Wyoming Unite!!!!

[R2elk]

Iso silkie chicks!!! It seems near impossible to find silkie chicks in Wyoming right now. We're hoping for either a splash or partridge coloring or blue. Thanks for any info and help!

Keep checking Craigslist or go to one of the feed stores and order through them. You can always order from one of the many hatcheries.

You could put a wanted ad on craigslist.

 

[Blooie]

I’ve had really good luck ordering Silkie chicks from My Pet Chicken. Bear in mind that right now with the Avian Flu outbreak (whether you believe it’s real or a hoax) mail order chicks can be a little iffy as far as availability, but do go take a look at their Silkies! Silkie chicks are notoriously hard to sex accurately, but that’s true no matter where you get them. MPC does seem to have the best overall track record, however. Good luck!

 

[DuneDucks]

Hello everyone! Starting my own little duck farm here in Wyoming, so I figured I'd stop by and introduce myself. My name is Austin, I'm 29 years old, and I've lived in Natrona County the vast majority of my life. Always been a big animal lover. I used to be involved in 4H and everything when I was younger, but I drifted away from a lot of that after my first horse passed away. Still always had a horde of dogs, cats, horses, donkeys, etc growing up though. I won't bore you guys too much with my personal life, but feel free to ask questions!

My immediate goal is raising and maintaining a healthy/happy flock, so any tips or advice on doing so in Wyoming specifically would be very appreciated!

Amazing photography btw, @R2elk. I'd love to make my property half as beautiful as yours. Totally jealous of all the songbirds. I just get a bunch of starlings and pigeons lol.

 

[R2elk]

Welcome to the thread. Are you on the east or west side of the county?

It took many years and lots of water to go from sagebrush and cacti to trees and shrubs.

Right now there aren't many songbirds hanging around. Seems like a Cooper's Hawk has moved in. Yesterday I counted 7 separate piles of Collared Dove feathers in my row of junipers.

The small pond I built helped put a stop to the songbirds dying from West Nile. One of the symptoms I noticed was dehydration.

You can see my free trees, shrubs ad here.

 

[DuneDucks]

You can see my free trees, shrubs ad here.

Oh I've seen your ad before! I was actually considering contacting you about a cottonwood, but I've been a bit preoccupied getting my duck run set-up, and then I noticed mention of the saplings were gone. Not sure how confident I am the rest would grow well on my property, but I'm definitely tempted to try, especially seeing the success you've had!

Are you on the east or west side of the county?

I actually live 5/6 miles up Cole Creek myself. Small world!

It took many years and lots of water to go from sagebrush and cacti to trees and shrubs.

Oh I bet. My family made an effort when we first moved out here 20+ years ago, but my father ran into a lot of health issues shortly after, so the land never got the consistent effort required to be more than just brush. That's something I've held off fixing for too long.

Right now there aren't many songbirds hanging around. Seems like a Cooper's Hawk has moved in. Yesterday I counted 7 separate piles of Collared Dove feathers in my row of junipers.

We have a decent amount of hawks and bald eagles that hang around up here that I'm sure don't help much in that regard. Definitely one of my bigger predator concerns for my ducks.

The small pond I built helped put a stop to the songbirds dying from West Nile. One of the symptoms I noticed was dehydration.

Yeah I've noticed a considerable uptick when I leave a water source out. Always nice to see a few songbirds before the pigeons end up trashing it. Love when the meadowlarks hang around. Making an environment for a nice variety of birds and pollinators is a top priority of mine.

I've been making a small pond for my ducks, but it's honestly going to be more of a glorified swimming pool than anything. Will probably be awhile before I get a pond I'm particularly proud of. I'd love to see yours and how you built it though!

Thanks for the welcome!

 

[R2elk]

Oh I've seen your ad before! I was actually considering contacting you about a cottonwood, but I've been a bit preoccupied getting my duck run set-up, and then I noticed mention of the saplings were gone. Not sure how confident I am the rest would grow well on my property, but I'm definitely tempted to try, especially seeing the success you've had!

I actually live 5/6 miles up Cole Creek myself. Small world!


Oh I bet. My family made an effort when we first moved out here 20+ years ago, but my father ran into a lot of health issues shortly after, so the land never got the consistent effort required to be more than just brush. That's something I've held off fixing for too long.

We have a decent amount of hawks and bald eagles that hang around up here that I'm sure don't help much in that regard. Definitely one of my bigger predator concerns for my ducks.

Yeah I've noticed a considerable uptick when I leave a water source out. Always nice to see a few songbirds before the pigeons end up trashing it. Love when the meadowlarks hang around. Making an environment for a nice variety of birds and pollinators is a top priority of mine.

I've been making a small pond for my ducks, but it's honestly going to be more of a glorified swimming pool than anything. Will probably be awhile before I get a pond I'm particularly proud of. I'd love to see yours and how you built it though!

Thanks for the welcome!

Stop by sometime. It's the first house on the left on Lake Drive.

 

[DuneDucks]

Stop by sometime. It's the first house on the left on Lake Drive.

Alright sounds good. I'll probably shoot you a message on here tomorrow to see when/if you'll be around this weekend.

 

[R2elk]

Alright sounds good. I'll probably shoot you a message on here tomorrow to see when/if you'll be around this weekend.

As far as cottonwoods go, they start them by rooting cuttings. I can give you cottonless cottonwood or real cottonwood cuttings to root.

 

[DuneDucks]

As far as cottonwoods go, they start them by rooting cuttings. I can give you cottonless cottonwood or real cottonwood cuttings to root.

Right off hand I don't know if I'd have a preference. I guess if you've noticed one to be hardier than the other. Otherwise whatever is most convenient to be cut/gathered is fine by me.

 

[R2elk]

Right off hand I don't know if I'd have a preference. I guess if you've noticed one to be hardier than the other. Otherwise whatever is most convenient to be cut/gathered is fine by me.

One makes cotton blowing in the wind and the other doesn't. The cottonless are male trees.