The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[aoxa]

Id love that! . My mom and her friends always do that, barter and exchange etc lol. One say for example gets a pile of moose meat, give some to the other, In exchange gives her a meat pie made from it. The other has a huge garden and will share her pumpkins, gets fresh pumpkin pie from it, Mom i a chef but this year working at the kids camp she didnt get to grow her own garden so her friends hooked her up and got food made from their bounties in exchange etc XD. Can you tell Im originally from the country? I had 20 pounds of black beans a while back( Need to get more actually Im out) And mom cant get access to cheap beans and such where she is so when I came down home she traded a moose roast and steak for a few pounds of black beans XD. I love that mindset.You dont see it often anymore. . Oh if we get this place Al wants to set up some beehives. For honey and to help polinate our gardens . Fresh honey! and beeswax etc

I'd do Bees if it wasn't my one huge phobia. I can't even control my mind when they are near me. I just flip out into a panic attack. :/ It's been that way since I was a kid. It's gotten a bit better, but I don't think I could handle that many honey Bees in close proximity.

I love bartering. I always tell my friends that they can get eggs in exchange for work hhaha. No one actually does help except my friend Dylan. He helped pluck all the birds we processed. When he lived here for a good 9 months he helped with chores daily. It sure made my life easier.

I really need someone who would watch my farm if I go away. It's so hard to find!!

 

[aoxa]

It's in the 40's here today. So nice out.

 

[Leahs Mom]

Aoxa - look at that beekeeping video I just posted....the guy works with them without a suit

I have read some ways that help make them a little more docile but the gal that had us come up for the visit said she had one hive that was "meaner" than the other hive. I guess it's just like chickens, or people...some are nicer than others!

 

[aoxa]

Aoxa - look at that beekeeping video I just posted....the guy works with them without a suit

I have read some ways that help make them a little more docile but the gal that had us come up for the visit said she had one hive that was "meaner" than the other hive. I guess it's just like chickens, or people...some are nicer than others!

Can't watch it. It's scary lol.

Did you post somewhere your processing story? If you did, I missed it. I want details!!

 

[camilleathome]

Quote:
No id never heard of it but thank you. I will deffinetly look into that!

 

[Leahs Mom]

CUP WATERER UPDATE:

I updated my waterer yesterday too. I found that my bucket had a couple small cracks in it just below the holes for the waterers that would be potential leak sites so I made a new one - this time with a 2 gallon bucket instead of a 3 gal. The 2 gal will be large enough for my flock and that way I won't have to carry out so much weight when I change the water.

SO NOW..... I finally have the drill bit size! I used a 23/64. You have to be really careful not to go too large or you'll have a leak. It should be pretty tight when you screw it in. I started out smaller then went up a drill bit size until I got it right. I think I used a 3/8 once but that may be a little too loose.

Also - since the springs in the mechanisms were freezing when the temps get into the teens, I changed the way I put the bird bath heater in the bucket. I still keep the pyrex inside the bucket (turned upside down in this photo), but use it to push the heater right up behind the intakes so it's right up against the mechanism. We'll see if that helps! Here's a photo:




The original post can be found here: :https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...keeping-thread-ots-welcome/1000#post_10109510 Or Here.

 

[camilleathome]

Quote:
Im working on getting my license (Going to need it for when we move). Id totally babysit for you if I had a car. Weve babysat a friends snakes for a year and a half while he went out west to work then his wife gave birth to their son and he needed more time(A few of the "meaner" snakes actually stayed with us in the end). Another ones two torts and uromastix for a summer while he did a university research project on a bird island, Took in my best friends two cats for four months while their roomate went through chemo, and I once stayed at a friends house and tended to his over 100 geckos and snakes while he went on his honeymoon for two weeks XD.

 

[Bulldogma]

Update on Peep, she had a grass blockage in her digestive tract. 2 doses of EVOO+molasses flushed her out and she was back in the flock today. I also move my carport framework with the tarp on it over to the coop so I can have a temporary covered enclosed run for the big kids. Too many hawks around and I don't like leaving them in the coop all day until I get up in the afternoon. Once I get the pallet coop and permenant covered run built in Feb it will be better. Then I can build the silkies coop and covered run. The runs will not be ground predator proof as my dog is great(even in old age) about keeping them away, but the coops will be like Fort Knox. I also started a second bucket of FF with more grains for the big kids. So have FF for the chicks and some for adults. Well I gotta get back to watching this football game.

So glad there was a happy ending!!

I am officially a chicken mom!! I picked up my two little silkies from aoxa today. Their in their baby playpen curled up in a corner cheeping lightly. Henry (My male poodle) Has been a bit of a pest trying to paw at them through the playpen here and there thankfully were home for the next five days between us to supervise untill he gets over that habit hes already improving

Congrats on your new babies!! Have you tried teaching your dog the "leave it!" command? Put a leash on him and take him near the chicks - as soon as he perks his ears and tenses up, chuck him firmly with the leash and say, "Leave it!" He should turn his attention back to you. As soon as he redirects his attention to the chicks, repeat the chuck and the command. Keep doing this until he stops getting excited around the chicks. He's a poodle - they learn fast!

I just gave you a thumbs up on the mobile and rushed right back to desktop.. I don't like it either.

. Did it work?

I don't see it, but it IS the thought that counts! Thank you!

 

[Mumsy]

Glad to hear about the thermo cube! I guess with weather that cold you can't test to see if it will ever shut off!!!

I'm so glad it warmed up here - if only for a couple of days!

I was thinking it wasn't working for a week because it didn't come on and I thought that it was PLENTY cold in the barn. It worked one night when the temp really took a dip. I dug out one of my outdoor thermometers and checked it. 22 degrees nights and 29 days. Brrr..That's cold for here but not uncommon for January.
An update on the local prices for that Thermo Cube. I purchased mine at Home Depot for $13. Down the street the Co-op Cenex farm store wanted $23, same at the pet store, and the Ace Hardware wanted $18. *Sheesh!* All on one street block!

 

[Leahs Mom]

I was thinking it wasn't working for a week because it didn't come on and I thought that it was PLENTY cold in the barn. It worked one night when the temp really took a dip. I dug out one of my outdoor thermometers and checked it. 22 degrees nights and 29 days. Brrr..That's cold for here but not uncommon for January.
An update on the local prices for that Thermo Cube. I purchased mine at Home Depot for $13. Down the street the Co-op Cenex farm store wanted $23, same at the pet store, and the Ace Hardware wanted $18. *Sheesh!* All on one street block!

I found the same thing. The "fancy pants" pet store and web sites have them way marked up. Menards, Lowes, Home Depot are all around $13 here in my area. When I first found those I was going to order them from a web site because I thought they were a "specialty item" and the price was HIGH! Then I took a look on the Menards web site and saw them!