The Old Folks Home

[IttyBiddyRedHen]

Now for something completely different. There is a new thread "How About a new thread for those of us in wheelchairs."

ANYONE - OZ especially, please come up with some suggestions for making coops, maintaining , etc. doable for disabled chickeners. Why should they miss out on things they love??? Old folks here surely understand the limitations baby boomers, etc. have to work with. You don't even have to be old to have arthritic conditions, etc., bad hips, knees, trying to trick us up.

There a lot of brainy people on him - please come up with ways to make feeding, cooping cleaning, etc.
easier to manage. I've done searches for coops for disabled (people NOT chooks) and there are very few indeed. It's a crime that more isn't available among these lines.

I know I sure can't do the things I used to. Bending over, or kneeling is very painful to me- climbing stairs has always slowed me down. For some reason I can push snow away from me but, can't rake leaves toward me. I hybridize house plants and have them indoors on shelves. Really the top shelf is too tall for me and the bottom requires, bending. I either have to sit on the floor to tend to them, and sidle up to something so I can pull to a stand. Consequently the middle shelf is the only one fully utilized.

I truly appreciate anything you can add on this new thread. Please visit and check it out. Thank you

Great idea diva!! "Accessable chickening and gardening"...or..something like that. I know I am moving alot slower than I was pre- peri-menopause. Knees? We have knees??

 

[chickisoup]

Thank you Chickisoup. My brother had very painful neuropathy in his feet (diabetic) and the only thing that is giving him some relief is lidocaine patches on his feet. The dr. recommended he change locations till he found spots that worked the best for him. Now he can walk in stores and to and from the parking lot, and even around the zoo a couple weeks ago. The zoo and museum are his favorite retreats but the neuropathy had prevented him from doing it.

mine is a bit more widespread (both sensory and motor neuropathy) . Kind of a "double whammy" because it's not only caused by my leukemia, it is also a side effect of the drug I have to take to control it. Anyway, I'm slowly losing muscle strength and some other stuff. I've been really lucky so far, it;s not been progressing that fast but I was warned my luck won't last forever that's why I have, with the help of my hubby, gotten pro-active now so I can continue to take care of my girls later. They already make me get up and move anyway on mornings when I sometimes just wouldn't because of the pain otherwise, and probably is part of the reason I am still doing as well as I am.

 

[Dragonfly216]

BEAUTIFUL!!!

X2! I love the places you chose! I've always been a big fan of calla lilies and I love that color. I figured you must be busy on the ranch since I thought we haven't heard from ya in awhile. I love that cute little building that will be your new hatch house! So I had chick fever! I had a friend who's cousin was hatching Easter Eggers and was going to bring me some from TN, and I was really wanting a different family of them so I can breed them in the spring. Well time comes and he says they weren't ready, it'll be next month :-( I was so disappointed! I don't know if the hatch went badly or if he just gave them away to friends but I was sad to not have my fuzzy butts. So my boyfriend said he was going to buy the next batch anyway, so to start looking, yay! So I proceeded to fall in love with BLRW and I WILL have some babies in the spring, but I couldn't find any local and I just can't pay $15 a chick after shipping and BF wasn't prepared for that either! So I had major chick fever one night and went on the search. I ended up getting 5 Easter egger girls and 2 boys to breed with my girls I have now, and 5 of an assorted "rare egg layer"breed, all girls. I'm so excited to know I'll have ten girls, no guess work! I'll post pics when I get them next week, yay! :-D

 

[Dragonfly216]

 
Thank you Chickisoup.   My brother had very painful neuropathy in his feet  (diabetic) and the only thing that is giving him  some relief is   lidocaine patches on his feet.  The dr. recommended  he change locations till he found spots that worked the best for him.  Now he can walk in stores and to and from the parking lot, and even around the  zoo a couple weeks ago.    The zoo and museum are his favorite retreats but the neuropathy had  prevented him from doing it.

mine is a bit more widespread (both sensory and motor neuropathy) .  Kind of a "double whammy" because it's not only caused by my leukemia, it is also a side effect of the drug I have to take to control it.  Anyway, I'm slowly losing muscle strength and some other stuff.  I've been really lucky so far, it;s not been progressing that fast but I was warned my luck won't last forever that's why I have, with the help of my hubby, gotten pro-active now so I can continue to take care of my girls later.  They already make me get up and move anyway on mornings when I sometimes just wouldn't because of the pain otherwise, and probably is part of the reason I am still doing as well as I am.

I'm so sorry to hear that :-( I hope you can find comfort in other things, like your chickens and family and friends. And I hope the doctors can help to alieve your pain! I agree, there have been days where I just didn't want to get up yet, but think, geez, the chickens will starve!

 

[chickisoup]

Quote: I'm so sorry to hear that :-( I hope you can find comfort in other things, like your chickens and family and friends. And I hope the doctors can help to alieve your pain! I agree, there have been days where I just didn't want to get up yet, but think, geez, the chickens will starve!
Awww, thank you

Really, it's not that bad. Every morning that I wake up and realize the white above me is the ceiling and not heavenly clouds, I say, "Thank you Lord!" I am literally a walking talking miracle. I actually over heard my dr say to the one he had called on the phone for a consult when I was first seen say and I quote " yeah, I know, I don't know how she's alive" I started to giggle because I knew

 

[drumstick diva]

Chickisoup -

and prayers coming your way, wish I could give you a big

 

[Pozees]

Awww, thank you

Really, it's not that bad. Every morning that I wake up and realize the white above me is the ceiling and not heavenly clouds, I say, "Thank you Lord!" I am literally a walking talking miracle. I actually over heard my dr say to the one he had called on the phone for a consult when I was first seen say and I quote " yeah, I know, I don't know how she's alive" I started to giggle because I knew

That's so neat! I once had emergency surgery preceded by the Dr. asking me, "How did you get here?" He could not believe I drove my own car, parked it in the garage and walked to his office. Humans, on the whole, can be pretty amazing. If you don't tell us there's something wrong with us, we usually just keep going as best we can.

 

[chickadoodles]

chickisoup our thoughts and prayers are with you and here is a great big

((hug))

 

[Wisher1000]

I have had horses for nearly 40 years. One of the many lessons learned as a result is that pain is manageable. I have seen horses laid open to the bone, shredded hide, muscle and bloodied by barbed wire, and I have seen contented grazing within hours of surgery. I have seen a horse in obvious pain struggling to walk to the barn because it was feeding time. My conclusion to this is that in times of severe health issues, trauma, or pain, don't dwell on the pain, just do what you have to do and get through it. It is what it is, dealing with it quietly and with out a lot of drama will go a long way in keeping on beyond what others would expect. Hang in there, Judi, play the cards you have been dealt, make the best of it, and continue to show those doctors that they are not as smart as they think they are.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Thanks Ron and Wisher.
I am very happy that fox won't be back and hopefully the skunk won't either.

CC are dogs getting your chickens?

They have. This guy and his brothers, uncles, etc. have attacked several times. They killed 9 the first time, 4 another time and couldn't get into the coops and pens on several other occasions.



Here's some of the damage.



I've had other attacks too, a stray beagle, another neighbors pair of huskies, my wife's friend's lab. That was an ugly scene. I warned her that she wouldn't be able to control the dog if she let it go all the way back where the chickens were ranging. She said, "oh he won't do anything". I told her, "don't make me kill your dog".

Heel low:

I decided on a Cala lily with pink petalled strawberries and a pink geranium for the dragon pot in the Man Porch. I whined at a friend that studies horticulture/worked at garden centers and she set me straight. I was repotting the Calas when I bought them and she told me they like their roots confined and will grow to fill a pot before flowering...so I just sunk the pot as is where is and the lily has been going great...two new flowers coming up now.

​

I looked at the corn plant and think it was way overpriced here CC. They wanted $37 for it and I spent $70 on all the plants that day. Coupla mini roses, two pinks all at four bucks each and a bunch of other plants...the label warned that the corn plant did not like it near freezing and that it has been close to indeed...one night even got to minus two when I did cover all the plants in the porch up. Hoping not to have to do that too often this year but it has been dumping the moisture just as steadily as it did this winter. Every two to three days like last summer was after the two week hot in May (around 35C or 95F) and then another two weeks hot in September. I hate heat as I can't work much in it.

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Posted pics of the plants, porch, pond fish, etc. on My Coop.

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Ton on the go from putting up Bluebird houses to beginning to plant my Veg Garden. Put Nasturtiums in the mailbox planter last week.

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Some years the plants get dusted out...other times they get frozen. Some years they make a decent show...others, not so much...no worries if you try I guess.

2011
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Too early yet to put the beans in but got potatoes and onions in and Basil in the greenhouse just for kicks. Asparagus is up but not tall enough to harvest yet. Rhubarb is on the go too.

​

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Cleared out my soon to be Hatch House and brought home nine sheets of plywood. Expect it to run about $500-$750 or so to convert the building over to its new function. Looked at wall board for bathrooms but hated the patterns they had...so good old plywood and grey porch enamel and I'll be a happy camper.

​

Rick bought two new hummingbird feeders to try out and already had one visiter this weekend.

Taking the fronts off buildings, cleared out the five inside pens in the Duece Coop last week and changed the rubber water pans over to the stainless pails. Even sprinkled a few handfuls of grass seed on a few bald patches in the lawns. Sheep/goats/llamas have been on pasture and cleaned up the Point pasture before the grass got tall enough again to be over the swans' heads! I am thinking of moving the not so small Crested Ducklings to one last brooding space (rabbit hutch cage on wheels) before transitioning them out to the Duck Barn. Rick split up more birch and figures we have more than enough firewood for next winter...yah! Still having fires every three evenings or so which means I am still emptying walls of wood as I continue to fill them.

The 3 or 4 standard Chanteclers decided to stop being setty so I expect to see "pillow fight" reminants as they all convert winter tatters over to summer feathers...still got a quarter of them laying eggs which is nice. I'd be a bit tired by now as the girls have been giving "winter" eggs since September of last year...time to take a break me ladies! They been eyeing up the grass in their outdoor runs but I have not had the heart yet to let them at it. I know they can make short work of new growth in a day if I mess up and succumb too early to their demands.

Rick got the second c-can in place this weekend. Had all winter for the gravel to settle out and seems his projections of where the gravel needed to go has worked out quite nicely for the foundation for his Parking Building. I got a bit of rake work to do now with the dirt piled up...get her leveled out and toss grass seed mix on it.

​

Rick's Parking Building is going to have me re-fence out a new section of free range areas for the Chants...this new piece has some rather good stands of green lawns in it that will put up with clean legged chicken scratching abusiveness more.

Getting the mindset in motion...it might actually be warming up weather time. Har har...we had hail mixed in a rain shower the other day...so I guess I can quit calling it "spring" so much and now move into the more "summer" mode?

Doggone & Chicken UP!

Tara Lee Higgins
Higgins Rat Ranch Conservation Farm, Alberta, Canada

Good choice on the calla. You didn't need our help.

Now for something completely different. There is a new thread "How About a new thread for those of us in wheelchairs."

...

Good idea. The Missouri Botanical Garden has a scented garden for blind people. It has raised brick beds with brail tags. Every plant either has a unique scent or leaf texture. Plant handling encouraged. They also have a home garden center with raised beds and paved paths that work well for wheelchairs. All things are possible.

Thank you Chickisoup. My brother had very painful neuropathy in his feet (diabetic) and the only thing that is giving him some relief is lidocaine patches on his feet. The dr. recommended he change locations till he found spots that worked the best for him. Now he can walk in stores and to and from the parking lot, and even around the zoo a couple weeks ago. The zoo and museum are his favorite retreats but the neuropathy had prevented him from doing it.

It bugs me when people are clearly younger, more physically fit than I, pull into a handicap spot, put their handicap tag on the rearview mirror and stride into the store.
We had a one armed guy where I worked with a handicap tag. There wasn't anything wrong with his legs.

Great idea diva!! "Accessable chickening and gardening"...or..something like that. I know I am moving alot slower than I was pre- peri-menopause. Knees? We have knees??

Even accessible chickening is possible. I wouldn't recommend trying it with the 10 flocks I have now though.

X2! I love the places you chose! I've always been a big fan of calla lilies and I love that color. I figured you must be busy on the ranch since I thought we haven't heard from ya in awhile. I love that cute little building that will be your new hatch house!

So I had chick fever! I had a friend who's cousin was hatching Easter Eggers and was going to bring me some from TN, and I was really wanting a different family of them so I can breed them in the spring. Well time comes and he says they weren't ready, it'll be next month :-( I was so disappointed! I don't know if the hatch went badly or if he just gave them away to friends but I was sad to not have my fuzzy butts. So my boyfriend said he was going to buy the next batch anyway, so to start looking, yay! So I proceeded to fall in love with BLRW and I WILL have some babies in the spring, but I couldn't find any local and I just can't pay $15 a chick after shipping and BF wasn't prepared for that either! So I had major chick fever one night and went on the search. I ended up getting 5 Easter egger girls and 2 boys to breed with my girls I have now, and 5 of an assorted "rare egg layer"breed, all girls. I'm so excited to know I'll have ten girls, no guess work! I'll post pics when I get them next week, yay! :-D

Good luck with your birds. I have a bunch of eggs in the incubator due in a couple days. I have to get them into the hatcher today. I set them and forget them but I have a hatch timer sitting at my computer. It says they're due in 1 day, 23 hours.
I have to cull some older/flawed hens to make room for new birds.

That's so neat! I once had emergency surgery preceded by the Dr. asking me, "How did you get here?" He could not believe I drove my own car, parked it in the garage and walked to his office. Humans, on the whole, can be pretty amazing. If you don't tell us there's something wrong with us, we usually just keep going as best we can.

I had spent a week snow skiing with no problems but the first day I returned I was at an outdoor soccer practice on an incredibly windy day and was running toward a ball that started blowing toward me. I misjudged it, topped the ball, fell backward and completely separated my ankle and received a spiral fracture of the fibula. When I stood up, my foot was upside down. Practice was over and I drove myself to the emergency room - in my standard shift pick-up with one foot.
They x-rayed it and couldn't see the break. The foot had slowly fallen back into position and they thought it was just a bad sprain. They gave me a pain subscription, told me to wrap it and stay off of it a few days. That was a Friday and by Sunday I couldn't stand the pain. I called my orthopedic surgeon who had cared for me when I broke the 2nd, 3rd and 4th metatarsal bones falling off a cliff. (my dad once called me an accident waiting to happen) The orthopedist said, "I always tell interns to look at the patient and not the x-ray". He put me in surgery the next day. Pinned the tibia and fibula and reattached the ankle ligaments and tendons. Full leg cast for 8 weeks. Makes it difficult to shower or sit on the toilet in a small bathroom.

... My conclusion to this is that in times of severe health issues, trauma, or pain, don't dwell on the pain, just do what you have to do and get through it. It is what it is, dealing with it quietly and with out a lot of drama will go a long way in keeping on beyond what others would expect. Hang in there, Judi, play the cards you have been dealt, make the best of it, and continue to show those doctors that they are not as smart as they think they are.

So true. The aforementioned ankle injury sometimes gives me fits. Occasionally it will swell up for days. Sometimes when pulling off tight boots, especially ski boots, it will come out of socket and be excruciatingly painful till I can work it back in. It has even done so on the ski slope and it takes a while to work it back into place but it feels so good when I do. Luckily it hasn't done it when I've had to make an crucial turn.

I once had a ladder collapse under me on a stairway while holding a 4X8 sheet of 3/4 inch plywood. The tibia slightly cracked. I was on crutches but couldn't use them to go to work because they would have made me go on medical leave. It would have been a 66% cut in pay.