Show Off Your American Gamefowl and Chat Thread!!!

[bosingleton]

Buy or breed these?

Bought these from Chandler Gamefowl farm.

 

[centrarchid]

@sdm111

What do you do beyond putting covers on for your birds when freezing rain strikes? Mine have covers on but if like most events the mist still gets everything slick. Snow and rain do not bother me but freezing rain does. The chickens have hard time like wild birds and squirrels when it comes to hanging on to roost. I will be taking roost down to bang them on something to dislodge ice.

 

[doubleleft]

My hawk battle today. Before heading out to check on things early this morning I let a bunch of young birds out. Assumed Coopers coming in multiple times a day would not be an issue because of all the adult chickens out at well including a stag that really had an interest in hawks. Came home a few hours later to find adult females Cooper's eating the smallest stag in the bunch of young ones let out. Coopers had the uh oh look when it saw me and I could not get my camera fast enough so I gave chase. It was able to fly up maybe waste high holding carcass remains. It went straight along path dog took towards bamboo batch in back ground. It got through patch then found down hill opening and took that to escape.

Fun part was the old, overweight carcass with busted ribs could not keep up. Man it hurt trying chase dang bird. All young birds penned back up. This not same hawk that comes in most of the time. Means I got at least three hunting me, juvenile male and female, and this adult female.

Man O Man , you live in Missouri and don't have to put tops on your pens ?

 

[centrarchid]

Man O Man , you live in Missouri and don't have to put tops on your pens ?

During much of the winter, no covers used where they are otherwise protected from elements like provided by the bamboo. Wind breaks more important. Exception comes with freezing rain events like expected for next couple days. Feathers are very well suited for the exposure. No problems when birds in good feather and nutrition. They may eat more but all do when not under milder thermal conditions. Covers put back on once temperatures consistently back in the 60;s or expected to get into 80's F. Heat is the bugger, especially before birds acclimate to it in the spring.

Penned birds in more exposed locations have shade cloth like used on greenhouses placed on them. Some of those pens proved problematic with wind as reported a couple days back. Normally those pens shed covers when wind really strong. Normally.

Next year I will push pens in closer to bamboo but need to be able to keep raccoon out of it first.

Free-range birds sometimes roost in locations far more exposed than shown, Getting 30 feet up into an oak tree makes for some serious weather exposure and they seem very keen on being in the sun when it is below 50 F in the morning.

 

[sdm111]

@sdm111

What do you do beyond putting covers on for your birds when freezing rain strikes? Mine have covers on but if like most events the mist still gets everything slick. Snow and rain do not bother me but freezing rain does. The chickens have hard time like wild birds and squirrels when it comes to hanging on to roost. I will be taking roost down to bang them on something to dislodge ice.

nothing. All my domes are 4wide 5deep and 4ish high. A 5'6" x 7'6" tarp completely covers with a little hang over in the back and a little more than a foot vent on each side bottom. The ground gets wet but the roost stay dry cause I have them mostly in an angle right front to left back real high. They can't stand up on the roost. They roost towards the front but as long as they roosting they dry. And I use straw to keep their feet above the slush. I tried hay ONCE it held moisture and molded and I had to clean it all out which sucked

 

[sdm111]

I have never had a hen come at me like that unless she had chicks. Cock stirred up by hen is not a big deal. What you wearing for spurs to get hung up? You putting testosterone in their water?

the pullet was by the door I went to walk in and I guess I got all up in her business cause when I went to pass she started. The stag didn't flair and bow he came head back feet out then billed my jeans and started wailing to the point of rolling around still billed and slinging feet. It had to be my leather steel toe boots that knocked the spurs off. Right now I can't hold any cause last Friday I smashed my ring finger between a 250cu.ft. nitrogen cylinder and a table pretty painful and can't do anything with it

 

[centrarchid]

Most of my pens of similar dimensions. A few are lower and birds get cycled out of those. My hay use with pens on ground is more for nutrition so not enough applied nor long enough to have moisture issues. Pens here moved about to keep them on grass. Straw sometimes used but it does not stay in pens more than a couple days. More extensive use of hay reserved from raised pens and those in barn where it is generally a lot drier. Hay in barn consumed in a big way even when low quality fescue. Alfalfa and red clover hays I like better but hard to get around here.

The slushy ground, generally is not a problem. Winter location for pens, even though on relatively level ground is well drained. Spring and summer much more a problem and need to be resolved or area used needs to be moved.

I have used more extensive covers like you use and that is when birds can look wet. Moisture in air gets trapped and condenses on cover only to rain back down. The moisture I think comes of the ground itself while it is still warmer than the air. The protecting of the ground slows the cool down process.

Freezing rain is handily the biggest worry I have during winter. It has not started yet but still messing with my sleep. I dumped waterers so no need to stomp ice out before refilling this morning. No fun stomping something when other foot is on very slick ground.

Also may have fun keeping fence hot if gets a 1 inch cylinder of ice around it or better yet, we loose power because lines taken out by trees. My dream is to loose power for a couple days. Solar charger backup does not have the same kick needed to entertain critters testing perimeter.

 

[sdm111]

The purple and green I can do all day long. Using pink I feel like I should be wearing skinny jeans. Kinda like a little girls craft kit
I keep all my pink furs and feathers in a gentlemans tactical satchel for safekeeping.

tactical satchel

 

[centrarchid]

the pullet was by the door I went to walk in and I guess I got all up in her business cause when I went to pass she started. The stag didn't flair and bow he came head back feet out then billed my jeans and started wailing to the point of rolling around still billed and slinging feet. It had to be my leather steel toe boots that knocked the spurs off. Right now I can't hold any cause last Friday I smashed my ring finger between a 250cu.ft. nitrogen cylinder and a table pretty painful and can't do anything with it

No flaring by stag is what I expect when is not concerned about dominance. He is simply saying it is time to go. Pullet deal is outside my experience. The ring business I can relate to, although with oxygen cylinders and truck beds.

 

[sdm111]

Most of my pens of similar dimensions. A few are lower and birds get cycled out of those. My hay use with pens on ground is more for nutrition so not enough applied nor long enough to have moisture issues. Pens here moved about to keep them on grass. Straw sometimes used but it does not stay in pens more than a couple days. More extensive use of hay reserved from raised pens and those in barn where it is generally a lot drier. Hay in barn consumed in a big way even when low quality fescue. Alfalfa and red clover hays I like better but hard to get around here.

The slushy ground, generally is not a problem. Winter location for pens, even though on relatively level ground is well drained. Spring and summer much more a problem and need to be resolved or area used needs to be moved.

I have used more extensive covers like you use and that is when birds can look wet. Moisture in air gets trapped and condenses on cover only to rain back down. The moisture I think comes of the ground itself while it is still warmer than the air. The protecting of the ground slows the cool down process.

Freezing rain is handily the biggest worry I have during winter. It has not started yet but still messing with my sleep. I dumped waterers so no need to stomp ice out before refilling this morning. No fun stomping something when other foot is on very slick ground.

Also may have fun keeping fence hot if gets a 1 inch cylinder of ice around it or better yet, we loose power because lines taken out by trees. My dream is to loose power for a couple days. Solar charger backup does not have the same kick needed to entertain critters testing perimeter.

seems we have 2 different living conditions mine is warm, high humidity and more rainy in general it seems. All my pens are staked cause hurricanes or squall lines when the fronts move through and meet warm damp air can have pretty strong winds and with so much roofing they would definitely fly away. Everybody can pick and choose what parts suit them but I what works for one doesn't work for another