Blah GG, no thanks : ) LOL!
I hate to use the word "Stupid" but...
The 2 roos we just sold a while back used to crow all day, but not at night. The funniest part was when our head roo, a RIR would catch our PBR crowing.....and would take off after him. The PBR would be in mid crow, really belting it out there, catch site of the RIR running at him and would stop mid crow and turn tail and run. It always made me laugh!
It's something how much I miss hearing the crowing now! It's too quite and always makes me think there is something wrong. Guess you don't know what you are going to miss until you don't have it, huh? You can keep that crowing at 3am roo, though Granny! We have some young roos that should be crowing soon......can't wait!
Hey Fran, I have a better one for you.....I never even saw a live chicken until I was 23.....really! My DH is the 'farmer boy' and I've been drug along for the ride. Loving every minute of it though! : )
Christy
Christy you're in the same boat as my DB, glad you're loving it. He's still a little confused/worried.
I still get worried and confused too! Good thing I love to read and learn! I still can't tell you all enough how happy I am to have found DG.....my family are city people too, and I have to remind my self that they don't really want to here ALL the details. I love being able to come here and say 'my broody hen just hatched her 1st chick....' and no one says.....what's a broody hen?
Is your DB enjoying it though?
Christy
Well, yes and no. LOL! He likes the animals but not the money and work involved. I think he's a little frightened because he's never made things like a gate before. He'll catch on though, no worries LOL! He's a city boy but we all need to learn somehow'where LOL!
Oh yes....he will catch on......and if he already has the animals he will catch on very fast! LOL At least he has a good DS to help him out.....or tell him where to go with questions!
; )
Well, I was born and raised in the city, but my DF was a farm boy. I think when I was about 4, he cut the handle off a hoe, and showed me how to use it. I must have cut my toe with the hoe and country dirt got into my bloodstream and now I am thoroughly country. My DH was also raised on a farm, and said "I am not going to farm again".....famous last words. LOL
GG
Funny, DH & I were talking last night about how far we have come..
My DD is 33, she was born in a military hospital and I was roomed with 30 other women, I closed the curtian to dress and the girl next to me laughed and said.. "honey once you have a baby all your modisty is gone, ain't no sense in closin that curtin now!" (get the TX twang).
I told him this because back then, I shrugged this women off and I did keep my modisty.. but since getting chickens... LMBO.... I get a little poo on my hands.. ahhh darn.. wipe it on my jeans... washin a pasty butt... no problem... steppin in a bit of "whats that" so... ate a bug.... spit it out.... am I a lady or what??
He came in the other night 30 minutes after me and actually asked me if I washed my hands... WHAT??? I had taken an entire shower thank you. he was just teasing..
frans530 LOL
Paul gets upset if I've petted a critter (nothing dirty either) and haven't washed my hands right away. Not like I'm going to fix food or anything!
MollyD
congrats on training your flock fran!
don't know about all that tf... they can just go up and down... now I notice Paul (take note PAUL) is acting out and chasing all the layers... he is a hoodlum... not hurting them (yet) just chest butts so far... I swear.. Silkiechick you best be coming out of the woodwork here soon cuz I got me 7 little gang members.. I "think" I might have 1 hen out of the whole bunch.. each day is a new adventure with these 7.
The 19 layers are just fun learning chickens.. these silkies are the college of chicken learning,, they are forcing me to pay attention to every move.
uh oh.....little hoodlums. Are they still fun to watch or are you a little worried about what their future behavior might bring?
You all talking about poo and getting 'stuff' on you. It amazes me what a person can get used to. I remember trying to side step cow patties....LOL. Little did I know that I would be milking them in a parlor, where you stand in a pit and you are eye level with the back of their udders.....guess where the poo went? I learned pretty quick to go the other way when I either saw it coming or someone yelled..."INCOMING!" It hits the concrete and splatter EVERYWHERE, so by the time a milking was done, I'd be covered. Now THAT was a sh*tty job!
My DD and I had to go and round up our 9 little ducklings a while ago.....the dogs were getting a bit to interested in them. I got so sick of sliding in the mud that I kicked off my shoes and my DD and I had 'fun' with the mud squishing in between our toes. Hey, my very own mud bath pedicure! : )
Christy
Christy, This endeaver of mine is one of the mose interesting I have done in a long time.. but yes, I am getting a little worried.. I do see most of these silkies are roos and 2 of them maybe 3 have major atittudes, one of the reds is constanly pecking and pulling butt feathers from the layers... now thats just wrong.. and very bully-ing.. so yes, I am enjoying them, but I know what I have to do and when I will have to do it.. thats the part of the job I do not like...
I enjoy romantisizing and cartoonizing the entire process of my farm life... BUT.. I do know how to take care of business.. and that always puts me kind of on the sour side or self protect mode and I get mad at the person (in this case chicken (Haily) who pushed me into the tough decisions I end up having to make!
Wheeeew.. did that answer your question Christy?
Hi fran......yep, I would say that answered my question. It must be weighing pretty heavily one your mind, huh? I haven't had to break a roo from being viciously mean but I have read on here about 'time out' for the roo. Have you tried that with the nasty ones? I didn have a pecking and butt pecking problem, but they were with only 2 day old turkey poults.....is there anyway to distract them with treats or melon rinds or something? They might be too old for that though, I really don't know.
I know that it can sometimes be hard to butcher animals, but I know it is a much easier thing to do when they are being very nasty and causing a lot of problems!
Christy
Christy today we went to a goat farm to look at a buckling. Didn't get him cause it turned out his mom was half sister to my girls. But while there we got to see the steers they were raising for beef and now Paul is interested in getting two steer! They told Paul they were low maintance. Since I'm the one doing any maintaining around here I wanted to ask you just how low maintance they really are. These would be about 300-400 pounds when we got them to be raised till they about doubled their weight (I understand one summer would do it) then off to the slaughterhouse and beef in our freezer.
MollyD
Frans perhaps the little rooster will outgrow his attitude when the pecking order is established. I was reading the silkies are not supposed to be little bullies, especially after the order is established. I can hope for him.
I've been wondering myself how many roos I have. I am fairly positive I have 2 white roos and 2 red ones. One little black has always had an attitude too, even though he was the smallest. Of the others, I'm just not sure. I was reading some sites today about sexing silkies. I hope I have at least 10 hens, but I'm not confident of it.
Karen
Oddly enough, my roosters are very respectful of me.. I can roo and they will all freeze.. then come running to my feet when i coo.. I can pick them up, I can distract them when I am around..
I worry about them because they are closet gang members.. when I look away is when the reek havock.
But the point is... Originaly I only wanted layers, but I saw the silkies and fell in love.. the layers I went for pullets but the price difference on the silkies was $3.50 for straight run or $10. for pullets so I went with straight and got 8 hoping i would end up with a couple pullets..
Bottom line is, I put myself into this position.. so I must deal with the consiquences. YUK, I sound like my mother.
I only hope that my good buddy Simon remains the gentleman he has become and doesn't turn into a cad as the other roos are removed. He has always been a fair roo, even when he was Kings X, even now the other roos don't mess with him.. he just proudly stomps around the yard with his girl trying to gain his attention, but no, he ignores her too!
Hi Molly........good thing to know your bloodlines, huh? I can see where that could work out very badly to not know, on down the road. Hopefully you find the right buck soon.
So now Paul wants to get steers huh? Yum. What time of the year do you plan on getting them? My DH knows a lot more about how long it takes to finish out a steer and from what weight. I'll ask him tonight about it. I found a site I will list here for you look at. As far as low maintance.......I guess it depends on how you look at it. In comparison to taking care of a dairy herd, they are a breeze. There are a lot of people around here that raise beefers, they are everywhere. I can share what I know for sure though. You will have to have a fence or barbed wire fencing with at least one hot wire around it, all around your pasture. You will need a good water system figured out.........even a trough that you can fill with the hose will work. You are not going to want to carry a gabillion 5 gal. buckets to them. In addition to pasture they will also have to have grain. What are your winter's like? I'm sure you know, but if you have them over winter you will have to have hay to feed them. They will forage, even in snow for whatever green they can find, but there won't be much.
I am pretty sure I have heard that you can finish a started steer during the spring and summer. I think that people around here do that......get them in early spring, put them on pasture over spring and summer and when the weather is about to get cold they sell or butcher. I will find out for sure though.
I hope the link helps out some too.
http://www.backwoodshome.com/articles2/sanders85.html
Christy
(wanna start a new thread with this? I was thinking you could probably get a lot more info that way. : )
LfJ......sometimes they keep you guessing as to what they are for the longest, huh? We had a Royal Palm turkey we thought was a hen for the longest. He had us guessing and wondering until he was really big. It wasn't until the Black Spanish tom was killed by a couple of dogs that he started puffing out and strutting like a tom. I think it is a little funny to give them a head cocked look and say, ok, are you a he or a she? : )
Fran, I had to LOL when I read....YUK, I sound like my mother. ha ha! Isn't it something when we saying something our parents said and then it hits us.....oh gee! I don't think you really made a mistake though in getting straight run. My goodness.....$10 for a pullet? I'm not sure about how sexing is done on silkies, but if it is done by checking the vent I think you made the right choice? From what I have read on here, sexing chicks using the vent method is almost an art at best and even the pro's get it wrong. How upset would you be if you had paid $10 for each pullet and you still ended up with a few roos?
I hope Simon stays a gentleman too. He must be too young yet to ummmm, want to give his lady attention yet. Believe me, when he gets old enough, you might not think he is so gentlemanly.......well, that is only based on what I have seen when are roos get it all figured out!
Christy
Christy... I choose not to believe you... my Simon would never be rude!
lol : )
Christy I'll do that.
Thanks for the link.
MollyD
Molly....yw.
yw ??? Not sure what that stands for .
MollyD
you're welcome!
LOL I need a dictionary!! I racked my brains and couldn't find anything that fit!!!!
Thanks tf!
MollyD
A lot of things on here I can't figure out, and sometimes when I do realize what they mean, I wish I hadn't. Sometimes ignorance is bliss.
Karen
LOL.....I was worried for a minute you wouldn't know what yw meant. I am new to all these short cuts too and have a hard time sometimes......after wondering for the longest what in the world IMHO meant, I googled it. Well I'll be, the meaning popped up.
Oh yeah, I had to e-mail my sister in law once to ask her what in the world ROFLMAO meant......she thought it was so funny that I didn't know she was about on the floor. geesh!
Christy
Was a time when I didn't know that one either. I've been on the net a long time (since there were very few women on it in the early 1990's) but every so often I'll run into something new.
MollyD