The Middle Tennessee Thread

[HBuehler]

Shelly-we have some of those chickens needing a scarf if you "need" some for your collection...they are so funny looking but really they are nice-who knows may end up keeping them we only have a few left.Don't need them though.
Over the weekend we sold all but 1 of our Cornish Roos and the chicks we hatched are leaving tomorrow...lousy hatch but lady luck wasn't with me all week

Think we ended up with around 15 chicks keeping 5 or so
One of my baby Mille Fleur's laid her first egg today...not sure which one of the 3 it is but they all hatched the same day...doing better than my adult mf's they are all thinking broody is trendy right now

I'm hoping it warms up real soon.I'm heading to Gatlinburg Friday and it's always colder there anyway.Packing for cold weather to be safe-just as long as it doesn't rain all weekend. I'm not sure how I'm going to handle this..my guys will all be at home and no chicks how will I survive

Edited to add-
Okla that's not fair to put on pig pics..she's a cutie.I like pigs they are so much smarter than most people think but if I had a pig....

 

[Troyerchicks]

Citygirl - are you still planning a get together this Saturday?

Okla - the pig is very cute but I know I'm not ready to take that step!! Not to mention the neighbors might shake their head and walk off muttering something about those crazy Troyers!

HBuehler - have a great time in Gatlinburg this weekend!

The chicks are growing and almost look like little chickens! Still have some fluff on them though. I'm really looking forward to the day they can go out to the coop! The buffs and cochins are doing great but I'm pretty sure they miss the sun as much as I do! My dog was sniffing around their tractor yesterday and little Daisy, the bantam cochin, looked ready to take him on!! It was funny but the dog didn't think so as he backstepped quickly.

Today is our first day of spring break so I'm off to find things for the kids to do inside.

 

[emmalynn]

Quote:
How big is the pig? How much do you want for her? What are you willing to trade for?

 

[Raven1]

Quote:
He is sharp! Makes me proud of my crew. Let me know if you do decide to sell I would like a better look.

 

[Jenski]

Morning everyone! Yesterday was definitely a "nap Sunday," huh! Wish I had done just that instead of rattling around outside doing piddly chores. I guess I'd rather be outside than inside. Wish outside were nicer, though!


Holly, sorry about your hatch. Sounds like you have really thinned out your flock! I hope all my pterodactyls went to good homes. Now who's taking care of your birds while you're gone??? Oh my. Mine don't let me leave. I swear every time I go somewhere, at least one of them gets sick or has some kind of drama. Can chickens be co-dependent??

OklaDD, I would love a piggy, but I feel certain it would be the last straw for my neighbors, LOL! You have seen my place, so you know how much space I have to work with. I'll keep my ears open, though. She sure is cute! She'd be great for de-thatching a lawn or starting a garden plot . . .

CityGirl what's the plan re. Saturday? I may have a couple of chicks hatching that day, but I can probably get away for a couple of hours. It would be nice to get out! (though, see para. #2 above re. chicken co-dependency. Or maybe that is really chicken keeper co-dependency. I will have to think on that.)
How's your bumble roo doing? After you wrote about him, I started checking all the feet of my birds, and I did find a small abrasion on the sole of one bantam Ameraucana girl's foot, which I am now treating. I check their feet periodically for trimming, etc., but I don't always check the soles and I really should. I know large fowl are more prone to bumblefoot, but it's important to check everyone anyway. . . and they do so enjoy having their feet messed with.

Shelley, hope your family isn't too disappointed with the weather! Tell them how lovely it was just last week. . . . *sigh*

Nella, your Welsummer hen is lovely. I think there was someone on craigslist looking for a couple of dark egg-laying hens.

Troyerchicks, how 'bout some chick pics??

Hope you are enjoying them. They grow up so fast!

believer01, how are you lady? Hope your birds are doing well. Mine are enjoying the first nice green grass!



Well, it looks like a day to either go back to bed or have more caffeine. Caffeine it is!!

The finches kindly sprinkled some of my echinacea (purple coneflower) seeds around the yard last fall, and I have a few seedlings popping up in the lawn. If anyone is interested in tending them while they are small, I will be glad to transplant them to little pots and hold them until we get together. They may flower this year, but next year they will be just fabulous, and over 3' high! They are perennials and have overwintered well here. . . and they are full of lots of good vitamins and such, if you are into harvesting the blossoms for tea, etc. (Shelley, these would be good for your farm.) They grow in large clumps of flowers; each plant has produced 15+ flowers per clump. Bees and butterflies like them, too. Here is a pic of the parent plant - -

Echinacea flowers on the patio, June 2009

Just PM me if you want me to save you any seedlings.

 

[believer01]

I agree with Jenski - yesterday was definitely an inside day! Guess I've gotten spoiled with the spate of good weather. I always feel sorry for my birds, horses, the neighbors cows ~ any who don't have a nice warm space to wait out the change of weather.

Don't you love all the color - daffodils, redbud, peach and pear trees! After this long dark winter it's like drinking in beauty...

Has anyone else started their garden yet? I've been planting taters and onions, cabbage and broccoli. Just difficult since my ankle won't let me squat down and it's hard to plant leaning over.

I'm looking forward to seeing some of y'alls birds at this meet-up. So we have a time and place, yet?

Thanks for the info on feet checking - something else I need to learn to do. Mrs Meade has such long toe nails that one toe is turned sideways....is it safe to trim them (nails, not toes!) and how will I know how far to go?

 

[HBuehler]

Jenski-Sorry the boys went to dinner I kept the best laced one for chicks...I still have all the hens.The boys were really starting to argue and now with my car issues no time to put them in my freezer plus they are going to be tough eating.
Paul and the boys are here this weekend so they will be doing all the chickens and even hatching a few...they have never done that before so who knows how that will go.I'm sure it can't be worse than this past hatch.I ended up with 15 chicks a few mini Cochin's so not all is lost! Wheaten Ameraucana's are heading in the hatcher later today.
When everyone decides on this weekend if it's a go I will scoot over to Jenski's with cookies and eggs...
CityGirl-fertility has been hit and miss the bunch in now I won't be able to candle before this weekend so if I take eggs to Jen's and they don't do well I'll replace them.Afraid my girls are going to need the pruner shears before long.
Believer-He is a pretty boy.I had a whole pile of Roos some from you and some from FL I decided to keep the small roo with the best color-hardly any copper knowing it would come in..paid off well.He sprouted into a very big boy and doesn't have hardly a mossy feather in there. I'm really thinking about selling my Splash Roo with a few black hens and keeping Moron the blue copper hens and a few of the black.My blacks don't lay very dark-the lay every day but I'm hoping the Moron chicks will since your eggs are so dark

Baby pics coming soon!

 

[CityGirlintheCountry]

I have to go into a work call, but I wanted to get you all thinking.

I would love to meet up this Saturday. It's supposed to rain anyway, so we might as well be hanging out with each other. Plus, I have chicks hatching that day and it will keep me from messing with the incubator!

Talk amongst yourselves- What time and where would you like to meet? We had talked about meeting at a park, but it is going to be cold and wet. Ugg. I'm all for meetin' and eatin'. What are your thoughts on Red Robin or someplace like that?

Gotta run. We need a head count too. Should we start a poll?

 

[cpegram]

Red robin sounds great but I won't be able to be there at the earliest 230

hopefully someone will still be there. I just could not get that day off a couple people beat me to it. I would love to meet every one!!

 

[Troyerchicks]

Red Robin sounds good to me as well but it's my son's very first baseball game that day and I won't be able to be in M'boro until about 2:30. Meet for an early dinner?? Maybe 3:00?
Wait.... we are talking about the Red Robin in Mboro, right?