The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[delisha]

Quote: It did not work for me..is it some thing you need help with?

 

[TurtlePowerTrav]

Quote: It did not work for me..is it some thing you need help with?

I couldn't get the link to load either

 

[jendodd79]

Tennis balls soaked in ammonia the keep coons, Fox's and coyotes away.

Thank you, I definitely want to keep the hordes of coons out of my yard!

 

[jendodd79]

I couldn't get the link to load either

Weird! It works for me - it's a pdf?

 

[arkansaschicks]

Thank you for the ACV information! I really appreciate all the wonderful advice! Also wanted to let you know that the hen that laid the crazy red/blood egg went back to laying again. Took her 4-5 days but all is good now. Still keeping an eye on her though.

 

[chickiemomy]

Quote:

I used apple cider bought at Aldi's 1.00 1/2 gallon it was on sale cause it was going to expire in two days. I don't know much about how to tell if it was done. It looks like mother on top and smells right after only 3 weeks I think. Have tendency to loose track of time on when I started stuff. Anyway put some in both my main ferment buckets and the next day it was bubbling so much I thought it was going to explode.

I am going to try the frozen juice though and see how that goes.
This summer when the apples get ripe I am going to put some in a 5 gallon bucket and smash then up by taking a wooden 4 X 4 and just pulverizing them add some water cover with cheese cloth and see what happens. It will either work or it won't who cares apples are free.
in case you missed this -- a few pages ago. -

Homemade Vinegar directions

According to Sandor Katz - 'Wild Fermentation" -- to make vinegar from fruit scraps -- grapes, pineapple, berries- (I'd chunk it up pretty well - more surfaces should make it work faster)
pour a solution of sugar water over the scraps - solution being 1/4 cup sugar to 1 quart of water - he says you can use honey instead, but process will take longer
cover with cheesecloth to keep flying things out
in one week strain out the solid parts
continue to leave out to ferment for another 2-3 weeks - stir 'periodically' (don't know what that means-timewise)

similar to sourdough starter.

the good fermenting guys -- lactobacillus -- are in the air - you just need to give them a chance to get to the sweetened liquid/fruit. Adding unpastuerized vinegar with mother in it - common brand Braggs - will speed things along as you are innoculating the solution with the good stuff - only takes a little - you don't really need any, it's a natural process.

 

[chickiemomy]

Quote: It did not work for me..is it some thing you need help with?

I couldn't get the link to load either


It just took a REALLY long time to load - it's a big file. I had given up on it loading - & was typing in the URL to go to the site to see it I could find it another way -- & while typing, it surprisingly popped up. -- very cool. Love that it is written to an 8th grade level -- but is definitely many steps above Mendel's peas.... That's an age give away I bet!

 

[lalaland]

Pigeonguy, thanks for your reports on working with cayenne. That is one heck of a lot of pepper! I'm going to try it, it can't hurt and it will make me feel better since I really can't determine the worm load.

Leahsmom, that was sweet to offer logs for the steps to use instead of the ramp.

my bottle of rooster booster no pick lotion arrived, it is a weird thing. tiny bottle, lotion consistency, has coal tar in it and is black. I can't imagine how it would work on feathers, and it seems it would prevent any hen or roo from grooming. but I am trying it on out on one of the worst picked girls, although I think the picking has stopped.

Yesterday I was in the house and saw a hawk flying horizontal, low to the ground, headed for the coop. I flew out side, and it was dead dead quiet. I could see some of my hens, they were all frozen in place. I went to the coop and watched, trying to see if I could see the hawk, but couldn't. Then hens stayed still, motionless for almost 8 minutes. I didn't talk to them because I didn't want to cause them to move. Hens started purring, still not moving, finally they relaxed and moved around. I don't have a roo.

tomorrow is a free day, no work, a holiday for me. Hallelujah!

 

[SallyinIndiana]

Can people smell the balls once you place around your yard?

 

[Leahs Mom]

Quote: Okay, Doc. Now tell me one more thing.

When you feed this stuff to your birds... do they hesitate to eat at all? Meaning - do you have to leave it out for a long time or they won't eat it -vs- do they just eat it right away like normal as if it were the same old thing?