[TheForge] was solar cells OT: POL: chickens

[Grover.Richardson at gtri.gatech.edu]

Birds are good eating and you own the soup kitchen<G>.  If you build a soup kitchen in the middle of nowhere, the varmints will come from all corners for the free feed.  Either an excellent cage or good varmint control is imperative.  I have a 1700 foot driveway so control is the preferred method. 

All the best


-----Original Message-----
From: theforge-bounces at mailman.qth.net [mailto:theforge-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of dann at wctatel.net
Sent: Thursday, March 17, 2011 9:15 PM
To: Blacksmithing List Sponsored by ABANA
Subject: Re: [TheForge] was solar cells OT: POL: chickens



My last batches of baby chicks came from Murray McMurray. Last year I
ordered their 25 dark egg layer special.  They sent an extra baby hen
chick, (probably for potential death loss), plus an exotic breed rooster. 
Every single one lived. I've still have all 27 of them alive... and the
eggs are wonderful. In addition to their ground oats and corn, bugs and
lawn clippings,  I  feed the hens  house food scraps, as we don't have a
cat or dog.

For maybe 40 years, I've occasionally  hatched batches of geese and
turkeys in my various incubators. Chicken eggs get a pretty high
percentage of hatch, but fewer turkey and worse percentage of goslings
hatch.  The best percentage hatches that I have gotten on goose, duck, and
turkey are when I have the incubator up and running with chicken eggs in
it.. while I  let the turkey hen or goose hen sit on her nest up to 2
weeks, if she makes it that far... then move her eggs to the incubator.

Otherwise,  the coons, a skunk, or some other monster always seemed to
disrupt the hen before she made it full term.  After nearly getting zero
live goslings from the hen to maturity..  I sent semi artificial.  and
raised up nearly 50 live baby goslings that way... but few of them were
goose eggs, that I tried to run full term in the incubator.. and that year
was bad for coons... I had none were from the momma goose that made it
full term on her nest.

Dann
>
> Grover.Richardson at gtri.gatech.edu wrote:
>> The laws of physics are really tough on folks that
>> hate technology<G>.
>
> 	Ain't that a bitch.
>
>> Now back to chickens:  Tractor Supply Company had chick day and the
>> wife got 6.  Now only 4, but doing well.  Almost time to move them
>> out of the brooder in the living room, to the condo on the deck.
>> Omelets.
>
> 	TS has some good breeds in terms of eggs.  We got a dozen last year to
> replenish those that god damned golden eagle ate (I WILL shoot that
> sumbitch one day) and they are laying very large eggs.  The geese are
> laying as well.  Hope they survive this year.  All the eggs went bad,
> save one, last year due to the high heat.  The one that hatched was
> promptly eaten by something in the night.  It makes me angry so I don't
> think about it.
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