Just placed the rest of my 2013 chick orders!

[897tgigvib]

I have Predators big time here. Worst would be the Bears. Nothing short of a solid concrete wall and roof would stop them. Added to that, this is a recreation area. Not supposed to feed the Bears or any wild animal. They go bad once they find a food source from humans and have to be trapped and usually shot. We also have Mountain Lions which can be even deadlier. (Yes, I've had to chase off a Bear, and, (brrr), one time I was 30 feet from a Mountain Lion. I showed no fear, and well remembered all the brochures forest service puts out. But after I was in the cabin, with my air horn and maul right there with me, the fear hit!

 

[canesisters]

Canssisters, what are you waiting on?? I live on a small lot in town and have a a coop/run in the backyard. I love my girls! I started with 2, then got 6 more, then got 20 that hatched at Christmas. Have had chickens for 4 years now, it is amazing how much leftovers, kitchen trimmings and garden trimmings they eat! Nothing goes to waste here. Plus, they are fun and give us lovely eggs.

About 8-9 of the 20 chicks I got look to be roos, they will go to freezer camp. After I get my feet wet butchering those, I may have to join the ranks of these-here "professional" meat chicken raisers!

You gotta get some chickies!

Oh Baybmule, I got the FIRST flock last May.
These are last Spring's chicks - The Canesisters:
That's Hurra Cane the rooster, with Candy Cane (the EE) right in front of him, then Sola Cane (Speckled Sussex), you can see Nove Cane and Raisin Cane's heads. There is also Citizen Cane, but she was inside laying an egg so missed the photo op.

Here's Citizen - finally made it outside in the snow.

I LOVE my chooks!!! Sitting in the coop is the happiest place in the yard.

There is a big chickeen swap each May and I've got a few friends who are hatching out some chicks to sell there. I'm trying to hold off getting babies until then - but it's getting really hard.
I might just have to expand the run again. My max number right now is 10-12 adults...

 

[897tgigvib]

Ohhhhh!

Raisin Cane, Citizen Cane

Those are Chickens!

 

[HotPepperQueen]

Great pictures! I love seeing photos of other flocks. So cute!


Well my meat birds came at 6:30am today. I ordered 60 and when I opened the box.....BAM there were 102 chicks in there! That's a lot of freebies, even for me. I checked my invoice to make sure I didn't do something wrong but right there on the sheet was my 60 chick order. I'm guessing the order needed some extra packing peanuts since it was -6 degrees with a -15 windchill. I'll either butcher those 40 early for Cornish Game Hens or i'll try selling them. I really don't have the room for over 100 full grown birds in the meat bird coop and the fact that they smell so darn bad. But for now I will see how many survive and just enjoy their cuteness

 

[canesisters]

WOW! That IS a lot of 'peanuts'!!!! I can't imagine trying to take care of that many... 6 was a handfull for me.

When I get my new chicks, I'll be adding Ameri, Porti, Cracko, Sugar... ( )
Will have to see how many I bring home - I'll probably need to come up with some more 'cane' names.

OH! Forgot that I've got 2 Jersey Giant/Australorp (sp?) mix hens on the way as soon as I finish their temp pen - so I need a couple of 'Jersey' names.... thinking Turnpike and Shore. hehehehe

 

[ducks4you]

WOW, Marshallsmyth--you're braver than me. Don't know WHAT I'd do if I was on a riding vacation and met up with a mountain lion. You're supposed to be the brave one for your horse, but I think we'd both panic...and run...and you're not supposed to run.
Back to chickens...
I kept "Chewbacca", my orange EE rooster over this winter. I saved the execution of 3 of my 2012 RIR/Welsummer mix layers to keep him warm at night in the outside "Turkey House" pen. In March, I'm gonna order him 5 EE pullets. Sure like my olive green eggs this winter, but I'd like more blue in them.
Meanwhile, with 15 layers (and the occasional eggs from the other girls), I am SWIMMING in eggs. Even giving them away, I seem to always have more than 2 dozen in the kitchen. That's a warning to those who think 3-4 hens isn't enough to meet your needs!
Btw, I had a mean as dirt RIR rosecomb rooster last year--he tasted great--and he was tearing up the backs of my hens. Both "Chewbacca" and my newest rooster, an EE named "Arthur Dent", are a lot more gentle, but they still get the job done. Just an FYI.
Chewbacca

Arthur Dent

 

[HotPepperQueen]

Your roosters are gorgeous! I'm hoping my Salmon Faverolles rooster I ordered will be gentle and somewhat quiet. After I got rid of my Cuckoo Maran rooster, Cogburn, last year in fear of my neighbors complaining about his crowing at 5am every day, I had them coming over asking what happened to him! They missed the crowing and watching him strut around the yard in all his glory. He was a good boy...but I later found out he attacked a small child at his new home after she startled him so he became soup I don't have any updated pictures of my chickens. I should get on that...

 

[Jared77]

HPQ your chicken butchering days sounds like our deer processing days during the hunting season. Its a family affair for us too. We all look forward to it too.

Those are some nice looking Roos folks!

 

[April Manier]

After everything is cleaned up we sit down to a big meal and bonfire. Every one looks forward to butchering day- it's usually a hoot. We have a lot of good memories.

murmurm
I love this! How fun is that? I wish I could get my family involved like that. I'm sure my neighbors, who are like family, would do it with me.

The other day we had their 5 year old over. We were annoyed by the rooster a bit and murmuring. In that sweet little voice he says, "I think we should take that loud rooster , cut his head off, and eat him!"

I just laughed and laughed!

 

[canesisters]

Ducks - how do you manage to have green things growing in the pen with your chickens???
Last Summer I bumped my pen out to 30x30 of nice grass and a couple of small tree/shrub things - within a month they had it striped to nearly bare dirt.

Those ARE handsome roos. My marans roo was a suprise. Right up until his first crow, I was SURE he was a hen and was sooo looking forward to those nice dark chocloate eggs....