[Smiler]

The first residents for my newly converted chook house arrived today :raebanana

I've been after some chooks for a wee while. While I've been looking on TM (and all the chooks seemed to be at the opposite end of the country) OH has been converting the unused kennels into a hen house, adding nesting boxes and a perch. I've disinfected them, added straw etc and generally spruced them all up.

Yesterday I found an advert for a Barnevelder rooster and wrote to the seller asking if she had any hens for sale too, long story short she agreed to sell me some of her flock.

It turned out she is on the next road to us, so I whizzed round and choose my chooks! I brought Fowler (the Rooster) and Dottie home straightaway, then collected Wallace and Gromit this morning. They are gorgeous and have settled in really well. Within an hour I had two eggs :clap

They'll be free ranging here at Smiler Towers, but I'm keeping them shut in Chook Cottage (and the run) for a week, so they'll know where home is......they are already eating out of my hand.


For the first time in my life I have animals! (Well apart from the goldfish that died when I was 12)

[BaldyBeardyBloke]

Cool, or should I say 'eggselent' ? :)

[Sam B]

How eggciting!

[Carol]

For the first time in my life I have animals! (Well apart from the goldfish that died when I was 12)

and your pet geordies!

lol



I'm bringing a big tupperware box with me on the 2nd!
:nice1

[Smiler]

and your pet geordies! lol I'm bringing a big tupperware box with me on the 2nd! :nice1

OIH! :exit

G had already named them Stu, Masala, Tikka and Pate :mad:

[Carol]

OIH! :exit

G had already named them Stu, Masala, Tikka and Pate :mad:

LOL!!!!!!
Love that lad


It will keep him off the lambs anyway!
:laugh

[Smiler]

LOL!!!!!! Love that lad

It will keep him off the lambs anyway! :laugh

I spat my tea out

He's welsh, do you want to rephrase that? :exit

[zardell]

And the pictures are.......where eggsactly???????????

;)



Julie

xx

[Smiler]

:laugh





:uhoh





:p


ENZ doesn't love me enough to load 'em up grrrrrrrrr keep getting file error!

[zardell]

Well whilst you continue trying to upload your pics Cock (:roll ), I feel I have to ask...

Were the fowl eggspensive??:o

Sorry - only yolking.....:uhoh

Ok .....I know.....I'm :exit

Julie

xx

[lockstock]

Cracking thread this.

I can't wait to get our chickens back when we get there - not the same ones as we had here you understand, just chickens in general. I loved my girls - a real meeting of minds when all around us were losing theirs. You are so lucky -if there aren't foxes in NZ (I'm not sure) will the possums be a problem?

[Carol]

will the possums be a problem?


not for long!

lol

*BANG*

[Smiler]

Hi Lockstock

I'm new to chooks, but they are so entertaining already :nice1wish i could post a pic......

No foxes here but there are ferret/stoaty type things :uhoh

Possums are dispatched by OH and his .22. He is getting to be a cracking shot too, sometimes getting 6-10 a night in the forest and fields surrounding the house. :exit

[lockstock]

I'm going to have to start a possum thread now on behalf of OH.

[Myrkk]

Congrats on your first chooks. They are soooo relaxing....and they don't make a mess of your house by leaving fur everywhere :yes

Nothing like your first home "grown" egg.

Are possums a big problem then.........I have a fluffy image of them being all cutsie.......but then I can't even kill a spider or woodlouse:(

[BaldyBeardyBloke]

....Just....can't....resist.....any.....longer.... ..

Did you peck them up cheap, or did you have to shell out. Sorry, a-fried I couldn't stop myself scrambling to issue these nuggets. I'll cluck off now. :exit

[zardell]

....Just....can't....resist.....any.....longer.... ..

Did you peck them up cheap, or did you have to shell out. Sorry, a-fried I couldn't stop myself scrambling to issue these nuggets. I'll cluck off now. :exit




I was waiting for your post Sam and you didn't disappoint !!!

Priceless.


:laugh :laugh :laugh

Julie

xx

[Smiler]

....Just....can't....resist.....any.....longer.... ..

Did you peck them up cheap, or did you have to shell out. Sorry, a-fried I couldn't stop myself scrambling to issue these nuggets. I'll cluck off now. :exit

:laugh :laugh :laugh

You've eggcelled yourself there Sam.

[BaldyBeardyBloke]

See what I have to deal with every day! :roll
Paula (pinkpiggy)

[StevieD]

Are you a real Kiwi now?? Why? Did you start supporting the French?? :laugh

[Carol]

Are you a real Kiwi now?? Why? Did you start supporting the French?? :laugh




The who?


:laugh:laugh:laugh

[Leccy-Lee]

Yup you'd be a real Kiwi if you was against England retaining the cup!:cheers

As to eggs, i have a great joke, but possibly a little risque' for here :p
Ever been to New Yoke City? i Eggs-Plored it once, its not all its cracked up to be..But that said it is an Eggstraordinary place to the yokels...

[marcia]

You lot are nutters!

Smiler we have the opposite problem to you - we have the chooks lined up, a friend has kept them for us but we can't find a hen house on trade me thats local - but now you mentioned old kennels we might start looking for one of those instead.

Ours already have names too - we're having five, one each and we all choose our own names

Emerson's is chicken 'nugget'
Mika's is chicken 'drumstick'
Ayrton's is 'Ken' (Kentucky)
Mine is 'Kiev'
and we all wondered what Kev was on about to start off with whne he said he was calling his 'Gordon'

............................'cordon bleu'!!

So anyone who spots a chook house, Kennels or shed that can be converted 'cheap' to house five hens, on trade me or any other source which is in the Manawatu, give me a shout please!

[jubjub]

I am beginning to feel sorry for these chooks with their "suggestive" food related names... :laugh

Might think about a couple cos AJ loves chasing the ones that live wild at the zoo, and I love iggs.. hubby would disown the pair of us as all he would want would be kebabs or a nice roast..... (but he hates eggs!)

[Smiler]

Marcia

Have you looked on TM? As an incentive for G to hurry up and convert the kennels, I put some on my watch list. One was the other side of Palmy and a couple Foxton/Levin way. There were some expensive ones too :uhoh but that spurred G on with the conversion. ;)

Could Kev make yours? There are some guidelines here http://www.poultryclub.org/ACHousing.htm and have a google too.

This one looks a bit rough but might do for now http://www.trademe.co.nz/Home-living/Pets-animals/Dogs/Kennels-carry-cases/auction-122149319.htm

What breed are your guys?

[lockstock]

We had four chickens - Mrs Twisty Beak, Doris, Doris and Doris. We never thought of eating them though - they were like family. Sadly the badgers didn't have the same respect.

[Smiler]

We had four chickens - Mrs Twisty Beak, Doris, Doris and Doris. We never thought of eating them though - they were like family. Sadly the badgers didn't have the same respect.

Our neighbours pig has just had piglets - Freezer One, Freezer Two and Freezer Three. :eek:

[marcia]

Ha ha -Smiler, great minds think alike - added a few to our watch list last night after posting on here!!

Kev could build one, but he is flat out trying to get his superstock finished (that comes before a home for the chooks!!) the racing started last weekend so he'll be moaning now cos his isn't ready. he also has a sand pit to sort out for Emerson, a new fountain to put in the pond to replace the one he stood on and broke (derrrrrrrr!) and an assortment of other jobs , the list is getting longer!

Anyway will keep prompting him about the ones on the watch list and nag him a bit!

We don't intend to eat our chickens, don't think i could have animals and then eat them - its ok if they are someone else that I'm eating (love my meat!) but we're not having any animals to rear for the freezer here!

[Smiler]

Hi Marcia

There are also some suitable ones listed under kennels too. :D

Like Kev, G has a list of things to do too but he managed to squeeze in the time to do this because apart from mentioning the (expensive) hen houses on TM, I went out in the garage and started sorting through the wood and getting the drill out. ;) Works everytime...

I couldn't eat them either being a veggie, but Chicken Tikka was mentioned by SOMEONE, when the cook a doodle dooing started early this morning. I love it!

I hope you get yours sorted and home soon. :raebanana

[Smiler]

No 2 Chook Cottage has new residents! Mum and her 10 wee chickens.

She was one of our neighbours very free range hens and wandered into their garden on Friday with 10 balls of fluff following behind. They can't keep them as they have way too many, so 'Stella" (yes Chloe that's for you!:D) and babies have come to live with us. YAY! :raebanana

Marcia

Do you have yours at home with you yet?

Ok not the worlds best pic, but I didn't want to upset her. Next on the list is pleading for a piglet, other neighbour's pig had 5 weeeee little piggies on Saturday. Double ahhhhhhh

[pinkpiggy]

Aw they're so cute. Lucky you. Let's hope a piglet or two follows.

[jubjub]

Right, tell "Tom" he needs to let you have not one, but two piglets and they are to be called Pinky and Perky (the name of the pig was annoying me so I had to go google..., forgot they had two!)

[Jo Jo]

Oh, piglets! So sweet. But what will you do with them when they grow up?

When we were in NZ last Christmas, my sister-in-law had some piglets and I was SO excited when my husband said he'd buy one. When we came to NZ in October, I couldn't wait to see it.

I hadn't thought it through. The pig is in the freezer. :wah

[Moorf]

Oh, piglets! So sweet. But what will you do with them when they grow up?

When we were in NZ last Christmas, my sister-in-law had some piglets and I was SO excited when my husband said he'd buy one. When we came to NZ in October, I couldn't wait to see it.

I hadn't thought it through. The pig is in the freezer. :wah

Oh dear, that was a "Milo on the screen" moment here :laugh :laugh

I've often said I'd like a couple of pigs - but they are bloomin' Houdini's and destructive little beggars... because I didn't warn you about the rooster I feel compelled to say something about pigs! ;)

[Smiler]

Oh, piglets! So sweet. But what will you do with them when they grow up?

Weeeellllllllll I'll make sure that he/she has a fabulous life. They'll have their very own enclosed paddock, a wee piggie house for those rough weather days, lots of food with their own special pig scrap's bucket.

If they're looking lonely, they can have a companion come to stay and that will be the start of a long and happy relationship for them both. They'll snort (can't put the real word here) round the paddocks, muching on grass and wild flowers under blue sky and fluffy white clouds.

I'll run through the long grass in my long white broderie anglaise dress, with my freshly 'Pantened' shiney hair flowing free, clutching a wicker basket and sprinkling organic veggies from my veg patch for them to eat. I'll make daisy chains for their necks.

Then when their time is up, they'll cross the white rainbow into pig heaven where they'll rest in peace forever, their time on this earth marked by 2 hand carved wooden crosses placed by the paddock fence.:wah














Not really - when they get big I'll just get a pig sized freezer and ask the homekill man to call. ;)

[Smiler]

Right, tell "Tom" he needs to let you have not one, but two piglets and they are to be called Pinky and Perky (the name of the pig was annoying me so I had to go google..., forgot they had two!)

Did they really have two called that? God my memory is bad.....

Gary - Tom ha ha ha :D

Still pleading though........

Have let Stella and chickies out for the first time today, is worried they'll get lost in the forest. :uhoh Need a chook cam...................

[Smiler]

Oh dear, that was a "Milo on the screen" moment here

I've often said I'd like a couple of pigs - but they are bloomin' Houdini's and destructive little beggars... because I didn't warn you about the rooster I feel compelled to say something about pigs!

Nothing worse than mopping up ya milo! :laugh :laugh :laugh

[katandbob]

wait till the chooks think its alright to walk into the kitchen and eat the cat food - leave a calling card on the floor and scarper into the bedroom:uhoh
Mine fly over the fence so I can't shut the pen door or gate to the paddock.

Oh and I wouldn't bother eating a free range home chicken - they are NOTHING like a store bought chicken - trust me they are ALL Feathers!:exit

Kat