The Front Porch Swing

[mimischicksnat]

If you look at the satelite image of Pleasant Grove now, you can still see the tornado's path, and that's 3 years later... this was right after. That image still gives me goosebumps. We drove through the area a few weeks after it happened..... it's impossible to even imagine or describe the devastation.

I know my husband will sleep better at night, knowing we have a shelter in place.

SCARY stuff! We can get strong winds and there have been micro bursts and smaller scale tornadoes in our area, but NOTHING like this. Glad you will be safer now!

 

[Tomtommom]

It was a "once in a lifetime" storm as they called it. It was like a mile and a half wide, EF5 and went through THREE states

200 folks killed.

Most storms will never get that bad.

 

[heartsizedfarm]

I love the drama of a good thunderstorm but I'm glad I live where tornadoes are less violent and less frequent. Glad you got your storm cellar, is that what it's called?

Off now to hand in my fleeces to the fiber mill where this fabulously creative woman will make the nicest yarn out of them. We're going to blend my white Shetland wool with her white alpaca wool this year, just to soften up the Shetland and muscle up the alpaca. I've been hand picking out the vegetation in the fleeces all afternoon, trying to get done before the rain comes. I only got the white ones finished. I'll have to keep at it on the weekend with the brown, black and grey fleeces. Everybody around here sheared late because of how long winter was. I had to put a woolly vest on one if my shorn ewes because she was shivering so. Felt so guilty. Felt like returning her fleece!

 

[bruceha2000]

Getting serious for just the tiniest moment because I have a bare backed hen. No wounds or redness, but just skin. And summer could bring on sunburn right?

So I wondered what about spraying her back or rubbing something into her back that the roo wouldn't like the smell of? Do they have smell? Because I can't figure out how a little patch of cloth would stay on, even wrapped around wings as they show.

Surprised no one mentioned "Pick-No-More". They certainly DO have a sense of smell. Wave that bottle under a chicken's beak and they back off PRONTO. Not sure if putting some on the head of the hen would be enough to keep the rooster off or not.

And I could hear his voice clear as a bell "Because you're in a *********** thrift shop, stupid! Go to a proper ladies dress shop and spend a little bit of money on yourself for a change!"

Gotta listen to Dad Sheila!

Hubby dug the hole all by himself (by hand) over the past few weeks... they delivered it this morning. Gotta have a surveyor check if it's far enough from the property line, before the county will sign off on the permit... and then put all that dirt around it.

OMG, the poor man. I hope you treated him VERY well during that period (I mean even better than you ALWAYS do

). That is a LOT of hole to dig with a shovel. My back hurts just thinking about it. I trust the surveyor part is merely a formality and you guys are SURE it is an acceptable distance from the lot lines. Too much hole to dig twice!

It was a "once in a lifetime" storm as they called it. It was like a mile and a half wide, EF5 and went through THREE states

200 folks killed.

Most storms will never get that bad.

Until the next one that does. Those "hundred year floods" are coming more often. If it isn't 100 years, give or take, between them, they become 50 (or whatever the period is) year storms. I'm glad you and your family have somewhere close to hide when the twisters come through. Never lived in tornado country and DON'T want to! Those things are too unpredictable and short notice.

Bruce

 

[Blooie]

Okay, stoopid chicken questions again. Well, not questions about stoopid chickens - they're proving to be smarter than I am. But stoopid questions. I have two of my girls with faces getting pretty red. Now, that could be because it's pretty warm out today, or.....? Charlie's the Red Sex Link roo has been crowing for over a week now, he's same age as the girls in his hatch. So one stoopid question is, would the girls' maturity be on par with his? If so, could the two Red Sex Links with the perpetual blushing be getting close to laying? I don't mean tomorrow, but in a couple more weeks or so? (13 weeks old Monday) Is it getting close to time to uncover the nest boxes and toss a couple of fake eggs in there? (Kinda hate to do that, they look so cute in the basket on my counter!

) Or should I wait until I see the first egg, then uncover and put in the eggs?

I'm new to all this, you know. The lady at the grocery store doesn't blush when she's stocking eggs in the cooler there, and Ken crows all the time even though he's almost the same age as I am. So I have no point of reference.

 

[LeslieDJoyce]

Okay, stoopid chicken questions again. Well, not questions about stoopid chickens - they're proving to be smarter than I am. But stoopid questions. I have two of my girls with faces getting pretty red. Now, that could be because it's pretty warm out today, or.....? Charlie's the Red Sex Link roo has been crowing for over a week now, he's same age as the girls in his hatch. So one stoopid question is, would the girls' maturity be on par with his? If so, could the two Red Sex Links with the perpetual blushing be getting close to laying? I don't mean tomorrow, but in a couple more weeks or so? (13 weeks old Monday) Is it getting close to time to uncover the nest boxes and toss a couple of fake eggs in there? (Kinda hate to do that, they look so cute in the basket on my counter!

) Or should I wait until I see the first egg, then uncover and put in the eggs?

I'm new to all this, you know. The lady at the grocery store doesn't blush when she's stocking eggs in the cooler there, and Ken crows all the time even though he's almost the same age as I am. So I have no point of reference.

Point of Lay at 13 weeks seems kinda early, but you're absolutely right that red comb, cheeks, etc., means "gonna lay soon."

I found it is better to have their nesting boxes set up before they lay because they will become attached to whatever spot they choose for their first eggs and want to return to it for, like, ever.

Now ... an egg or two might just surprise them by falling out their bums out in the run, and they won't be loyal to that spot. But once they choose a spot they'll like it.

Our roosters like to show the pullets how it's done ... they take the young hen to the nesting box, climb in, and make a big fuss arranging the bedding.

One of my California Whites came into lay before the others ... and everyone besides me was saying, "That's a rooster." But it was just her comb and wattles getting bigger and redder. She started laying in the grow out coop, so we put her in the General Population coop and for a long time after she'd escape the GP coop and go back to the Grow Out coop to lay her eggs.

 

[MistyMountain]

Okay, stoopid chicken questions again. Well, not questions about stoopid chickens - they're proving to be smarter than I am. But stoopid questions. I have two of my girls with faces getting pretty red. Now, that could be because it's pretty warm out today, or.....? Charlie's the Red Sex Link roo has been crowing for over a week now, he's same age as the girls in his hatch. So one stoopid question is, would the girls' maturity be on par with his? If so, could the two Red Sex Links with the perpetual blushing be getting close to laying? I don't mean tomorrow, but in a couple more weeks or so? (13 weeks old Monday) Is it getting close to time to uncover the nest boxes and toss a couple of fake eggs in there? (Kinda hate to do that, they look so cute in the basket on my counter!

) Or should I wait until I see the first egg, then uncover and put in the eggs?

I'm new to all this, you know. The lady at the grocery store doesn't blush when she's stocking eggs in the cooler there, and Ken crows all the time even though he's almost the same age as I am. So I have no point of reference.

I found that squatting was a better indicator for my pullets. It seemed like 1-2 weeks after I noticed them squat that they would start laying. Slow at first, every other to every two days, and it seemed like each one started off with rubber eggs (even though I had started providing oyster shell from the time the first one squatted). First egg for us happened at 22 weeks, a leghorn. A second layer kicked in about 5 days later and the rest is history. I now get 12-15 eggs a day from 15 layers. I am a popular lady at birthday parties and cook outs, always showing up with a tote full of fresh eggs! Super exciting time for you, blooie!!

 

[Tomtommom]

I dug some too! Just not as much...

I cook good food and mind the kids (including his son), I believe that's treating him right

Anyway.

I'm with the squatting chicken camp. It's a dead give away.

 

[lazy gardener]

Squats for sure! Other indicators are the red face, the big girl voices, and checking out the nest boxes. You may get the egg song before the first egg shows up. My girls started laying last year at 16.5 weeks, and they all were laying within a 2 week time period. Good idea to have the nest box ready before they start laying. They'll be checking out the box before they actually lay.

 

[OHhappychicks]

First~~The section that is on top when you are posting, where the emoticons, B, I, U , etc. is missing. Can anyone tell me how to get it back. It was on here when I first posted this evening, then the next time, it wasn't here. Also, when I quote someone, it comes up with all kinds of symbols imbeded in the message.

Second~~I put my French copper maran roo, 2 copper maran hens, and 1 cuckoo maran hen, in a pen by themselves so I could get baby marans. They have been in the pen, which is a hoop/coop-greenhouse, with a fenced in lot behind it, for almost 3 weeks. They have plenty of room, sunshine, fresh air, but they've only laid 3 eggs!! One was broken in the lot. I have a feeling this breeding project just ain't going to fly!!
Does anyone have an idea why they aren't laying? The cuckoo is about 1 year old, the other marans are 2-3 years old. Now I know that is kinda old, but I should be getting at least 1 egg a week from them. They were laying before we put them in the pen. Getting a little irritated!!