house this afternoon when it was time for them to come in... i had to do lots of coaxing for them to get on in, but they did! cooked the soybeans and they enjoyed dinner even more

 

[cheeka]

howdy howdy howdy... i'm filthy, exhausted... but I'm Finished! got the new sump pump installed, got abut 11 gallons of water set aside for the animals if the power goes out, and 10 gallons for me... 10 gallons of gasoline for the generator, 10 gallons of kero for the heater if the Nor'Easter brings snow to slam into the hurricane wind and rain... have a full oil tank, but if no power... = no furnace... I never set the generator up to run the furnace or water, altho' it's powerful enough... have fresh batteries and rechargeables are all charged, candles... non-perishable food... stocked up today on dog food, cat food and chicken feed
house work is mostly done, all the dishes and the laundry are done... haven't vacuumed, but I don't care, I can take care of the rest of it when I get home from work tomorrow. maybe. I'm the only express carrier left so if there are a lot of parcels, it's gonna be a really long day.

by the time I finished, it was pitch dark, so I have to stick with my count of TWO eggs for the day, both brown, good job Rose and Violet!