Wisconsin "Cheeseheads"

[Gaelio]

Does anyone else here hate this Fall Back time change? Not only are our lives crammed into fewer daylight hours, but I think the hens are protesting too. I put in a light, but they're not fooled. No eggs for days!

 

[Susie"J"]

Nice pictures FT and CL. Happy belated Veterans Day to everyone who gave all for us and our freedom.
I have a question about the eggs freezing this winter. I go out before leaving for work about 7:20 a.m. and don't get home till 5:30p.m. Is there something you use under the nest boxes to keep the eggs from freezing? I have a heated waterier and can add a heat light in the coop but don't want to heat the coop to much. Any thoughts on this. They are in the Truck camper coop now . Hope the back is better soon Dr.H and you get some eggs. No game today. Viqueens tomorrow are going down ! Thanks for any help on the frozen egg problem

 

[FrenchToast]

Quote:
No eggs here either but it hasn't been that long. Now is the perfect time to deworm them. I'm going to use Valbazen. It is sold in the livestock department. It is about $35.00 but will last a long time. You only give 1/2 cc to large fowl and 1/4 cc to bantams. It is the only dewormer that kills the tapeworm.

You repeat in two weeks so you kill any of the larvae that the first dewormer won't kill. Shouldn't eat he eggs for 20 days from start to finish. (10 days after each dose) That is why it is a good time to do it while they are not laying.

Other then that did you up their protien ? Wonder if you need to force the slw into a molt ?? Do they have enough calcium in their food? Do you give extra calcium? Can't think of anything else to try. Maybe sing to them? Talking to plants helps them !!! Oh wait you already do that don't you ??? Maybe quit that then !!!!

Well, gotta go out and help Chuck scrap the area where the farrier is going to be working on the horses today !!! What a bad day for that. But don't want him to come during hunting season, Dod forbid !!!

Rainy, dreary weather please go away !!! I'm not done cleaning my yard, Sure wish there was a prize for the biggest procrastinator. Jim when are you taking that class, would love to see you there. I'm the instructor !!!!

Yes I hate the fall back time. Actually I just plain old hate it getting dark early, no matter what time it is. I'm like Cind. I loved it when it stayed light til 9pm, but then I hated the hot weather !!!

 

[jvls1942]

good morning, not sunny here, but warm enough to work outside. going to finish wiring the chicken coop.

My pure white quail has developed 3 dark feathers on her back.. this morning she was getting chased by 3 other quail.. so I took her out and put her in with the adolescent bunch.. being older , they might leave her alone..

later on I am going to go to the pine trees to see if that is where the sebastopol geese are laying their eggs.. I wish I had some place to seperate them from the toulouse.. they are not being at all discrimanatory about who they breed to.. tramps !!

If you want a thrill, try mixing bias tires with radials..

Sandi, only the pics of the peacock and two of the hens came on screen.. I like the whitish hens,, sort of look like my Royal Palm hens.. what kind are they ? do you have a peacock like them ?

I found another egg in the guinea pen.. I think a barred rock is starting to lay..

Annie's gramma always said that a fat hen won't lay eggs.. maybe they are fat BECAUSE they don't lay. ? either way, your scrufty skinny hens usually are the layers..

our egg production went up about 2 weeks ago and is holding steady.. and the turkey is still laying her daily egg in the burn pile..

what you have to do to get them to lay, is give them the impression that a trip to the deep freezer is eminent if things don't improve.. I have a hatchet stuck in a wood stump in front of the nests.

...............jiminwisc...........

 

[Terri O]

Good morning! It is not raining here, YET. Sure looks like it could though. We are supposed to take the flatbed to get hay this afternoon. Hopefully it holds off...
Gaelio--chickens cant tell time! The time change does not affect our animals in any way except that if we are feeding according to the clock they get fed an hour later. The days have been getting shorter since JULY and we just see it better when the time jumps an hour. If you dont want your egg production to go down to nothing you need to watch the daylight hours and get a light on a timer in the coop when they drop to 12 hours or so. I maintain their light at 15 hours and I have really not lost any production at all.
DrH--the only thing I can think of on your birds is that maybe they have a lot of production genes in them and that they are all layed out already? The couple of production reds I have are laying really big eggs now...many double yolkers so I know that it soon will be "time" for them to "move on"....you are feeding a laying mash right? Not too many treats? They have enough light? If all that is right then maybe it is "time" for them too....sorry to say.
BigZ--DH was saying the same thing about the tires being the same size with 4WD. But on your truck it is OK to mix (being 2WD) He did say that that will be a pretty big tire on there though! Good job on the rims! He also said something about bolt pattern...but you had already figured that out! I was too tired to answer last night.

I raked the yard and gave the leaves to the chickens who were delighted! I also used leaves to put on top of the really mucky areas where I walk...hoping it will be a fix until it freezes.

THe guy came from Milwaukee (a different one than usually comes) and bought 5 muskovies, 9 small hens, 1 roo and 2 quail. THe older man helped me bag them up while the younger man stood and held the little boy! I told him "next time you bring his mama and you wear boots!" THey were very nice to deal with...no dickering on price at all which I like! Also when I said "that one's a layer--not for sale." THey didnt argue. Sometimes when people come I just want to say "no deal--go home!" Glad your guy showed up too Jim!

Well, dogs are barking again...guess they want to go out...and it is getting darker, and darker....Rain, rain, go away!
Have a fantastic day! Terri O

ETA: Yup--all is back to normal--Jim was posting while I was....

 

[Terri O]

Here is the link for the cookie tin waterer I use:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=107951
It is a very long thread that has been going for years! Mine work great. The best one I made with the metal box from a trivial pursuit game...nice and sturdy!
DrH--your idea of using wood on the sides is a good one too...prolly easier to make the hole than with the cookie tin too! T

 

[Gaelio]

So JiminWisc...what do you use to up the protein? I give them a layer mix and scratch from the feed mill. I figured that 'layer' meant it had all the things they needed for laying. Maybe my hens disagree.

They are pretty spoiled. None of them look or feel thin...but could worming cause a lack of eggs? It always seemed so seasonal to me. Every Fall they stop or cut back in egg production for a while. Not everyone has that problem, so I bet there's something I can do. what what what????

 

[ParkfieldFarm]

Hello to all again. I've been loving catching up with everyone.

Congrats on the pictures in the calendar and all of the cutbacks on flocks and winterizing going on out there! I've still got some work to do on my coop and I wanted to make a few 5gal feeders/waterers for the crew but...my drill broke! And I asked my dad to borrow his...but his broke, too.

I think that's just the way it goes. I have to get the window put back on the coop over the hardware cloth and plastic up over some of the ventilation to bring it down enough to hold in heat but not moisture. I've also got to secure the roof--I never did get around to putting the green roof on because my supply of scrap wood dried up and I never pulled enough together to build it...I'm actually kind of worried about that.

I was counting on that for a little extra insulation out there. I'll keep looking, I guess. Thanks for the hints on the water heaters--I think I'll be making one of those, too. I'm also debating about whether or not to bring my angora rabbit in for the winter. She was inside for most of last winter and since her friend died she's all alone looking forlornly in at the chickens who get a little room to run in their space. She had been sharing with them but now that I've switched litters in the coop EVERYTHING sticks to her and I feel like all I do is groom rabbit! Plus the chickens just keep eating her food...

I had a blast at a gala supporting urban food development on Friday. I took two of my young Speckled Sussex girls along and they were a hit--and as a plus, they didn't poo on anyone! I was astounded--all of those people in cocktail attire (me included) and they didn't take an opportunity to soil anyone's pretty outfit! (I'm so proud!)

It's blurry--but I sang a chicken song on my ukulele:

Kissin' a chicken!

 

[jvls1942]

good mid afternoon, I just came in from outside.. It is starting to rain lightly..

I got the chicken coop done.. got a light on the ceiling on a switch, got the recepticle wired and mounted.. have the heater plugged in and mounted the heater bracket on the wall.. rigged up an eye hook and a chain to hang the waterer in front of the heater..

so far the wiring did not burn down the chicken coop..

Gailio, I do not do anything special for the chickens. I feed them 50/50 ground corn and oats.. and I keep a llight on in the coop 24/7..

I made pancakes this morning,, I used 1 turkey egg and 8 quail eggs.. 2 of the quail eggs were double yolkers.. the pancakes were nice and light.. I had to put a sausage pattie on top of the stack to keep them from floating up to the ceiling..

....jiminwisc.................

 

[Hens and Roos]

afternoon, just came home from our 4-H club annual banquet- turned out nice- at least it seemed like everyone enjoyed it. Glad it is over-took us yesterday late afternoon and this am to get it all together.

was able to get all our birds divided into breeder groups for the winter so the kids will be all set to collect and set eggs come Dec.