Washingtonians

[Stumpfarmer]

It took me about an hour to find him, even though she kept staring at the same spot from all over the field; she didn't get that close until I'd found him and taken his ID picture. He's the only bull calf we've kept entire (there are three others, all steered when they were vaccinated and tagged) and he's a bruiser already although really tame and easy to handle.

A keeper ?

Very much so- the cow is a beaut herself, and the bull calf was about 150lb at birth with nice heavy bones. It's always a longshot to keep a bull when steer prices are high, but the past four years have been a (relative) seller's market for young bulls, so we took the chance.

How y' doing, by the way? Wish I could see you folks this weekend, but things are way too complicated here.

 

[Chickielady]

Very much so- the cow is a beaut herself, and the bull calf was about 150lb at birth with nice heavy bones. It's always a longshot to keep a bull when steer prices are high, but the past four years have been a (relative) seller's market for young bulls, so we took the chance.
How y' doing, by the way? Wish I could see you folks this weekend, but things are way too complicated here.

We are WET and exhausted but have relatively not much to do tomorrow, finally chicken grooming & load up alot of started birds to sell.......cook the pot luck food & we are done, the worst is over.
Just hoping the weather gets better, especially for those driving over the pass.
Next week I need to get ahold of you about a beef 1/4 split or 1/8th.............or maybe just splurge & get a 1/4.
Cannot make up my mind.

 

[Chickielady]

Stumpfarmer~ are you going to keep little bully for breeding or keep leasing that guy's bull you used last spring ?

 

[Chickielady]

Well, I will be back later, gotta go move 2 broody Buckeye hens (in 1 nest) to another coop, and 1 broody Java to the same coop.
This coop has a small door to a small 10 x 8 foot pen that is enclosed with 1/4" poultry wire so I can have babies in there~

Hopefully all 3 Moms get a long!

P.S. For the last week we have had at least 50 Robins at a time all over our place here..and pussy willows popping all over the place !

 

[Chicken Rustler]

Ok I still don't know what I'm bringing to the Potluck??? I forgot where the posts are for it??

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...her-fanciers-pot-luck-sign-up-march-17th-2012

 

[pettec63]

Quote:


Hey Thanks D!!! Yea, l'm a little late!! LOL!! I need to pay attention!! HELLO???? LOL

 

[Stumpfarmer]

Stumpfarmer~ are you going to keep little bully for breeding or keep leasing that guy's bull you used last spring ?

I bought a younger bull, Harry; he was only a year old in May so I had the leased bull (Adam) for May and June and put Harry in to clean up the stragglers when he was 14 months old. The baby will go into the local bull market (via word of mouth) after he's weaned, or he may be added to the show stock, assuming Margo feels like going to fairs next year, and be sold from that platform. I assume- final marketing decisions are not mine to make, nor are the choice of bulls to go into the commercial herd.

I'm getting the same weather you've got, only about an hour later; the weather radar is discouraging, although if the wind would move around just a bit westerly we'd both be dry! I'm out of little things to do in the house and futzing around online because I have a couple of BIG outdoor projects that I have to do today. If I take on a big indoor project (replacing the draft-cover for the hallway, cleaning the livingroom) I'll crap out before I get a chance to do them- get hay for the sheep, dig some new sod for Ian and Sylvia, reroof the bit of the Hamburg run which Monday's windstorm damaged, and since I'll have to be on that side of the pasture fence anyway finish pulling the next 12ft run of cage wire on the extension.

That's's not what I was going to do if the hired help had shown up: we were going to finish the EE housing (which won't take long with two people but is impossible for one), and possibly start on a place to put Malvina to set some Hamburg eggs. Oh, and take the recycling to the dump, such fun.

 

[Sudsy Chick]

Should I try and move my broody to a dog kennel that would take up ALL my storage space in the coop or leave her be? I have yet to move any of my broodys to a separate area so I don't even know how to do it. She been sitting for 2 days.

It's really a personal decision - some people allow the hen to stay in general population and simply mark the eggs so any freshly laid eggs can easily be removed. This can lead to more than one hen sitting on the eggs, more broken eggs, etc. It can also lead to nest confusion when the broody gets up & out.

I generally move my broody at night to our smaller coop & run. Our broody tends to zone out and not come out for days, so I generally pull her out of the nest once per day until the last two days (lockdown) while I'm watching to make sure she gets back on the correct nest. She will stay out for 10 to 20 minutes, dust bathe, poo something that looks like it came from a huge dog (ick!!!), drink, bite to eat, and suddenly remember her eggs and run back to her nest. I also make sure she is really broody by making her sit on fake eggs for a few days to prove she is willing (and while I'm scrambling to find fertile eggs!)

When you say the coop will take up all the storage space - will it limit the other hens? Can you move the kennel to a different safe location (garage, shed, etc?) If it would limit the other hens - I'd try another way to discourage the other hens from intruding on her and just give her as much privacy as possible. And towards the end make sure the nest is safe for the chicks - if they fall out and can't get back in they will die.

good luck!
dawn

 

[Sudsy Chick]

I have an egg that is peeping. No pip just peeping.

Congrats! It can take a while - patience is key!

 

[Sudsy Chick]

Mopsy has died. She was my lap chicken. She was fine in the afternoon, looked a little bit under the weather by evening, and was gone this morning. What can happen so fast?

I won't be selling any Brabanter eggs this spring. I need to incubate the ones I've been saving.

I don't know what might have happened, but I'm very sorry for your loss.