Washingtonians Come Together! Washington Peeps

[TurtlePowerTrav]

Hi KMoran & TPT !!!!!!!!!!

I gotta get back to work.

 

[Duck Drover]

More pics I forgot to post that SF & Haller will like~~~~~~~~ Very early this year ! Too early...the slugs were after them and the rain & wind knocked alot over.....don't they look like awesome grape popsickles ????????? They smell so good........not like grape candy like you'd think though !

They are beautiful. You obviously need some slug-eating ducks, though. my irises are budding but they have not bloomed yet. I love the purple irises so they are under the plum trees and cherry trees while the yellow ones are back in the corner. I was able to trade some on Craigslist last year so I may try that again when they show their colors.

 

[Duck Drover]

Ask TotalColour about babies & the crows !!!!!!!!

I did some searching and found so many conflicting answers that I would love to know about personal experiences. So many people share their philosophical answers to practical questions and they are not as helpful as they would like to be if they are wrong in their educated guesses.

 

[Flaming Chicken]

I did some searching and found so many conflicting answers that I would love to know about personal experiences. So many people share their philosophical answers to practical questions and they are not as helpful as they would like to be if they are wrong in their educated guesses.

In my area we have everything. My neighbor used netting over parts of her runs and wire over another and roofing over the main area. Once the raccoons found a way through the netting. They soon found a way through the wire. and the only thing that stopped them was the roofing. So now the whole thing is roofed over. Raccoons are everywhere. If you are just letting your young birds out in the day time, they will most likely be safe from the crows with netting but they wont from raccoons. You wont know if your crows will eat your birds until they do. If they have better sources of food they may not bother but if one of them figures out that your chicks are food then the rest will follow.

I have had to deal with coyotes, bobcats, cougars, bears and raccoons. But not crows.

 

[rgwelli]

So i found a new feed store that was recommended to me from a lady i bought a few pullets from. They sell a local feed X Cel out of Tacoma. I'm googling and i am not finding any info on them. Does anyone have any good or bad reports on them? I know the cashier was trying to hard sell the layena Purina brand feed on me, saying it was plant based, better proteins than the Xcel brand. i did buy a bag, then when entering the storage saw the huge bags asked the other guy that was there how much they were i was shocked at the price difference and how huge the bag was. 80lbs for 26 the Layena was 20 for 50lbs. He then gave me brief info, just that it was out of tacoma, its more bang for your buck. So i have both bags I do like the idea of supporting local business instead of big box Purina. Other than that i have no reason to not buy Xcel? Any info would be appreciated

Hi there. I read with great interest and hope your post. However, a quick internet search of Xcel led me to see they may have some company management issues, or may have at one time. I did not find anything about the current quality of their feed. I am definitely going to keep my ears open, although I do question companies ethics after reading about stormwater permit disputes and an article by Organic Consumers Assoc which stated "FDA investigators sought an injunction against Tacoma feed mill X-Cel, issued warning letters against three other companies and cited an additional 11 for failing to comply with rules put in place to control the spread of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or BSE." (2004) That being said, over 5 years have passed. However, I plan to let the company prove itself/its product first.

 

[rapunzel162]

I live on Bishop road in Chehalis. My name is Susie.

 

[SadieSue]

Quote:
I have been using the X-Cel feed for over 6 months with no ill effects. My flock of 15 chickens are happy, healthy and eating the feed heartily. Can't beat the price, plus X-Cel is just 5 minutes from my home!

 

[SadieSue]

Quote: That is my experience with my one barnevelder as well. She lays a terra cotta colored egg and after 2 years is still the most skittish of the bunch. She won't let me get near her. We call her "Mimi" as in "Screaming Mimi" because of her temperament. Beautiful bird and dependable layer though.

 

[flirty31]

I have been using the X-Cel feed for over 6 months with no ill effects. My flock of 15 chickens are happy, healthy and eating the feed heartily. Can't beat the price, plus X-Cel is just 5 minutes from my home!

Can you tell me where to get the X-cel? I have heard about it from two separate sources now (one on here, one in person) and I am very interested as Scratch and Peck is SPENDY!!!

 

[Duck Drover]

In my area we have everything.  My neighbor used netting over parts of  her runs and wire over another and roofing over the main area.  Once the raccoons found a way through the netting.  They soon found a way through the wire. and the only thing that stopped them was the roofing.  So now the whole thing is roofed over.  Raccoons are everywhere.  If you are just letting your young birds out in the day time, they will most likely be safe from the crows with netting but they wont from raccoons.   You wont know if your crows will eat your birds until they do.  If they have better sources of food they may not bother but if one of them figures out that your chicks are food then the rest will follow. 

I have had to deal with coyotes, bobcats, cougars, bears and raccoons.  But not crows. 

We live in town so mainly I am concerned about cats and possibly opossum or rats. When I originally built the pens I made them predator proof but it was difficult to get in and out of them without cutting the panels. I got a plastic roof panel but never came up with a way to keep it over the pens once I took off the welded wire panels. The plum trees are branched over the pens and I have shelters inside the pens so I have not needed a roof over the whole thing. I have ducklings due to hatch soon so I better figure out something to cover the pens, even if I just put up something temporarily while they are so small.