Surviving Minnesota!

[duluthralphie]

I normally do not mind drop ins to visit and have a cup of coffee or Mikes. Depending on the boots and shoes and the way the person is dressed makes a big difference as to how many chickens they get to see... .And how busy I am..


However, pestering me to take birds I do not want to sell will get you on the never again list. The booties give me a sense of security when they go over clean shoes. I no longer allow kids out with the birds though. It seems most parents these days have not taught the kids the meaning of do "not touch anything." and then I have to go through and sterilize everywhere they touched.

That said, Holm and his sisters are very well behaved and touch nothing. But somehow them seem to talk me out of all the good birds...

 

[duluthralphie]

What's the deal?

Where are you guys? Post already!

Almost 4 hours since my last post and no one else has. I must "share" too much....But I will share more.

I am not sure if I told you Ed is in jail. was in jail all day. He did some major pecking on Ed's butt. I picked up Ed last night and looked at him it was red and had some cuts but did not seem bad. I picked up Ed this morning to show the woman how big Ed is and he looked fine, I thought he was well on his road to recovery.

Ed would do a few more days for assault and everything would be fine.

Tonight I picked up Ed and he was loaded with maggots. Judy and I just spent 2 hours cleaning the would, picking out all the maggots, (speaking of crappy jobs).....

We then used a peroxide rinse to foam and clean anything more out. Followed by a antibiotic and udder Balm, Ed was not drinking but does seem marginally better than when we started. He did eat some shell corn when I gave him a bowl. He can never resist corn.

I have no idea if he will live through the night or not. I am hoping so, but I am also realistic Ed is nearing the end of his life span, I think he is about14-15 months now.

I went to put Blu-Kote on him last night and I was out and of course, I forgot to get any today. I will make a trip for Blu-Kote and udder balm tomorrow. We mixed some Sevin in with betadine and rinsed the wound before sealing with udder balm. I know Sevin is not for use in wounds and external only but I had to give it a try.

Ed is so doggone mellow he refuses to fight or even stand up to any rooster. I am surprised Ed did this to him, he is normally so mellow also. But he is feeling out of place since he came out of the breeding pen, He is letting Sven have the coop with most the hens, this is the coop Ed was boss rooster in last year. I may have to move Ed back into the coop, I was hoping he would move in on his own, but that is not working.

Sven should be knocked down a peg or two anyways...

fingers crossed for Bert.

 

[lvie]

yes Ralphie - fingers crossed for Bert. I did not know that could happen. Poor Bert.

And thank you for clarifying about drop - ins. I was sitting here thinking 'oh, oh. I drop in on Ralphie.' I don't mean to be thoughtless or rude.

Okay. So this critter cannot access the sides of the coop/run at the bottom now because it is surrounded by cement block. And I know it tried to dig its way in under the nesting box kind of back in a corner because I saw the claw marks. But that did not work because of the wiring that is under the buried cement block. So it crawled up on top of the front of the run and chewed on the peak of that roof. I do not take their safety for granted. There might be a way somewhere for a critter to get into the coop/run.

I picked up the hardware cloth today but have not had time to do anything with it yet. So the DH looked up what badgers and coons (a fox would not crawl up on top right?) and possums would not like and found out that cayenne pepper is a natural deterent. Needless to say my exposed surfaces are covered with cayenne pepper. Other than that tomorrow will be a work on coop day.

We have the green metal roof left overs and the DH assures me that there is enough to cover the two peak roofs that are on the coop. I want to cover the hinged lid on the nesting boxes also. But I could do that in something else - i.e., sheet metal if there is not enough of the metal roofing material.

I slept very little last night worrying about the birds Tom has been acting pretty normal so whatever it is doesn't particularly bother him at this time.

 

[lvie]

Did I say that I intend to staple another wall of hardware cloth to the outside studs of the run? It is stapled to the inside of the studs on the inside of the run. DH has suggested that we enclose the front of the coop under the shed roof with wire also so no critters have access to it. I bet he would be very sad if any chixs meet their maker due to a predator. He has become quite attached to the idea of dogs and chickens and a garden with fresh onion and tomato and lettece. Lottsa lettece.

Good night.

 

[duluthralphie]

yes Ralphie - fingers crossed for Bert. I did not know that could happen. Poor Bert.

And thank you for clarifying about drop - ins. I was sitting here thinking 'oh, oh. I drop in on Ralphie.' I don't mean to be thoughtless or rude.

Okay. So this critter cannot access the sides of the coop/run at the bottom now because it is surrounded by cement block. And I know it tried to dig its way in under the nesting box kind of back in a corner because I saw the claw marks. But that did not work because of the wiring that is under the buried cement block. So it crawled up on top of the front of the run and chewed on the peak of that roof. I do not take their safety for granted. There might be a way somewhere for a critter to get into the coop/run.

I picked up the hardware cloth today but have not had time to do anything with it yet. So the DH looked up what badgers and coons (a fox would not crawl up on top right?) and possums would not like and found out that cayenne pepper is a natural deterent. Needless to say my exposed surfaces are covered with cayenne pepper. Other than that tomorrow will be a work on coop day.

We have the green metal roof left overs and the DH assures me that there is enough to cover the two peak roofs that are on the coop. I want to cover the hinged lid on the nesting boxes also. But I could do that in something else - i.e., sheet metal if there is not enough of the metal roofing material.

I slept very little last night worrying about the birds Tom has been acting pretty normal so whatever it is doesn't particularly bother him at this time.

You can drop in anytime as can anyone else from here. If I am busy and can't drink coffee or Mike's with you, I will just say so. I like drop ins..


I hope you get whatever it is, I am a feeling it will be a coon.

Good luck

 

[lvie]

The neighbors down on Cnty Rd 4 mentioned a badger. They have seen them while walking in the woods. Would a coon chew up the wood on the run like this little tyrant is?

 

[lvie]

About drop-ins - especially when I get to know a person - fine with me if they drop in. They get what they get and if I am too busy or gotta get somewhere - I have a mouth and a volcabulary to say something. I like to mix up my day with some visiting.

 

[lvie]

Reading about chicken predators and feeling alot better keeping my flocks in their coops instead of free ranging. I give them a lot of greens and worms and insects that I find. Keep their water fresh and grains/feeds plentiful. Plus I rake out the crud so they are not walking or sitting in it. Very concerned about this part of the learning curve raising chickens. The thing is, there isn't a sound out of them and you never know until they are gone or dead that anything is around. Frustrating. I will get a game camera up.

 

[Bogtown Chick]

Badgers are pretty specified to gopher clean up in fields. I have higher suspicion for coon.

 

[lvie]

Badgers are pretty specified to gopher clean up in fields. I have higher suspicion for coon.

Thanks. Maybe being repetitive here - the wood is ripped on the structures. Would a coon rip the wood apart in splinters? I can't imagine a coon would appreciate the cayenne pepper anymore than any other animal. For tonight, I hope it deters animals.