Written by Prospector.....
Actually, so is our mouse trap.
This all began the other night when SWMBO saw a mouse on the counter and decided to take care of it with 4 strategically placed traps of the standard type and size.
In night one, one trap was disturbed, and a recently deceased mouse was found in it and disposed of. All was well.
Night 2 had 3 traps cleaned of bait, and a mouse in the third trap, caught by his leg. Not as well, but nevertheless, somewhat effective.
Night 3 had one trap disturbed and a mouse, very much alive, caught by the tail.
"Aha!" says I, "A chance to test the mettle of our ferocious guardian dog." I called Bernie over, and ever hopeful for a scrap of something delicious from the counter she bounded alongside me. "Sit" says I. And she, in a most obedient manner did as told.
I put the trapped mouse on the ground in front of her and made angry sounds. She sniffed inquisitively, and as her nose touched it, the mouse lurched and dragged the trap about an inch across the floor. Bernie, on the other hand jumped clear across the room, ran for the door and cowered in a corner. As any good trainer would do, I split my gut laughing.
I picked up the still trapped mouse and took it outside the the stump of death. Bernie followed at a distance, still unsure of herself. Hoisting the axe of deliverance above the mouse, I most swiftly sent it to join the choir invisible (or at least to eat their crumbs). With that nasty bit of business taken care of I called Bernie over. Tail between her legs, she came carefully over, sniffed the mouse, and then turned and ran for the house where she whined and pawed the door to get back inside. This is the dog we got to protect our property from coyotes.
She has been most bravely lying under the bed ever since. I hope there aren't any mice under there.
Showing posts with label Prospector. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Prospector. Show all posts
Tuesday, 31 May 2011
Thursday, 24 March 2011
Bernie is Stoopid. Just Sayin
Written by Prospector.....
Our dog Bernie Loves us, which is great - except for when she farts or runs next door for a visit, then we don't love her.
Her favourite sleeping spot lately is under our bed. I read in a Fung Shui design guide that bad energy builds up if you put your bed on a solid base, so we have a nice four-poster frame with boxes of wine bottles propping up the slats that are supposed to hold the mattress in place. I won't go into detail on how the slats broke, but its not as fun as you think. Anyway, the system works well, and it's pretty efficient. Light some candles, grab a bottle of wine, - oh wait - we share our bedroom with a newborn, baby chicks, and yup, Bernie. The candles and wine never happen.
Anyway, Bernie sleeps under the corner of the mattress by my feet. Well, her tummy does. Her head sticks out on my side of the bed, and her feet stick out at the foot of the bed, and her paws kinda hug the bedpost. You with me so far? Good.
Now I dunno about your 2 year old, but ours wakes up about 3 times a night to cry. No for any good reason, just to cry for fun and exercise. When that happens, it is my lot in life to jump out of bed and run upstairs to cuddle. Only Bernie, well, Bernies head anyways, is usually placed exactly where my foot lands as I jump out of bed. Vith vigour.
So, landing squarely on her snout, and pulling off the "shimmy-twist before I hurt you, while falling over the dresser ending in a half-gainer" move, I play dodge-dog in the dark trying to get to the bedroom door without waking SWMBO or the baby, or the chicks with whom I share my bedroom. Bernie seems to understand that we don't want to wake anyone, so she does her best to help. Shocked out of her sleep she immediately stands up, cracking her back on the bed. Then she tries to back out from under the bed, smacking her head off the bedframe. Realizing the bed is (hardly) behind her now, she reverses gears and puts it in forward, clocking her head a second time. By now she is fully awake, and her tail is going 90 miles an hour, beating the side of the matress with a loud "whump, whump, whump." The neighbours have asked if we heard the helicopter.
Once Bernie is out from under the bed, she bravely runs for the bottom of the stairs to see if she can beat me there, and create a second tripping hazard. She is sometimes successful since I have been hobbled by twisting my ankle while trying not to step on her face. Now I get to repeat the face-step avoidance manouevre. I scramble/sprawl up the stairs, arrive at Buddy's bed, comfort him and turn to head back to bed. This is like spinning the crown and anchor wheel.
Did Bernie lie down at the bottom of the stairs to wait for me? Is she on the living room rug? Is she back under the bed? Is she at the front door waiting to come running? You spin the wheel, you take your chances.
The nice thing is that once I am back in bed, I know it will only be a matter of minutes before she takes up her post at the foot of the bed again, and starts snoring. Or Farting. Dog farts in the night are the worst.
I also know that at least once in the night she will want to be let out to go pee. When that happens she will come up and rest her head on the edge of the bed, so that her face is 1.74mm from mine, she will pant twice, then poke with her nose. Have you ever been woken from your sleep by dog breath with a wet nose chaser? Believe me, it is exactly as fun as it sounds. If I don't get up instantly, she will once again beat the side of the bed of her tail until I rise up in submission. Then she will go outside to pee.
Everyone knows that at 3AM the most fun you can have is playing with a dog, so after she pees, she will do that stretch your paws way out with your butt in the air thing while she looks at me, wags her tail and pants. I will grumble, she will run back and forth in front of me. I'll turn around and go back in the house, and then she will come up and paw at the door 'cause she wants to come in too.
5 minutes later I'll get the nosepoke again - she didn't poop. Plum forgot with all the fun she was having.
Our dog Bernie Loves us, which is great - except for when she farts or runs next door for a visit, then we don't love her.
Her favourite sleeping spot lately is under our bed. I read in a Fung Shui design guide that bad energy builds up if you put your bed on a solid base, so we have a nice four-poster frame with boxes of wine bottles propping up the slats that are supposed to hold the mattress in place. I won't go into detail on how the slats broke, but its not as fun as you think. Anyway, the system works well, and it's pretty efficient. Light some candles, grab a bottle of wine, - oh wait - we share our bedroom with a newborn, baby chicks, and yup, Bernie. The candles and wine never happen.
Anyway, Bernie sleeps under the corner of the mattress by my feet. Well, her tummy does. Her head sticks out on my side of the bed, and her feet stick out at the foot of the bed, and her paws kinda hug the bedpost. You with me so far? Good.
Now I dunno about your 2 year old, but ours wakes up about 3 times a night to cry. No for any good reason, just to cry for fun and exercise. When that happens, it is my lot in life to jump out of bed and run upstairs to cuddle. Only Bernie, well, Bernies head anyways, is usually placed exactly where my foot lands as I jump out of bed. Vith vigour.
So, landing squarely on her snout, and pulling off the "shimmy-twist before I hurt you, while falling over the dresser ending in a half-gainer" move, I play dodge-dog in the dark trying to get to the bedroom door without waking SWMBO or the baby, or the chicks with whom I share my bedroom. Bernie seems to understand that we don't want to wake anyone, so she does her best to help. Shocked out of her sleep she immediately stands up, cracking her back on the bed. Then she tries to back out from under the bed, smacking her head off the bedframe. Realizing the bed is (hardly) behind her now, she reverses gears and puts it in forward, clocking her head a second time. By now she is fully awake, and her tail is going 90 miles an hour, beating the side of the matress with a loud "whump, whump, whump." The neighbours have asked if we heard the helicopter.
Once Bernie is out from under the bed, she bravely runs for the bottom of the stairs to see if she can beat me there, and create a second tripping hazard. She is sometimes successful since I have been hobbled by twisting my ankle while trying not to step on her face. Now I get to repeat the face-step avoidance manouevre. I scramble/sprawl up the stairs, arrive at Buddy's bed, comfort him and turn to head back to bed. This is like spinning the crown and anchor wheel.
Did Bernie lie down at the bottom of the stairs to wait for me? Is she on the living room rug? Is she back under the bed? Is she at the front door waiting to come running? You spin the wheel, you take your chances.
The nice thing is that once I am back in bed, I know it will only be a matter of minutes before she takes up her post at the foot of the bed again, and starts snoring. Or Farting. Dog farts in the night are the worst.
I also know that at least once in the night she will want to be let out to go pee. When that happens she will come up and rest her head on the edge of the bed, so that her face is 1.74mm from mine, she will pant twice, then poke with her nose. Have you ever been woken from your sleep by dog breath with a wet nose chaser? Believe me, it is exactly as fun as it sounds. If I don't get up instantly, she will once again beat the side of the bed of her tail until I rise up in submission. Then she will go outside to pee.
Everyone knows that at 3AM the most fun you can have is playing with a dog, so after she pees, she will do that stretch your paws way out with your butt in the air thing while she looks at me, wags her tail and pants. I will grumble, she will run back and forth in front of me. I'll turn around and go back in the house, and then she will come up and paw at the door 'cause she wants to come in too.
5 minutes later I'll get the nosepoke again - she didn't poop. Plum forgot with all the fun she was having.
Sunday, 20 March 2011
Doing the Shuffle
Written by Prospector....
OK, this may be hard to follow, Bear with me.
Back in the fall, we recieved six Silver Pencilled Wyandotts (SPW). They have been housed together (2 roos, 4 girls) in the Coop-de-Ville
We had 3 Chanty hens in our other coop - the TajMahChicken, along with three retired laying hens.
In the basement we had a very sick Chanty Roo sharing a dog kennel with a very loving Americauna hen. We really loved that roo and that hen, and they loved each other.
Loved (past tense) because the roo was sick beyond hope, and is now an ex-rooster, dispatched this afternoon to the great beyond by the axe of judgement.
With the rooster gone, the Americauna was left alone. She needed a buddy. One of the SPW roos was assigned to the role today. He has been moved into the basement with the Americauna hen. We didn't want to introduce her to another flock alone, or she woulda got beat up pretty bad.
That left the other SPW roo with 4 girls, and no controls on breeding, so we split 2 hens away from his flock, and moved them into the TajMahChicken, awaiting the future re-introduction of the SPW roo that is currently being buddy to the Americauna. This made the Taj far fuller than the CoopDeVille.
To balance things out, we moved the 3 Chanty hens over to the Coop DeVille such that now our arrangement is...
Coop De Ville - 3 SPWs, 3 Chantys
TajMahChicken - 2 SPW hens, 1 ISA, 1 Black Sex Link, 1 RIR
Basement - 1 SPW Roo, 1 Americauna
Add to all this that we now have 3 SPW chicks and 3 Buff Orp chicks in the brooder, and 20 eggs (12 Cuckoo Marans, 4 SPW, 4 AmericaunaXChanty) in the 'bator, and it could get to being an interesting spring trying to integrate flocks. My next big move will be to set the chicks into a brooder in the basement near the Americauna in the hopes that she adopts them and they form a flock strong enough to stand up out there. What fun.
OK, this may be hard to follow, Bear with me.
Back in the fall, we recieved six Silver Pencilled Wyandotts (SPW). They have been housed together (2 roos, 4 girls) in the Coop-de-Ville
We had 3 Chanty hens in our other coop - the TajMahChicken, along with three retired laying hens.
In the basement we had a very sick Chanty Roo sharing a dog kennel with a very loving Americauna hen. We really loved that roo and that hen, and they loved each other.
Loved (past tense) because the roo was sick beyond hope, and is now an ex-rooster, dispatched this afternoon to the great beyond by the axe of judgement.
With the rooster gone, the Americauna was left alone. She needed a buddy. One of the SPW roos was assigned to the role today. He has been moved into the basement with the Americauna hen. We didn't want to introduce her to another flock alone, or she woulda got beat up pretty bad.
That left the other SPW roo with 4 girls, and no controls on breeding, so we split 2 hens away from his flock, and moved them into the TajMahChicken, awaiting the future re-introduction of the SPW roo that is currently being buddy to the Americauna. This made the Taj far fuller than the CoopDeVille.
To balance things out, we moved the 3 Chanty hens over to the Coop DeVille such that now our arrangement is...
Coop De Ville - 3 SPWs, 3 Chantys
TajMahChicken - 2 SPW hens, 1 ISA, 1 Black Sex Link, 1 RIR
Basement - 1 SPW Roo, 1 Americauna
Add to all this that we now have 3 SPW chicks and 3 Buff Orp chicks in the brooder, and 20 eggs (12 Cuckoo Marans, 4 SPW, 4 AmericaunaXChanty) in the 'bator, and it could get to being an interesting spring trying to integrate flocks. My next big move will be to set the chicks into a brooder in the basement near the Americauna in the hopes that she adopts them and they form a flock strong enough to stand up out there. What fun.
Tuesday, 11 January 2011
Conversation with a 2.5 year old...
"Hey Buddy Boy, what're you doing?"
"No Daddy!! NOT the Buddy Boy!!!"
"You aren't? Who are you then?"
"I'm the BIG BOY!"
duly noted.
"No Daddy!! NOT the Buddy Boy!!!"
"You aren't? Who are you then?"
"I'm the BIG BOY!"
duly noted.
Saturday, 8 January 2011
365 - Week One
 |
| Jan 2 - Playing 'Thomases' |
 |
| Jan 3 - Chuck made cupcakes for dessert |
 |
| Jan 4 - Chick-de-Ville on the left, Taj-Ma-Chicken on the right |
 |
| Jan 5 - A little late taking our Chistmas shots this year. I think this one should TOTALLY grace our cards next year! |
 |
| Jan 6 - I'm just LOOKING at him mom |
 |
| Jan 7 - New eyewear |
Thursday, 6 January 2011
An update on Incubating
Part One
Part Two
Part Three
We decided not to worry about incubating the Americauna's eggs after a few days, for a few reasons.
We had originally purchased four Americauna chicks. Of the four, one died in the first week, one had a cross bill, and died in the first month, and the other two grew to maturity.
The decision to incubate was more an emotional one than anything. We were sick at the thought of how we lost that rooster. And, the Americauna's really stuck together... the fact that we had left the female to be alone bothered us too.
After a few days, a 50% survival rate did not seem particularly good to us. We also are not sure that we have true Americauna's, or 'mutt' Americauna's, which are commonly referred to as "Easter Eggers." The eggs that they lay are greenish, but more 'olive' than green. True Americauna's will lay blue, green, or pink eggs.
Also, it's really the wrong time of year for raising chicks. There is a reason why, in nature, the chicks are born in the spring.
So we have not invested in an incubator yet, but are looking. The type of incubator that Prospector would like to buy is a Brinsea. Brinsea incubator's are approved south of the border, but not up here. Which means that we need to watch craigslist / kijiji etc. for one. Also, Prospector likes to build stuff. So far, he's pulled apart a toaster, an old computer fan, and is looking longingly at my new yogurt maker, to see if he can turn the parts into an incubator. Also, the old fish tank in the basement, including the heater for it, and Chuck's old easy bake oven. None of the electronics in the house are safe right now.
We had ordered an incubator, for $80, but then discovered that that model was discontinued. The sales rep phoned to advise of this, and said the next similar one was the "Picture Window Hova-bator Incubator." Try saying that three times fast. Try writting that down after only hearing it once. Or, you can feel like a jerk & ask the poor sales rep to repeat herself five times, trying to figure out what the heck she's talking about!
Part Two
Part Three
We decided not to worry about incubating the Americauna's eggs after a few days, for a few reasons.
We had originally purchased four Americauna chicks. Of the four, one died in the first week, one had a cross bill, and died in the first month, and the other two grew to maturity.
The decision to incubate was more an emotional one than anything. We were sick at the thought of how we lost that rooster. And, the Americauna's really stuck together... the fact that we had left the female to be alone bothered us too.
After a few days, a 50% survival rate did not seem particularly good to us. We also are not sure that we have true Americauna's, or 'mutt' Americauna's, which are commonly referred to as "Easter Eggers." The eggs that they lay are greenish, but more 'olive' than green. True Americauna's will lay blue, green, or pink eggs.
Also, it's really the wrong time of year for raising chicks. There is a reason why, in nature, the chicks are born in the spring.
So we have not invested in an incubator yet, but are looking. The type of incubator that Prospector would like to buy is a Brinsea. Brinsea incubator's are approved south of the border, but not up here. Which means that we need to watch craigslist / kijiji etc. for one. Also, Prospector likes to build stuff. So far, he's pulled apart a toaster, an old computer fan, and is looking longingly at my new yogurt maker, to see if he can turn the parts into an incubator. Also, the old fish tank in the basement, including the heater for it, and Chuck's old easy bake oven. None of the electronics in the house are safe right now.
We had ordered an incubator, for $80, but then discovered that that model was discontinued. The sales rep phoned to advise of this, and said the next similar one was the "Picture Window Hova-bator Incubator." Try saying that three times fast. Try writting that down after only hearing it once. Or, you can feel like a jerk & ask the poor sales rep to repeat herself five times, trying to figure out what the heck she's talking about!
Wednesday, 5 January 2011
Coming back together....
Written by Prospector on Jan 2, 2011
Part One
Part Two
So things are finally clicking in the way they were supposed to in the first place.
Right now we are harvesting about 6 eggs daily, with only some of the girls on-line. Production should pick up as the days get longer. Right now we are getting:
1-2 eggs per day from the 4 Wyandot hens
1 egg/day from the 3 Chanty hens
1 egg/day from the 1 ISA Brown
1 egg/day from the 1 Rhode Island Red
2/3 egg/day from the 1 Black Sex link
1 egg/day from the 1 Americauna
Over the Christmas break this has been just right for eating, but we enjoy bacon and eggs and french toast, and have time to cook when we aren;t working. Once we go back to work it will be a little different I am sure. We were buying 18 eggs/week before the girls started laying.
We have been looking for a reasonably priced incubator for a while now, but it seems more and more unlikely that we will find one as time goes on. I am considering converting a household Yogurt maker into a 'bator, but have to figure out some technicalities o it before I immerse myself in the project.
If we can hatch out some chicks, things will really be going well.
Part One
Part Two
So things are finally clicking in the way they were supposed to in the first place.
Right now we are harvesting about 6 eggs daily, with only some of the girls on-line. Production should pick up as the days get longer. Right now we are getting:
1-2 eggs per day from the 4 Wyandot hens
1 egg/day from the 3 Chanty hens
1 egg/day from the 1 ISA Brown
1 egg/day from the 1 Rhode Island Red
2/3 egg/day from the 1 Black Sex link
1 egg/day from the 1 Americauna
Over the Christmas break this has been just right for eating, but we enjoy bacon and eggs and french toast, and have time to cook when we aren;t working. Once we go back to work it will be a little different I am sure. We were buying 18 eggs/week before the girls started laying.
We have been looking for a reasonably priced incubator for a while now, but it seems more and more unlikely that we will find one as time goes on. I am considering converting a household Yogurt maker into a 'bator, but have to figure out some technicalities o it before I immerse myself in the project.
If we can hatch out some chicks, things will really be going well.
Tuesday, 4 January 2011
A Study in Post-Traumatic Stress in Poultry.
Written by Prospector on Dec 22, 2010
Part One
We are now over a week past the chicken funerals, and things have gotten interesting again.
1. The Americauna - The Americauna is grieving the loss of her boyfriend. We put her in with the Chanty Roo that survived the dog attack and she isn't pecking or hurting him, which is good, and she is bonding to him, which is probably bad, but at least she has a BFF again.
2. The Chanty Roo - OK this guy is a survivor and a champ, but I don't know how long to hold out for him. Poor guy is putting out new feathers through his skin and is bumpy all over. He can't walk well and he has a wing that is sitting funny. He is bright and attentive and is eating and drinking though. If his wing and leg heal, I believe he could be incorporated with teh flock again, but if they don't he won't last a day in mixed company. I don't know whether to dispatch him to a happier place or hold out for a recovery.
3. The 3 Chanty hens who weren't hurt - so the three hens who sat up on their roost and didn't get in the path of Bernie have now adopted the Wyandot Roosters as their boyfriends and have started laying again. Dammit. I mean good about the eggs, dammit about the mixed genetics.
4. The Wandot hens - no eggs since they arrived, but they sure eat a lot.
5. New arrivals - An older guy in town was moving and needed to get rid of a trio of hens. So we now have 3 hens that totally don't fit into our program but lay like clockwork daily. Nice big dark shelled eggs too. So we now have a Black Sex link, an ISA Brown, and a Rhode Island Red. Right now these are our most productive hens.
6. New arrival on Order - While cruising Craigslist the other day I came across someone with a Chanty Roo to be rehomed - Yippee! for $10 I can replace the Roo suffering in the basement, or if he survives, I can have two separate breeding roos. Just one problem - the Chanty hens are all in love with the Wyandots now, and the Americauna hen is dating the sickly Chanty Roo. The new Roo will end up being put in with the New trio of girls and in the end I will have 3 or 4 separate lines of Mutt chickens and no true breeding lines to show and sell. The New Roo arrives on Boxing day.
Part One
We are now over a week past the chicken funerals, and things have gotten interesting again.
1. The Americauna - The Americauna is grieving the loss of her boyfriend. We put her in with the Chanty Roo that survived the dog attack and she isn't pecking or hurting him, which is good, and she is bonding to him, which is probably bad, but at least she has a BFF again.
2. The Chanty Roo - OK this guy is a survivor and a champ, but I don't know how long to hold out for him. Poor guy is putting out new feathers through his skin and is bumpy all over. He can't walk well and he has a wing that is sitting funny. He is bright and attentive and is eating and drinking though. If his wing and leg heal, I believe he could be incorporated with teh flock again, but if they don't he won't last a day in mixed company. I don't know whether to dispatch him to a happier place or hold out for a recovery.
3. The 3 Chanty hens who weren't hurt - so the three hens who sat up on their roost and didn't get in the path of Bernie have now adopted the Wyandot Roosters as their boyfriends and have started laying again. Dammit. I mean good about the eggs, dammit about the mixed genetics.
4. The Wandot hens - no eggs since they arrived, but they sure eat a lot.
5. New arrivals - An older guy in town was moving and needed to get rid of a trio of hens. So we now have 3 hens that totally don't fit into our program but lay like clockwork daily. Nice big dark shelled eggs too. So we now have a Black Sex link, an ISA Brown, and a Rhode Island Red. Right now these are our most productive hens.
6. New arrival on Order - While cruising Craigslist the other day I came across someone with a Chanty Roo to be rehomed - Yippee! for $10 I can replace the Roo suffering in the basement, or if he survives, I can have two separate breeding roos. Just one problem - the Chanty hens are all in love with the Wyandots now, and the Americauna hen is dating the sickly Chanty Roo. The new Roo will end up being put in with the New trio of girls and in the end I will have 3 or 4 separate lines of Mutt chickens and no true breeding lines to show and sell. The New Roo arrives on Boxing day.
Monday, 3 January 2011
Putting the fox in the henhouse....
on December 13, we lost a hen & a rooster, and have an injured rooster in the basement, due to our own stupidity. I couldn't write about it before (still can't, really), but if I'm going to document our chicken adventures, I'd better document the good with the bad. Here is what happened, as told by Prospector:
(not for the faint of heart)
The trouble with raising an animal that is at the bottom of the food chain, and another animal that is at the top of the food chain is that when one sees the other all they think is "Dinner"
We just lost one of our breeding roosters and one of our layers to the dog. A second Roo is on life support in the basement. The horrible wind and blowing snow this week hasn't helped much.
While we are out during the day, we have been using the chicken run as a kennel for the dog, leaving all the chickens sealed inside their coop. Each morning before leaving for school, Chuck closes the birds in and sets the dog out, then when she gets home, Chuck lets the dog out, gathers eggs, and opens the coop. This allows the girls to wander in their run until I get home from work, by which time they have usually all gone inside to rest under the heat lamp.
On Monday, the door between the coop and run was left open when the dog was set out. Between the time Chuck got on the bus and the time she got home, one bird was killed and eaten, and the roo defending her was defeathered (fighting to defend the girls I suppose) and froze out in the snow. The second roo was also defeathered and I suppose left to freeze outside, but by the time I got home he was shivering on the floor of the coop, his feet frozen in clods of snow, unable to move from the knees down. He has no feathers on his rump or neck, and open sores all over his body where the dog ripped away feathers.
The rooster that died was the mate for the Americauna hen. We are hoping that the eggs she is laying are fertile for the next few days and that we can hatch some out to get a new generation.
The other rooster is on life support in the basement. I brought him in and slowly thawed his legs by the fire using a combination of my own body heat, cool water, and the glow of the fire until he could bend his legs again. I have never seen him so docile before. After thawing him out, I moved him to the dog crate in the basement with a heat lamp over him, and a blanket around the cage.
He has sugar water and some soft food. He smells awful.
At first all he would do was drink - no eating. Yesterday he started to eat, and was "talking". We brought in the Americauna hen, and put a divider up between them in the dog crate. The two of them are keeping each other company, and we are able to harvest her eggs without worry of them freezing out in the coop. Having company seems to have raised the rooster's spirits. This morning (Dec 17) he crowed for the first time since being thawed out.
His feathers are returning to white after having been bloodstained in the attack. At first we couldn't tell which was the Americauna and which was the Chanty. I am hoping his lost tail feathers and the feathers on his neck grow back quickly. We are told the Americauna's eggs will be viable for hatching for the next 10 days or so. Since we don't have an incubator, I need to build one. I think construction will start tonight.
This is disheartening. I am full of woulda-shoulda's right now. As a result, we have combined all of our flock (3 breeds) into one coop and put the dog in the other one. This may lead to cross-bred birds over the next few weeks. We will have to re-separate the breeds as spring comes on and we go into active hatching mode.
To think I was so sure about predator-proofing the coops and then put the dog in to do the damage turns my stomache. What a waste of a good rooster. What a waste of a good hen. Its one thing to kill for food, its another to let something freeze to death in the snow. I hope we get at least a few chicks out of it. Let the incubator building begin...
(not for the faint of heart)
The trouble with raising an animal that is at the bottom of the food chain, and another animal that is at the top of the food chain is that when one sees the other all they think is "Dinner"
We just lost one of our breeding roosters and one of our layers to the dog. A second Roo is on life support in the basement. The horrible wind and blowing snow this week hasn't helped much.
While we are out during the day, we have been using the chicken run as a kennel for the dog, leaving all the chickens sealed inside their coop. Each morning before leaving for school, Chuck closes the birds in and sets the dog out, then when she gets home, Chuck lets the dog out, gathers eggs, and opens the coop. This allows the girls to wander in their run until I get home from work, by which time they have usually all gone inside to rest under the heat lamp.
On Monday, the door between the coop and run was left open when the dog was set out. Between the time Chuck got on the bus and the time she got home, one bird was killed and eaten, and the roo defending her was defeathered (fighting to defend the girls I suppose) and froze out in the snow. The second roo was also defeathered and I suppose left to freeze outside, but by the time I got home he was shivering on the floor of the coop, his feet frozen in clods of snow, unable to move from the knees down. He has no feathers on his rump or neck, and open sores all over his body where the dog ripped away feathers.
The rooster that died was the mate for the Americauna hen. We are hoping that the eggs she is laying are fertile for the next few days and that we can hatch some out to get a new generation.
The other rooster is on life support in the basement. I brought him in and slowly thawed his legs by the fire using a combination of my own body heat, cool water, and the glow of the fire until he could bend his legs again. I have never seen him so docile before. After thawing him out, I moved him to the dog crate in the basement with a heat lamp over him, and a blanket around the cage.
He has sugar water and some soft food. He smells awful.
At first all he would do was drink - no eating. Yesterday he started to eat, and was "talking". We brought in the Americauna hen, and put a divider up between them in the dog crate. The two of them are keeping each other company, and we are able to harvest her eggs without worry of them freezing out in the coop. Having company seems to have raised the rooster's spirits. This morning (Dec 17) he crowed for the first time since being thawed out.
His feathers are returning to white after having been bloodstained in the attack. At first we couldn't tell which was the Americauna and which was the Chanty. I am hoping his lost tail feathers and the feathers on his neck grow back quickly. We are told the Americauna's eggs will be viable for hatching for the next 10 days or so. Since we don't have an incubator, I need to build one. I think construction will start tonight.
This is disheartening. I am full of woulda-shoulda's right now. As a result, we have combined all of our flock (3 breeds) into one coop and put the dog in the other one. This may lead to cross-bred birds over the next few weeks. We will have to re-separate the breeds as spring comes on and we go into active hatching mode.
To think I was so sure about predator-proofing the coops and then put the dog in to do the damage turns my stomache. What a waste of a good rooster. What a waste of a good hen. Its one thing to kill for food, its another to let something freeze to death in the snow. I hope we get at least a few chicks out of it. Let the incubator building begin...
Tuesday, 28 December 2010
Friday, 19 November 2010
How Dad's Carve Pumpkins......
Remember Buddy's knobbly deformed pumpkin?
We think it was crossed with a gourd.
'cause cutting into that thing....was NOT fun.
Good thing Daddy came up with a solution.......
Tuesday, 16 November 2010
Tuesday, 12 October 2010
Um....
Email received from Prospector, who is home sick today, with Buddy, who is also sick:
"At least it was a penguin he dipped in the toilet, but I'm still trying to figure out how his head got wet. Buddy's head, not the penguin's."
"At least it was a penguin he dipped in the toilet, but I'm still trying to figure out how his head got wet. Buddy's head, not the penguin's."
Tuesday, 5 October 2010
How DO we take our Chicks to the Fair?
We are not farmers. We don't have any farm vehicles, pick up trucks, or any of that.
And, this was the first time we had to bring the Chicks anywhere since we brought them all home in a teeny tiny shoebox. We couldn't even fit one in that shoebox now, let alone all nine.
So in our brainstorming, we came up with:
Disclaimer: No, we would not have used any of these options. It was just a silly conversation around the dinner table!!!
In reality, we put the two Americauna's into a cat carrier that we use to transport the rabbit, the three female Chanty's into a Rubbermaid, and the four male Chanty's into the dog's crate.
The only downside to this was that the dog crate fit, but Chuck's knees were right against it (it's a good thing that the drive wasn't very long)
We had no where to leave the dog now... so she had to come with us.
so we crammed Mom & dad in the front.
The dog crate full of roosters in the middle
The two kids and the dog in the back row
And the Americauna's & Hen's in the trunk.
It was a very, very full mini-van.
To come home, we decided that the dog crate was not very practical, and that the birds were able to move a bit too much in it. There was too much 'cubic' feet.
So, we put one Americauna into the cat carrier
A rooster & a hen into the Rubbermaid that the hens had come down in
A rooster, a hen, and an Americauna into an old vacuum box, taped shut
A rooster in a banker's box, taped shut
And a rooster & a hen into another Rubbermaid
So again, Mom & Dad in the front
Two Rubbermaid's & two boxes in the middle.
Two kids and the Americauna in the back seat.
And the puppy got to stay home.
Some of the boxes were shaking. I think if we start doing this on a regular basis... we're gonna have to get some proper chicken transporting devices!
And as for winning... well, us silly city folk apparently didn't know what classes our birds were, and so unfortunately, they were all disqualified. We entered the Chanty's as AOV Standard (All Other Variety), when they should have been entered as AOV Standard - American.
And the Americauna's we entered into the Americauna - Bantam category. Our Americauna's are Standards, and there wasn't a category for Standard Americauna's. They should have been entered as AOV' - Standard.
BUT, we did have a five day break from needing to take care of them, which was nice.
HOWEVER... there was ONE other Chanty entered, and NO other Americauna's. If we had entered them correctly, we would have won between $40 - $42, depending on where the other Chanty placed.
Oh well. It was our first fair, live & learn. Next time, we know better!!
And, this was the first time we had to bring the Chicks anywhere since we brought them all home in a teeny tiny shoebox. We couldn't even fit one in that shoebox now, let alone all nine.
So in our brainstorming, we came up with:
Disclaimer: No, we would not have used any of these options. It was just a silly conversation around the dinner table!!!
- Have them roost on the roof racks at night, then tie their feet down so that they can't fly off. It would help our gas mileage if they flap on the drive
- Chuck suggested putting them in Girl Guide cookie boxes... um.... "Hi, would you like to buy a box of.... CLUCK CLUCK CLUCK"
- We have two 2-drawer filing cabinets that we aren't using. we could stick them two to a drawer, and just stack them in the mini-van
- Let them loose in the van. They would get exercise flying around on the way to the fair
- Fly birdie, fly!
In reality, we put the two Americauna's into a cat carrier that we use to transport the rabbit, the three female Chanty's into a Rubbermaid, and the four male Chanty's into the dog's crate.
The only downside to this was that the dog crate fit, but Chuck's knees were right against it (it's a good thing that the drive wasn't very long)
We had no where to leave the dog now... so she had to come with us.
so we crammed Mom & dad in the front.
The dog crate full of roosters in the middle
The two kids and the dog in the back row
And the Americauna's & Hen's in the trunk.
It was a very, very full mini-van.
To come home, we decided that the dog crate was not very practical, and that the birds were able to move a bit too much in it. There was too much 'cubic' feet.
So, we put one Americauna into the cat carrier
A rooster & a hen into the Rubbermaid that the hens had come down in
A rooster, a hen, and an Americauna into an old vacuum box, taped shut
A rooster in a banker's box, taped shut
And a rooster & a hen into another Rubbermaid
So again, Mom & Dad in the front
Two Rubbermaid's & two boxes in the middle.
Two kids and the Americauna in the back seat.
And the puppy got to stay home.
Some of the boxes were shaking. I think if we start doing this on a regular basis... we're gonna have to get some proper chicken transporting devices!
And as for winning... well, us silly city folk apparently didn't know what classes our birds were, and so unfortunately, they were all disqualified. We entered the Chanty's as AOV Standard (All Other Variety), when they should have been entered as AOV Standard - American.
And the Americauna's we entered into the Americauna - Bantam category. Our Americauna's are Standards, and there wasn't a category for Standard Americauna's. They should have been entered as AOV' - Standard.
BUT, we did have a five day break from needing to take care of them, which was nice.
HOWEVER... there was ONE other Chanty entered, and NO other Americauna's. If we had entered them correctly, we would have won between $40 - $42, depending on where the other Chanty placed.
Oh well. It was our first fair, live & learn. Next time, we know better!!
Thursday, 30 September 2010
Did you know....
That you can fit two parents, a 13 year old, a toddler, nine chickens, and a dog in a mini-van?
And that when you stop for gas, and open the side door to let the puppy out for a walk, and there is a giant dog cage holding four of those chickens... people are going to look twice. At least. But think of the story they will have to tell when they get home that night!
(I'm just glad we didn't enter the bunny in the fair too!)
And that when you stop for gas, and open the side door to let the puppy out for a walk, and there is a giant dog cage holding four of those chickens... people are going to look twice. At least. But think of the story they will have to tell when they get home that night!
(I'm just glad we didn't enter the bunny in the fair too!)
Friday, 24 September 2010
Mornings
Prospector to Mama on the drive to work this morning:
"on the one hand, the dog is waking us up earlier so that we are getting to work earlier. On the other hand, there is nothing quite like being greeted by a wagging tail flinging dog pee at you."
Thursday, 9 September 2010
From the Garden
Meal as Cooked by my husband, and post as written by my husband:
Autumn Veggie Hotpot.
Cut up 3 slices of Ontario Bacon and fry in Dutch oven.
Add 2 cups of coarsely shredded Ontario cabbage
Add 1 cup of coarsely shredded Ontario carrots
Add 1/2 cup Ontario chives, chopped
Mix well and wilt.
Transfer to 1 litre corning casserole dish (Made in Canada). Add 1/2 Cup of milk.
Cover with grated Ontario cheddar cheese, homemade breadcrumbs, and Grated Ontario Parmesan cheese.
Bake for 30 minutes.
Serve hot.
Autumn Veggie Hotpot.
Cut up 3 slices of Ontario Bacon and fry in Dutch oven.
Add 2 cups of coarsely shredded Ontario cabbage
Add 1 cup of coarsely shredded Ontario carrots
Add 1/2 cup Ontario chives, chopped
Mix well and wilt.
Transfer to 1 litre corning casserole dish (Made in Canada). Add 1/2 Cup of milk.
Cover with grated Ontario cheddar cheese, homemade breadcrumbs, and Grated Ontario Parmesan cheese.
Bake for 30 minutes.
Serve hot.
Thursday, 20 May 2010
Building The Chicken Coop
All pieces framed up, ready to put together.
Together. Ready to move onto the driveway to add the roof, & continue building. Hubby used the Lawn Tractor to drag it to the driveway.
Hubby & Chuckles heaved the roof onto the coop. It was raining when the roof was built, so it was built in the garage, then added to the coop.
Framed, built, plywooded, and loaded on the trailer, ready to be moved to the backyard.
In the backyard, after being painted.
My cousin came to visit, to help me with a large Girl Guide event. She got to help paint the coop the night before. Lucky Cousin!
ok, this is the cool part.
ok, this is the cool part.
You can see where Daddy & Buddy are looking in the coop, with the first half of the bi-fold up. This can be lifted for ventilation.
Then, it can be lifted even more.
THEN, the bottom flips down, so that the whole thing can be hosed out as necessary.
Then, it can be lifted even more.
THEN, the bottom flips down, so that the whole thing can be hosed out as necessary.
You can see where the holes for the nesting boxes have been cut intot he sides. The nesting boxes are next on our "list of things to do."
Hosted by Cecilyand Mom24
When we built the coop, it was right after ripping out the front entryway. The 2 x 4's throughout are all recycled from that tear out. Also, a lot of the plywood was wood from around the house from other projects. the chicken wire came out of my Grandparents garage since they're moving, and the windows that will go in came from the re-store. So this project has been made with mostly "re-used" materials!
Hosted by Cecilyand Mom24
The Geat Chicken Coop Re-location - Part Two
Again, why re-tell when my Husband has already written it all out.....
I took a couple days off to recooperate (these jokes are getting old) from the relocation project.
In that time SWMBO put a base coat of paint on the coop. During this time the chickens kept on growing so I decided to relocate the chickens to the coop regardless of its position/orientation.
The chickens were loaded into milk crates and carried them out 4 at a time to the coop, then I put a piece of wood (actually a headboard from a crib) across the ground level exits. The chickens seemed happy. Wasted the better part of an afternoon keeping an eye on them.
That night I transported them all back into the house for the night. This wasn't going to work well.
Next day I put chicken wire up on the windows and then relocated the chickens again. Covered most of the floor with dry lawn cuttings. They seemed happy, so I took out my hammer and put chicken wire up across all other potential escape routes, trapping them in. Now I could go an d do other stuff.
The chickens were in shock from the hammering, but life is full of tough times.
I hopped into the monster truck (astro van) and carefully backed it down the edge of the creekbank. Squeezing in there is always pretty tight, and I am afraid of the bank giving way under the weight of the van. I scraped along the edge of the chokecherry, and finally was wedged in close enough to get a load strap on the coop.
With the load strap on the coop, I needed to get some skis under it. We have some benches around our firepit that are made up of some oversized boards (2X12's??) from the early mesolithic period. I took a couple of them and put them under the shed. I needed the shed to both spin and slide into position, so things were looking kind of tricky. What I did was to put the boards in position such that one corner of the shed was lower than the rest of the structure. as the shed slid off the boards, that corner would dig into the soil. My hope was that the corner digging into the soft soil would build up enough resistance to the dragging motion that the shed would spin.
I peeked in the coop window and the chickens looked like they had just about recovered from my hammering and were doing OK. That was great.
Jumped into the van and eased her forward. The load strap went taught, the shed lurched forward and slid to the end of the boards, dug in to the sod, and dug a divot, then suddenly grabbed, switched direction, and spun around. When I got out of the van things were eerily quiet.
As the dust cleared, I peeked in the window of the coop, and all the chickens were huddled in a corner. I think they had thought the ride was kinda fun, like going to an amusement park.
Since everything was fine, I detached the van from the shed and carefully retraced my path along the creek. Luckily I didn't go down the bank or anything. I brought the nose of the van to the coop. A tap of the gas pedal and the van pushed the coop the rest of the way into position.
The chickens clucked and flapped their wings like they were having the time of their lives.
Now it was time to level things off. With a long steel bar and use of levers, I lifted the front of the shed and slipped in a wood block. Then I went around the back and repeated the process. Back to the front, back to the back. Putting the blocks right in the centre of the shed made it like a teeter-totter.
I think the chickens really liked it. It was like a day at the park.
Once I got the shed up high enough, I teetered it one way and slipped a cinderblock (CMU) under the corners at one end, then put some wood blocks in under the other end until I had built it up high enough that it was sitting level. YAY! Enough work for one day.
After all that work, I decided the chicks loved their new house enough to live there full-time. Somehow the water and feed had spilled in the day. Those messy chickens!! I opened the back door to clean up and put in new food and water, and the door was really hard to open. Anyway, with all the running around the chickens were doing all day they probably bumped it or something. I got the new food & water in and left things be for the night.
The Coop was up on one block at the front, and a couple pieces of wood at the back, but every guide on chickening I had read said the coop should be 12-18 inches off the ground. I figured I had better raise it up. Last night after work, I took the jack from the back of the Astro-van, and started cranking.
I think the chickens liked it best when I had one end up 2 cinderblocks high with the other end still on the ground. It was like a slide at the park!
Anyway, once I had 2 cinderblocks under each corner I realized that the roof was getting too high to build an enclosure over, so I would have to stop jacking. The coop is now in position, level, and secure. It still has no windows and no "chicken door" and no laying boxes, but it is in place, and the chickens think its lots of fun. Once I had the shed up on the cinderblocks, the back door opened properly again, so I must have fixed whatever the chickens broke when I raised up the shed and levelled it properly.
Our next steps are building the nest boxes, putting a second coat of paint on the exterior, and building an enclosure
I took a couple days off to recooperate (these jokes are getting old) from the relocation project.
In that time SWMBO put a base coat of paint on the coop. During this time the chickens kept on growing so I decided to relocate the chickens to the coop regardless of its position/orientation.
The chickens were loaded into milk crates and carried them out 4 at a time to the coop, then I put a piece of wood (actually a headboard from a crib) across the ground level exits. The chickens seemed happy. Wasted the better part of an afternoon keeping an eye on them.
That night I transported them all back into the house for the night. This wasn't going to work well.
Next day I put chicken wire up on the windows and then relocated the chickens again. Covered most of the floor with dry lawn cuttings. They seemed happy, so I took out my hammer and put chicken wire up across all other potential escape routes, trapping them in. Now I could go an d do other stuff.
The chickens were in shock from the hammering, but life is full of tough times.
I hopped into the monster truck (astro van) and carefully backed it down the edge of the creekbank. Squeezing in there is always pretty tight, and I am afraid of the bank giving way under the weight of the van. I scraped along the edge of the chokecherry, and finally was wedged in close enough to get a load strap on the coop.
With the load strap on the coop, I needed to get some skis under it. We have some benches around our firepit that are made up of some oversized boards (2X12's??) from the early mesolithic period. I took a couple of them and put them under the shed. I needed the shed to both spin and slide into position, so things were looking kind of tricky. What I did was to put the boards in position such that one corner of the shed was lower than the rest of the structure. as the shed slid off the boards, that corner would dig into the soil. My hope was that the corner digging into the soft soil would build up enough resistance to the dragging motion that the shed would spin.
I peeked in the coop window and the chickens looked like they had just about recovered from my hammering and were doing OK. That was great.
Jumped into the van and eased her forward. The load strap went taught, the shed lurched forward and slid to the end of the boards, dug in to the sod, and dug a divot, then suddenly grabbed, switched direction, and spun around. When I got out of the van things were eerily quiet.
As the dust cleared, I peeked in the window of the coop, and all the chickens were huddled in a corner. I think they had thought the ride was kinda fun, like going to an amusement park.
Since everything was fine, I detached the van from the shed and carefully retraced my path along the creek. Luckily I didn't go down the bank or anything. I brought the nose of the van to the coop. A tap of the gas pedal and the van pushed the coop the rest of the way into position.
The chickens clucked and flapped their wings like they were having the time of their lives.
Now it was time to level things off. With a long steel bar and use of levers, I lifted the front of the shed and slipped in a wood block. Then I went around the back and repeated the process. Back to the front, back to the back. Putting the blocks right in the centre of the shed made it like a teeter-totter.
I think the chickens really liked it. It was like a day at the park.
Once I got the shed up high enough, I teetered it one way and slipped a cinderblock (CMU) under the corners at one end, then put some wood blocks in under the other end until I had built it up high enough that it was sitting level. YAY! Enough work for one day.
After all that work, I decided the chicks loved their new house enough to live there full-time. Somehow the water and feed had spilled in the day. Those messy chickens!! I opened the back door to clean up and put in new food and water, and the door was really hard to open. Anyway, with all the running around the chickens were doing all day they probably bumped it or something. I got the new food & water in and left things be for the night.
The Coop was up on one block at the front, and a couple pieces of wood at the back, but every guide on chickening I had read said the coop should be 12-18 inches off the ground. I figured I had better raise it up. Last night after work, I took the jack from the back of the Astro-van, and started cranking.
I think the chickens liked it best when I had one end up 2 cinderblocks high with the other end still on the ground. It was like a slide at the park!
Anyway, once I had 2 cinderblocks under each corner I realized that the roof was getting too high to build an enclosure over, so I would have to stop jacking. The coop is now in position, level, and secure. It still has no windows and no "chicken door" and no laying boxes, but it is in place, and the chickens think its lots of fun. Once I had the shed up on the cinderblocks, the back door opened properly again, so I must have fixed whatever the chickens broke when I raised up the shed and levelled it properly.
Our next steps are building the nest boxes, putting a second coat of paint on the exterior, and building an enclosure
Friday, 14 May 2010
The Great Chicken Coop Relocation
As told by my husband, who did most of the work:
Came home from work to a light rain and hooked the trailer up to the Astro Van. Backed it up to the coop and raised the coop up using the car jacks. So far so good.
Then the coop wouldn't coop-erate and go on the trailer right, but no worries, it sat on the beaver tail, and that would make it easier to offload. Besides, I only had to drive across the yard with it.
Drove down to the other driveway, where the greenhouse is, and went around it, onto the lawn. Spun tires. Spun 'em s'more. Felt the van settle down into a groove. That means its time to do something different, so I went and got the Volvo (from hell).
The Volvo (from hell) has a tow hook on the back of it, so I put a load strap around the coop, and attached it to the car. Figured I'd slide the coop off the back of the trailer, and then drag it to its final home.
The Coop slid off the trailer, did a half-gainer, and landed upside down. No damage to coop or trailer, but the bottom of the coop has no shingles, and it wasn't in the right spot, so I figgered I better flip it over and put it where it belongs.
Bear in mind the wind is blowing pretty good now and the rain is running off my ball cap so I can't see much.
In order to flip over the coop, I have to get the trailer outta the way, but its still hooked to the van, which is still stuck in the mud. The trailer is a big tandem axle flatbed, not like I can just unhook it and roll it outta there.
So with the right equipment (and cuss words) I got the van outta there, and moved the trailer about ten feet away using armstrong power. Then I got SWMBO to slip a cinderblock (CMU for the engineering crowd) under the coop while I rocked it. This made for a fulcrum that would result in an easier flip of the coop.
Pushing as hard as I could, I could get the coop to roll on to the CMU, but not flip the rest of the way back onto its feet. SWMBO came and pushed with me, and with the both of us working we managed to get it back upright, without rolling over onto the Volvo (from hell) which woulda been really bad.
With it back upright, I got into the Volvo (from hell) and dragged the coop as close to its final resting place as I dared, but it still has another 12 feet and a twist to go. If I try to drive that with the Volvo (from hell) I will end up in the creek, so I think I am waiting for the ground to get a little more solid, and then I'll use the Astro Van as a bulldozer and push the coop into place. It should slide pretty well if I get it up onto a pair of 2X4 "skis." and put a "bumper" made out of a 2"X 10" on it.
Just another day Chicken Ranching.
Came home from work to a light rain and hooked the trailer up to the Astro Van. Backed it up to the coop and raised the coop up using the car jacks. So far so good.
Then the coop wouldn't coop-erate and go on the trailer right, but no worries, it sat on the beaver tail, and that would make it easier to offload. Besides, I only had to drive across the yard with it.
Drove down to the other driveway, where the greenhouse is, and went around it, onto the lawn. Spun tires. Spun 'em s'more. Felt the van settle down into a groove. That means its time to do something different, so I went and got the Volvo (from hell).
The Volvo (from hell) has a tow hook on the back of it, so I put a load strap around the coop, and attached it to the car. Figured I'd slide the coop off the back of the trailer, and then drag it to its final home.
The Coop slid off the trailer, did a half-gainer, and landed upside down. No damage to coop or trailer, but the bottom of the coop has no shingles, and it wasn't in the right spot, so I figgered I better flip it over and put it where it belongs.
Bear in mind the wind is blowing pretty good now and the rain is running off my ball cap so I can't see much.
In order to flip over the coop, I have to get the trailer outta the way, but its still hooked to the van, which is still stuck in the mud. The trailer is a big tandem axle flatbed, not like I can just unhook it and roll it outta there.
So with the right equipment (and cuss words) I got the van outta there, and moved the trailer about ten feet away using armstrong power. Then I got SWMBO to slip a cinderblock (CMU for the engineering crowd) under the coop while I rocked it. This made for a fulcrum that would result in an easier flip of the coop.
Pushing as hard as I could, I could get the coop to roll on to the CMU, but not flip the rest of the way back onto its feet. SWMBO came and pushed with me, and with the both of us working we managed to get it back upright, without rolling over onto the Volvo (from hell) which woulda been really bad.
With it back upright, I got into the Volvo (from hell) and dragged the coop as close to its final resting place as I dared, but it still has another 12 feet and a twist to go. If I try to drive that with the Volvo (from hell) I will end up in the creek, so I think I am waiting for the ground to get a little more solid, and then I'll use the Astro Van as a bulldozer and push the coop into place. It should slide pretty well if I get it up onto a pair of 2X4 "skis." and put a "bumper" made out of a 2"X 10" on it.
Just another day Chicken Ranching.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)