Washingtonians

[monicas]

Hi guys, been gone a while, jas's grandpa died and we've been running back and forth to the Ca border to move his stuff. with that and my mothers 80th birthday and the repeated business trips to CA....
We're down to 70 chickens... lol. I ran out of time to sell off the babies so I WAS that craigslist person who never returns mail.

I wanted to hit winter with 40 but I guess this is how it's gonna be. We'll move them all under the arena roof as the hay gets eaten so they'll be inside for the cold and snowy times.
I ended up with a lot (10) of lavender ameraucanas. I'm excited to see how they lay when they are a few months older. I have an ad up on CL because I don't need that many but I don't know when I am going to have time to meet up with anyone.

The Tolbunts ( Bunties as my son calls them) are still hanging in there. I trimmed their heads as they keep getting themselves wet all over by dipping their topknots in water and then flinging it onto themselves. I want to move them into the garage but my husband is ixnaying the dust all over the garage. Ilia, I still don't know if the frizzle is a male or female. the smooth appears to be male though his tail is set off to one side for some reason.



Hope you all are well.

 

[monicas]

one question for you all.

I want to check that I'm vaccinating right for WA state. Can anyone point me to a website that tells me what I should be doing? and if I want to get NPIP status, is the process difficult?

 

[cheryl98117]

Quote:
man I wish I could get that! it would make a sweet coop etc!

Well it would fit into my truck. But its a little to far for me. lol To bad I dont live on the east side anymore. I almost miss living in the city. But I watched to many kids grow up way to fast living on Crown Hill... So Chloe will be raised in the semi sticks, just like her mama! lol

This shed would make a cute little coop.

 

[Rainwolf]

Quote:
I'm curious about NPIP status as well, and is it worth getting? What is the perks of being NPIP vs not... etc

 

[Rainwolf]

Quote:
man I wish I could get that! it would make a sweet coop etc!

Well it would fit into my truck. But its a little to far for me. lol To bad I dont live on the east side anymore. I almost miss living in the city. But I watched to many kids grow up way to fast living on Crown Hill... So Chloe will be raised in the semi sticks, just like her mama! lol

This shed would make a cute little coop.

I agree that kids grow up to fast in the city. I love my neighborhood just for the fact that its a true little community which seems to be lost in most of the city.
But I still wish I could live in the sticks and have a farm myself. I grew up on acres with a 100 acre natural park behind my house. It was the best for playing, exploring and learning about our natural world.
Some of the animals I grew up catching and playing with I no longer see anymore

Frogs, tadpoles, salamanders, newts, lizards (and yes we did have native lizards in western wa!), snakes, flying squirrels, owls, and so much more!

 

[ByN8ureHomstead]

Quote:
I'm curious about NPIP status as well, and is it worth getting? What is the perks of being NPIP vs not... etc

In Kansas to sell eggs legally and to go to some swap meets you need to be NPIP tested. The cert is good for a year but any wild bird can give your birds what thy test for with in the year. The tester that tested my birds said it was a joke.

 

[cheryl98117]

Quote:
Well it would fit into my truck. But its a little to far for me. lol To bad I dont live on the east side anymore. I almost miss living in the city. But I watched to many kids grow up way to fast living on Crown Hill... So Chloe will be raised in the semi sticks, just like her mama! lol

This shed would make a cute little coop.

I agree that kids grow up to fast in the city. I love my neighborhood just for the fact that its a true little community which seems to be lost in most of the city.
But I still wish I could live in the sticks and have a farm myself. I grew up on acres with a 100 acre natural park behind my house. It was the best for playing, exploring and learning about our natural world.
Some of the animals I grew up catching and playing with I no longer see anymore

Frogs, tadpoles, salamanders, newts, lizards (and yes we did have native lizards in western wa!), snakes, flying squirrels, owls, and so much more!

Oh I know exactly what you are talking about! I grew up in the deep woods on the North end of Bainbridge Island. Back when Bainbridge was a small town. The propertys next to ours were ALL wooded except one. So I had acres upon acres of forest to explore. You really don't see all the small wildlife anymore. I can't remember the last time I saw, let alone caught a newt or salamander... Its really sad actually. The more people expand into the non developed areas, the more natural wildlife we lose.

Where I live now, is only about 15 miles from where I was born and raised, and the critters we have here are mostly larger wildlife. Bear, Cougar, Coyote, coon, and Civic cats... Have you ever seen or smelled a Civic cat? If you havn't smelled them your lucky! But they are cute large Weazle cousins. Will devistate a flock in a heart beat, and will take on small and medium sized dogs. We also have this large rodent "I say large because they get to 5lbs." Well I have NO idea what these rodents are called, but they look like miniature versions of beavers, flat tails, equatic, kinda a sandy brown color. OH and they eat fish! Wiped out my entire fish population, koy, schubunkins, and gold fish... Anyone have any clue what this rodent might be?

Sorry about my raving! I kinda get lost and lose my train of thought. lol

 

[DIYSeattle]

Cheryl are those Mountain Beavers? I thought that it was a joke but I googled it and they are really here. They look like a cross between a guinea pig and a beaver. Look like a giant rat almost?

Never heard of civic cat unless you refer to a skunk as that, the spotted skunk as opposed to the ones that have the straight lines.

I only see pigeons, starlings, sparrow, crows, and a very occasional nuthatch or hummingbird. About once a year I may see a Stellar Jay on their way to wherever they are going. The starlings and sparrows I think put a real hurting on the indigenous birds here. My neighbor used to put out a lot of food every day and only thing that would come are the pigeons, starlings, crows, and sparrows.

 

[Imp]

Thank you chickielady, I don't think those tanks are exactly what Carol is looking for.

Cheryl, Could your mystery rodent be "Nutria" I've read that they have made it to Washington.

Welcome to all the new Wa. members.

Russ

 

[cheryl98117]

Quote:
Mountian Beaver huh? That very well could have be what they are. Yes they do kinda look like a giant rat with a guiny pigish face, and small flat tail. Thats gotta be what they are.

Civic cats are about 2 1/2 - 3 feet long, and stand about a foot off the ground. Most of the time they are a mouse brown/gray/black mix "think ferret markings" with a coon striped tail, they remind me of something that would occur if a Racoon and a Otter were to interbreed. Locally they are called Civic cats, I am unaware of any other name for them. Its very rare to come across one, as they really do prefer heavily forested areas. The smell I was mentioning is as strong as skunk, but a different type of funk all in itself, closer to cat spray...

We have a large flock of starlings that wreak havoc on our gardens. They are an invasive species, and around here are treated as such. They are just as big a problem around here as the family of Racoons are. We also have a large murder of crows that live nearby, but we have an understanding. So long as they stay away from my chickens, feed, and gardens they are fine. My favorite wild bird is the male Red Winged Black Bird, we chatter back ang forth when I work outside. There are so many different types of birds here that I couldn't name them all.