Texas

[Eliza1313]

My sister and her husband have Emus and they brood naturally. The use horse stalls in a barn for their birds to nest in.

We were thinking of starting with hatching eggs. We have a pole barn that could work, probably in the wrong spot though and full of junk.

 

[jtn42248]

We were thinking of starting with hatching eggs. We have a pole barn that could work, probably in the wrong spot though and full of junk.

Just prepare yourself, do all your research, from what my sister says they can be pretty nasty birds. Not at all like raising chickens.

 

[hensfortherapy]

Ok...so I have two Texas rat snakes...one of which I just caught out of the wild....

Now...the new one was eating eggs right before I caught it...but the one I raised from a baby never has despite my efforts...

So...just to change up their diets and for convenience when they might possibly be "off-feed"...(trust me...dead mice get nasty fast).....I want them to have some eggs occasionally....

So...what I'm looking for is some smaller eggs....I think grocery store eggs may have two problems that are keeping my older rat snake from taking an interest in them...they're large...and have no smell....

So...what I'm thinking is if someone close has some bantams or small breeds that can either ship or I can pick up...I can feed these snakes with...please PM me so we can work out the details.....Thanks.....Doug.

What about guinea eggs?

 

[Eliza1313]

Just prepare yourself, do all your research, from what my sister says they can be pretty nasty birds. Not at all like raising chickens.

We are doing research currently, other things have taken priority. Know we need tall fencing for them, so not until that is in place. Part of the reason for wanting to start with hatching eggs is so they will associate us as the parent. Most likely won't be for at least 2 yrs, probably more like 5.

 

[jtn42248]

We are doing research currently, other things have taken priority. Know we need tall fencing for them, so not until that is in place. Part of the reason for wanting to start with hatching eggs is so they will associate us as the parent. Most likely won't be for at least 2 yrs, probably more like 5.

One thing that my sister and brother-in-law learned was that the Emu meat thing from a few years ago sort of fizzled out. They do however make a pretty decent amount of money selling some sort of oil they harvest from them to a cosmetics company in Dallas. Don't know any particulars just thought it might be another thing for you to research. Good luck.

 

[Eliza1313]

We want them for the meat, oil and eating eggs for our own use. Maybe sell blown eggs.

 

[wilded]

One of our Muscovy hens led 11 little ducklings out of the nest box this morning. There are a few eggs left in the nest so I will leave them a couple of days just in case.

Turned the egg turner on the Incuview off this morning and we are on final approach to hatch.

 

[StelleKitten]

My birds finally started laying! I have pics, just not able to upload them right now because of batteries running out. We expanded the run. It's now 14' x 56' approximately. The top of it includes some of the smaller trees including a whole cedar tree. My birds love it! But I think I need more because now it looks kind of empty. Lol.

Congrats on the birds that are hatching out! Can't wait to do the same.

We are having a bit of a problem with our neighbor behind us. Less than a week after he started complaining about my goat, my goat died. I left and my goat was fine and an hour and a half later my sister found him dead in his pen. I'm worried that he is going to try to poison my chickens. We suspect he fed my goat poison but couldn't prove because we buried him before we thought to have him tested. We were all heartbroke and weren't thinking clearly. It wasn't until he said that he was happy to see us burying the goat that we thought he might have poisoned him. The fool thinks he moved into an hoa. But he didn't. I checked before I bought the property. We are rural and are in an unincorporated area. He's tried calling the cops on us before for burning trash and got told he couldn't do anything about it.

I'm a little sad about this but don't know what to do. My husband and I are going to clear the woods and then run an electric wire so he can't walk up on the fence we have the birds in.

 

[kenmlang]

Ok...so I have two Texas rat snakes...one of which I just caught out of the wild....

Now...the new one was eating eggs right before I caught it...but the one I raised from a baby never has despite my efforts...

So...just to change up their diets and for convenience when they might possibly be "off-feed"...(trust me...dead mice get nasty fast).....I want them to have some eggs occasionally....

So...what I'm looking for is some smaller eggs....I think grocery store eggs may have two problems that are keeping my older rat snake from taking an interest in them...they're large...and have no smell....

So...what I'm thinking is if someone close has some bantams or small breeds that can either ship or I can pick up...I can feed these snakes with...please PM me so we can work out the details.....Thanks.....Doug.

Doug,
I realize that I apologized for being arrogant the last time we corresponded, but this got to me. I have thought this over for a couple of hours, before I decided to respond. You say you are a proponent for the survival of snakes, and that they are beneficial to the environment. Then why are you keeping them prisoner? They would do better in the wild, than in a fish tank in your home. Just like any other "wild" animal. The old saying goes " You can take them out of the wild, but you can't take the wild out of them." If they are hurt, and you are nursing them back to health is one thing, but just keeping them as pets, or whatever, is another. The first law of nature is, survival of the fittest.

When I was a kid (15 years old) I shot a racoon out of a tree while hunting. When she hit the ground, so did something else. It was a baby coon. I took it home, and thought I had a pet, but boy was I wrong. He behaved for a while, but then he got rambunctious, and a little vicious. Eventually he escaped, and I haven't seen him since. He just wanted to go home, to the wild.

The people on this thread are raising chickens, primarily, for their eggs, either for hatching, or for food. In the times we are living in, we cannot afford to give up our food for a couple of animals that need to be in the wild anyway.

I know this is going to make a few of the people on this thread angry with me, but so be it, this is the way I feel.

 

[ShadowsFIAL]

I would get a good guard dog. One that will not accept strangers trying to feed them. That or get a game cameras installed around your coop so that if he does try to poison them you can take him to court!