Nice people thread 2 - now even nicer

Davesnave

carolt wrote: »

Awwww, that is so cute, little tail wagging wildly as it's fed.
I want one! Or several!
Oh, I'm getting all maternal over a sheep...

I stand in our conservatory and watch the lambs in the field on the other side of the little 'valley'. They're now quite large and confident, so they leave Mum and charge around in a gang of about a dozen. There's a hump in their field, which is the place they rush to most, as though they're playing a game of 'last one to the top's a nelly!'

Oddly, I found a lamb tail in our barn today, neatly severed by the rubber ring the farmer puts on it. I suppose a crow must've brought this prize under cover for futher examination. Thin pickings!

SingleSue

Going to be a busy week for me this week.....the family friend who has been helping mum out the last part of the week is going home tomorrow, earlier than planned but she has had an urgent call to go back. So that means I have to take the primary role of driving around for mum, taking her to appointments and getting the shopping..oh and acting as her advocate with social services, the hospital etc (mum leaves it to me as I am no nonsense and she gets emotional).

So down there straight after school run tomorrow to ring the hospital and find out what is happening (must remember to pick dads paper up) and if he is going back in. If he is, then help mum get his things packed and then get them upto the hospital, if not, probably help mum with dad and get any bits of shopping they need.

I also need to make an appointment for eldest, he decided to tell me last night he has been suffering from pains in his chest, loss of energy etc and because he has a murmur and his possible diagnosis, I am taking the cautionary route and getting into contact with his cardiologist.

And finally, I have come to the conclusion that I really need to get myself upto the doctor for my back, haven't seen him for years about it but it is getting beyond a joke now, just walking from the car park into the hospital had my back in major spasms (oh and I then made it worse by slipping down a hole in my garden)...I hate going to the doctors and try to avoid going there at all costs but the kids are nagging, my mum is nagging, my brother is nagging, blimey it seems everyone is blooming nagging at me to get up there.

lemonjelly

Sue - make sure that by running around for everyone you don't do yourself in! It is important to look after yourself you know!

I would strongly encourage whilst supporting your mom to promote independence at every opportunity. She will be able to do things for herself. She's always had your dad as a safety net. What she needs is the confidence.

The downstairs bedroom is a good idea. Have seen it many times with people I have worked with.

I spent the weekend bowling (didn't win though grrrr!), repotting my courgettes (all 8 seeds sprouted) 13 brocolli plants, and loads of sprouts & tomatoplants. Next weekend will see beans & cucumbers repotted as they are still a little young.

Weather forecast for the week ahead looks ok.

lostinrates

I very nearly didn'tcome back to MSE this week, but here I am. worse than heroin this site.

All 12 chicks hatched and survived, and I've given up trying to sex them rofl. I'll wait for the secondary indicators to show in a few weeks. I know I have one buy and one girl....its only the other 10 I'm not sure about!

The brooder is in my kitchen....on a table away from cooking, all reasonably hygienic but I made a vegetarian cry by serving chicken cooked in the kitchen to the non veggies.

Thechicks are all very, very pretty.

fc123

lostinrates wrote: »

I very nearly didn'tcome back to MSE this week, but here I am. worse than heroin this site.

All 12 chicks hatched and survived, and I've given up trying to sex them rofl. I'll wait for the secondary indicators to show in a few weeks. I know I have one buy and one girl....its only the other 10 I'm not sure about!

The brooder is in my kitchen....on a table away from cooking, all reasonably hygienic but I made a vegetarian cry by serving chicken cooked in the kitchen to the non veggies.

Thechicks are all very, very pretty.

I love the chick tales so please keep updating when you can.

How come (about not coming back)?

lostinrates

fc123 wrote: »

I love the chick tales so please keep updating when you can.

How come (about not coming back)?

How come? Think I'm kind of hitting a wall. Its happened before.

Chick tales.....I can't describe how cute it is to see a teeny tiny chick stretching ...on little wing out and down with the opposite leg stretching out behind it. Its cute when big chickens do it, but its just goo-ey when a little featherless or just quilled wing does it.

Today instead of one box, they got two fruit boxes in the cage. They have already learnt how to run and hop over the top, those stubby featherless wings flapping like crazy. hey also are litle enough to jump trough the rungs of the dog crate they are in, so I have to keep an ear out for indignant cheaping when they realise jumping in isn't as easy. The cats are helping me listen...bt I have to go in first to put the chicks in before the cats are allowed in.

I've taken a risk thisafternoon, I've given them they're water with no marbles. Marbles in the water stop them drowning when they are wee and wek, but these babies are very able now.

Importantly I they are all perfect: no crooked toes, no splayed limbs, no evident disabilities.

About half of the chicks look like the little lady on the right in the two pics below.
http://www.creamlegbar.co.uk/. It doesn't follow that all of them are female despite having the autosexing daddy. I have none with cream leg bar typical male markings though.

I do have three with cuckoo markings.which look a bit like (but not identical to) the (black not cuckoo) female chick in this second picture in this meg link: http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://www.feathersite.com/Poultry/CGK/Marans/MaransChiks.JPEG&imgrefurl=http://www.homesteadingtoday.com/showthread.php%3Ft%3D348963&usg=__jlOpRYvzehMmyydAlJ6Yy77STsM=&h=300&w=458&sz=39&hl=en&start=17&um=1&itbs=1&tbnid=XhmL1DjNp4dLhM:&tbnh=84&tbnw=128&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dmaran%2Bchick%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26sa%3DN%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26tbs%3Disch:1


edit: cuckoo means black and white speckly as an adult like this:

http://images.google.co.uk/images?q=cuckoo%20cochin&oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=og&sa=N&hl=en&tab=wi

And one of the mummies is indeed cuckoo coloured cochin
..the others are shades of grey and yellow.

Their education started to day, I'm teaching them to come when I call, which is something all chickens learn quickly, but might as well start 'em young. I can always develop a performing chicken act for next year's Britain has talent'' if I put my mind to it. :rotfl:Really, I just want really super handlable chickens. Although it makes hens more pleasant to deal with the risk is one gets too attached to the males with this sort of ''pet'' approach, but my argument is that it will make them calmer and unstressed when handled for dispatch. Its only tougher on me, therefore, not them.

edit: wow, its amazing how a few days off has impacted on my typing/word use.:o FC, I've taken a few pics, I'll try and find the possibly faulty cable tomorrow. Sleeping chicks. They fell asleep while I was hanging their litter again, so I left them on the bare newspaper, no shavings...it felt churlish to move them.

misskool

i'm supposed to be in bed but i've just put some muffins in the oven for breakfast as i have a 9am meeting in a stupid part of london.

how's everyone doing?

fc123

Thanks for the great post LIR ......the only bit I don't get is the marbles (?) preventing them from drowning.

Pics of chicks dozing off...now that sounds good. You can load pics without a lead by inserting the memory card into the laptop...well on mine you can.

fc123

misskool wrote: »

i'm supposed to be in bed but i've just put some muffins in the oven for breakfast as i have a 9am meeting in a stupid part of london.

how's everyone doing?

Over worked, underpaid and stressed out but apart from that...just fine:)

misskool

fc123 wrote: »

Over worked, underpaid and stressed out but apart from that...just fine:)

isn't that just about everyone?

how is the imminent move to london?