rachels.haven's Journal

[Bruce]

Sorry you have egg eaters, I guess I've been lucky. Even if an egg gets broken in the nest box they don't go for it. But they sure do if I throw it in the run. You likely need to make sure the dogs can't get to the eggs either since I gather they are often fond of fresh eggs.

 

[rachels.haven]

Thanks, I will. The dogs do like them, but Bailey gets the squirts if she gets too much protein for some reason, so I will work doubly hard to prevent egg eating from the dogs.

 

[Baymule]

How dare they! Cannibals!
People are shocked to find out that chickens eat eggs. LOL Better not ever have a heart attack in a chicken coop.

 

[rachels.haven]

They are little dinosaurs after all and egg eating isn't the worst of what they can do of course. It's just annoying to go from 8-10 clean ones to 1-2 dirty, sticky, only semi-usable ones per day unless I catch them out of the hens rears...because that's not going to happen very often.

Aw well, that's how the wind blows. Maybe free ranging will help (assuming they make it).

 

[rachels.haven]

Pulled hairs on the bucks. Ready to DNA them. Also bolused Mr. Buggy, the lamancha buck. He's supposed to be black but has gone all rusty around the snoot. And pedicured his back feet. His feet are nice. Front feet later.

I need to shower, mulch the newly planted asian persimmons, and go to tsc for alfalfa pellets.

 

[Baymule]

TSC, my favorite store!

 

[rachels.haven]

Just about half the t posts are in today. I started work on Mr. Baby Teddy's (or whatever his name was) hardware cloth box coop run. It's about to get really cold for the next few days, so I guess I'd better leave something half finished. Rediscovered that counting pieces of lumber in a plan in my head is hard. Need another trip to HD.

I'm pretty sure my egg eater is one of my two identical leghorns (I do only ever get one white egg per day). I was replacing roosts today and one of them came in trailed by a way too attentive EE, knocked over the very heavy nest box that I weighed down with a big rock inside, attacked all the golf balls for a good ten minutes scratching, pecking, and making a huge ruckus while I went and came for supplies and put up the roosts, then checked out all the other nest boxes and left. We got 9 clean eggs today because I'd been putting them in my pocket as they were laid in rapid succession so she got none. I think I need to blue kote one to tell them apart, and stew one pullet.

Anyway clouds bearing rain are looming. I took a break to make the kids lunch and it looks like I may be done now and the temperature is starting to drop.

Heated waterers and buckets ALL AROUND

Mr. Buggy, the lamancha buck I bought, has a ridiculously small amount of hair. He had been spending the fall with a new goat owner, friend of his owner, to cover her grade does. I don't think he has had copper or replamin or a good high selenium mineral for a very long time and from what I understand this area needs it. No itching and flaking, so I doubt lice or mites. Maybe zinc, copper, or selenium in my very unexperienced opinion, and I will watch for signs of external parasites. Looks like I'm going to be riding a musky buck and shooting him up with vitamin gel in the stinky mouth weekly for the next month or two. He may be blanketed tonight. His little rat tail might freeze off otherwise. He's been fine down to 18, but we're heading into the single fahrenheit digits for the next few days. I may grain him too, although on my feed regimen he already seems to be putting on weight and depth, which I find amusing as I haven't had him for that long. Hope he's an easy keeper in that regard.

 

[Bruce]

We got 9 clean eggs today because I'd been putting them in my pocket as they were laid in rapid succession so she got none. I think I need to blue kote one to tell them apart, and stew one pullet.

Guess I've been very lucky to not have had an egg eater. It does sound like a trip to the pot IS in order.

 

[rachels.haven]

Yes, egg eaters are awful. They teach each other and before you know it you are getting no eggs, still feeding out the same food, and have to start over. I've had and dealt with them before. I hate it when they crowd into the nest box and eat the egg AS it comes out of the hen laying, then chase the layer out to continue their feast and make a sticky, stinky mess of everything. That hen got the knife the day I caught her doing it. She was morbidly obese.

3 more eggs out of the nest box, still missing a white egg. Everyone popped an egg except for Ms. Egg eater, who may have eaten hers in the run. I need that bluekote.

It's a good day though. I have hope for the chickens. Maybe it's just that one hunting them down at this point.

 

[Baymule]

Delaware chickens were the worst I ever had. They not only ate the eggs as they were being laid, they sometimes started snacking on the hen herself, dragging her intestines out and killing her. I took a special kind of joy in killing every da**ed of them.