The Buckeye Thread

[Turk Raphael]

For the first time in 3 year, I called off work. I would have been a liability had I gone in. We are absolutely going to get moved in and settled before we decide on what path to follow to get our Buckeyes but get them we will !!!

Turk

 

[AinaWGSD]

Turk, I know exactly where you're coming from! I should be asleep now too, as the alarm will be going off in 4 1/2 hours. But I'm too sore and amped up right now to sleep. We're working on renovating a house that had severe water damage, hoping to move in next weekend (though I have no idea how that will ever happen), commuting an hour to and from work each day, managing a laying flock (with broodies coming out our ears, the third Buckeye went broody on us today, after we just moved the second one into a broody crate yesterday) out at my grandma's farm, a brooder full of 3 week old chicks (that really need to be moved up to a bigger brooder) in the house we're renovating. Plus we have a large dog that is down in the back end and needs a cart to get around and is partially incontinent, two boys under the age of 5, my father who acts like a teenager (except I can't discipline him!), and we're getting another dog next Friday. Sometimes I like to just go out to the coop and stare at the chickens for a while to escape from it all! The only saving grace is that we don't have any pressure to pack and move all our stuff right away as my father will continue living in the house we're currently in. But gee, I sure would like to just throw most of it away! We moved almost a year ago, and most of the stuff currently residing in the garage and attic I don't miss at all.

This thread is certainly open to anyone who wants to join in the conversation! The show was most likely mentioned because, even if you don't ever intend to show your birds, poultry shows can be a good place to make connections and get in touch with breeders of quality birds. I really hadn't ever considered Buckeyes before we went to the big show in Indianapolis a few years ago. I had heard of them in passing, but at the time I just wasn't that interested in breeds with only one color variety (and red or black birds in particular). But we ran across a few in the sale barn and they were stunningly beautiful and really sounded like they would suit us well (we ended up passing on them because at the time we lived in town with a small pet flock and didn't want roosters and we thought we should let such nice birds go to someone who would put them to good use furthering the breed). When we had the opportunity to put a coop out at my grandmother's farm, we narrowed our search down to a small handful of breeds that we thought would be good dual purpose birds and we just kept coming back to Buckeyes. But if we hadn't attended that show, we probably wouldn't have even had them on the list of breeds we were considering!

 

[sumi]

I moved halfway across the world twice in recent years, in 2012 and again in 2013. And am going to do it again soon, God willing. The first thing I did once we settled in our new house was order a chicken coop. And then went and bought chickens before the coop arrived. If the company didn't deliver the coop a day earlier than promised, we would've had a problem...

So yeah, I get where you're coming from, but as Bluface3 said above, pace yourself, take it easy and do your research first. It'll come... Your new farm sounds wonderful and it's fantastic that you have things in place for your future flock already. I take it your grandmother was also a chicken keeper?

 

[Turk Raphael]

I moved halfway across the world twice in recent years, in 2012 and again in 2013. And am going to do it again soon, God willing. The first thing I did once we settled in our new house was order a chicken coop. And then went and bought chickens before the coop arrived. If the company didn't deliver the coop a day earlier than promised, we would've had a problem...

So yeah, I get where you're coming from, but as Bluface3 said above, pace yourself, take it easy and do your research first. It'll come... Your new farm sounds wonderful and it's fantastic that you have things in place for your future flock already. I take it your grandmother was also a chicken keeper?

Yes she was. She raised me and my sister from early childhood and we were always happy when she trusted us to gather the eggs, despite the cranky roosters she tolerated. She told us to carry a hefty switch and not be afraid of the rooster or to be afraid to administer the switch! I will never forget those wonderful day. Life was so simple then.

She had a bunch of mixed chickens but they really laid eggs, all year round and we had chicken dinner every Sunday with dumplins, mashed 'taters, cat-head buttermilk biscuits...And these chickens tasted nothing like the stuff sold in stores today.

Sorry for going down 'memory lane'. What I wouldn't give for just one Sunday dinner with the family again.

Turk

 

[sumi]

That sounds wonderful! No need to apologise, you made me smile

Life was so different back then, wasn't it? I remember visiting my grandparents smallholding, the hen that laid eggs on their bed every day, digging up the biggest sweet potatoes I've ever seen, before or since... Buying and drinking "real" cows milk. Good times!

 

[autumnhearth]

I'm going to be taking this handsome guy to the Medina, Ohio TSC swap tomorrow morning at 10am, if anyone in the area is interested. We can't have a roo in our neighborhood. He was sexed as female from Meyer and is 40 days old (will be 6 weeks on Monday). Friendly and curious with people but challenging his brooder mates too frequently.

 

[A Nonny Moose]

Turkaustralorp... "cathead biscuits", a term I haven't heard since I left
Tennessee. Ordered biscuits and gravey a while back (north of the Mason/Dixon) and asked the waitress if
the biscuits were "cathead biscuit". She kinda looked at me like I had two or three
heads. Only in the south... I loved living there.

 

[FireAntFarmer]

Ok, I put together the "Broody Breaker" wire run. Five feet long x 36" x 36" and my poor confused hen is in it now that the rains have stopped for a bit. Going to storage today to get my pet carrier to keep her safe and "un-nested" at night. So today is Day Zero. We will see what happens!

 

[FireAntFarmer]

That sounds wonderful! No need to apologise, you made me smile

Life was so different back then, wasn't it? I remember visiting my grandparents smallholding, the hen that laid eggs on their bed every day, digging up the biggest sweet potatoes I've ever seen, before or since... Buying and drinking "real" cows milk. Good times!

I remember those "good ole days" as well. Only problem was that during my summer visits to my Grandparents; I was the one milking the cow for that "real milk". That was the easy part! Fence building, cattle wrangling, goat wrestling, plowing, combining, grain shoveling, hay baling and hauling and barn stacking, and one bath in cow tank water per week were also part of the "real deal" for me! hahaha......all that and I still have fond memories. My Granddad's boots stomping up the stairs at the break of dawn and yelling my name to get me out of bed. Eating dinner after we came in at dark. Watching Johnny Carson before going to bed. Character and Callus builder...that was my Grandpa. Rough and Gruff as they came but I learned a few things from him.

 

[sumi]

Ok, I put together the "Broody Breaker" wire run. Five feet long x 36" x 36" and my poor confused hen is in it now that the rains have stopped for a bit. Going to storage today to get my pet carrier to keep her safe and "un-nested" at night. So today is Day Zero. We will see what happens!

Good luck! I relented and let my broody hatch some eggs. She had about 12, she's down to 4

Which reminds me, I need to go candle them and see what's going on in there...