Washingtonians

[RedReiner]

Illia sorry about your Shamo, I think they are neat looking birds and in the future wanted to have some. I saw your pictures of them and thought I would like to have some that looked like that when I had time and money to build another coop and run.

 

[HoneysuckleHills]

Oh! Let's see if I can get this posted properly. Here is a video clip of a few choice moments from "California Suite" which was shot during rehearsal on Tuesday night. This is the promo piece being used by the theater. My "stage husband", who plays both of my husbands in 2 different stories during the show, produced the video. He is a very active volunteer for Pierce County Humane Society and Coalition Humane for spay/neuter and produces all the video for the Humane Society. He also hosts the local show on Comcast which spotlights the weeks adoptable pets. He's a great guy and I love working with him!

This looks fabulous!
Anyone in Seattle want to go with me?
If so, send me a PM.

 

[HoneysuckleHills]

Wow! I sure fell behind.
I'm all caught up now.
Greetings to all the new people.
So sorry to hear of all the losses.
Illia, not that it's any comfort but I'm so enjoying the chickens I have from you.
I can't imagine how awful you must feel right now. And ReiMirra, too.
And RR, too. Who else did I miss? What a hard week.
CR - I love how you are tracking people down! Put me on your list!
I want to have someone worry about me too!

Seriously, here in Kenmore we did get a lot of snow but we didn't lose power.
Here's hoping that next week is better for everyone!

 

[RedRoosterFarm]

YeeHaw! 91 hours and we just got power at 3am. I put the eggs in the bator that I had by the fire the last 3.5 days and when I did I was floored at what I heard. I heard peeps from the marked eggs due the 24th. I can not believe it. I guess turning them buy the fire and loving them made them live. All the chicks and young birds are back out in their pens. We are getting ready for the next round coming through today sometime. HighWinds are expected. Thanks everyone for the happy thoughts and prayers.
I was able to read everything posted and you were all so kind with warm thoughts. CR you are such a nice guy who cares about us all. You were calling people and finding out if thet needed help or were safe. How lucky we all are to have one another. God is good!

My eyes hurt and my brain is numb from trying to sleep on the couch and watching chicks and keeping them warm in the cold. I was able to take pictures when we were down. I was able to hatch 25+chicks in 91 hours in my pockets, down the shirt and tucked everywhere. Every time I hatched one it gave me hope for the next one to make it. I counted a total of 5- 2 month old that I lost and 11 day to week old and I tell you,that aint bad. I did toss some eggs because I had only had them in the bator a week but kept at least 200 by the fire and turned hourly. I can now sleep in my own bed. Last time was Tuesday. I hope you all are safe, warm and dry and did not have a lot of loss or damage. We were lucky that once we got the generator we had tv and a light or two. Didnt loose anything in either fridge or the freezer or the outside barn fridge. Again, Thank you all for good thought my way.


pocket chicks and eggs waiting to hatch




eggs by fire




pocket chicks

.
chicks keeping warm with hat water



Then you know you are board when....

 

[ReiMiraa]

night everyone. i went to my first real party. it was fun. i also won 2 times in a row at beer pong (though i had my mixed drink instead). fun night, met cool people that were fun and intellectually fun to chat with.
going to sleep for 8 hours. night again.

 

[Chicken Rustler]

YeeHaw! 91 hours and we just got power at 3am. I put the eggs in the bator that I had by the fire the last 3.5 days and when I did I was floored at what I heard. I heard peeps from the marked eggs due the 24th. I can not believe it. I guess turning them buy the fire and loving them made them live. All the chicks and young birds are back out in their pens. We are getting ready for the next round coming through today sometime. HighWinds are expected. Thanks everyone for the happy thoughts and prayers.
I was able to read everything posted and you were all so kind with warm thoughts. CR you are such a nice guy who cares about us all. You were calling people and finding out if thet needed help or were safe. How lucky we all are to have one another. God is good!

My eyes hurt and my brain is numb from trying to sleep on the couch and watching chicks and keeping them warm in the cold. I was able to take pictures when we were down. I was able to hatch 25+chicks in 91 hours in my pockets, down the shirt and tucked everywhere. Every time I hatched one it gave me hope for the next one to make it. I counted a total of 5- 2 month old that I lost and 11 day to week old and I tell you,that aint bad. I did toss some eggs because I had only had them in the bator a week but kept at least 200 by the fire and turned hourly. I can now sleep in my own bed. Last time was Tuesday. I hope you all are safe, warm and dry and did not have a lot of loss or damage. We were lucky that once we got the generator we had tv and a light or two. Didnt loose anything in either fridge or the freezer or the outside barn fridge. Again, Thank you all for good thought my way.


pocket chicks and eggs waiting to hatch




eggs by fire




pocket chicks

.
chicks keeping warm with hat water



Then you know you are board when....

And this just proves NEVER GIVE UP HOPE ! ! ! ! Early on she said she was going to toss the eggs. Then they got the gen running and somebody told her NO don't give up yet you get them eggs going again and give them a chance. I think after the first ones hatched (in her pocket) about 2:45 am RRF decided that there was still plenty of hope.

Please keep in mind none of this is to Make RRF look or feel bad. IT is to show that those eggs can and DO hatch even after the bator goes off.

And NOW RFF can say she has TRUE POCKET CHICKENS

 

[Stumpfarmer]

I was getting ready to post this photo (which is of the same solar landscape lamp that had the cute little hat on Wednesday) when the equivalent ice burden took down the high branches that Asplundh stupid (profanity and other colorful descriptive terms deleted for space) left hanging unsupposted out over the main power lines and the lights went out. I spent ten hours over three days discussing those same trees with a consulting PhD arborculturalist and then a bunch of mail time editing the vegetation management plan back when they widened the road and the upshot was that they were never ever going to do that, ever, they were going to cut all limbs back to the main trunk or a stable crotch, and prune up to the sky.

We were without power for 36 60 hours, which is not a record, the lights have been on since midnight and it's under 60F in the study(edit: went to 60.1 while I was typing). On the good side, everything in the freezers is still rock hard.

And the Hamburgs skipped on day laying, and that was Thursday when every time I went outside there were more branches down in the orchard. They laid an egg apiece yesterday, even though a patch of ice was melting over an insecure seam in their plastic; the flimsy wire and sheet plastic run has held fast. I did accidentally let two of them them out yesterday when I went in search of a support to take care of the melting ice-lake; Suzzie went back in when I yelled at her and I caught Elvis pretty easily, without loss of fethers or dignity on either of our part. And the branch that weighed down the roof of Ian and Sylvia's run went UP and not DOWN when the ice melted.

The orchard took a lot of damage. I have to get a Transparent and one other pollinator ASAP, because true to the fragility and brittleness of its kind that tree split right down the middle. Otherwise, I'm going to register at Burnt Ridge for 60th Birthday and 30th wedding anniversary gifts, I guess. The plum next to the front door is in shambles, but I was taking that out anyway. The pears are all fine. The local native pines are also fine; the stone pines and the "beach pine" subspecies of Pinus contortum (lodgepole) are not so hot. Pictures possibly to follow.

The driveway is still a zero friction surface, even though it's been above freezing for 48 hours now. I'm contemplating the extreme act of using the extra Coleman butane I bought last night (yes, mother, we only used it in a well ventilated space). and boiling water to dump down the hill, but since the surbace under the slush is pretty much liquid as it is I suspect that would be unwise.

 

[Stumpfarmer]

Hate to say it but now i am not as jealous and the hatchitis in me has diminished.... then again.... the power never goes out in Chelan County... our PUD works hard.   Anyone care to move to my area for electrical consistency and/or cheap electric rates?

Ther's not a lot of great big trees to fall over power lines in most of Chelan County, but the power to the South Shore of Lake Chelan goes out frequently in winter according to my local informants.

 

[Cowgirlgrace]

Showing is always a worry. The 1 and 2 day shows like Chehalis and Monroe and Stevenson are mostly attended by serious fanciers who keep their birds parasite free and in good health. The fairs, where the birds are stuck there for 5 days with people poking at them and other people's backyard birds next door are a bigger worry. The only time I've had sick stressed birds or brought parasites home was from a county fair. That is why many serious fanciers never exhibit there. (Indianapolis was a huge show and fun, fun, fun, but my birds clearly were not at their best after 5 days of travel.) I guess it depends on whether one is serious about breeding top birds. If you want to breed good birds, you need to exhibit. I always think my birds are unstoppable in the yard, then I compare them to other people's exhibits and realize there are a few faults I could work on. I'm always skeptical of anyone who claims they have show quality anything- and doesn't show themselves. On the forums we certainly hear from lots of writers who sound like they have the poultry world by the tail and the best birds around but, lo and behold, they never have time to make a show....
So, I guess the answer is, if your birds are just your pets and layers, ( and goodness knows there's nothing wrong with that!) you are probably wise to avoid shows and fairs, but, if you really want to be involved in bettering the breed, you can't do it without exhibiting against competition from time to time.
(And, yes, there are precautions we take- like putting on Frontline, and giving vitamins, and isolating birds after they arrive home.)

I have been interested in Chicken showing. I try to buy stock from people who do show. I educate myself enough on the standards to know what I am getting. If I happen to have chicks from the offspring for sale I tell people their parents came from show stock but I do not show myself. I do however breed to the standard the best I know how. The problem I have is I have been in the horse and dog show worlds. It's very influence oriented and who knows who and whos friends with who kind of thing. I haven't been in the chicken showing world to see if it's the same but I have been to a few shows and hear mummers of "the judge placed that hen first and she clearly has a disqualification" , "that judge only raises silkies, he clearly does not know anything about many other breeds", " Why did that judge reclassify my bird? He put him in the wrong class. Doesn't he know anything about that breed?", "That bird is clearly ill and is going to spread it to the rest of the birds. Why can't the judge see that?" I totally understand that there are disgruntled people who will always try to discredit a judge when they lose but some of these complaints are valid. You can bring your prize winning bird home that has pink legs and it was suppose to have yellow and tell everyone, yes, I show my birds and this one won BV. Well, whoopty doo. It has a DISQUALIFICATION! On the other hand, it does happen, I have shown horses and dogs where the judge does see past his friends horses and the best horse or dog won even though the judge has never seen me before. but I have also been in shows where there will be 4 judges judging the same class at the same time and each judge will place the class almost opposite. So there is a lot of personal preference also. So a chicken judge prefers pink legs over yellow even though the pink is a disqualification. So far, I haven't heard enough good things about judges knowing their stuff to decide for sure if I want to get into yet another show world but maybe I'm tainted and my ears will only hear the negative. Anyone have any good stories out there about judges who are educated and fair?

 

[PitterPatterPalace]

Ok, goofy stuff going on with BYC, every time I try to quote someone, it gives me a Random Person. So, Random Person, could you kindly go away for a little bit? Thanks!

Wanted to say Hi to PiterPatterPalce - long time no see. Glad you are ok, even if you are busy. Beats the alternatives

Hi back! I'll need to pop in & give you guys a new pic. I keep up on facebook more often. PM me for our call name to find me there.