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Author Topic: ...And other wierd things II  (Read 5213 times)

Offline Brian D. Bray

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...And other wierd things II
« on: June 26, 2010, 11:51:09 pm »
Sir Francis the Drake, the wild duck that came here wounded(?) and has never left, although his mate has come and gone twice, is moulting.  Thing is, gauging by the coloring coming in with the new feathers I'm going to have to change his name to Dame Frances the Hen.  Those familiar with the original thread (Cats that talk and other wierd things) may remember I've had a rooster or two do the same thing.  Pigeons seem to do it more frequently that other domestic fowl, I have 1/2 a dozen birds that have changed sex and doing the opposite thing than they had been.
I'm now learning Guineafowl to my list of animal languages.  The guineafowl I got from my brother last summer have suddenly decided to expand their territory to include about a 1/4 mile in every direction from my place.  The hen has been absent most of the day for the past few weeks which means that small guineas should soon be making the rounds with Mama and Papa.  Guinea's, contrary to popular belief, are not domesticate fowl, they are only 1/2 domesticated at best, and mine seem well on the way to becoming completely wild.  I guess my guineas might join the infamous LaConner Turkeys in being adopted by the community, all my neighbors enjoy seeing the birds make their rounds.  They have joined the Quail in making a daily pilgrmage through the neighborhood.
I had 3 turkeys hatch a week ago and they are doing well, the hen hatched 3 of 6 eggs and then promptly forgot about her brood and began stomping on them in an effort to rejoin her sisters.  So I put the little ones in the brooder and took out the single turkey that had hatch 6 weeks ago.  I left it in the brooder so long because I needed it to grow to a size where the 3 month old Dark Brahma's wouldn't berate it too much.

Got all my fencing done, finally, over a 1/2 mile total.  What was only going to be 400 feet of fence this year turned into 550.  I need to complete the greenhouse after the wind storms during the winter and spring blew it down three times (so much for commercial greenhouses).
I've also had to deal with a water problem left over from the city extending the water main 1/2 block south of me (it had terminated at my mailbox previously).  The orchard, which, historically has been the dryest part of the property is now thw the wetest.  When I was digging the post holes for the orchard fence I hit water at 12-18 inches  from where the grass blades meets the roots to the water.  Very hard to get a post solidly planted in mud.  It has also been seeping into my basement from the sunken patio on the south side of the house.  My project this weekend is to put in a drain on the down hill side with a sump pump next to the basement wall.  The pump will pump the water down the downspout/basement sump pump discharge pipe.  My basement sump pump goes into hard working mode at the hint of rain. 
I finally got it through the head at the engineers and planners down at city hall that I had a serious problem when I told them the subsurface of the roadway in front of my house was starting to break apart due to the continually wet soil.  They sent out the Roadcrew supervisor and his assistant.  I took them on a neighborhood tour  of the water damagee.  They were shocked when I lifted the pipe that I latch my 2 part gate into the orchard to.  I told them it was 18 inches deep, when they pulled it up after hearing the kursplash there was over 6 inches of water on the bottom of the pipe.  Shows that you have to go over the heads of the white hardhats to the yellowhats who have boots on the ground.  They said they'd get something done, after agreeing I had a legitimate problem.
Life is a school.  What have you learned?   :brian:      The greatest danger to our society is apathy, vote in every election!

Offline Brian D. Bray

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Re: ...And other wierd things II
« Reply #1 on: July 17, 2010, 04:24:20 pm »
Sir Frances the Drake, having finished moulting, is now Lady Francis and laying eggs.

I've discovered 3 egg eaters in my chicken yard, 2 turkey hens and 1 black jersey giant hen.  I have 4 turkeys (2 toms-2 hens), 8 Roosters, 1 jersey giant hen, and 2 rabbits to butcher i need more room in my freezers.  I have 2 18 cft chest freezers and I keep them preety full.  I also have to pick my gooseberries and currents along with the strawberries (everbearing) and raspberries.

I just picked up 3 pallets from a Little Ceaser's Pizza going in down town.  The pallets are built out of 8 ft 4x4 posts with 2x6 cross boards and have additional 4x6x1ft pads under them.  I need to get them into my beeyard. I think I'll build a 4th one so I can run 2 rows of said pallets 16 ft long.  The pallets are 32 inches wide and very skookum.
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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Re: ...And other wierd things II
« Reply #2 on: October 18, 2010, 11:41:32 am »
OK, Brian, now that last post was made mid-July, and you didn't tell too much about "other weird things", I wanna hear more.  Pleeeeeeze, you know me, I love to hear of your farm adventures.  My adventures this summer, with all my chickeny stuff could fill a book, what with all the broody buff Orpingtons, blue Cochins and so on and so on, had a great baby raising summer (and still am, a light Brahma went broody and was beginning her hatch yesterday, another blue Cochin's youngsters are now 2 weeks old).  Along with the 30 that came to full term in the Sportsman incubator, now 3 weeks old, chickies coming out my ears, smiling that big smile.  Gonna raise the Buckeye breed, got either 2 pullets and 7 cockerals, or vice versa.  With my experience with the flight wing feather sexing, and if the Buckeyes take after the light Brahma, Orpington and Cochin, there are only 2 pullets.  But I recall you speaking of the opposite fast growth of the primary feathers on the Asiatic and American birds, so time will tell that tale.  I would surely love to have 7 pullets and 2 cockerals.  But with the thought of it being 7 cockerals, I would have a very nice bunch of young dudes to chose a couple of beauties for that breeding pool.  I've given up on white Wyandotte breeding.  Read too much about lousy sperm mobility of rose combed birds (although still focusing on the gold laced Wyandotte, just realizing that there are issues with hatch numbers). Evidently the white Wyandotte is even worse with the mobility of the sperm, sigh, too bad, and oh well.  Right, where was I?  It is not about me, it is about you, you, you.  You need to add on more to this weird things post, I am sure you have had many more cool experiences since summer, who else's voices are you being spoken to from?  Did the turkeys get their voice being understood well too?  Can't wait to hear of your travels this summer around your farm.  Have that beautiful, most wonderful day, and yes, you guessed it, especially for you, those wishes of health, friend.  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 Brian D. Bray

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Re: ...And other wierd things II
« Reply #3 on: November 06, 2010, 01:25:32 am »
Hi  :cindi:

I've been busy, with the farm, obtaining ham radio gear for my latest pursuit, as well as fighting my grand children for computer time.  As a result I bought myself a new laptop with W7 so I might get on more often.  I've spent some time setting the thing up for me and NO ONE ELSE.  What's the world coming to when a house with 10 people in need its own wifi system with one desktop and 3 laptop computers on the network (4, count 'em, 4 computers) in order for everyone to have sufficient computer time.  A good part of it is the online homework the grandkids are bringing home.

As to the farm, Sir Francis then Lady Frances then AWOL Duck has returned, both hungry and back to being Sir Francis, he and the guineas are making a daily threesome at dinner, eating what the goats and sheep spill on the ground and then hurrying over to the chicken yard to pick at the scratch that the wind carries through the chicken wire. 

I got rid of the billy goat and the old nanny leaving me a 6 month and 1 1/2 old does and I'm going to be getting another Romney  ewe next week.  If that ewe and the one I have both have twins, per their family history, then I'll be butchering the older ewe and ram next spring or summer (9 & 12 respectfully) and going with the yearling doe I have and lambs born in the early spring.

The chickens are still moulting, I know my grandmother (b1878) would say that the harder a chicken (bird) moults in the summer the harder the winter will be, but 3 months of moulting is unheard of.  I'm not sure just how that plays out for this coming winter other than it will be long, wet, and cold, just how long, what kind or  how much of wet, and how cold is what I'm not sure off.

Got buzzed by another hawk after my pigeons again.  It's a good think my hat doesn't look like a bird.           
« Last Edit: November 06, 2010, 02:04:50 am by Brian D. Bray »
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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Re: ...And other wierd things II
« Reply #4 on: November 06, 2010, 12:43:28 pm »
Well, well, well, Brian, 10 of the human beings in your household, that makes for one crazy, busy house.  Wow!!!  Tell me, who is living with you there?  The kids, their kids, tell it all, I need to know.  I thought we were busy with 18 living on our farm, but we were in 3 separate dwellings, smiling.  I would love to hear who is with you, where on earth are you putting everyone, seems to me, when memory serves, that the house was not that big, are you stacking people?  Hee, hee.

I know that more has gone on on your farm this summer, and you will soon tell me of what you have done, I know it takes time to write, but take that moment to spend with me, pleeeeze...about the computers, you were wise to get your own, so no one can fiddle around on it, it is amazing how wonderful the internet is, it is a power machine of greatness.

I got a kick out of Frances, be it sir or madame, smiling, funny how the gender changed, hee, hee.  My chickens have taken turns moulting, but haven't experienced the long moult as you speak, each one did it at different intervals, lasting about one month.  One buff Orpington looks so oddly weird, most of her back feathers are gone, and no tail feathers, boy are they actually quite tiny when they don't have feathers.  I had a white bird once that would moult every single feather on her body, never could figure that one out.  My gold laced  Wyandotte did an extreme moult too, that was odd, but he is all grown back feathers now, so looks beautiful again.

I think we are in for a long and hard winter here too.  If it snows as much as it has rained, we will have very deep snow, when that day comes.  Nice to hear of your adventures, Brian, have that safe and most wonderful day, of love and 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 Brian D. Bray

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Re: ...And other wierd things II
« Reply #5 on: November 20, 2010, 12:05:41 am »
My new ewe (cassandra) is a dark Romney, that makes it brown but not black.  Has really nice fleece.  Need to get my daughters to learn to spin wool as I'll have 3 sheep to sheer in the Spring. 

My house hold consists of Me, Wife, #3 son in the studio apartment behind the garage, oldest daughter with 4 grandchildern, and youngest daughter with her daughter.

Went and got both a flu and pneumonia shot per doctor's recommendation, have been down sick with a "cold" ever since, hope to be over it by Thanksgiving.  I have a tom turkey waiting for an axe-ident come the 23rd and another waiting in the wings for Christmas dinner.
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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Re: ...And other wierd things II
« Reply #6 on: November 22, 2010, 12:16:17 pm »
Ah Brian, thanks for the clarity of who is living at your place, so wonderful that you and your Wife open your home and doors to your family, they need you and you are a fine fellow.  Those sheep sound wonderful, and I surely do hope that your gals will learn the art of working with wool, that would be such an independent and cool thing, think of the warmth of wool....Oh you and your health, smiling.  I am wishing you well to get over that cold, that axe is to come down tomorrow, and I hope you have the strength and health to do that thing.  Take care, friend, have that most wonderful day, full of that health I wish for you, love, friendship and peace, 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 CynthiaM

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Re: ...And other wierd things II
« Reply #7 on: January 25, 2013, 10:31:49 am »
Brian, did you get the sheep sheared the next spring and did your Daughters learn to spin yet?  Would be interested in hearing what came of that.  Have a most beautiful day, with health and love, Cindi