New arrivals 2015

[johnstephen29]

Hi these young chicks started hatching out yesterday, the last one so far 20 minutes ago. I have them in a box covered in a old tea towel,in the airing cupboard to keep warm while there mum keeps the last egg warm which has a good crack in it, you can here the chick in side cheeping and his mum answering back.

image by johnstephen29, on Flickr

[David Nicholson]

How did you know the one still in egg was a 'he' John 

[johnstephen29]

Figure of speech David that's all.

[Maggi Young]

Very cute little batch of organic  pest controllers, John. I hope your slugs and bugs are quaking in their boots.

[David Nicholson]

And there was I thinking you could sex chickens without seeing them

[johnstephen29]

Shock, horror maggi, I wouldn't let these near my flower beds, i learnt the hard way, chickens don't care where they scratch and peck. I do use the egg shells crushed which is a great way to deter the slugs and snails and the local hedgehog. I'm sure people who work a lot with chickens can David, not me thought, I wait till they are a bit older.

[Anthony Darby]

My mum's friend was employed to sex day-old chicks and travelled all over the country 50 or so years ago doing this. All the males were .......well we won't go there. Suffice it to say, when a friend contacted Marshall's for some for his pet snakes he was asked "how many?" He replied "a dozen". The voice on the phone then said, "is that black bags full?"

[johnstephen29]

Bit gruesome Anthony, but at least they were not wasted I guess. When I was a kid my dad used to grow them on for the table.

[Maggi Young]

 In the days when we had a decent Poulterers shop in Aberdeen one of my favourite buys was a large Capon for a mega-roast for a large gathering - so much nicer than turkey.  And now I'm hungry for the thought of a good "boiling fowl " to make the most  delicious soup......  yummy!

Now I'm feeling guilty - those lovely little chicks are newly hatched and I'm talking about eating them .....

[ian mcdonald]

Talking about sexing something, perhaps some members remember this. Before the days when it became illegal to have a sense of humour." How do you know it is the skeleton of a woman?" " The mouths open". The Goon show. "The Scarlet Capsule" February 2nd. 1959.

[Maggi Young]

Puts me in mind of this .... a favourite of the BD - how to tell the gender of a seagull....




- of course, if males ( men)  were brighter and learned more quickly, females ( women) wouldn't need to tell them so much...... 

[ian mcdonald]

BD? text speak again.

[Maggi Young]

Ian Young, who has the honour to be my husband (!) is known quite widely by  the nickname of Bulb Despot, which is contracted to the initials BD - in the same way as many given names are. 

[johnstephen29]

Is Ian hen pecked then maggi

[Maggi Young]

I wish, John - a flippin' eagle couldn't hen peck the BD - Despot by name, Despot by nature!