Marianne
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We're in the Abilene, KS area. Anyone close by?
Kansas, anyone??
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HEChicken
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I'm not too far from you - in Wichita! I'm so excited for this little spell of nice weather. I've been out working in the yard a lot. I took my brooder chicks outside for the afternoon and put them in a little run I made years ago. Sat next to them to observe and read a Mother Earth News magazine. The sun was so nice I actually got hot! Now I'm planning my garden via the MEN Garden Planner tool. Those 5 days where we didn't see the sun at all were a little depressing. I do much better when the sun is out 
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Marianne
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hello!! Glad to see someone that's a 'neighbor' on here!
Yes, the weather has just been wonderful the past couple days. We had almost 2" of snow from that last storm, I think you just got rain and some ice, right? My SIL (well, ex sis in law, but she's still family) lives in Wichita, and she said she just had rain at her place.
Snow is just about gone now, yay! I did the same as you, messed around in the garden. I'll have to check out that MEN garden planner tool. This is the first I've heard of it.
Yesterday I spent three hours in the coop. We used pallets for side walls and I had stuffed straw in the cavaties for insulation. Worked well until a rat moved in. We tried everything to trap the little bugger, no luck. So I pulled out all the deep litter from the floor, and tore out all the wall straw. I'm down to just two hens, getting chicks later this month, so that rat has got to be out of there by then. Sigh. I think I'll only get 6 or 8 chicks. How many do you have?
We have a little over 4 acres, north of Talmage. Are you rural or city?
Yes, the weather has just been wonderful the past couple days. We had almost 2" of snow from that last storm, I think you just got rain and some ice, right? My SIL (well, ex sis in law, but she's still family) lives in Wichita, and she said she just had rain at her place.
Snow is just about gone now, yay! I did the same as you, messed around in the garden. I'll have to check out that MEN garden planner tool. This is the first I've heard of it.
Yesterday I spent three hours in the coop. We used pallets for side walls and I had stuffed straw in the cavaties for insulation. Worked well until a rat moved in. We tried everything to trap the little bugger, no luck. So I pulled out all the deep litter from the floor, and tore out all the wall straw. I'm down to just two hens, getting chicks later this month, so that rat has got to be out of there by then. Sigh. I think I'll only get 6 or 8 chicks. How many do you have?
We have a little over 4 acres, north of Talmage. Are you rural or city?
HEChicken
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I'm city but wish I was rural. I grew up keeping chickens and moved to Wichita 10 years ago. I assumed chickens were not allowed until two years ago when I checked the ordinances and learned that 5 hens are allowed with no permit and up to 12 with a permit. I have the permit and currently have 11. My two BO's are from my original little flock. Then I have a BR and RIR who came from My Pet Chicken in Sept '09. A Black Star I got from TSC last March (I got a Speckled Sussex at the same time but she mysteriously died in December). Then there are two little mutts I got from a local lady in December when they were 6 weeks old. She had gone overboard on hatching and needed to get rid of some of them. They are now 17 weeks old so I'm starting to watch for their combs to start turning red. And the last four are a month old today and are in the brooder. They are the result of my first attempt at incubating. Of them, I think I've been lucky and there is 1 rooster and 3 hens. Ultimately we will eat the rooster so then we'll be back down to 10. I'm debating whether to get two more chicks now, which would take me up to the 12 hens I'm allowed, or just make do with what we have for this year.
Yes, I was so glad we only had rain during that last storm. We did get dumped on for the two prior to that and at one point I had 3' snow drifts in my yard. I had to dig the coop out just so the poor girls could get food and water, and make it to the nest boxes.
I love your idea of pallets with straw. Whenever I hear people talking about pallet coops, that's what I imagined doing - stuffing straw between the pallets for insulation. Sorry to hear about the rat. I have mice, who were attracted by the chicken feed, and although my cat does his best, he can't seem to keep up with them because they never seem to actually disappear.
I am currently building a new coop out of straw bales. The chickens love to peck at the straw though so my main concern at this point is that they just leave it alone - I don't want them tearing the coop down to play in the straw LOL.
The MEN garden tool is very cool. If you go to the Mother Earth News website and in the search bar type in "garden planner" it will be the first thing that comes up. It is free for a 30-day trial and $25/year after that. I don't often buy software but this is one that I probably will end up buying - its that good.
Yes, I was so glad we only had rain during that last storm. We did get dumped on for the two prior to that and at one point I had 3' snow drifts in my yard. I had to dig the coop out just so the poor girls could get food and water, and make it to the nest boxes.
I love your idea of pallets with straw. Whenever I hear people talking about pallet coops, that's what I imagined doing - stuffing straw between the pallets for insulation. Sorry to hear about the rat. I have mice, who were attracted by the chicken feed, and although my cat does his best, he can't seem to keep up with them because they never seem to actually disappear.
I am currently building a new coop out of straw bales. The chickens love to peck at the straw though so my main concern at this point is that they just leave it alone - I don't want them tearing the coop down to play in the straw LOL.
The MEN garden tool is very cool. If you go to the Mother Earth News website and in the search bar type in "garden planner" it will be the first thing that comes up. It is free for a 30-day trial and $25/year after that. I don't often buy software but this is one that I probably will end up buying - its that good.
Bubblingbrooks
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I grew up just outside of Lawrence - Thread starter
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Marianne
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Boy, those hens can really take apart a bale of straw, too. Although, I do have a dozen bales now that are the most dense bales I have ever seen and very heavy. I used them to build a warm shelter for my outdoor cats. The girls haven't done anything to them, but there's so much other stuff to mess with when they're free ranging. They sure did a good job of pulling straw out of the walls of the coop at first, however. I did see a pic that a gal built a winter 'greenhouse/hoop house' for her hens using strawbales and wire hoops with plastic over it. She said they didn't mess too much with the straw since there was grass and other goodies growing. So maybe if there's plenty of straw on the floor for them to scratch away, your walls will remain intact.
Bubblingbrooks, how did you end waaaay up there in Alaska??
Bubblingbrooks, how did you end waaaay up there in Alaska??
Bubblingbrooks
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Came up here on the advise of childhood friends.
For several years, I had worked summers at camps as a cook.
Then for 3 years straight, I had a job that prevented that.
Then the friends called and let me know that a camp/conference center needed a head of foodservice.
I had everything in place to make the move in 3 days.
The little church I was attending, volunteered support, and 3 weeks later, I was on a plane.
The son of this family picked me up and drove me to the camp.
Backing up, when I was a toddler, our two families lived together for several months in MN while my dad built our new house.
The years slipped by. They went to Alaska, and we ended up in Kansas.
Soooooo, leading up to the move, the mothers were joking in a serious way about a certain two children that had yet to marry.
Long story short, we were married 3.5 years after I moved to Alaska
For several years, I had worked summers at camps as a cook.
Then for 3 years straight, I had a job that prevented that.
Then the friends called and let me know that a camp/conference center needed a head of foodservice.
I had everything in place to make the move in 3 days.
The little church I was attending, volunteered support, and 3 weeks later, I was on a plane.
The son of this family picked me up and drove me to the camp.
Backing up, when I was a toddler, our two families lived together for several months in MN while my dad built our new house.
The years slipped by. They went to Alaska, and we ended up in Kansas.
Soooooo, leading up to the move, the mothers were joking in a serious way about a certain two children that had yet to marry.
Long story short, we were married 3.5 years after I moved to Alaska
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Marianne
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Welcome, Naughty!Yes, now I understand chicken math. We ended up with 10, almost went back for two more, but that would have put us at the maximum for our coop size. Not that they hang out in there, but I keep them locked up on the coldest days of the year. If our coop was larger, I would have been sucked in to buying more...:/
Does anyone know of a place to buy cream near Wichita? I have decided I like homemade butter but it's so outrageous to buy cream from the store - so maybe looking for someone who just has too much or - even raw milk.
