Wisconsin "Cheeseheads"

[jvls1942]

good evening,

I lit the burnpile today.. with the brisk wind blowing it burned pretty thoroughly ,, still smoldering some right now..

my decision to set eggs or not was decided for me,, One of the Asian ladies is bringing 100+ eggs Friday,, and just a few minutes ago, a friend called and is bringing dozens of guinea eggs..

I am going to buy a flock of guineas,, IDK if I will get any hens .. whatever can be caught..
$5.oo/each,,

I picked two ticks off of Frankie already.. gave her a tick treatment,, supposed to last a month,,

the puppy is barking upstairs,, better go up and let her out..

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

 

[FrenchToast]

I'll bet they really had a hard time talking you into it hey Jim? What kind of chickens and what color Guineas ? Wow with as many keeps as you had last year you wouldn't think there would be a tick in site ! Hope that isn't a sign of a bad tick year to come. What a difference from up here. My guineas take forever to start laying. I do hear the females doing there buck wheat noise but I'm afraid I have more males than females which I heard with guineas isn't necessarily a bad thing....can't remember why.
Just unpacked my silkie eggs that came today....what a disappointment! A bunch are real dirty...so the question was going to be to was or not to wash. Then I candled them. Maybe 4 out of 15 don't have weird aircells. Some of them have bigger air cells which makes me suspect older eggs? Might have to see if they sink or not. When am I going to learn.....?

So let's hear about the new job bl4 ! Quit teasing !

 

[jvls1942]

I'll bet they really had a hard time talking you into it hey Jim?

What kind of chickens and what color Guineas ? Wow with as many keeps as you had last year you wouldn't think there would be a tick in site ! Hope that isn't a sign of a bad tick year to come. What a difference from up here. My guineas take forever to start laying. I do hear the females doing there buck wheat noise but I'm afraid I have more males than females which I heard with guineas isn't necessarily a bad thing....can't remember why.
Just unpacked my silkie eggs that came today....what a disappointment! A bunch are real dirty...so the question was going to be to was or not to wash. Then I candled them. Maybe 4 out of 15 don't have weird aircells. Some of them have bigger air cells which makes me suspect older eggs? Might have to see if they sink or not. When am I going to learn.....?

So let's hear about the new job bl4 ! Quit teasing !

the chickens are from the Asian lady.. usually quite a barnyard mixture,,

the guineas are mostly if not all black.. no whites or grays,, I am going from memory ,, I only saw them briefly about 6 months ago..

Dan is getting about a dozen guinea eggs per day already ..

I suspect Frankie picked up the ticks when she and Gus went wandering the other day,,

I should give Gus a good going over for ticks..

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

 

[Terri O]

COngrats first of all To BL4 for finally landing a job!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Too bad you now have to go to work. (I hate it) We would really like to know where, how much you are paid and if you will be able to take off for the Chicken Bash! LOL!

JIm, search out the fur on that dog and get some Frontline on him! I really cant see how ticks can even penetrate that fur. I havent seen any down here yet but others have...maybe my guineas are doing their job?

Congrats on the hatches people! I have some due next week under a broodie. THen quail in the bator if I didnt cook them at 101! I should NOT have turned it up just a little, wittle, tiny bit! When it got cold I also covered the bator...dumb, dumb, dumb! We will see in a day or two when I do the float test.

Puppies going to an event on Sunday! Delafield Petco...I am hoping that I come home with NONE! The new foster is a Bassett=--totally adorable. Nice boy too.

OK--out to do chores and off to bed. Nighties! TerriO

 

[Celtic Chick]

Ok need some advice...is this a good deal or should I stick with my farm and fleet incubator with turner and fan...

Brinsea Eco 20... without the automatic rotating unit for $100. Brand new in box. How hard o easy is the turning to do in this model...
Should I talk them down further or is this a decent price... your thoughts experts...

Yeah, I would be interested in this too if you don't grab it, Kristi. I only have a mini, Staci!

Congrats on the job, Mel! Yes, details would be nice. And you will be able to make the bash still, right?

gc, never worry if a coop will be too big. That'll never happen, trust me. You can never have too big of a coop. I'm on my 3rd and it's 20'x20'.

One predator to watch out for that will dig/attack during the day are the neighbors dogs. That can be a huge problem.

and to the Cheesehead thread DutchClutch! Glad you joined us. Jim, our hatching guru, is also from the Wausau area. And Delisha breeds some beautiful English BBS orps. I have black orps too but nowhere near as nice as hers. Hers are definitely SQ.

Good luck with the eggs Frenchie.

You too cuties! Glad to hear Thunder is doing better.

Nothing new here. Spent the day with mom. I really need to get out in the garage & clean out all those cages but I keep procrastinating for better (warmer) weather.

 

[glarnerchicks]

Thanks for all the great tips so far!
I'm having a hard time keeping up with everyone, please tell me if my questions are obnoxious.
I've read a lot about bedding/flooring in the coop and run. What do you all use, since it seems climate has an effect?

 

[Celtic Chick]

Thanks for all the great tips so far!
I'm having a hard time keeping up with everyone, please tell me if my questions are obnoxious.
I've read a lot about bedding/flooring in the coop and run. What do you all use, since it seems climate has an effect?

I'm not quite sure what you mean by flooring but that reminds me: in a lot of smaller coops people usually lay down linoleum over the wood floor for ease of cleaning. If you do not have a pretty thick layer of bedding (straw/wood chips, etc.) on top, the chickens could develop leg problems/injuries from jumping down and slipping on the floor. I have found that those rubber stall or fatigue mats, rubber truck mats, rubber roofing or even large bath mats make an excellent floor covering in coops. They can't slip/slide on it and it helps cushion the floor & their landing. And it can be used over a wood, cement or linoleum floor. It is easy to clean too and is a bit warmer than concrete or linoleum.

As far as bedding, it is your preference. Some use straw while others use wood (pine) shavings. I prefer the shavings because I find they dry out faster than straw, which can mold & cause health issues for your birds. But if your coop is very dry & you don't keep a waterer in it, then you may prefer straw. I have issues raking straw-it drives me nuts.

As for out in the run, grass..... until they eat & rip it all out, then bare dirt.

As Bigz said, no questions are dumb (or obnoxious). You'll never learn if you don't ask.

 

[FrenchToast]

Getting ready to turn in but wanted to share that I tested the silkie eggs. Several of them do tilt upwards which means to me they are not the freshest. Guess time will tell.

Night

 

[Cindlady]

Hi ALL!

Congrats on the JOB!!!

Another dull day here.... Night All!

 

[glarnerchicks]

I was wondering about what people put down for bedding inside the coop, and then in the run as well -- I've seen several articles/threads about sand, and pine shavings, and horse pellets, and etc....was curious about what you all use.