Surviving Minnesota!

[MinnesotaNice]

They are beautiful!! Lol they never followed me so they must like you!

The obe hen looks like a chocolate barred or rippled?

Don't take it personal, I give them a lot of good treats to butter them up! I was gardening, so they got worms yesterday and I was their favorite person. I gave them minnows the other day - that was a big hit. They like Jameson, too, but he's always in there hanging out.

Yup, both I think.

I had no idea there were such beautiful colors in muscovies! What do you call the brownish one?

The chocolate I believe is a ripple/barred mix. I was going to ask Al (Al's Quackery) about it. The person I got them from definitely has a white head and dominant barred gene in her flock. I didn't notice at first, but the blue is barred as well.....I think. I never cared for the black muscovies, but all of her blacks have the beautiful purple/green sheen to them plus the barred pattern. She also has a beautiful buff and white hen that almost came home with me. I don't want to overwhelm poor Caesar though =)

 

[holm25]

Oh yeah. Minnows are my birds favorite treats! Nothing they love more than left over minnows!

 

[MinnesotaNice]

I can't remember who was asking about the hardware cloth, but here's a few pictures of what I did with the kennel my muscovies are calling home at the moment. I ended up using zip ties, but will have to replace the zip ties with metal ties at some point. I also completely covered the door and let the HC hang over the openings. I'm also going to run 3ft of chicken wire above the hardware cloth. I have a ton laying around and more is better.

 

[Siggie]

I can't remember who was asking about the hardware cloth, but here's a few pictures of what I did with the kennel my muscovies are calling home at the moment. I ended up using zip ties, but will have to replace the zip ties with metal ties at some point. I also completely covered the door and let the HC hang over the openings. I'm also going to run 3ft of chicken wire above the hardware cloth. I have a ton laying around and more is better.

It might have been me...I had asked about having to bury it or just cover it with rocks....now for another dumb question....you don't cover the entire enclosure with the hardware cloth? I understand that the possums and raccoons can't fit through the chain link but do the weasels not climb? I bought enough hardware cloth to fully enclose the run for my chickens and I am freaking out because I have a tree right in the middle of it (unavoidable) and I am trying to figure out how I will secure the hardware cloth to the tree without compromising the security of the run or killing the tree????

 

[MinnesotaNice]

It might have been me...I had asked about having to bury it or just cover it with rocks....now for another dumb question....you don't cover the entire enclosure with the hardware cloth? I understand that the possums and raccoons can't fit through the chain link but do the weasels not climb? I bought enough hardware cloth to fully enclose the run for my chickens and I am freaking out because I have a tree right in the middle of it (unavoidable) and I am trying to figure out how I will secure the hardware cloth to the tree without compromising the security of the run or killing the tree????

Part of mine is dug down simply because the land wasn't level. The rest I dumped dirt and leaves on top of it. Rocks work, too. And there's no dumb question! We learn as we go. I just lost a duckling and realized where the wire flaws were. That has been fixed and hopefully won't happen again. This is my first time using chain link, so I'm honestly not sure. I did have similar concerns which is why I'm wrapping the chicken wire around as well. Hardware cloth is definitely better. Just use staples to secure the HC to the tree.

 

[Violetsfeathers]

Weasels can fit through chicken wire. Just sayin, dunno if they can climb though.

 

[Siggie]

Part of mine is dug down simply because the land wasn't level. The rest I dumped dirt and leaves on top of it. Rocks work, too. And there's no dumb question! We learn as we go. I just lost a duckling and realized where the wire flaws were. That has been fixed and hopefully won't happen again. This is my first time using chain link, so I'm honestly not sure. I did have similar concerns which is why I'm wrapping the chicken wire around as well. Hardware cloth is definitely better. Just use staples to secure the HC to the tree.

Thanks we have VERY rocky ground and lots of surface tree roots and it is VERY difficult to dig down in most spots but I am going to do the best I can.

 

[MinnesotaNice]

Weasels can fit through chicken wire. Just sayin, dunno if they can climb though.

I'm hoping the chicken wire wrapped around the fencing will be deterrent enough. I hate weasels.

 

[Violetsfeathers]

I'm hoping the chicken wire wrapped around the fencing will be deterrent enough. I hate weasels. 

I have never seen I one, if I did I thought it was a mink or a ferret or something. I don't even know if they live around here. Haven't had any trouble with the chickens. Only predators I had in Iowa were raccoons and maybe a dog.
In Minnesota we only have Hawks that bother the chickens, it hasn't gotten any yet.

 

[MinnesotaNice]

I have never seen I one, if I did I thought it was a mink or a ferret or something. I don't even know if they live around here. Haven't had any trouble with the chickens. Only predators I had in Iowa were raccoons and maybe a dog.
In Minnesota we only have Hawks that bother the chickens, it hasn't gotten any yet.

I haven't seen one in my area, either. I caught a few on my game cam further north. I had a hard time telling if it was a mink or weasel though.