Chick Fever!

Some of Miss Idgie's babies last summer

It has happened. I wondered if it would this year. Especially since I have been working 50-60 hour weeks for the past month. I have been so tired that I can't even think straight, but still, it happened. I have chick fever! Even with the very little free time that I have had, I have still been managing to pour over hatchery catalogs  and research new breeds that I don't have yet. All of those fuzzy little babies are invading my thoughts! The chicken math is taking over!
It is official! I have made my first chick order of the year! Last year was the first year that I bought chicks from a hatchery. Before that I had gotten them from a local man that has been raising them for most of his many years, or from the local feed store. Last year I bought my chicks and turkey poults from Murray McMurray. I was VERY happy with the birds, and with their customer service. I am also very partial to them because they put my son's picture in their catalog this year! I decided not to go with them this year, simply because of the distance the babies have to be shipped in order to get here. They up from way up in the northern states, and I am about as far south in the US as you can get! My chick order got lost last year, and while they replaced the entire order, no questions asked, before the box even made it (2 days late), I felt so badly that those poor little chicks had to go through it. I lost more than half of the order, although the second box got here without a problem. Not the hatchery's fault, but the longer the box has to go the more potential there is for problems to occur. I lost two of my turkeys as well, due to the long, hard, HOT, trip. I will never order chicks that late in the summer again! It is too hot down here.
This year I am trying Ideal Poultry. It is closer to me and it is the hatchery that my local feed store swears by.   I had planned to wait until later in the year, but my chick fever took over, and they were beginning to sell out of the breeds that I wanted already! I was so looking forward to adding some more Easter Eggers to my flock this year! They sold out... I will just have to find them somewhere else. I am so excited about the chicks I did order, though!

Water and Love Daily for Best Results! 

Firstly, I told my son that he could pick out two breeds of chicken. I made him sit down think about each breed, check out their qualities on Henderson's Chicken Breed List, read customer comments on the McMurray website, and weigh out the options. Things like, how well do they free range, how do they deal with the heat, what is their feed to egg ratio, and what is their temperament, were important factors. He decided on Silver Spangled Hamburgs (I think a very good choice!) and Gold laced Cochins (not so much). He has wanted Cochins since we first got chickens, though, so I figured I would give him a chance. I think he will have to give them a lot of extra care during the hot months though. He will get two of each of those along with the rest of my order.

 Our order consists of:

- 2 Silver Spangled Hamburg pullet                           ( Great free rangers, Good white
                                                                                  egg layers)
- 2 Gold Laced Cochin Pullets                                  ( Fair egg layers, very docile
                                                                                   and friendly)
- 2 Light Brown Leghorn pullets                                 (excellent feed to egg ratio,
                                                                                  beautiful, and I wanted to
                                                                                  add white eggs to our basket)
- 4 New Hampshire Pullets and 2 Roosters              ( Good brown egg layers, dual
                                                                                 purpose,Very quick maturing,
                                                                                 large, and good for use as meat)
                                                                               
- 6 Blue Silkies Straight run                                      ( Just because they are wonderful
                                                                                  brooders, mothers, and I really
                                                                                   really wanted some!)
- 25 Heavy Roosters                                               ( Meat birds until we can hatch our
                                                                                 own.I don't like cornish birds, and
                                                                                 I hate that the left over roosters are
                                                                                 usually "disposed of". At least they
                                                                                 will live a good life in the sun and
                                                                                 grass for a little while!)


I am getting them sooner than I had wanted, but I am already getting excited! They will ship on Feb 13th. Maybe I will get fuzzy little babies for Valentine's Day! I can't wait!

Winter Garden

My first winter garden is doing great! Not everything came up, but the things that did are doing really well. The onions are an exception. A few of one kind are peeking through, and none of the other kind. I forgot to write down where I planted things, so I will have to wait until they get bigger to see what they are. Only 3 of the beets that I planted came up. I was really sad about that because I was looking forward to them. The chickens enjoyed the tender cabbage and rutabaga sprouts... they never made it past that stage. I think I planted too late in the season so the Swiss chard and spinach came up but didn't get very big. The broccoli is working on coming up and I'm hoping that it keeps trying. The lettuce is doing really well. I have been covering the lettuce beds when we have cold enough weather for it to frost. A few months ago I saved some thin white material that was wrapped around a mattress topper I bought. It has been a perfect floating row cover! Some days have been really cold, but over all it has been much warmer than usual this winter. Rather than cutting the heads, I have been pulling the largest leaves off of the outside of each head. This leaves the head to keep growing new leaves. We hope to have lettuce through the spring with replantings. I have been doing the same thing for the kale, which has been doing great, as well. Again, I forgot to write down which type I planted where. Two of them look a lot alike.  I need to do better about writing things down in the spring. I have been covering the carrots, though not as well as the lettuce, but they really don't seem to mind the cold weather. I pulled a couple the other day, and while they are still on the small side, they were delicious! The brussel sprouts have been loving the cold weather and are, by far, the biggest thing in my winter garden. There are no sprouts growing yet, but I am excited to see it. This is my first time getting them to grow this large. This is definitely the time of year for brussel sprouts. The garlic is loving this time of year too! It all sprouted and after letting it grow during the warmer weather, I mulched the bed when it started to cool down. I have been raking leaves and pine straw out of the yard and layering it in my garden beds. This helps to keep the roots warmer, keeps the soil moist, and begins decomposing to make compost right in the garden. The strawberry bed has also been partially weeded and covered with leaves. Hay will be the next layer added. Leaves and  hay are also being added to the compost pile. We will be needing a TON of compost for the garden this spring and summer! Because of the lack of money, and help, the new garden beds have not been added. I'm worried that it is too late for this spring's garden and I may not get to plant everything.

I'll try to add pictures later!

The Adventures of the Turkey-Heads!

One of my Bourbon Red Toms coming to visit me <3

"Aren't I handsome?!"

After having heritage turkeys for 7 months, I would have thought that I would have them figured out by now! Not how to take care of them, because they are actually really easy to care for, but how they think and why they behave the way they do. I still haven't figured out if they are really smart, or really stupid. I'm not sure, at times, how they could possibly survive in the wild! Other times, I can't believe that anything could be that curious without being very intelligent. They are very nosy animals. They have to be right in the middle of what ever you are doing. Pulling weeds? They have to grab everything in your hand away from you and try to eat it or bite your fingers repeatedly. Raking leaves? They want to see what it is that you are raking up, and to do that they have to spread it back out again. Using a chain saw to cut wood? Well, I've learned to appreciate the breaks I have to take when they are getting too close to the chainsaw for comfort, as I usually need one by that point, but you get the picture. When I am not outside doing something, they climb on everything. Loud crashes occur occasionally, and I always know who the culprits are. Prancing on the roof-top? No it isn't Santa Claus... the turkey hens like to fly on top of anything high. They have also learned that they can see us through the window, so they find their way up to any window that we are near and stare in at us and call the same call they did as babies, only MUCH louder, which means basically " MOM! Come here!".Of course, that is only if the doors are closed. If they are open, odds are the turkeys will end up inside at some point, usually accompanied by the chickens! If we are not paying attention the turkeys-heads will break the dullness by giving the roosters a quick chase around the yard. They have learned to stop when I fuss at them though! They even come when they are called. Such as when the landlord or mail lady pull up and find themselves surrounded by huge puffed up turkeys and I have to call them off. Can't be that curious without being intelligent, right? Well, then they fall off the the porch... just walk right off the edge because they are too busy puffing up and strutting to pay attention where they are going. They try to eat anything shiny... even when its the same thing 15 times in a row and it wasn't food the 14 times before.

Things I have learned...

My niece visiting the turkeys. Look away!

1. They are like feathered toddlers who have to put everything in their mouth, or climb on top of it, to learn what it is.

2. Don't wear anything shiny near them, unless you don't mind them trying to eat it. (Eyes count as shiny objects. Toddlers are most at risk.)

 3. Don't wear anything dangly... see above. Especially things with elastic, such as jacket hood strings, that can snap back at you when they pull, run, pull, and let go!

4. Don't plan to do anything productive with them wandering around unless you understand that they WILL be involved, and usually it will make it much less productive, although much more eventful!

5. Don't forget to put them up before it gets dark, unless carrying full grown turkeys, one at a time, across the yard and putting them to bed sounds like an enjoyable task. (Yes.. this is what I spent the evening doing. In the rain.) They don't put themselves to bed like the chickens do.

6. NEVER leave them to free-range unless supervised, unless your neighbors don't mind them coming to visit, and you don't live on a busy road. ("Not so Good" neighbor wasn't too happy about it.)

"How YOU doin'? "

7. They are MUCH easier to corral than chickens are. In fact, usually if I call and walk to the coop they follow me right in. This made retrieving them from "Good Neighbor's"  house much easier when he had to rescue them from the middle of the road, as well as from "Not so Good Neighbor" who recently lost his dog because it had attacked my turkeys and was none too pleased that my turkeys were in his yard. "Good Neighbor" let them out of the cage and they followed me all the way home. He thought it was much more amusing than I did at that point in time.

They really are wonderful creatures and I love having them, most of the time. I have my moments when I wonder why I do it, but that is usually when we have a dog attack, or something similar that breaks my heart.Much like a toddler, they can be trying at times, but they are so sweet, cute, and cuddly, that it is impossible to stay mad at them. I encourage anyone who is interested in raising animals to try turkeys. I wish I would have done it sooner. Have you hugged your turkey today?! I have!

Recycled Tarp

I had to write a post to rave about my newest favorite recycling discovery! Good, sturdy tarps are always in high demand around here. From covering up wood piles and animal cages/coops/runs to keep them dry and shaded, to using them to drag leaves around the yard, I am forever in need of tarps. The problem is that they are expensive! They also tear up so easily! Tarps are forever unraveling and falling apart. What could be better than getting even sturdier than usual tarps, for free?! I can't believe I didn't think of this before! I can't take the credit for this revelation, as I read about it in my favorite blog (http://omelays.blogspot.com/). I find so many great ideas there! I had to pass it on.

I put my newest "tarp" on the turkey hoop coop, with the help of my wonderful brother. It measured approximately 15 ft X 22 ft and is made of rip-stop material. It is sturdy, but not incredibly heavy. It is simply a recycled bill board sign! I live in an area that has more than its fair share of billboard signs (as so many of us do). After reading about it, I started paying attention, and saw a bunch of signs being replaced. I simply stopped one day, asked the guy on the sign if he was going to throw it away, asked if I could have it, shoved it in my car, and brought it home! How easy is that?! I need about 20 more! It has an ad for the local news station on one side, but it is blank on the other, so I just turned it upside down. It actually looks far better than the other two I had tied together, and is larger. It is black so it is doing a good job bringing solar heat to the coop during these cooler months. I need to get a white one to replace it with during the hot summer months. How wonderful is that?!

So many of my favorite things put together! Saving money, getting good materials, and saving the earth, all at the same time! Imagine how many are thrown out when they could be used! I hope more people start doing this!

Hen Saddles

When I first got chickens I came across something called a hen saddle. It was on a website, being sold next to a chicken diaper. I immediately thought "Wow... there are weird people in the world! Who on earth would put a saddle on their chicken?!" Now that I have had chickens for a couple of years I am a firm believer in the hen saddle. Roosters can be rough on the poor girls! To mate, the roosters grab the feathers on the hen's neck, and hop on their back. They try to balance, but it isn't easy, apparently. When there is more than one rooster, things get even worse. They all mate with the hens and much as possible, especially the roos that are lower in the pecking order, who hop on any chance they get. The rooster's claws rip the feathers out on the hen's back, leaving gashes after a while. The best thing to do, of course, is to only have one rooster for every 10 hens. This helps tremendously. Sometimes that isn't possible. For instance, I have two breeds that I mate, but don't want 10 hens of each at the moment (maybe later... chicken math, you know) so I have a rooster for each. I also have two "babies" who need to go to freezer camp, but I haven't gotten to it yet.

The important thing, is that chicken saddles are very cheap and easy to make! You can, of course, buy some from some wonderful websites, but I am too frugal (i.e.broke) to spend money on something that I can make myself.

First, gather your supplies. You need two kinds of fabric. I prefer a thicker, stiffer, fabric for the outer layer so that the boys' claws don't scratch through. Also, a thinner, more breathable fabric for the bottom layer so that it doesn't hold moisture against the hen and lets air circulate. Sometimes the fabrics don't match as well as I'd like, but the hens don't seem to mind. :) It takes less than a foot of each, so scraps are wonderful to use. To make the straps that go around the wings you can use elastic, found at a craft or fabric store, but I usually use hair bands, that I cut at the seam. I always have some laying around. Just make sure that they are long enough and not too thick. I usually make larger saddles because I have buff orphingtons, which are quite large and fluffy, but they can easily be made any size. I may need some for the turkey hens soon!

Supplies:
- Thick, stiff fabric
- Thin, breathable fabric
- Elastic, hair bands
- Sewing machine, or needle and thread
- scissors
- measuring tape
- pencil/ chalk
- pins
- Chicken model :)



1. Measure the hen. First, the base of the neck, between the shoulder blades, to the base of the tail. Second, between the wings at the shoulder blades. Third, across the back (from the top of one leg to the top of the other). Add 1/2 inch to each measurement for seams.

2. Draw the pattern onto a piece of paper, using the measurements. I usually make half a pattern and fold the material over to ensure that both sides are even.

3. Pin the fabrics together, right sides together, wrong sides out with pattern attached.

4. Fold in half lengthwise, cut out pattern. (My paper pattern is not shown attached)

5. Sew a 1/4 inch seam around the outside of the chicken saddle, leaving a 2 inch opening on the bottom to flip it. Snip the corners off of each side where the elastic will fit in.

6. Turn right side out.

7. Stick the ends of the elastic into the holes that were cut.

8. Tuck the loose ends under, iron flat if necessary. Sew around the outer edge, closing the hole up,   anchoring the elastic, and causing the saddle to be flatter and hold its shape better. Make sure to sew over the elastic several times to anchor it in really well.

9. Be proud :) You just made a hen saddle!

To put the hen saddle on the hen:

1. Hope that your hen is forgiving, and won't put up too much of a fight. They soon get used to it, and some don't mind it from the very beginning.

2. Simply place the saddle on the hen's back, hook the top of the wing with the elastic and pull the wing through. Be gentle and try not to go against the feathers. Do the other side the same way.

This saddle is too short for this hen, but she was a willing model as
she is broody at the moment. :) She is the next in line for a saddle,
poor girl! 

3. Make sure it fits properly. If it is too tight it will cut the circulation off in the wings. If it is too lose it will either fall off, or slide back and forth when the rooster mounts, causing the elastic to rub raw spots, and just not doing much good.

4. Check regularly. I don't like using them for long periods. Usually just when I have a problem rooster that I need to deal with, or until the feathers grow back on a hen's back that has had some very unromantic suitors calling on her much too regularly.

They are so very easy, and are an important part of a chicken first aid kit. Nice to have handy, because they are usually needed when you don't have time to drag out the sewing machine and stitch one up. So, as it turns out, putting saddles on your chickens doesn't necessarily mean you are insane! Simply a prepared animal owner, and probably a chicken lover <3  Hope you find them as helpful as I have!

Life's Lessons

Normally, I don't pass things like this along. This is a story that I'm sure a lot of you have come across online. It has been being circulated a lot lately, but it makes me tear up every time I read it. I think it is a good life lesson and hope that you enjoy reading it as well. I strive to remember these life lessons every day, and I know my life is better because of it.

One day a farmer's donkey fell down into a well. The animal cried piteously for hours as the farmer tried to figure out what to do. Finally, he decided the animal was old, and the well needed to be covered up anyway; it just wasn't worth it to retrieve the donkey.

He invited all his neighbors to come over and help him. They all grabbed a shovel and began to shovel dirt into the well. At first, th
e donkey realized what was happening and cried horribly. Then, to everyone's amazement he quieted down.

A few shovel loads later, the farmer finally looked down the well. He was astonished at what he saw. With each shovel of dirt that hit his back, the donkey was doing something amazing. He would shake it off and take a step up.

As the farmer's neighbors continued to shovel dirt on top of the animal, he would shake it off and take a step up. Pretty soon, everyone was amazed as the donkey stepped up over the edge of the well and happily trotted off!

MORAL :
Life is going to shovel dirt on you, all kinds of dirt. The trick to getting out of the well is to shake it off and take a step up. Each of our troubles is a steppingstone. We can get out of the deepest wells just by not stopping, never giving up! Shake it off and take a step up.

Remember the five simple rules to be happy:

1. Free your heart from hatred - Forgive.

2. Free your mind from worries - Most never happens.

3. Live simply and appreciate what you have.

4. Give more.

5. Expect less from people but more from yourself.

Welcome back to the World of Internet Access!

My brother captured on the game cam while visiting. 

So, I have been offline for a while. It is funny how life takes unexpected turns. I am a firm believer that all things happen for a reason and that everything always works out in the end, as long as you have faith. The grant that I had been counting on for my research assistant-ship at school fell through, and I will have no chance at another one for at least a year. That means no income coming in and no tuition waver, so lots of money going out. After much discussion, agonizing over what to do, and changing my mind 15 times a day, I decided to take some time off of school. Money got tight, really fast, so the first thing we did was disconnect the internet. I have found work and will be starting soon, but many of the plans I made a couple months ago have been put on hold. Rather, they are just happening a bit more slowly. I have been working the last few days to clear the land where the shed will be built. The animals have been keeping me busy. My brother and his family have moved down here for a while. I don't think he wants to stay a really long time, but I am enjoying having him here! He has been enjoying the homestead. I love finding pictures of him interacting with the animals when I check my game cam. He comes over often to visit, and always ends up helping me with chores.

Baby Quasi, one of my foster littles, visiting the turkeys.

So, an update on things on Sunflower Hill...

 Randy (my poor chicken-eating foster puppy with the malformed neck) was adopted! He found a wonderful home where he is now called Trevor, and is spoiled daily by a little girl. We have since fostered two more puppies, Quasi and Vine, both of whom had kennel cough but after some love, and hard-core antibiotics, they both went on the transport up north and found great homes.

The hoop coop after the dog attack. Feathers everywhere!

We had another dog attack a few days before Thanksgiving. A neighbor's pet (didn't know that at the time) hopped its fence and found its way into our yard. Luckily it happened during the day when both Brad and I were home, otherwise it would have turned out much worse. The dog hopped on the hoop coop, pushing the pipes over enough to hop on top and collapsed it. He climbed in through the top and had the turkeys cornered. Our trusty guard dogs let us know and we ran out and dealt with it in time to save most of the turkeys. Two had escaped but came back. All of the turkeys were injured, some worse than others, and one was dead by the time we got there. We had to put some down. We are left with 8 turkeys. We have 6 Bourbon reds, 4 males and 2 females, and 2 Blue slates, 1 male and 1 female. We did have one of the toms that we had to put down for Thanksgiving. It was wonderful, but I cooked it longer than I needed to. The turkeys are now free ranging when ever I am home. The hoop coop has seen better days. It is falling apart every time I move it, so I try to just let them out so it needs to be moved less often. Hopefully soon they will be free ranging all of the time, like the chickens. As soon as we can teach them not to chase cars... My brother helped me throw together a roost to get weight off of the side of the coop, put a new tarp on, and I have braced it. Another turkey coop needs to be in the near future, but it works for now.

The chickens are doing well, and are still laying like crazy. I don't know what to do with all of the eggs! I kept giving them away, and nobody ever returns the egg cartons, so now I have nothing to give eggs away in, and so they are going to waste... I HATE that! The baby chickens are getting big! The two roosters have matured and are now fighting with each other and being really... REALLY hard on the girls. I have made chicken saddles for several of them, but need to make more. The roos are going to freezer camp really soon. Brad bought me the most wonderful hunting knife and scissors for Christmas! His dad (my enabler) is working on finding the parts for a chicken plucker. Both of these things mean that my life will be MUCH easier in the future! He is also looking into an incubator. Have I mentioned that he doesn't have chickens? LOL I don't know which of us enjoys my having chickens.... and turkeys... and growing a garden... and building stuff more, me or him! Brad doesn't find it nearly as amusing and we do... at least he pretends not to. :)

My winter garden is doing well, update on that coming soon.

Even though money has been tighter than I ever remember it being, times have been tough and we are doing without many things, and the stress level has been pretty high around here at times, I am so incredibly thankful for being as blessed as we are. I have such a wonderful family. I missed going out of town to spend the holidays with my parents and grandparents, but how lucky it is that the one year we couldn't go see them they came down in late October to see me? Every time things got really tough and we weren't sure how we were going to make it, something happened, sometimes explainable things, like checks going through when there was no money in the bank account, and things always worked out. It goes to show you that if you keep trying even when things seem bleak, always give of yourself to others that are in need, even when you don't have much yourself, and have faith that God knows best and will get you where you need to be, even when it seems like things are all going wrong, life will always be beautiful. Things get tough, but stress doesn't solve anything. Looking at all the things in life that I am thankful for always makes it a much happier place. Sometimes I need to be reminded of all of these things. I am thankful for that reminder and thankful that we have had such an exciting and beautiful year. Looking forward to another one!

We at Sunflower Hill Homestead hope that your holidays have been blessed and that you have a wonderful start to the brand new year!