Washingtonians

[cheryl98117]

Just a few quik questions for those who have more experienced than me...

I give my girls layer pellets, grit, and scratch. They get fed pellets 2 times a day, just enough that they will have it cleaned up within 10 minutes, "dont want extra laying around for rats." I give the adult girls about 1/4 cup of scratch for the four of them, about every other day as a treat. And they have a bowl of grit that I add to when it gets low.

My question is, am I feeding to little or to much? How much grit should they be getting? And is 1/4 cup of scratch for four adult hens too much?

Our girls also have the option to free range all day long, rain or shine. Boy do they get mad when I dont open up their run.

Is there anything else I should be giving them? Should I give them crushed oyster shell, on top of the grit?

Oh and of course they have fresh water every day.

Thanks in advance everyone!

 

[jbear]

Quote:
ohohoh--I know where you are tooooo! Oooo I am so homesick for EW! My friends from this side go camping every year at Conconully. I like to meet them there if I am at my Dad's in the Methow...I drive over the logging roads and come in the back way if I have time, that's FUN

My 'city jeep' gets to pretend he's a 'mountain jeep' for a little bit. heehee!

 

[Chickielady]

OK, my weather station just announced a dryer day, and a bit of sun today and then the next storm comes in tonight and can bring about 2" of rain to the Astoria area !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We are going to drown !

Our road is muck, thanks to log trucks, boomtrucks and this rain...no see ums in swarms...and my zychinni thinks it has been planted in anartica.
My Birds have been spending so much time soaked that I am surprised the all are not sick with pnuemonia.
Two inches !
On a liter note: I have 1 more guinea out and awake, a little blonder, maybe a pied.

I have e-mailed 'bargain' to ask what varieties they were in her assortment as I have lost the paper I wrote them on.
The are so small you would never beleive they would grow up into such a big weird bird !!

Ugly and noisy as the day is long, but I cannot hear them or see them walking along in a group without cracking up !
They are the equivilent of anteaters or armidillos to me....so weird and odd, and funny looking.
Dh says they are uglier than sin !!!

NWChicks:::My heart goes out to you for yet another loss ! I hope you discover this problem, and do not loose any more babies !!!!

 

[4cats3kids1hubby2many]

Quote:
ohohoh--I know where you are tooooo! Oooo I am so homesick for EW! My friends from this side go camping every year at Conconully. I like to meet them there if I am at my Dad's in the Methow...I drive over the logging roads and come in the back way if I have time, that's FUN

My 'city jeep' gets to pretend he's a 'mountain jeep' for a little bit. heehee!

Jen: Too funny "city jeep gets to play mountain jeep". Love it. I know which back road you are referring to that comes up from the Methow and comes out at Conconully. When coming down Salmon Creek - from the Conconully side...we saw 5 deer and 3 wild turkeys. The turkeys were out preening and drying off. It was beautiful. Last Friday, when going up the Loup to go camping, there was a young bear in the middle of the road (not near you Rare Feather Farm - further towards the top of the Loup). The wildlife has really been out and it has been fun. Break in the weather today for a bit....but suppose to turn back into rain.

Everyone regarding no-see-ums...ain't got'em yet...but we usually always get them too.....hate them. Can't chickens see them and eat them? Probably not, huh? My girls are feasting on left over watermelon from last night, right now, lovin' it. OH, well...here is wishing everyone a nice, dry day and the no-see-ums die soon.

 

[LaSombra]

I hadn't ever dealt with no se ums that I know of, but now that I have read about them, I think we've got them around this spring. I thought maybe the dog and cats were bringing in extra fleas from outside because I've had some bites, but it could very well be these buggers. I'm sure they're really happy to propogate in the muck that has built up in our runs. grrr. I'm getting very fed up with all that mud

 

[weaveagarden]

Fair Warning: This is a lengthy one

, and I won't be offended if newbies or even oldies want to skip it.

Well I decided to try one more time to log in to BYC with the password that they generated. I finally got one that actually worked. Yay!

Sorry to anybody who offered to take my chickens that I was unable to get back to.

Here is the skinny on what I have done (good or bad). I had been hoping to send them as a group someplace. But when it got down to the time to do it, I had to split them to get them good homes with people I know and trust.

Close to home (and not talking about anybody here). I got some of the usual: Oh yes we will be happy to give your new laying hens a home for free. Oh, you have a rooster. Well I don't know about that."
Followed by. "Well sure we will take him too. Not sure if he will work out, but we will give it a try. And I promise WE won't eat him."

Which really reads: "I am so happy to take your full grown just laying flock off you hands for no money in exchange and take your rooster to my neighbors to be butchered!"

Also some people who were happy to take some of my hens but not others, and not Pinky (the rooster)

Chicken Rustler offered to take all of the hens and place them at his or his dear neighbors coop. But he was fair and told me that he just simply couldn't give Pinky a home and displace his current rooster (whom Pinky would likely have squashed if he sat on him). And then Nyrial offered to take Pinky and his trio of black hens. She also would take the 3 chicks that Liza had just hatched.

I have known the two of them on here for enough time to have a pretty good picture of how they feel about their chickens. And between the two of them I was satisfied that all of the chickens would have friends along and the split was do-able.

In the end, when it came time to take the 9 hens to Rob, I kept back 3. Fran -Production Red was pretty torn up on her back from Pinky.... So I wanted her to heal some before encountering the new pecking order at Rob's. Willow -EE quit laying about 10 days before the move, so I kept her so as not to burden Rob and Diane with a hen not pulling her weight. (And I needed to confirm that she had quit laying, and not just changed egg color) And Fred -NHR had just begun to sit on eggs and wasn't going to be happy about stopping.

I have gotten reports and pics and am reassured that those moved are doing fine at this point. The ones that have had the hardest time are Fran and Willow who still run around the yard wondering where their friends are. I couldn't close them into a coop alone, so I bring them in to sleep in a wading pool brooder with a roost each night. They even walk to the back door and knock to be let in now....LOL

Fran is feathering in. Fred has 3 - 3 day old chicks right now running around brooder pool in the dining room with her. But Willow is still not laying. Willow is my White EE girl who layed the prettiest light blue/green eggs. If she never lays another egg, she has earned her way into my heart. If she does lay, I may still see if Rob wants the 3 girls. Or I may use them to begin a hen only coop. But it isn't what I wanted at all when I started on this crazy journey.

I know some people don't understand why a flock is important to me. And I don't think I can ever make it clear. But it is important to me to have that male presence in my coop. And with some of the problems with my physical disorder, a rooster and his natural abilities made it possible for me to keep chickens. I am still evalutating whether I can figure out a way to replace his service to me.

Some have suggested a timer, and making a "fort knox" type coop for security. But I am not sure that those will work well enough for me to continue. Time and experimentation will tell.

I have to tell you that I experienced a little bit of backlash from some of my friends on fb who also are BYC'ers about being some upset about all of this. It hurt my feelings and slowed my return to this website and this thread.

But I am stronder now, and I am back to BYC for now. Not as much as in the past, but I will be popping back in to harrass the "boys" and laugh with the girls from the old group. (If they are still around)

Now back to your regularly scheduled program

Oh Ron - I am only getting one egg a day right now..... But at least it isn't white!

 

[weaveagarden]

Quote:
Totally agree about the mud Jen. My legs look like a dot to dot puzzle..... I think it is no see ums, because I no see anything else that would be the culprit.

 

[Chickielady]

Quote:
Far Out !
I so admire you for the war you have fought ! And I do understand all of it !
Wish you could get out of that place and have a big coop and all the roos you love out in the country !
And kudos for fighting city hall !

 

[Chickielady]

Quote:
These little buggers fly really lazy in still air, like right now, when it is humid and still.
They look like gnats...or vinegar flies we get in potted plants that commit suicide in your glass of wine.
They must have a bloodmeal to lay eggs...females only.
They lay eggs in composty-fertile soft soil and must be wet.
Dryness kills them.
They crawl right into your hair and bite !
They bite the birds, rabbits and dogs/cats.
They crawl right through window screens.
Spray in the yard does not do anything but kills those there, not the larvae...wind keeps them in the dirt..they are poor fliers.
Protect yourself !
They can carry alot of diseases too, lovely.

 

[Chickielady]

regarding mud....anyone close by that wants tons of spruce chicps for your runs or garden or whatever...I have alot !!!
We are here in Raymond...bring a trailer and we can fill it up by shovel...

I am going to try to get a few loads of clothes on the clothesline, and runs cleaned, but will check for PM's later if anyone wants chips~