On the Saturday between Easter & Good Friday, I bought my son's 5 peking ducklings from TSC. I thought "My sons are 2-years 6-months & 1-year; they're old enough to begin learning about animal husbandry & the responsibilities of owning and caring for animals" knowing full well that M, my youngest, wouldn't do anything of any consequence with them other than possibly petting them or something. I wasn't certain that A would be able to handle it, so it was a small gamble, but I figured that if he couldn't deal with them, they got to be "old hat" or he stopped caring for them, I just butcher them and we have roast duck for supper or some such. However, my gamble seems to be paying off. Because A is doing very well with his new adventure. M, thinks the ducks are toys, so I can't let him touch them without supervision, but A has taken his job very seriously. I told him he must feed them every day, change their water, clean their brooder etc. and every morning so far except yesterday (because he had outpatient surgery yesterday) he has asked when it's time to feed & water the animals (chickens, ducks & horses), & helps me get the eggs from the chickens (both boys have been doing this for quite awhile now). Both boys are doing very well with all of this. I couldn't be prouder of them!
I also was recently informed by A that it is "Time to eat the roosters Mommy". LOL!! I didn't realize he understood when I was butchering the chickens last year! My husband & I had been sure to keep him back & away during the killing stage, but I had let him play in his sand box during all the other phases so apparently it sunk in more than I realized, and as he is completely chill about the whole thing I'd say it doesn't bother him all that much.
When he told me it was time to butcher the roosters, I told him "OK we'll butcher them once Mommy catches them", not realizing just how serious he was about doing it right then and there in that moment... so he proceeded to chase my roosters all over the barn for the next 10 minutes. I told him he shouldn't chase them, because they could hurt him, but he listens about as well as any normal, active 2.5-year old, so it took a little bit to corral him and get him to stop chasing the roosters. I did end up catching 2/4 & stuck them in the kill cage (I pen them up overnight so I don't have to worry about having a full crop to work with), but then the weather changed overnight. It got cooler than I really wanted to deal with for butchering so I let them go again. Their days are most definitely numbered though because I have chicks from last year which are potentially being bred with their father...
Also, I've been asked by a reader to post photos of my unorthodox way of butchering, so although my husband is squeamish about the thought, I may have to enlist his help in taking photos, because once I begin butchering, I tend to get rather covered in blood and feathers. Not the sort of thing that you want to be picking up a camera all the time, and perhaps if my husband or someone else helps me take photos, I can get some better ones than if I were to do it myself.
Showing posts with label fluffy butts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fluffy butts. Show all posts
Saturday, April 2, 2016
Tuesday, June 24, 2014
The goings on in our world over the last week
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| SURPRISE rex bunnies! |
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| Lacey |
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| Rusty |
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| Lightning |
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| Roger |
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| Roger being roger. Very cocky, very strutty |
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| Buff Orpington Rooster - also for sale if anyone is interested, although he will be a stew pot guest if no one is. |
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| One of the 4 red pyle old english roosters for sale |
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| Spazzy, being very photogenic |
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| Larry, being cocky. |
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| Ms. Bunny's rex had another surprise litter. 9 of them this time! |
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| The beeplas playing & scratching under the elderberry's |
Saturday, June 14, 2014
Letting the Beeplas free-range for the first time
The beeplas are officially free-ranging! Yay!
Yesterday my sister did chores for me because I was busy trying to put Little Frog down for his mid-morning nap. He did eventually go down, but not before my sister opened up the coop door and let EVERYONE out to free-range. She didn't know I had only been letting a handful out at a time so they would slowly get used to being "free" to roam...either way, they are all free now!
It went so well yesterday that I let them all loose again today, and boy oh boy were they EXCITED LOL!!! They were running so fast when they were leaving the coop that they were running over each other and going head over apple cart! LOL It was so funny. :-D
Between my husbands bantams (10), my beeplas (25), and moms adults (6)... we have a very busy little chicken farm!! LOL Chickens chickens everywhere!
In other news, it looks like I have no less than 5 roosters right now, not counting my husbands. Gah!
Yesterday my sister did chores for me because I was busy trying to put Little Frog down for his mid-morning nap. He did eventually go down, but not before my sister opened up the coop door and let EVERYONE out to free-range. She didn't know I had only been letting a handful out at a time so they would slowly get used to being "free" to roam...either way, they are all free now!
It went so well yesterday that I let them all loose again today, and boy oh boy were they EXCITED LOL!!! They were running so fast when they were leaving the coop that they were running over each other and going head over apple cart! LOL It was so funny. :-D
Between my husbands bantams (10), my beeplas (25), and moms adults (6)... we have a very busy little chicken farm!! LOL Chickens chickens everywhere!
In other news, it looks like I have no less than 5 roosters right now, not counting my husbands. Gah!
Saturday, May 31, 2014
Photos of the beeplas in the adult coop @ age 5-weeks 4-days; Dads honey bee's and a bunny
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| This is an adult female rex my sister would like to sell. | She has too many rabbits and needs to downsize a few of them. |
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| I've dubbed this rooster "Rusty". He is an Easter Egger (Americauna) and it's going to be so fun to see just how he turns out because even right now he's a really pretty boy. |
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| I've dubbed this rooster "Rusty". He is an Easter Egger (Americauna) and it's going to be so fun to see just how he turns out because even right now he's a really pretty boy. |
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| One of my Light Brahma Hens |
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| The adults aren't "thrilled" with having the newbies, but they aren't "unhappy" either, nor are they fighting with the littles. :-) |
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| The adults aren't "thrilled" with having the newbies, but they aren't "unhappy" either, nor are they fighting with the littles. :-) |
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| Dads new "toys"... he's not obsessing about his honey bee's at all... ha! |
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| Dads new "toys"... he's not obsessing about his honey bee's at all... ha! |
Wednesday, May 28, 2014
Integration into the flock
Over the last week or so, I've been putting the "babies" into hog gates covered in chicken wire out in the yard so they can learn to scratch and play, with room to stretch their wings. Yesterday I was in such a rush, I didn't have time to deal with them escaping so I put them into the main adult chicken coop for the day after kicking the adults out to forage.
The babies were thrilled to be allowed so much room, and played all day from what I can tell. The adult hens were curious but went about their business because they've seen the babies out in the yard for the last week or so and the novelty was beginning to wear off.
When I finally got home from visiting family, it was well past dark, and the adult hens were more than ready to get into their coop to go to sleep. They had all roosted on the saddles again while they waited for me, and were cackling and chittering at me in welcome and greeting as I came into the barn. Some even jumped down and started walking over to their door. I think perhaps they thought I was going to remove those "offensive little fluffs" from their main residence, because when they realized I had locked them all into the same enclosure, there was some unhappy hens lemme tell you what!! LOL! They flapped back over to the door and started squawking in rather displeased chicken tones. When I continued choring the rest of the barn and ignoring them, they got miffed and jumped up on their roosting pallet (that the babies can't reach) and hunkered down with some soft growls. All but one.
Rosemary decided she was going to be the babies "mother & protector". She is the mother of the flock I swear... she is an ISA, she has no idea how to brood and gets bored/hungry/whatever after awhile and walks away from the plastic eggs she thinks need to be sat on, but something in her genetics is telling her to mother. She's been trying to go broody off and on for about 6-weeks now. Just before the babies arrived is when she first started in fact. Anyway... so while the 5 ISA's are up on their pallet grumbling about the annoying fluff's on the ground, Rosemary is down on the ground nudging them all, smelling them, chittering at them, and pecking them on the heads when they get out of line.
This is how I left them last night.
This morning, I go down to find Rosemary on the ground, with all the babies around her. There are more babies than she can fit under her, most of them didn't want to be kept warm this way anyway, but some did and when I open the gate, all the others rush out to go forage, but not Rosie. Rose, has decided she is going to prance around in front of the babies, and tell them what for, and is even growling at me a little bit as I go about collecting eggs and dumping chick starter on the ground for the littles.
I had to forcefully remove Rosie from the coop... strange bird...
She is the largest hen we have, has the pick of the food before the rest of the flock eats, and is our best layer. She has the prettiest feathers of them all with a nice rich red color mixed with white & a peachy color to her, and is one of the friendliest we have... till I integrated the babies into the flock and she decided to mother them all and protect them from the other flock members! lol!!
Goodness the comical behaviors of chickens are something to behold some days! LOL
The babies were thrilled to be allowed so much room, and played all day from what I can tell. The adult hens were curious but went about their business because they've seen the babies out in the yard for the last week or so and the novelty was beginning to wear off.
When I finally got home from visiting family, it was well past dark, and the adult hens were more than ready to get into their coop to go to sleep. They had all roosted on the saddles again while they waited for me, and were cackling and chittering at me in welcome and greeting as I came into the barn. Some even jumped down and started walking over to their door. I think perhaps they thought I was going to remove those "offensive little fluffs" from their main residence, because when they realized I had locked them all into the same enclosure, there was some unhappy hens lemme tell you what!! LOL! They flapped back over to the door and started squawking in rather displeased chicken tones. When I continued choring the rest of the barn and ignoring them, they got miffed and jumped up on their roosting pallet (that the babies can't reach) and hunkered down with some soft growls. All but one.
Rosemary decided she was going to be the babies "mother & protector". She is the mother of the flock I swear... she is an ISA, she has no idea how to brood and gets bored/hungry/whatever after awhile and walks away from the plastic eggs she thinks need to be sat on, but something in her genetics is telling her to mother. She's been trying to go broody off and on for about 6-weeks now. Just before the babies arrived is when she first started in fact. Anyway... so while the 5 ISA's are up on their pallet grumbling about the annoying fluff's on the ground, Rosemary is down on the ground nudging them all, smelling them, chittering at them, and pecking them on the heads when they get out of line.
This is how I left them last night.
This morning, I go down to find Rosemary on the ground, with all the babies around her. There are more babies than she can fit under her, most of them didn't want to be kept warm this way anyway, but some did and when I open the gate, all the others rush out to go forage, but not Rosie. Rose, has decided she is going to prance around in front of the babies, and tell them what for, and is even growling at me a little bit as I go about collecting eggs and dumping chick starter on the ground for the littles.
I had to forcefully remove Rosie from the coop... strange bird...
She is the largest hen we have, has the pick of the food before the rest of the flock eats, and is our best layer. She has the prettiest feathers of them all with a nice rich red color mixed with white & a peachy color to her, and is one of the friendliest we have... till I integrated the babies into the flock and she decided to mother them all and protect them from the other flock members! lol!!
Goodness the comical behaviors of chickens are something to behold some days! LOL
Thursday, May 22, 2014
Throw together chicken tractor
When I bought the first 13 chickens through mypetchicken.com I wasn't worried about integrating them into the existing flock, or any of the stuff I probably should have been. It was only 13 of them after all... Then of course I went to TSC and found all those Easter Eggers (11) & Buff Orpingtons (2), bringing my grand total up to 26 at that point and making my job between weeks 4 & 6 much more difficult of course.
I've realized since they rolled over into week 4 that the stock tank they've been living in, is just too small for them to exist in during the day... The time has now come for me to think about a way for them to go outside without getting loose (their not all "tame" to my liking, and will not free range until I can be sure they will remain "home" and not wander off).
I think considering the gentle nature of the ISA Browns I have right now that I could put them into the adult coop if I wanted to, but I'm not 100% convinced they are ready yet. They are only 4-weeks old after all... Not to mention I wanted to use up all of the adult layer feed prior to integration into the flock so I don't need to be concerned about the beepla's getting too much calcium and damaging their kidneys in the process.
There were some hog panels laying around, some chicken wire, some baling twine, some ice cream pails for water... so after working really hard on Monday, this is the resulting contraption. The beepla's go back into the stock tank at night (handling each and every chick in the process, thereby taming them a little more every day) and they go out into the yard and garden during the day to learn to scratch for bugs and worms, dust bath etc.
The first day, they were all terrified to even move. They huddled up into a big pile and wouldn't do much of anything. It was rather discouraging... but then the second day, they did better, and were less wild when I went to put them into their box to come outside. The third day (today) they had become so accostomed to the idea that when the "tall noisy lady" comes that they go outside that 3 of them jumped into my hand when I put it on the ground to catch them! Yay!! THEN as if that wasn't exciting enough... one of my prized Light Brahma's caught her first worm! All by herself!! OMG I was so proud I came inside and told my mom & sister! They laughed at me and didn't understand but I was so proud! :-D
So anyway... I've done this system the last 3-days, and although it does not look pretty, it works really really well for our needs.
Its amazing what two hog panels, some chicken wire, baling twine, small pails and ingenuity can accomplish...
I've realized since they rolled over into week 4 that the stock tank they've been living in, is just too small for them to exist in during the day... The time has now come for me to think about a way for them to go outside without getting loose (their not all "tame" to my liking, and will not free range until I can be sure they will remain "home" and not wander off).
I think considering the gentle nature of the ISA Browns I have right now that I could put them into the adult coop if I wanted to, but I'm not 100% convinced they are ready yet. They are only 4-weeks old after all... Not to mention I wanted to use up all of the adult layer feed prior to integration into the flock so I don't need to be concerned about the beepla's getting too much calcium and damaging their kidneys in the process.
There were some hog panels laying around, some chicken wire, some baling twine, some ice cream pails for water... so after working really hard on Monday, this is the resulting contraption. The beepla's go back into the stock tank at night (handling each and every chick in the process, thereby taming them a little more every day) and they go out into the yard and garden during the day to learn to scratch for bugs and worms, dust bath etc.
The first day, they were all terrified to even move. They huddled up into a big pile and wouldn't do much of anything. It was rather discouraging... but then the second day, they did better, and were less wild when I went to put them into their box to come outside. The third day (today) they had become so accostomed to the idea that when the "tall noisy lady" comes that they go outside that 3 of them jumped into my hand when I put it on the ground to catch them! Yay!! THEN as if that wasn't exciting enough... one of my prized Light Brahma's caught her first worm! All by herself!! OMG I was so proud I came inside and told my mom & sister! They laughed at me and didn't understand but I was so proud! :-D
So anyway... I've done this system the last 3-days, and although it does not look pretty, it works really really well for our needs.
Its amazing what two hog panels, some chicken wire, baling twine, small pails and ingenuity can accomplish...
Wednesday, May 14, 2014
Beepla's @ 3-weeks old
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| Unusual coloring isn't it? |
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| I believe this to be a Silver Lace Wyandotte... but I'm not sure. Either way, my husband believes it to be a rooster; or a very pushy female! lol |
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| 1/7 Dark Americauna's |
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| 1/3 Light Brahma's. So pretty... each of them have unique coloring... it's going to be so much fun keeping these babies |
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| 1/4 Jersey Giant's |
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| 1/4 Jersey Giant's |
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| 1/4 Jersey Giant's showing off her newly clipped wing. |
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| 1/3 Buff Orpington's. I'm not thrilled with them so far, but they are pretty so far... |
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| A lighter Americauna |
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| She got comfortable on my hand... I wish all of them were this calm... |
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| "Ooooooh what's that thing??" |
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| Mom thought I needed to take a photo of the brooder tank so you all could see how much room they do (or don't) have lately. |
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| This is an Americauna, but she is the only one like her. She looks "brown" here but is actually more grey than anything. :-) Really pretty. |
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