what livestock do you have?

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Hepsibah

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what livestock do you have?
« Reply #30 on: March 24, 2006, 01:18 »
One of the biggest problems for new poultry keepers isn't the economics or the time involved in keeping them, it is the extremely thorny issue of how to think of them. If you think of them as pets, if you have a couple in your garden as productive, pretty ornaments, it can be difficult to find a vet that is able to treat a pet hen. Most vets see chickens as flock animals and will advise culling for most illnesses to protect the flock. Because of this, treatments for poultry are few as the research necessary to find treatments hasn't been financially viable. It is cheaper to cull than to treat. Pet owners find this difficult to deal with and many give up because of it.
If you think of them as livestock, you must eventually have to cull yourself. If a hen is sick and threatens the wellbeing of the rest of the flock, a decision must be made whether to try to treat or not and if you breed your own chicks, half are likely to be male and will need to be delt with. Neither scenario is anything unusual to come across when you keep hens but it can come as a shock to novice poultry keepers and an inability to deal with such situations can lead to suffering for the birds.

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cede

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what livestock do you have?
« Reply #31 on: March 24, 2006, 11:01 »
hi hepsibah
i think i have seen you post on downsizer? you're right about livestock/pets - mine are half and half - funnily the 2 i grew from egg are livestock and the 2 i was given when i started (cochins) are the pets. of course it's the newer marans who are laying and the other two are not paying for board and lodgings... what to do?!

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cede

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what livestock do you have?
« Reply #32 on: March 24, 2006, 11:03 »
or perhaps rc?

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kooringa

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what livestock do you have?
« Reply #33 on: April 02, 2006, 22:31 »
Did you know that if you add a garlic clove to the chickens water and a little bit of garlic powder to their food, they do not smell.  The eggs do not taste of garlic not does their run.

There is also a new product out called Bokashi - a natural product and is even better.
Visit my website to see my chickens, quail, allotment and much more -

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bramblewood

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Rabbits
« Reply #34 on: April 19, 2006, 23:27 »
i breed rabbits for show and pets i have giants and belgian hares
i have taken on this new plot i have to drive to it 2miles away
so i take my big british giant rabbit with me he has a pen that i made
 he eats the grass down quite nicely  (he cant escape or i,m sure i wont be popular ) i would like some chickens up there  when the bird flu has passed
 i pass the plot on the way home from work so can lock em up at night

my plot is mainly twitch and weeds i have covered half of it with black plastic and have managed to dig 3 8x8 squares with grass paths it looks nice but  got rained off today tho
lets hope thurs is better

sandra

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chick34

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what livestock do you have?
« Reply #35 on: June 25, 2006, 18:21 »
i have 2dogs
6 rabbits
3 ferrets
24 chickens
3 budgies
1 pony

4 kids
and not forgetting my hubby  :D

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hermon

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what livestock do you have?
« Reply #36 on: July 12, 2006, 12:56 »
some ex-battery hens, (5 at the mo but the numbers go up and down!!) 1 pony and 4 cats :D  :D

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sumo

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what livestock do you have?
« Reply #37 on: July 15, 2006, 20:37 »
I have 3 dogs, a stumpy tailed cat and 5 rehoused guinea-pigs (great for keeping the grass down and the bedding etc goes on the compost heap). Used to have bantams too.

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Zak the Rabbit

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what livestock do you have?
« Reply #38 on: August 23, 2006, 18:30 »
No clucks so far (or blackholemoles, for those of you who remember astrofarm)

1 laid back guineapig, Dylan (actually Bob Dylan)
1 gorgeous fluffy 8week old bunny, Freddy

2 canaries, Marlon & Emma

1 monster, Sam (my son)

me

Recently lost a bunny, Katie, and our lovelly grandma guineapig molly, Dylans mum. My user name is that of our first rabbit, Zak, a reincarnated buddhist civil engineer, i think, he used to watch me as i built barriers and defences to keep him in, then look them over, before breaching them in minutes! he was rescued by Artis sancuary before we got him.

Unfortunately, at the moment the living areas of the garden are less populated than the cemetary under the apple tree.


Martin
(\__/)
(='.'=)
(")_(")
the rabbit of caerbannogg

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milkman

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what livestock do you have?
« Reply #39 on: August 23, 2006, 21:30 »
We have two girlie guinea pigs - Patches who at 5.5 is very much an old lady and Honey (aka Little One despite the fact that she has long since outgrown Patches) who must be coming up to being 3.5.  (see personal gallery)

This week we are also looking after the guinea pig from next door - Alan who is very jumpy and talkative and keen to make friends with our girls who are altogether non-plussed by his presence!  

As Sumo says, GPs are very good for keeping the grass down, their bedding is a useful addition to the compost heap and its great trying different veg out on them.  Our girls' all time favourite is tomato, and at the moment they are enjoying sweetcorn husks, tops & tails of beans, carrot tops, windfall apples, outdoor cucumbers and leaf beet/chard stalks.  Sadly I don't think they will ever eat courgettes!
Gardening organically on chalky, stony soil.

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Zak the Rabbit

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what livestock do you have?
« Reply #40 on: August 24, 2006, 07:51 »
they are great little creatures. Molly's favourite was beatroot, quite comical as she was mostly white so ended up looking like a canibal. Dylan is usually very 'get off, im busy' and avoids being handled, but seems to be happy looking after little freddy, they are always next to each other at the bowl.

Freddy is on his own today though, as Dylan has lots of celery to eat and freddy isnt allowed it yet. Hes very friendly and inquisitive though, so will enjoy spending the day exploring the downstairs part of the piggy house.



Martin

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milkman

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what livestock do you have?
« Reply #41 on: August 24, 2006, 10:03 »
yeah they are lovely and very entertaining at times.  our garden is small enough and reasonably secure to be able to let them roam at will during the day and its great watching them pootling about exploring under the bushes munching on this'n'that, checking under the apple tree for any overnight windfalls, then dozing off under the various pots and pods we have about the place - we call it Guinea Pig television!  

there is a bit of a risk that Mr/Mrs Sparrowhawk will make a visit (we are pretty sure that was how Honey's predecessor Scruffy managed to disappear into thin air) - OH sees one en-route to/from our shop a few minutes round the corner every now and again, and earlier in the year Alan's "parents" called us over to watch Mrs Sparrowhawk dismembering a starling on their patio. Yesterday we had a 6-buzzard-high-altitude-fly-pass at about 11am so had to keep a closer eye on them than usual!

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Zak the Rabbit

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what livestock do you have?
« Reply #42 on: August 24, 2006, 10:39 »
our monsties (as the wife calls them) cant roam free as the garden is too open. We have a run about 15ft square. Its one of my own design that divides into three 5x15 runs using removable wire panels, and has three independant roofs. That way boars and sows could be segregated, and the big bunnies in the third. Now dylan can use the whole run, but spends most of his time in the box asleep. Each section has a 1ft cubed plywood box where they can hide.

Freddy hasn't been on the grass yet, but we let him explore the lounge when we got him.

I like to just listen to them when we have a few pigies. Dylan, like his mum molly was, is very talkative, especially when theres fresh food about. I often walk past the houses with veg from the plot, and he starts shouting at me!

Im pulling up 6 goosegog bushes (dont like gooseberries!) which is where the clucks will go, next to the plot.

Martin

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sumo

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pets
« Reply #43 on: August 25, 2006, 21:37 »
This is becoming a guinea-pig thread!
Good idea about dividing the run up, Zak, I am looking after a neighbour`s (male) pig and would like to put him out on the lawn. My pigs are all female however and there have been guinea-pig `mistakes` before!
My pigs like lots of vegetables, but not tomatoes or courgettes. Also plenty of plants from the hedges etc., lots of alexanders here which they seem to eat eagerly, and blackberry and strawberry leaves.

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James

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what livestock do you have?
« Reply #44 on: August 28, 2006, 19:50 »
Hens take time?

When I had some they were watered and fed once a week, and eggs collected twice a week.  10 minutes a week?  Five more like.  And 40+ eggs a week... couldn't get rid of them.  Fox got em during a big freeze, but that was thousands of eggs later..



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Selby Livestock Market

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