chercat: septembre 2018

Last Thursday I hopped on a plane and headed to Ohio to spend a few days promoting my new book 101 Chicken Keeping Hacks coming out next month. And what a fun trip it was!

I flew into Cleveland and then drove south down to the Kidron area, made a quick stop in Millersburg, headed even further south to Marysville, and then turned around and headed north to Polk before returning to the airport to fly home.

I had never been to that part of Ohio before, so I really enjoyed all the rolling hills, fields of corn, cows, rustic farmsteads, laundry hanging on the clothes line and the numerous Amish in their buggies. So cool!

It was such a busy trip; the five days just flew by. I definitely want to go back because I didn't have time to visit Duluth Trading Company (there are stores outside of both Cleveland and Columbus, I believe, that I really wanted to check out) nor the Smuckers campus which is right in Orrville where I was staying.

I also wouldn't mind revisiting all the places I got to on this trip, truth be told... if you were following along on Instagram, you likely saw some of these photos - but for those who didn't, here's a recap of my trip.

Lehman's

My first stop was Lehman's in Dalton. The Fall Festival was scheduled for Saturday and that was when most of the action was going to be happening - think live music, cloggers, buggy rides, homemade applesauce, cotton candy, soda samples, the works - but I arrived on Friday to meet with some of the employees and chat with them, tour the store and learn some of the store history from founder Jay Lehman's daughter, Glenda.

I set up my book signing table for the following day, we had lunch in the in-store cafe (try the bratwurst with sauerkraut and onions if you get the chance), and then I was treated to a bit of a tour of the surrounding area, including a visit to the original Lehman's Hardware store which opened in Mt. Hope in 1955.

I also *might* have done a bit of shopping for myself. If you have never been to the store - or even visited their website - you are in for a treat the first time you do. I picked up some things for my kitchen, and a few Christmas gifts for my husband and my Mom.

Saturday was a busy day. I met so many nice people who stopped by my table to have their books signed, say hello, or just chat about chickens. I think I might have enabled a few who were on the fence about getting started... and had the pleasure of meeting a sweet woman and her adorable mother (and her chicken purse!) who had traveled quite a distance to come to the store.

It was a great day, but one of the highlights was definitely meeting a little corgi named Molly. (It's weird, but I end up running into corgis nearly every time I travel. Which is pretty cool!)

Farmhouse Frocks

Once the festivities were over at Lehman's, it was time to hop in the car and head over to Farmhouse Frocks in Millersburg. I have followed them on Instagram for awhile now, and have seen their booth at the Country Living Fairs, so couldn't wait to visit the shop in person!

I was not disappointed. The shop is uber adorable. They sell such frilly, feminine farmgirl fashions and I was super excited to browse all the cute stuff ... and left with a Rita romper and a Jenna tunic... which I promise I will model soon!

Soda Pharm

Sundays mostly everything in Amish country is closed, so I had made plans to do a book signing at my friend Dawn Combs soft opening of her new retail shop Soda Pharm in downtown Marysville.

She's been selling herbal concoctions under the Mockingbird Meadows brand online and at various fairs and farmers markets around the country for years and finally has realized her dream of a brick and mortar store!

There was a nice crowd who enjoyed sampling some of her products (the ginger pear soda is the BOMB!), enjoying the chicken cookies made specially for the day... and a live chicken even showed up! My books have their own bookshelf for the moment, but I'm told other authors' books will join them as the signing events start to be scheduled.

Meyer Hatchery

As if I hadn't already had enough fun, Monday was HATCH DAY! And that meant it was time to head to Meyer Hatchery in Polk! They hatch chicks every Monday morning and get them sexed, sorted and boxed up to be mailed to customers. I couldn't wait! Any day that involves baby chicks is going to be a good day in my book!

I have been working with Meyer Hatchery for years. In fact, they were one of my very first sponsors on this blog, way back in 2011 I believe. Over the years, I've gotten chicks from them, and emailed and spoken on the phone with many of the employees, but never met them in person So it was a real treat to meet not only those employees I've been working with, but also the owner Karen Meyer and her husband.

I knew that they had a great online store where they sold all kinds of farmhouse and coop decor, chicken products and accessories, etc. but what I didn't realize was that there was a full scale retail store attached to the hatchery!

It was pretty surreal to see my poultry feed supplement products on the shelf. They're available from Amazon, but this is the first time I've actually seen them on a retail store shelf! But there's all kinds of other cool stuff too, so if you live anywhere near Polk Ohio, it's worth a trip to not only pick up some chicks but also browse the store.

The day started with a tour of the hatchery, including the huge industrial incubators. We watched chicks hatch, and then watched as the sorted chicks were boxed up to fill the hundreds of orders they had for the week.

I was in heaven being in a room full of plastic bins of peeping balls of fluff! I think I might have touched nearly every one of the baby chicks there! (So if you got an order from Meyer Hatchery this week, there's a good chance I might have snuggled your chick for just a second :0)

Any chicks that hatch and aren't spoken for to fill an online order are made available for purchase in the retail store which is pretty cool... and lots of people drifted in throughout the day to pick up their orders or choose a few chicks from the stock tanks set up in the store.

Despite rain in the afternoon, it was a busy day, with lines of people stopping by to say hello. In fact, we had to cut the hatchery tour short first thing in the morning because the line was already out the door! Like other events, I met so many super nice people. And would like to thank each and every one who came out to any of the weekend's events.

And as always, I of course had to bring home a few "souvenirs" with me from the shop. I mean, really? How could I not leave with some cute chicken stuff!

So, if you live in the neighborhood, be sure to go check out Meyer Hatchery in person, and if not, head over to their online store!

There is so much more to do and see in Ohio, so I hope to go back sometime. I had such a great time. Thanks to Lehmans, Meyer Hatchery and Soda Pharm for hosting the book signings and thank you all, as well as Farmhouse Frocks, for your sweet gifts.

Here's a parting gift for all you readers. A short video clip of an Amish buggy that went by as I was eating breakfast at Quince Bakery & Cafe across the street from Lehmans. And by the way, their Q-Nut egg sandwich was DE-licious... as is their homemade maple cream stick!

I hope you enjoyed this peek at my week in Ohio Amish country! If you enjoyed these photos, be sure to follow me on Instagram so you don't miss a single photo all week!

reade more...

Of all the various predators that will go after your chickens, the aerial type are often the most challenging. Short of a completely enclosed pen or run, the truth is that your chickens (and ducks) are vulnerable to predator attacks if they free range.

A smallish hawk like a coopers or red tail likely won't be able to carry off a grown chicken or duck, but they can still injure them by swooping down and smashing into them, possibly even breaking their legs upon impact and then proceeding to eat them live right on the ground (gross, I know, but true). At the very least their talons can inflict some serious damage.

Younger chicks and pullets are obviously at more risk due to their size and relative lack of experience hiding from predators. Bantam breeds are also more vulnerable to aerial predators.

And hawks aren't the only threat. Last summer, we watched as a raven grabbed a wild turkey pullet and flew away with it. Heartbreaking to watch as the mother turkey basically lost her mind and the baby peeped frantically as they raven flew over the tree line.

But using these few simple tips can help to keep your chickens safe from hawks, eagles and other raptors.

Covered Run

The simplest way to keep your chickens safe from hawks is to keep them in a covered run. Welded wire will also keep out other predators that might scale the sides of your run like raccoon or fox, but a simple plastic bird or deer netting (or even a tarp) will keep the flying predators out.

While I never recommend chicken wire for the sides of the run because its too easy for a dog or fox to just rip right through it, it will be effective over the top against raptors.

Fishing Line

Even simpler? Run fishing line across the top of your run in a diamond pattern with the space between the lines no more than four feet or so. A hawk generally won't fly through a space that small, but it's not 100% foolproof and desperate hawks have been known to breach fishing line.

(Note: We used fishing line over our run in Virginia for several years and never had any problems with hawks.)

If you want to let your chickens out into your yard and the area is too large to completely cover, running the fishing line say from tree to tree across the expanse of your yard 7+ feet up in the air is quick, easy and inexpensive - and better than nothing.

Get a Tractor

A chicken tractor is an option if you have a small flock. It's basically a portable coop/run combo that can be moved around an area so the chickens are always on fresh, new grass. You can find the plans for this cute option HERE.

Build a Chunnel

A chicken "chunnel" is another option. Constructed from chicken wire and pvc piping or boards, a chunnel provides a safe tunnel system around your yard that allows the chickens to roam the length of the tunnel, safe from predators.

Chip Gaines of Fixer Upper fame built a great chunnel for Joanna around the perimeter of her garden to try and keep the grasshoppers out of the garden. The beauty of using a chunnel that encircles your yard or garden is that the chickens will munch on any bugs that try and breach the perimeter!

photo credit: HGTV/Fixer Upper

A Flash of Light

A sudden flash of light will startle a hawk and foil it's attempts to terrorize your flock. Using aluminum pie plates, strips of aluminum foil or old CD's or DVD's (my favorite way to repurpose all those old movies you never watch!) around the yard hanging from tree branches, your deck railing or along a fence using some of that fishing line can help to deter hawks.

The erratic movement of the object along with a brilliant ray of color each time the sunlight hits the shiny side will scare off the flying menaces.

Employ a Guard Animal

A dog, donkey, alpaca or other guard animal that mingles with your flock can help to protect them from hawks. I've read that merely keeping your chickens in an area with goats or horses can deter hawks because they see the larger forms down below and will move on. In all the years we lived in Virginia and our chickens roamed in our horse pasture, we never did have a single hawk attack, come to think of it.

Add a Rooster

Keeping a rooster in your flock is a good idea if you free range because he will keep an eye to the sky and sound an alarm if he spots a threat, allowing the hens to race to safety.

I've also noticed that our ducks are also way more vigilant about watching the skies and will freeze with their head cocked to one side when they spot a hawk. So by watching the ducks, I've learned to spot hawks well in advance of their arrival.

A "ScareHawk"?

A scarecrow strategically placed in the area where your chickens free range can help to scare off hawks. Move it around periodically to throw the hawks that fly overhead off balance.

The step-by-step tutorial to make your own "scarehawk" is included in my new book 101 Chicken Keeping Hacks. Order your copy here.

Guard Owl

Hawks are notoriously afraid of owls. A few plastic owl decoys positioned around your yard can keep the area hawk-free. As with the scarecrow, be sure to move them around from time to time. Surprisingly, crows and ravens are a good hawk deterrent. They will chase hawks away from their nests....so I'm always happy to see the crows hanging around.

The Human Factor

Do as I do and only free range when you can supervise. A hawk is going to think twice about coming too close when there's a crazy lady running and screaming and throwing rocks at it!

One thing to keep in mind is that not all raptors will circle, giving everyone ample time to get to safety. For instance, red tail hawks will sit up in a tree or on a fence post...just waiting.

Pay Attention to the Time of Day and Year

There are times of year that seem to be worse as far as hawk presence goes. In the spring and fall when they are migrating, we seem to see more hawks.

In the spring they also have babies to feed, and once those babies grow up, they teach them to hunt.

I've also noticed that young hawks will tend to be a bit more bold than the older ones, taking more chances and venturing closer to my flock. So early spring is a bad time for the chickens trying to free range!

The time of day also matters. The hawks start looking for food each morning and then once they have eaten their fill, they seem to be done for the day. We rarely see hawks around after noon time. I generally don't free range my chickens until 2pm or later for this reason. We see far more hawk activity early in the day.

Switch up your Schedule

All kinds of predators learn routines. For this reason, you should switch up your schedule. Let your chickens free range for a few days, and then keep them in for a day. Let them out at different times of day. Move things around in the yard, in addition to a scarecrow or owl decoy. Lawn chairs, ladders, wheelbarrows, vehicles and that sort of thing can be moved around to keep the hawks on their toes.

Provide Cover

And lastly, lawn chairs, ladders, wheelbarrows and vehicles will all provide shelter for your chickens to duck under if they spot a hawk. In addition to bushes and shrubs, under the deck and even under the coop, be sure there are plenty of places for your flock to hide if a raptor flies overhead.

I hope some of these tips were helpful. I should add that aerial raptors are federally protected and it's against the law to shoot them. No. Matter. What. No exceptions.