the crooked little chicken house

“LOL bout the game hens. I don't know if mine 'ud survive the coons a'doin that.”

“Today picked up 6 baby ducks, not likely to survive all the predators around the pond (and I don't intend on building a prison around it). But for now cute as buttons!

Got 8 chix too, they adorn the jet-tub.

I always nod at my missus doobily and say "Chix maann".”

“Ape, that's a fowl thing to say!”

“EASTER CHICKS! WE HAVE BABY CHICKS! 2 so far
Ole Red's a good momma!”

“Should I out them in the chick cage? My wife wants to leave them w mama bit I think they need water...”

“cool! maybe leave with momma and give food and water.”

“I had to run to Petco this morning and a man had his pet chicken with him in the store. She was very well-behaved.”

“I managed the fish dept of a Petco in Dallas long ago, this guy came in with a chicken on his shoulder. I thought it was really cool the it just sat there the whole time I talked to him about breeding his Tropheus Moorii.... Then it crapped all over his shoulder and I realized why you don't see that more often...


GOT ANOTHER CHICK THIS MORNING! That makes 3 so far. Yesterday when I got home, Mamma had led her 2 babies out into the yard and took then for a walk. One of the eggs in the nest had 2 small chips in it and you could hear it peeping inside. This morning, it was out! She still have 4 more eggs, we'll see if they hatch.”

“cool - can't wait to see if mine hatch - started on 4/4.”

“cool - can't wait to see if mine hatch - started on 4/4.”

“i meant to post that twice...”

“Lol

Lol”

“Well, I go home yesterday and the fourth chick was almost hatched out but it didn't make it. I'm not sure what happened, I've read maybe it was the humidity.”

“The shell got in the way. If it had evolved live birth a few million years ago that chick would be here today.”

“I got disgusted with the hen on the nest - she started pooping in it and got mites. Now the eggs in a half-baked homemade incubator that problaby won't hatch anything. "hey your mother was a light bulb" keeps running thru my head.

Snuggled with the bunny this afternoon, I swear it purrs.”

“weather has been awesome these past few days and I've had the doors open. Just need to teach the chickens that open doors are not an invitation to come in.

Last night I was running around with a flashlight at 11:30 trying to find the cat that was yowling. Searched the field and went up to the highway. Turns out she was stuck in my neighbors garage.”

“We had a bad storm today and I lost 2 chicks. We were busy with the Marathon so I'm not sure what happened. At any rate, the remaining 3 are now in the garage under a heat lamp. This ain't nature, it's my egg farm. Felt sorry for mama hen but there's just too many hazards in the real world.
Twig, that bunny started layin eggs yet?”

“Ye they're cute lil brown'uns.”

“Ha!”

“yeah ape, and every now and then she gobbles up one of them eggs, LOL.

For a while there, we thought we might get some "cabbits" then finally had to cage the rabbit. She seems to enjoy sitting in the cubby next to me on the couch, and nudges me when she wants something. It's just creepy that they sleep with their eyes open, though sometimes her eyes are just slits.

d00d, did the power go out during the storm? That's how I lost 3 new ducklings.

Today I cleaned out the coop and took the chicks out of the small pen and put them in a larger pen. This will be their first night with no heat lamp, but they should be okay. I'm concerned about the skunk, but hopefully the pen is secure enough.

Three roosters need to go, but I may wait and see how many roosters I get from the new batch. The sneaky bastards wait until my back is turned before attacking. And they can take a beating unless you whack 'em in the head, then they get all loopy for a few minutes. Doesn't stop 'em though. I also need to keep them in the pen, they are pecking the lawn and the hostas to death. I know they love the shade from the trees to lounge under, so I'll have to recreate that for them.”

“Apparently the light bulb is a good mom - I've candled the eggs a few times and they seem to be progressing.”

“LOL twigs thankin' of you beatin' on roo heads!

We have 6 baby ducks, they grow quick as bacteria I tell ya. And the jet tub has roughly 10 chicks. Twigeater if they're in the house, I don't even fool with a heat light. Even straight from the store just 2 days old, so long as you have several, you don't need to fool with that stupid drop 5 degrees a week BS.

Yesterday I planted 4 chestnut trees. 3 of them were 2 yr old belly-button hi seedlings, Dunstan chestnuts gotten from his N Florida research farm, and one was a year old seedling that's only about 20" hi, brought back and "hatched" by yours truly from the Italian Dolomites foothill country. In about 5 yrs we'll have some chestnuts roasted on an open faar.”

“We can't get most nut trees out here in Kalifornia, diseases I guess. I tried a almond tree 12-15 years ago, died after one year, soil where it was planted not draining well I think. Apple trees do well here and the small maples I planted, the deer think that is for them to browse. :(
Duane”

“well, deer is yummy if'n nuts cain't be had”

“Deerlicious!”

“ape, I live in Maine, and I'm good inside at 60 degrees. The chicks do die at that temp, it's not warm enough for them. I don't drop the temp either, I just wait until they are pretty much feathered out.”

“Dern Ape, you got served!”

“LMAO, ye Mr FLAMO dun served me up a little bit, I reckon'.

Ah heck twig, die at 60, ye makes sense. Here I keep the stat at 70, so that would splain why I'm not losing any. Plus, back where the jet-tub is, there's a vent right there, so I have to keep the door closed most of the time anyhow, for the cats, and for the fact that I don't want loose chix (chix maaaannn) runnin' round the ole Ape pad, crappin' all over the place. To the point.... it's prolly actually 71 or 72 in there most of the time anyhow”

“One of the chickens is sleeping on the steps tonight.”

“I've been locking the coop gate at night. Never know when that fox or an owl will show up around here.”

“she layed a soft shell egg”

“twig u better shoot tat one


I've got this ugly as sin chicken, banty-sized, with black curly feathers, they're called "frizzles". But she's scantily clad, like a dude that lost most of his hair, yet he tries his dangdest to have a hairstyle, you can already see his scalp, he'd be better off bald or buzzed close. Well that's what she looks like, with a scattering of short, curly black feathers. It's the most hideous chicken I've ever seen in all my life. Naturally we named her Bella. So..... she stays with the baby ducks that the damn Easter Bunny brought us .... again. 6 this time. I'm having to put'em in a box and bring into a cage inside every night, then put them back out in the backyard for the day. Bella mama's them fairly decently, tho she don't seem to like it at all when they jump into their lil swimming pool. At first when they get in she looks like she's thinking "What the f*** are you guys doing in there!"

The stinky little schyttes peep so cutely you cain't help but to like'em.”

“Sounds so ugly she's cute, Ape. We saw a chicken foraging nearby a few days ago. Laurel and I were both thinking about bringing her home. Alas, something got her first. There's a large poof of white feathers where she was hanging out.”

“Aw bummer, tree. Seems like the window of thankin' bout doing something and doin' it is usually quite small.”

“It's always something....”

“ducks are cute.

I get home tonight after lacrosse practice and head out to the coop. I can hear a little one peeping like crazy. I see that my little gray puffball is being trampled, so feed them and take him out. He's in the house under a light now, hope he makes it.

This freakin' weather is nuts, last week so hot I couldn't go outside, the last few days rain, rain, and cold, cold. I thought all the new chicks would drown or freeze.”

“ape - shoot a chicken that lays an egg at my front door? LOL...

I gave up on hatching eggs, it looks like only one chicken egg was viable. But now it's not.

I bought some of those "eggie" things (like the coddlers of old days) but what a pain. the only use I could think of for them is if you wanted to make an egg with stuff in it, but for plain old boiled eggs, no.”

“I put the chicks back outside and tried to put the little gray puffball back in with them. He/she/it is so tiny they just bulled over him. He's back in the house and quite sweet - probably will grow up to be a nasty rooster. I can't believe this little guy hasn't grown more.”

“Well I let "the orphans" out to play for a couple of hours yesterday afternoon. Tow of them disappeared! WTF! all I can figures is a hawk got em. I'm still pissed...”

“LOL...”

“puffball is hangin' in there, but scrawny, shivering and I think it has an abcess.

I put sugar and aspirin in its water. It seems a little attached to me. :)”

“puffball likes to hide in my hair. :)

and whatever the lump was on its chest is gone.”

“Maybe the lump is in your hair now?”

“It could be premie and that lump was part of the yolk sac and its body has absorbed that now. If it is eating and drinking and just being a chicken it should all be good...and if it is a rooster then you can have a moment of silence before you throw him in the pot.”

“a premie chick, LOL...it was yellow and looked more like a tumor than an abcess.
It's in one of the bird cages, and cries until I go get it. Then snuggles in my hair. I'm going to bring in the other bantam and see if company helps.”

“LMAO @ strat being pist at that poor, hungry hawk.

Hawkward situation that one....”

“You have yet another housepet, Twig...”

“the two bantams are the size of parakeets right now - it would have been cool to have the puffball be tame, but the cats wouldn't allow it.”

“I saw a little, green frog Friday late. Cute little guy, wonder if he is one of those peeper frogs?
Also saw a mt lion on my way to work real early this AM, about a mile from the small town I live close to.
Duane”

“post 1000!

got home last night and there was a box in the driveway. I just knew there was something dead in it and hoped it wasn't a cat.
Nope, it was a headless black link hen - a really good layer. :(

Driving up the road to work it occurred to me that maybe that orange blob that has been on my neighbors lawn for a day or two is a dead chicken. Guess I better check tonight.”