The Society of Crazy Chicken Ladies, A Guy, and a Girl

[fuzzybutt love]

I never had that problem fuzz. Most of the hispanics I meet are female and apparently in spanish culture women are submissive to men. Use to work at a place where my boss was female and she had to have me give the "orders" because the hispanic girls wouldnt listen to her. Kinda cool to see how different cultures work though....

I have seen that, we had to have men in charge. A good deal of the reason i worked there for many years and wasn't promoted, despite being trained in the level 2 jobs, and doing them better sometimes than the guys who had them......... I did win a grudging respect, since i was one of the only 3 whites on 3rd shift, and the ONLY woman! I worked my backside off alongside the boys, and they respect a hard worker. The other 2 whites were the supervisors, I was the only inspector they could keep on that shift, there were supposed to be 2 but i did it alone. I also ran machines alongside the other boys promoted, before they were level 2. We tried training in more whites on that shift but it was hard fast grueling work and either they couldn't keep up or didn't want to do it! So i earned some questionable nicknames, but it was mostly in fun. It was very frustrating though to be told over and over that i couldn't be a leader, when it was what i had to do daily anyway......

Eating your house! LOL!
Plus, there has to be a reason why the don't want that tiny cuddlie little thing anymore, right?

Ours ate a good part of my old chicken house..........and their old house...............They DO eat wood. But the reason for all the cheap animals right now is HAY, It's going up and up, and a goat is kinda useless except for to play with.

 

[fuzzybutt love]

For you guys who aren't keeping up with the MI thread anymore, here's the streamlined version of the proposed gaamps changes/ charts i put together ( I condensed a couple charts, took the relevent quotes off of pages) This should photo-copy better than the actual, the other one was jumbled when i tried to paste it. This also will apply to rabbits and goats, if you read carefully...........


http://www.michigan.gov/documents/mdard/2013_DRAFT_SITE_SELECTION_GAAMP_392878_7.pdf
From the home page, you can get to each and every GAAMP.
http://www.michigan.gov/mdard/0,4610,7-125-1567_1599_1605---,00.html
Excerpts taken directly from the proposed new draft of the site selection gaamp

Animal Units....................... 50
Number of Animals:
Slaughter and Feeder Cattle 50
Mature Dairy Cattle 35
Swine *2 ........................*."For facilities with 50 animal units or more the minimum setback will be 250 feet for new livestock production facilities"
Sheep and Lambs 500
Horses 25
Turkeys 2,750
Laying Hens or Broilers 5,000
All other animal classes, types or sizes (eg. Nursery pigs) not in this table, but defined in the Michigan Right to Farm
Act or described in Michigan Commission of Agriculture Policy, are to be calculated as one thousand pounds live
weight equals one animal unit

Category 1 sites are those sites which have been traditionally used for agricultural purposes and are in an area with a relatively low residential housing density.
Table 2. Category 1 Site Setbacks, Verification and Notification in areas where local zoning allows for agricultural uses
Total Animal Unit..................................................................................0 - 49
New Operations Non-Farm Residences within Distance...........0-5 within ¼ mile /Expanding Operations 0-7 within ¼ mile
Property Line Setback.........................................................................100 ft
MDARD Site Review and Verification Process ..............................Upon Producer Request............."An Odor Management Plan (OMP) will not be required for these sites in most circumstances. It is however, recommended that all producers develop and implement an OMP in order to reduce odor concerns for neighboring non-farm residents. "

Category 2 sites are those where site-specific factors may limit the environmental, social, or economic
acceptability of the site for livestock production facilities and where structural, vegetative, technological,
and management measures may be necessary to address those limiting factors. These measures should
be incorporated into a Site Plan and a Manure Management System Plan, both as defined in Section IV,
which are required for all new and expanding livestock production facilities seeking verification. New and
expanding livestock production facilities should only be constructed in areas where local zoning allows for
agriculture uses. Due to the increased density of non-farm residences in Category 2 sites, an OMP is
required for all proposed new and expanding livestock production facilities.
Category 2 Site Setbacks, Verification and Notification – New operations in areas where local zoning allows for agricultural uses
Total Animal Units ................................................................................0-49
For new Operations Non-Farm Residences Within Distance ...6-13 within ¼ mile
Property Line Setback...........................................................................100 ft
MDARD Site Review and Verification Process ................................Upon Producer Request

 

[MsBagawkbagawk]

Thankfully we get all our hay and straw free because it comes from my g-parents ranch. That's mostly the reason I use straw in the coop instead of anything else, I get it free.

 

[keyt1969]

Thankfully we get all our hay and straw free because it comes from my g-parents ranch. That's mostly the reason I use straw in the coop instead of anything else, I get it free.

That's all we use is straw in the coops. We've tried other stuff and all it gets is soupy when it's rainy or snowy. It's just not economical for us to use anything but straw. We get it at the cheapest place around ($2.50 a bail). I called a guy on (that place we're not allowed to mention) who had it for $2.50 a bail. I think it was a joke. I spoke to the kid who said he had to call his dad to bring it to their house. He called back to say it would be there at 6. I called the kid to ask if we could come later because the tailgate is having issues opening and I had to wait til the BF came home but he never called back. Whatever.

Looks like we have our last coop sold

to BF's uncle. Another guy got our number off (that place we're not allowed to mention) asking if we could custom build him one. He's called 5x, each time when the BF was at work. I tell him to call later and he never does! He better call soon because the BF has a Tracker and fenders off a truck to paint, finish priming and painting a house all before snow hits. I don't think I'll be seeing him much in the next month or so!

 

[keyt1969]

I just realized I have a question. The railings in the barn are CAKED with ...stuff. We have 8 barn birds that have free access to the whole barn and come out when we open the door then go back in when we're done. Well, they sit and sleep on those railings so they're a mess. I used to wipe them down but it doesn't work now they're really a mess. What's the best way to clean them when they're so bad?? Just water and a scrub brush? I'd probably go through 3 or 4 of them! Or just leave it? Any ideas appreciated.

 

[Olive Hill]

Keyt -- Do you have a stockyard near you? Might check on info for their (usually weekly) auction. You can probably get straw cheaper. As for the railings, I'd leave it dry and chip it off with a shovel.

 

[NovaAman]

You know those scrapers that you see roofers using? Kobalt has a good one. I use it for chipping ice, turning stuff in the burn barrel. You could use that as a scraper to clean the rails.

Thanks about Roger...

I purposely locked the birds in the run today. I didn't want to have to worry about them and the hawk again while I was gone to work. Yesterday I was home all day, and had to keep running out the door because of that darn bird. SO, I figure, lock them in the run till I got home... Yeah. What a joke. I got home, and I see no chickens. THEN the stampede! Yup, of 34 birds, only 12 were still in the run. All the rest were up and over... I think that will not be a solution until I am roofed... Well, not me but the run.

 

[fuzzybutt love]

What about a big tarp for now? You can run a tall pole up the middle and tie it down on the sides....... Not critter proof, but if you tie it down good it might keep the birds from jumping?

 

[NovaAman]

LOL, I am not going to worry on it. I am going to have to roof it soon though. I was pricing it out already, and The most expensive part of the whole thing will be the tarp. The poles are only $3 a peice and I will only need 10. The tarp itself will be about the same cost as the poles and the hardware to keep the poles in place.

I am aiming for October to get that done.

 

[fuzzybutt love]

My neighbor with the laminate may have poles for you too, if you don't mind rustic pine............ That's where i got mine,he has a lot of little trees he had to cut when he roughed in the drive