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Author Topic: As I drop in for a few fleeting moments in time, a chicken story, smiling  (Read 4448 times)

Offline Cindi

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Had a thing yesterday.  I have a little story to tell.  I had to go for some tests so I was in a hurry to let the birds out and come and get showered, ready to go out by 8:15.  That is a big deal around here with so many routines that are set.  Usually I spend a good half hour with my birds in the morning.

My first step is to open the guillotine door for the blue cochins and their 19 ravenous little babies that I think are gonna kill me and eat me.  They had all the food they want, but they know when they hear me coming that that means a great little treat is coming.  We get the squirrelly breads, the nutty type breads from our local bread store, free, as they throw it in the dumpster.  I really get a lot of bread from them.  With the amount of birds that all get a snack in the morning, that amounts to two loaves of bread.  I have it, so I give it.  I have a bright green pail that I bring with me, that has all these little broken up breads in them.  I spend about 10 minutes before I go outside to break it all up.  Anyways, I open the little door and they literally all pile out.  They run over my feet they run out into the run, and then run back and they are out for food. I throw them all a whole whack of bread crumbs and they go nuts.  It is almost terrifying how ravenous they appear to be, but I know they are not, they have tons of free food in their night house.

So, off to the next house, in the same old horse box stall, but has a divided wall.  That is where the black Cochins are.  That black rooster is a monster.  I swear to the stars above, he would break down every wall he encountered if he could, he is so anxious to get out that he almost climbs that poultry wire wall to be released.  They run outside too, and they get their treat. 

Onto the next horse box stall, which again is divided in half. These birds come out the side of that box stall, a guillotine type door.  The light Brahma, buff Orpington and Barred Rock crew are in there.  I let them out first, they are little more calm, they are mature and they just stand outside looking at me, just waiting for those little tidbits flying through the air.  They are graceful and very calm, they are mature enough to know for surely that they will get their snack.

At this point, I should got back to the front of their house and open up the front door, the entire door, so the gold laced Wyandotte and the older Cochin pullets are housed.  But I didn't.  Not knowing this right then, I forgot, oops.  That came later....

Ya, I know, I know, get to the point, I will, but I am just that ramblin' gal.

Now go to the old stand alone chickenhouse.  A huge yard that houses all the light Brahma cockerals.  (I took 15 of them to the auction on Saturday, not a great price, but 15 less mouths to feed).  There are about 10 remaining, a little younger than their fellow pals that went on Saturday.  I let these ravenous little beasts out.  I really have no clue why they act like they have never been fed, they have more than they could ever want.  Fed.

Onto the next house, that is the chicken tractor that my Husband built.  Now that place houses all the splash and black Cochin and buff Orpington pullets and cockerals.  They are just the same.  I open the door and they come flying out.  No clue how so many can fit through an little 18 X 18 inch doorway, but they do, never any harm done.  They are ravenous, like they were never fed too.  Oh my chickens love me, smiling.  They are all little users, the only love me for one thing.  I know that.  But they are still beauties.

So, yes, where was I in this great and lengthy tale. Hold on.  You may learn something this day, take it from one that has gone through that school of hard knocks, over and over, still haven't graduated.  Been there, done that, with my bees and my chickens too, smiling.

Right.  Into the house, I am now hurried to get my shower done and out the door in that timely fashion.  But made it to the appointment in good time, was only like 10 minutes late.  That was because we couldn't find where we were going, and I guess stopping at McDonald's for that greasy and grimey breakfast didn't help, smiling that big smile.  Nothing nicer than that greasy, grimey breaky to head one off on a merry day.

So. Get home about 12:00.  That was a good many hours later than when I had firstly gone out to the babies and adults to feed, feed, feed.

My Husband, thank goodness for his help, went out to let all the birds out for their daily free ranging.  (Well, except for the light Brahmas, they have so much free ranging that they don't need to actually get released out to the wild blue yonder).

Guess what.  I was a very bad girl.  I had forgotten to go to the front of the box stall to let out the gold laced Wyandotte and Cochin crew in that one box stall.  Holy freaking freak.

They were stunned.  He said that they didn't really even run to get out.  Just kind of looked at him and probably though "what?".

They did go out.  But guess what.  I didn't get one single egg from the GLW yesterday.  There are four pullets, (they are 10 months old).  I always have 3 or 4 eggs a day, nary a one.  Hmmm.

So, that is the lesson learned.  Clearly chickens get stressed out over the silliest of things.  Whooda thunk that just being kept in for a few more hours would have rocked their socks.  Well it does.  Stress causes a lack of eggs.  Clear as that day yesterday was warm and sunshiney.  (I even got a bit of a tan on my arms -- I could tell by the white line on my arm where my watch sits).  I was a little lazy yesterday and spent a good couple of hours hanging around outside, on my great grey plastic chair, along with my Husband on his, watching our little marvels of nature -- our mountain of happy chickens, all happily free ranging on the mountains of bugs and lots of young fresh grass growing, oh yes, they also like the myriads of little garlic greens that are now getting so big, growing all over that devil's half acre.  Enjoy this day, the summer and beautiful dog days of same are coming, and enjoy it with the most wonderful wishes of health.  Cindi

There are strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold.  The Arctic trails have their secret tales that would make your blood run cold.  The Northern Lights have seen queer sights, but the queerest they ever did see, what the night on the marge of Lake Lebarge, I cremated Sam McGee.  Robert Service

Offline JP

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Cindi my dear, I don't have a lot of time, got to walk out the door right after this post. Didn't read your thread here but will later, promise.

Now my dear, you know I love you to smitherines but hey how about some beetalk from ya gal?

Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now, Its bee season now!

What would life be like if I didn't give you a hard time?  :evil:

Nanna nanna boo boo!  :-P


...JP
My Youtube page is titled JPthebeeman with hundreds of educational & entertaining videos.

My website JPthebeeman.com http://jpthebeeman.com

Offline annette

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Cindi

Cute story how they all come running at you like that. Very funny about those chickens getting forgotten and stressed out. Happy to read another post from you.  Miss you very much my dear girl. What you been up to???

Offline Brian D. Bray

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Must chime in here. 

I had a broody Jersey Giant hen setting on 12 eggs, yesterday 11 hatched.  It was quite entertaining to watch mama chick instructing her young in how to scratch the dirt and which things were edible.  I have them in a little 5X10 pen made just for broody hens.  The problem is that I have a 2nd JG hen setting on eggs in the hen house and 2 more wanting to set, not to mention the 2 broody turkey hens sharing a nest box and about a dozen eggs.  I don't know how well that will work out with 2 hens sharing the same box but the thing only 1 leaves to eat etc at a time so they always go back to the same box.  Wish I could say that about the chickens, they take a meal break and it's like they forgot which box was their's.  But it's getting crowded in the hen house with all the broody females.  Although I have to admit that I've finally gotten the egg production down to a dozen a day between broody hens and having given 6 hens and a JG Rooster to a friend and neighbor and 4 hens and a rooster to my baby sister.
I have a dozen Dark Brahmas in the fryer pen along with 11 Dark Cornish chicks in the outside brooder.

I don't think my turkey eggs I put in the incubator are going to hatch, they should have started hatching yesterday but not a peep, yet.  I'll give them to Sunday then toss them as I've had a real hard time regulating the temp.  I need to buy a new temp regulating wafer (aka thermostat) for the incubator.

But I've having a population explosion anyway.  My young toggenburg doe had a still birth and couldn't expel the fetus.  Had to call the vet and he had to go in and dig it out.  I've done that with cows before, but wasn[t sure it was safe to do with a goat, now I know, so in the future.  The fetus had already started to decay, which makes not having a sense of smell a godsend.  I had her one 45 ml of Sulmet for the past week, then gave her a shot of worming meds today before turning her back out to pasture.
The Ram fell down and we had to practically carry hime across the creek and up to the paddock where I gave hem 2 doses of wormer meds, bad case of lung worm.  While I had them both tied up in the hospital paddock I clipped there hooves.

Today while working on the new rabbit pens I watched 2 lesser Canadian geese and in the field and stroll around with Sir Frances the Drake and the 2 Geiunea hens.  Tomorrow I plan on installing a rainwater recycler for watering the stock.  I'm installing 1-2 50 gal barrels under each rain gutter to colletc the water and then can either obtain the water via a spigot or hose, depending on it's  location.

I still have 400 linear feet of fence to put in this summer and hope to have time to errect the leanto off the side of the barn for the tractor, hay, andanimal stalls.

I've got more to do than time to do it.
Life is a school.  What have you learned?   :brian:      The greatest danger to our society is apathy, vote in every election!

Offline Cindi

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Oh Brian, you got a whole lotta babies coming on at your place, your stocks will be up very quickly.  I had two blue Cochins go broody the same day, they shared a brood nest, and the daddy cochin would try and get in there too, smiling.  That was amazing, but he finally figured out that the girls thought he should not come in too.  They are family for surely.  They all tended the little raving monster children.

Wow, those Jersey giants sure do like to go broody eh?  I know, I have three buff Orpington gals wanting to be broody.  Can't get them out of their nests.  I take away the eggs that the others must squeeze into their boxes and lay, they really don't like it very much, and I have learned to wear long sleeves when I steal away the eggs, I try to collect as many times a day as I can.  It is really warm and humid beneath the belly of a broody hen.

I wonder what is with your incubator.  Is it a hovabator style? cabinet Sportsman type style?  That is too bad about the eggs that didn't work out with the temp fluctuations.  I would like to hear more of what is going on, now that we are days past due dates of things.

Oh that ram, that must have been quite a trip to pack him up to the barn eh?   I would imagine he is a couple hundred pounds, hope you had help.  Worms, rats....don't they annoy ya, things you can't see, until there is the visible aspect, as the falling down of the ram. Darn.

About that fetus that died within the body of the mother.  I know you can't smell stuff.  (and you are lucky).  I know that you and the guys could not smell a thing from that stinking buck at your place when we were down there.  Jody, Janel and I were just about gagging.  Must be a guy thing, smiling.  Those bucks stink so horrible, I can still picture that smell in my mind's eye, eeeks!!!

I did a test with my gold laced Wyandotte rooster, to see how his fertility is.  I placed 37 eggs in my Sportsman, upon candling around day 10 there were 9 infertile.  The others developing nicely.  At day 18, (or so I thought) I candled again.  All 26 were showing great and proper development.  When hatch came, only 16 of those 26 hatched.  I was out 2 days with my records and they went into lockdown several days too early.  I suspect that is why 10 had developed properly up to candling point, but never pipped.  Think they died shortly after the candling.  I was out on the record keeping.  Which is not my nature, I am so anal about everything, but messed up here.  Oh well. Had 16 cute little fuzzy butt gold laced Wyandottes.  A friend of mine too them all.  That is why I could do that test, because of the move on June 15, I just could not bear to have little ones around. Too much work to move them all.  So it was good, the expected hatch was sold long before they even thought of putting their pretty little heads out of the shell.

Life is swamped here right now.  Just about a month before we actually ahve to be on our way.  Time is short, things to do are tall.  Love to hear the farm stories, Brian.  Have that most beautiful, awesomely great day, with that same health.  Cindi
There are strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold.  The Arctic trails have their secret tales that would make your blood run cold.  The Northern Lights have seen queer sights, but the queerest they ever did see, what the night on the marge of Lake Lebarge, I cremated Sam McGee.  Robert Service

Online Kathyp

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cindi...very OT, but i got a big feed bag of fireweed root.  that's the way to go i think.

hope you are doing well  :-D  don't stress the move.
Someone really ought to tell them that the world of Ayn Rand?s novel was not meant to be aspirational.

Offline annette

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Good luck Cindi with the move. Hope when things finally calm down for you, we can hear from you more often.

Love
Annette

Offline poka-bee

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Cindi how I love to hear your tales!  You take me right there!  My chix also scramble out of their sleeping house in the am, acting as if they are starving!  I finally gave in and got a rooster!  He is a delight, endlessly amusing but that is for another post.  EEks, moving..what a stressful time for everyone specially trying to make sure the animals are all taken care of and safely tucked away! Have you posted pics of where you will be going?  Off to post pics of "Mr. Percy"

Jody
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