The Front Porch Swing

[bruceha2000]

Bruce, this is fabulous. What a gift to have.

Well, sort of.

The repairs to the barn cost ~$12K and that was just to fix the most obvious (and easiest) part that I mentioned. The "keep it from falling down too soon" bit. There is no sill under most of the east side of the barn, the post bottoms are rotted and without the sill, there is nothing to keep them in line (kind of) but the weight of the building. The top plate on the east side is also rotted, don't know whether it is a full replace or "splice in a new piece of timber in the center" type of fix. The rubble stone foundation on the south side isn't so much a foundation but a bunch of rocks that had been carefully placed in the 1800's but are now just shoved in. I also noticed that the sill is cracked there as well but not catastrophically like the one on the west side, no vertical drop ... yet. I plan to keep it supported so it doesn't drop. There isn't really a foundation under the east side but I found plenty of rocks, some too big to move by hand, where it used to be when I fixed the front of the drive bay. It needs a new roof, and probably roof boards under that. Probably well over $100K to restore it properly. That was in the plan (with the hope of some paid by a state barn restoration grant) until we had to gut half the house (which was actually an entire building) and spent way WAY WAY too much on that.

The barn guy said the little barn could be restored but it is not really historically significant enough to justify the cost. Cheaper to rip it down and build new. I've not come to grips with that yet, nor found out how much it might cost to do that or to repair, but not restore - meaning replaced wood wouldn't necessarily be timber framed. Its foundation isn't in any better shape than the one "under" the big barn. I might be able to use some of the timbers saved from the house gutting to fix some of it. If not, I can build a super strong chicken coop. Anyone else have a coop made with 8"x10" posts and beams? I didn't think so.

So for now I'm doing what those before did. Use it and hope it doesn't fall down too soon. At least we did do SOMETHING to help in that regard, unlike the prior owners.

Bruce

 

[Blooie]

Bruce, even given all of that, the skill and craftsmanship that went into the original building of that barn would be hard to duplicate at almost any cost! Any chicken would be proud to have an 8x10 timber framed coop, except you'd need a different name for it - maybe call it the Timbercooplodge or something equally pretentious! You know what they say, "an ounce of pretension is worth a pound of manure."

I'm so excited.....one of my girls is sitting in the nest box. She's just sitting there, making these little churling sounds. Could it be soon? She didn't budge when I was out there messing around. I gotta run to Powell and get some calcium/oyster shell stuff, or whatever eggs I get will look like the big giant one Ken brought in a couple of weeks ago!

And just why wouldn't I end up on a wanted poster?? After all, you all put up with me, so why wouldn't everyone else? We did sorta have buckets on board the cruise....they were really comfy chairs and little sofa-lets. But honestly, it just wasn't the same without real imaginary buckets and porch swings, No Katee, no home baked goodies (although some of those desserts came pretty close!) and no chicken talk, unless I was the one doing the talking!

 

[LindaB220]

Well, sort of.

The repairs to the barn cost ~$12K and that was just to fix the most obvious (and easiest) part that I mentioned. The "keep it from falling down too soon" bit. There is no sill under most of the east side of the barn, the post bottoms are rotted and without the sill, there is nothing to keep them in line (kind of) but the weight of the building. The top plate on the east side is also rotted, don't know whether it is a full replace or "splice in a new piece of timber in the center" type of fix. The rubble stone foundation on the south side isn't so much a foundation but a bunch of rocks that had been carefully placed in the 1800's but are now just shoved in. I also noticed that the sill is cracked there as well but not catastrophically like the one on the west side, no vertical drop ... yet. I plan to keep it supported so it doesn't drop. There isn't really a foundation under the east side but I found plenty of rocks, some too big to move by hand, where it used to be when I fixed the front of the drive bay. It needs a new roof, and probably roof boards under that. Probably well over $100K to restore it properly. That was in the plan (with the hope of some paid by a state barn restoration grant) until we had to gut half the house (which was actually an entire building) and spent way WAY WAY too much on that.

The barn guy said the little barn could be restored but it is not really historically significant enough to justify the cost. Cheaper to rip it down and build new. I've not come to grips with that yet, nor found out how much it might cost to do that or to repair, but not restore - meaning replaced wood wouldn't necessarily be timber framed. Its foundation isn't in any better shape than the one "under" the big barn. I might be able to use some of the timbers saved from the house gutting to fix some of it. If not, I can build a super strong chicken coop. Anyone else have a coop made with 8"x10" posts and beams? I didn't think so.

So for now I'm doing what those before did. Use it and hope it doesn't fall down too soon. At least we did do SOMETHING to help in that regard, unlike the prior owners.

Bruce

Gee, I'm sorry. Who would have thunk it. Living in the south we don't have old houses. When we mean old we mean 1950's instead of 1850's.

 

[Tomtommom]

Gee, I'm sorry. Who would have thunk it. Living in the south we don't have old houses. When we mean old we mean 1950's instead of 1850's.

Hey now, we have old houses too in the South! Well... Montevallo was founded in 1896, not 1850s.. but it's still old!

Anyhoo.

Been a busy bee today. Made a half gallon of super thick Greek yogurt.. now I have a half gallon of whey in my fridge

Apparently I can give it to the tomatoes.. put it in the chickens feed.. use it for pancakes etc. etc. I also made some blackberry ..goop.. I don't have the patience to let it boil down long enough so it's runny. But it'll taste just fine I bet. Made pizza dough for the kiddos, using whey instead of water. My step-son was thrilled. He loves homemade pizza. Or any pizza for that matter.

Got a small financial blessing coming our way by the end of the year.. a class action settlement sorta thing. We've gotten a check about that before, but we're going to get another one.

All little bits help!

Took Thomas to be evaluated by the University. They loved him, ofcourse. He's such a little lovebug

He's on the waitinglist for fall classes.. so hoping he will get some therapy. We went to the hear center yesterday and his hearing aids are not functioning right, one was showing to be weak.. so they're both sent in for repair. Ear molds were made (with a lot of kicking and screaming, he hates being restrained, but he tries to pull the compound out of his ears). Next time we go we will have properly working hearing aids and new molds.

Glad to kinda get some things taken care of. Even though it seems nothing is getting done around the house

 

[LBejaran]

I don't know Laura, fancy nails might hurt your cred as a chicken farmer

Sorry about the chick, never fun to lose one.

Bruce

Yeah, well, I'd like to see someone sniff at my crazy nails once they see me chopping firewood with them.

Laura, back in the late '70's I worked with a girl who had long nails. She hit the keys with her nails. She was a court stenographer.

I am glad you found the egg-eater, but sorry it was Kimchi.

Lisa

The egg eating really explains why Kimchi has always been one of the fattest dogs with the shiniest fur. I thought maybe it was just genetics, but now I know that it's all these farm fresh eggs. According to my calculations, over the past 6 months, Kimchi has eaten approximately 4 dozen eggs. And I'm talking not only chicken eggs but also duck eggs that my ducks have hidden away. She's on watch from now on. I'm looking into figuring out a dog proof way of making hidden nests for the chickens and ducks. There's got to be a way to make a nest that will allow the birds in but will keep the dogs out.

Quote:

Wow does this take me back to the days of my "dragon lady" fingernails. I would sit in my room for hours making sure they were the longest, prettiest nails around. Sad huh?

I haven't had nails like that in many moons.

I was never allowed to have long fingernails. My parents didn't care, but I played violin in middle and high school, so long fingernails were an instant no. My high school orchestra conductor actually carried four pairs of nail clippers at all times in case someone made the mistake of growing out their nails a bit over the weekend. It was expected that we'd maintain our hands or we'd have trouble playing. Any girl who had her nails done over the weekend wasn't allowed to play until the acrylics were cut or removed completely.

I'm glad that you found your egg eater too, Ibejaran, but like everyone else sorry it was Kimchi. I don't know that you'll ever break him of it....nothing teaches a dog faster than self-reward. We had a saying in dog training - "once is tried, twice is learned, three times is forever". If you have a dog who sneaks food off the counter top, the only thing to do is quit putting food up there because you'll rarely break him of the habit totally. You might have some control, but he'll be a countertop opportunist for life. When he grabs that first beef roast off the counter, he gets an instant and lasting reward, which negates any discipline you might hand out. From that first steal, he knows he's going to get into trouble, but because his behavior was so richly rewarded in the past it's hard to ever over-ride that self reward. (not impossible, but very hard)

Yeah, Kimchi is likely always going to be an egg menace. It figures she was the one doing it. She's kinda fat, despite all of our dogs being really healthy and fit. I don't know what made her start doing it. I've seen Sandy do it once, but she got punished as soon as she did and has never done it again. Sandy is kinda the miracle dog, though, so I can see why she'd never be an issue, haha!

For Kimchi the egg eater, fill some eggs with mustard (do dogs like mustard?) Or ground red pepper or ground white pepper (my dogs got into some ground white pepper I had left on the coffee table, once they got it open and got a good whiff, they wouldn't touch it. Normally stuff like that would be GONE and licked clean!

I did that once, but it didn't really work. I had filled an egg with mustard, vinegar, hot sauce, and turmeric. Kimchi took off with the egg and once she realized it didn't taste right, she just left it there. Then the chickens ate it.

Well, I had a busy and awful day today, y'all, but I think I should start a new post to tell tale of what happened. Really kinda wishing Mom was home. I need a hug.

 

[perchie.girl]

Quote:
Oh Bruce what a fabulous project

you gotto know how old that wood is... Probably from species of tree that doesnt exist any more.....

Yep drought is pretty dramatic here... Yards just on the street my grandma lives on letting their yards go down to dirt.... We are on water rationing for irrigating lawns and have been for at least two years now. Washing of cars has to be done so there is NO run off. Or better yet at a car wash that recycles their water.

Course we do get some water from northern California but we do have other sources like the Colorado ... for the growing fields near the border.... our Alfalfa is pretty danged good. Four to five cuttings per year.

There was quite a bit of debate some years back about covering the aqueduct system... Very expensive proposition... but I wish Governor Moon Beam would switch his focus from High speed rail system to covering the aqueducts.... But I have no right to complain.

deb

 

[Blooie]

TT, have you ever looked into the Scottish Rite Learning Center clinics? They are excellent, and totally free.....just a thought. Ken's in Scottish Rite. They focus on speech, but most kids with speech issues also have hearing problems, some have behavior problems as a result of communication difficulties, and so they work with the entire child, not just body parts. We (actually Ken) had a little guy he sponsored a few years ago. Nash was fitted with cochlear implants. He is now in high school, has been active in sports, and is currently on a summer trip with his class to Europe, which would have been virtually impossible without help. When we first met Nash he was 4 years old and the family was all learning to sign. Now there is no way to tell he ever had any hearing loss, let alone loss that required hearing aides in both ears and then the cochlear implant. Ken's not here, so I can't ask him if SR did the implants or if they were done somewhere else. I can find out for you when he gets home if you like.

It looks like there are at least 6 Scottish Rite Learning Centers in Alabama - in Birmingham, Montgomery, Mobile, Huntsville, Dothan, and Florence. Are any of those places near you? The central phone number is 205-947-2424 and you can find them on the web by Googling Alabama Scottish Rite Foundation. I don't know if this fills a need or a gap for you or not, but I'll never know if I don't bring it up, right? Hope I'm not interfering but I've seen over and over again what the Scottish Rite and Shriners have done for kids without charge to families.

 

[perchie.girl]

Hello from too hot & too dry New Mexico. We need some of your guys rain. Chickens are not doing much in this heat. Have freezer full of water bottles to keep replacing every couple of hours. Hate going outside in 100+ heat, but the sacrifices we make for our babies. We are new to chickens and loving every minute! Hope everyone has a great day!

Emmey I spoke online to a fellow who lives in Death Valley and raises geese. This time of year They get temps in the 120's He puts down old carpet and keeps it damp for them to walk on. Water is at a premium

My place gets up to 105 on occasion during the summer. We are dry here probably around 10% humidity.... During those very hot days they stay in the shade. My coop is a roof over chainlink kennel panels. I Give them a shallow waiding spot.... Like a boot tray filled with water. ANd if you can get a hold of a mister to lower the temps.... Put the mister over the boot tray so the drippage will keep the tray filled.

I have also been known to go out with the hose and spray EVERYTHING in the coop The single windbreak wall Roof, All the bedding AND the chickens..... Even in 10 percent humidity everything stays damp for two or three hours. Water evaporation chills the air down a good ten to fifteen degrees. Just enough to give them releaf.

They can handle the heat with those few tweaks.

Also for what its worth the hottest part of the day is not noon but sometime between 2 and 4.... Thats when the ground has absorbed as much heat as it will absorb for the day.... It begins radiating the heat back up again... Shade is essential

deb

 

[LBejaran]

Here's what happened today.

Well, you all know how much rain everyone has been getting lately. Yesterday, I went by everyone and made sure no one got wet and that the bedding was okay. I made the mistake of trusting dry hay to mean safe. That was my first mistake.

This morning everyone was fine, but when I went out this afternoon, one of my bunnies was dead. I tried to figure out what it was that could have caused it, but I couldn't see anything that really stood out other than some slightly red irritation on his leg. There were some ants on him, but I figured that was because he had died. Bugs always come out to eat when something dies. Not wanting to leave the bunny there, I used an old leash and tied his legs so I could carry him out. I got a couple ant bites either way.

I couldn't bury him (our good shovel is in need of repair) or justify putting him in the field in the back because he's a decently sized bunny, so I decided to cremate in our Mexican chimney. I got to work on that and made sure the fire was going strong before going back out to move the remaining bunny, ducklings, the quail and the two chicks that had been in the same coop.

Two ducklings were dead. It was literally less than an hour that had passed and these otherwise healthy birds were already stiff with ants all over them. Instantly I knew what had happened. With all the rain, all these ants were drawn up to the surface and of course they would go to where there is food. Chick starter, bunnies and ducklings were on the menu, apparently. I was so freaked out that I instantly grabbed as many animals as I could in my arms and hauled them off to the large coop. I even moved the broody hens that had been above the rabbits/ducklings/chicks and moved them out to the large coop. I also decided to dispose of the ducklings in the same way.

All the animals that had died were heavy and were very clearly healthy. The ducklings had been running around just fine before and the rabbit had been fine this morning.

Normally, hatching chicks is much easier going with only some concerns, mostly concerning large predators and chicks getting lost in the field and never coming back. This year, it's been a lot of little hidden issues that have been popping up. Ants, weakness, chicks literally being trampled by the larger birds! I don't get it! I've never had these problems before and I'm thinking that this is obviously showing my naivete and greenness when it comes to raising chickens.

I can't even tell the local chicken group because I've already been given heat for raising my birds as though they are chickens and not pets. Someone made a comment about how I am negligent just because I let the chicks out to free range with the flock. I mean, obviously I would never do this to hatchery chicks unless I had a mother hen to watch them. The chicks I let out to range are always accompanied by their mother hens. Duh! But apparently, it's a big no-no to allow nature to take its course. Unfortunately, nature hasn't been very forgiving lately. That's why I'm already planning to make those brooders out of old wooden boxes. If I can help out these chickies before they have to go out and learn how to make it outside, then I will. However, these are barnyard mixes. I'm not raising show quality birds that need to be kept clean/perfect. Some of these people don't really get that, I think.

Well, that's it. I'm still watching over the fire to make sure I have everything properly cremated and not just cooked. I'd hate to find my dogs eating something out of the chimney later. I'm exhausted. Why did I say I wanted to raise all these birds again?

Oh yeah. 'Cause the satisfaction of seeing full-grown birds grazing all over the yard is greater than the sadness I feel when I lose a bird. Ugh. I'm such a sap.

 

[Blooie]

Here's what happened today.

Well, you all know how much rain everyone has been getting lately. Yesterday, I went by everyone and made sure no one got wet and that the bedding was okay. I made the mistake of trusting dry hay to mean safe. That was my first mistake.

This morning everyone was fine, but when I went out this afternoon, one of my bunnies was dead. I tried to figure out what it was that could have caused it, but I couldn't see anything that really stood out other than some slightly red irritation on his leg. There were some ants on him, but I figured that was because he had died. Bugs always come out to eat when something dies. Not wanting to leave the bunny there, I used an old leash and tied his legs so I could carry him out. I got a couple ant bites either way.

I couldn't bury him (our good shovel is in need of repair) or justify putting him in the field in the back because he's a decently sized bunny, so I decided to cremate in our Mexican chimney. I got to work on that and made sure the fire was going strong before going back out to move the remaining bunny, ducklings, the quail and the two chicks that had been in the same coop.

Two ducklings were dead. It was literally less than an hour that had passed and these otherwise healthy birds were already stiff with ants all over them. Instantly I knew what had happened. With all the rain, all these ants were drawn up to the surface and of course they would go to where there is food. Chick starter, bunnies and ducklings were on the menu, apparently. I was so freaked out that I instantly grabbed as many animals as I could in my arms and hauled them off to the large coop. I even moved the broody hens that had been above the rabbits/ducklings/chicks and moved them out to the large coop. I also decided to dispose of the ducklings in the same way.

All the animals that had died were heavy and were very clearly healthy. The ducklings had been running around just fine before and the rabbit had been fine this morning.

Normally, hatching chicks is much easier going with only some concerns, mostly concerning large predators and chicks getting lost in the field and never coming back. This year, it's been a lot of little hidden issues that have been popping up. Ants, weakness, chicks literally being trampled by the larger birds! I don't get it! I've never had these problems before and I'm thinking that this is obviously showing my naivete and greenness when it comes to raising chickens.

I can't even tell the local chicken group because I've already been given heat for raising my birds as though they are chickens and not pets. Someone made a comment about how I am negligent just because I let the chicks out to free range with the flock. I mean, obviously I would never do this to hatchery chicks unless I had a mother hen to watch them. The chicks I let out to range are always accompanied by their mother hens. Duh! But apparently, it's a big no-no to allow nature to take its course. Unfortunately, nature hasn't been very forgiving lately. That's why I'm already planning to make those brooders out of old wooden boxes. If I can help out these chickies before they have to go out and learn how to make it outside, then I will. However, these are barnyard mixes. I'm not raising show quality birds that need to be kept clean/perfect. Some of these people don't really get that, I think.

Well, that's it. I'm still watching over the fire to make sure I have everything properly cremated and not just cooked. I'd hate to find my dogs eating something out of the chimney later. I'm exhausted. Why did I say I wanted to raise all these birds again?

Oh yeah. 'Cause the satisfaction of seeing full-grown birds grazing all over the yard is greater than the sadness I feel when I lose a bird. Ugh. I'm such a sap.

You need a glass of tea with a bracer in it, and Ibejaren needs a hug! Sending both......