Storm clouds, snakes, and eggs

I think we might finally get some rain today!

Tropical storm Barry is sprinkling on Florida as we speak so maybe we'll get some of that up here. I hope so, I need hay!

My garden would sure appreciate it as well:




And here's a little souvenir we found in the rafters of the shed:


Just for comparison purposes, Boy is 42 inches tall. I have actually seen the fine fellow whose discarded attire this is (a Chicken Snake, properly called a Black Rat Snake). A VERY interesting story. I'll tell it to you sometime soon.

Apologies to any of you herpephobes (is that the correct term?), or old-timey country folks, but I don't kill snakes. I freakin' hate rats and mice. Loathe 'em. Anything that eats them is my bestest buddy! Since this bloke is too big to get in my pens and eat my biddies, then he gets to be a permanent fixture.

Speaking of dibs, my eggs in the incubator hatched! I was convinced that they had been damaged by that temp spike, but a few made it through. I got over half hatched and in the brooder. I'll get you pics later.

Chicks are so cute. I seriously need to make some shirts for us poultry lovers. I have a whole section devoted to rural living but most of it is goat stuff (with some pro dumpster diving items as well, natch!) If you're a chicken fancier, what would YOU wear on a T-shirt?

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chickens, poultry, eggs, snakes, farming, rural living, t-shirts, goats, dumpster diving

Gratuitus picture post - Farm edition!

Nothing interesting to report over here, either, so here are some pics:

The much touted rabbit cages (the three small ones):

Two medium ones - 10 footers (bonus shot of our India Blue peacock, Sam):

Aaaaand one big mutha - 16 feet long:

I paid $100 for all of them and just sold the 16 footer for $50. Wheeler-dealer, me!

My pied guinea keets arrived!

They're the ones with white bellies and throats and dark stripes on the backs of their heads. The others are chicken biddies included for warmth. I can't wait to see what that guy there in front with the racing stripes turns out to be!

A new batch of turkey poults arrived as well (sorry for the crappy pic). They're the same sort that I ordered before - Bourbon Reds (and what appears to be regular male sex-link chicks):

And here's another shot of Sam, just for giggles:

Cool stuff!

Woohoo! New aquisitions!

I just got - for a cool $100 - a whole load of rabbit cages.

I know you're thinking: "Uhm, Blue, you don't keep rabbits." (right after: "$100?! What happened to Ms I'm-so-thrifty-I-dig-through-dumpsters?")

Well, Smartypants, I got SIX cages: 3 singles, 2 - 10 foot triple cages, PLUS a 16 foot six partition cage. That's - technically - fifteen cages that are made of mechanic's wire (totally predator-proof) WITH feeders and waterers, all up on stout legs so that I don't have to stoop.

Ahhh, bliss.

Seriously, I need the cages for chickens, see? Or pigeons. Or chicks/poults/keets (I get my baby Guineas soon!)

Also, if I decide I don't need 'em all, I can sell just the single cages at $30-$40 a pop, easy. the mechanics wire alone on these things would cost me over $100 if I tried to make them myself.

I'll post pics soon. I'll try to get them all set up this week so you can see Blue's House O' Poultry.

Hee, hee!