Washingtonians

[Chickielady]

We checked every few months for a couple of years, and it was fine, but we did not check recently. Nest was built recently using the corn stalks and stuff from my vegetable garden! Dang rats. I looked in there tonight, and I can't tell that anything has burned. The nest is still there, so maybe it is chewed wires this time. Last time the fire was unmistkable because flames were shooting out the sides! About 3 weeks ago, I started leaving the garden gate open so the chickens would eat the bugs in the soil, and I was amazed that they ate all the dead plant stalks. It was not them.

Girl you need to have a chicken wire or hardware cloth BOX built OVER the entire generator !!!!!!!!!!
Period !!!!!!

 

[Cloverleaf Farm]

ha ha awesome to hear from you !!!!!!!!!!
Crimany I feel like a Mother hen & so many peeps to worry about.....I keep calling CR to text everyone............he probably hates me !Still
no word from K Huey, alias Birdnbeast........Stumpfarmer.Greg & Royce, and who else ?
Ogress~~~*sigh!** I worry!

I never did get a return call from Karen last night. I will try again tomorrow....

 

[Ogress]

We went out for dinner tonight. It was dark, so I could not see well, but there are trees down everywhere! DH and the kids were shouting at me to turn down the heat in the car until DH looked and saw I had it set at 69.

DS lost all the fish in his tank. The temperature was not even registering, it was so low. I replaced 1/3 of the water with HOT water, and it is now up to 62 in the tank with the tank heater running. He's pretty bummed. I wish I had thought of the tank a few days ago, I would have poured hot water in occasionally to keep the fish alive.

Thanks to DS, we can now get out of our driveway. We tried using our snow-blower, but it was so icy that the Honda rattled apart and the blades fell out. Then we tried shoveling some of it, but it was so heavy that it broke our shovels. I was just about done making a sigs thatread "NEED PLOW" to hang on the broken shovel at the end of our driveway when DS's phone, which I asked him to keep turned off, started to chirp. I was able to call a landscaper with a front loader before the line died again. The Kubota front loader is still in our driveway as it has no lights and they cleared our driveway in the dark this evening using flashlights. It was still a bit light when they drove it up here (Not sure where they borrowed it from), but they need daylight to drive it back down the hill to return it to the owner.

Good news is I talked to my sister and I found out that a little cash is coming my way - enough to fix the generator, build up the hearth and buy a wood-burning insert for it, and buy a plow blade for our John Deere.

On Wednesday before I went to bed, I ran the clothes dryer and the dish washer. The clothes got mostly dry, but the dishwasher stopped mid-cycle in an odd spot so the kitchen sink drained into the dishwasher. I did not notice until the sink backed up after dinner the first day with no power and the nasty water spewed from the dishwasher when DH plunged the sink! When the power was out I did the dishes in the bathroom sink by candlelight. I ran the dishwasher now and both it and the sink are draining fine again.

Looks like power is back through much of North Bend now, though it must just be recent as everything, even ACE is closed. The talk in town now is of possible flooding. I'm high enough to mss that, and I sure hope it does not happen. It was very gusty out througout the night and again this evening, but it seems to have improved now. Snow, Ice, moresnow, wind, now possible flooding. I'm ready for Spring!

 

[Ogress]

You're right CL - we tried skirting it because they come in from the bottom, but the darn thing is built near a corner of a cement retaining wall, about 2 inches from one side and 8 from the other. had trouble getting the skirt on thse side, so it was pushed over. I had not thought of making a hardware cloth box to go over the whole thing! What a simple solution!

 

[Ogress]

Broody - AWESOME NEWS with your clear scan; YIPPPEEEE!!!!!

Sorry to everyone who lost their chicks, eggs, etc. I'm still reading. Then I'm going to sleep. I'm incredibly tired, not sure why.

 

[anniesmom]

Thanks, CR, for checking on us. We were without power, phone, internet, tv from about midnight Wed to 6:30 tonight. The cell phones didn't even work at the house. We managed to get the driveway cleared finally today and got out to check on my Mom. My sister was with her so she's ok. We got 12 inches of snow and then a half inch of ice on top AND then a windstorm last night. Just about every bush and tree is broken or bent to the ground. People and animals are all fine, though. The plants can be replaced!!

 

[Ogress]

I think Eastsiders are annoying when they generalize about what they think are the quirks of Westsiders. But I forgive you since you may have had too much vodka.

Agreed!

 

[Chicken Rustler]

OK I just got through with my most recently assigned list.
Annies mom all ok now.
Boldog no answer on her phone so I left a message.
Denniselk no answer left message.
Illia talked to Mom? said all ok and that she would pass on that we checked.

 

[Illia]

So, while returning from tonight's chicken-checking I was told a "Chicken Rustler" called me today

I'm a bit shocked anyone knew my # ?


Anyway if anyone is curious I'm fine. The snow-mageddon Wednesday did nothing to us but about an extra inch and some wind that calmed mid-day. We lost power for about half an hour, actually, and that was it.


The real loss for me was that through all this snow, my only Shamo (rooster) was in a new huge pen awaiting some pullets for me to have shipped over for him once it was over. Well, in the snow, his pen collapsed, and, if anyone here remembers I had and still have a dog with some, ahem, problems. (my mom's actually) She's still here and we learned she has NO respect for fences or any boundaries, and likes chasing chickens. Last night I wasn't aware she was running the yard loose to go do her potty business with several other dogs, one who's attacked chickens before. She jumped the downed fence, took my Shamo, dragged him out to the frontyard, and ate him. The other dogs likely joined in.

I was never aware of this until late late night when the snow was finally melted off from the rain enough that I could go fix the fence and secure his coop enough, I found he was gone. Searched all up and down the property and its buildings, nothing, - Nothing but a pile of feathers under where he normally perched. I assumed it may have been raccoons like with the Shamo hen I lost, but there were no signs but for the feathers under the perch. My next idea was the dogs, since their tracks showed previous entry to the pen before the snow was melting.

This morning I found one of our dogs out in the far side of the main lawn chewing on something - I approached and found the front half of my beloved Shamo rooster. I can't believe, an animal like our own, well, my family's dogs, would do such a horrible thing as eat the BACK end of the rooster, the most painful and prolonging thing possible, and not even touch his head, neck, or breast.


That being said I had to call off the future shipment of my Shamo pullets, and, I don't have any Shamos nor see it happening anytime soon.

To me, that was an enormous loss. He was a great pet, and I really really planned on having Shamos a part of this farm as a serious thing. First I lost my hen (lost her a few weeks ago) and now him.

Family says the dog is definitely going to go, but, she's been on plans for leave for months now. And the question is, what other of our dogs were out there and ALSO joined in on this? I don't even seriously hate them right now, I guess it's because I'm in a bit of shock and depression. I lost my Blue Wheaten Marans rooster, had to give up most of my Marans hens, had to give up my Buff Ameraucanas, some of my Sussex hens, I'm lucky I still have some of my project EE's and some Araucanas, but really, - Things just aren't looking up for me lately, chicken-wise. (which right now chickens are my life for the season being)

 

[Cloverleaf Farm]

Ilia, I'm really sorry to hear about your Shamo boy...I know how much you loved him, and how much you were looking forward to breeding them...