Beekeeping skills & 1st stings

I had an evaluation this week with my beekeeping mentor, where she rated my skills thusfar during the apprenticeship. Overall, I did well.  I think she over-rated me on many things.

Yesterday, we checked 3 different hives that I am assigned (2 other locations, and the one in my backyard). I decided to try doing the hive inspections without using gloves, to increase my dexterity. My gloves tend to get in my way since they are too big for my hands. The first hive check went smoothly gloveless. The 2nd hive check, I must not have zipped up  my hood completely, because I ended up with 4 bees in my bonnet. After getting them out, we returned to the hive to finish the inspections, where I was stung on two of my fingers. 

We returned to my house to check the hive here. I anticipated it being full, and I was right! We had to add another box! I had gloves on for this hive check, and promptly DROPPED a frame that was full of bee. Yes, dropped.  Ugh.  No more stings, but I was very embarrassed.

Milking, Bee update, and Future

For the past 2 weeks, I've been in "training" learning to milk a friend's miniature goats, as I will be milking while she is on vacation. It is MUCH harder than I thought it'd be, as their teats are very small. Also, this 6am milking thing is.... well...tiring. I'm usually up at that hour anyhow to let the hens and dogs out, however I head right back to bed afterwards (it takes all of 10 minutes). No so easily done after being up for a while milking.  So I'm tired. And I suck at milking.  It's a very slow learning curve.

The bees are well, I recently had to add another box to the hive to make room for all the brood.  Yesterday we checked their progress, and have moved up into the new box and are drawing it out. What is drawn out in the new box is filled with brood.  With the weather warming, they are taking less and less of the sugar syrup and will probably stop completely over the next few weeks with the increase in pollen (i.e. protein) availability. Also, as you can see in this video, the entrance reducer probably needs to come off soon. You can see lots of pollen being brought into the hive!

Lately, I have really been wanting to add one of the automatic doors to the coop that are on a daylight sensor, and open/close automatically at the appropriate times.  This would make the chickens even LESS work, and make me feel like they are secure at night from predators when we go away for the weekend. However, they are expensive (several hundred dollars).

Cull and butchering

I agonized and agonized over the decision of whether or not I should cull the Wyondotte.  I kept going back and forth about it. Finally, I decided to do it.

I hosted the class at my house, a total of 8 people attended (including the teacher and myself).  We processed a total of 12 birds. 

I am glad I decided to cull the Wyondotte, she had lots of internal abnormalities, including inflammation on her reproductive (egg laying) track. It makes me feel better that her egg laying issues were not just a fluke, and likely to happen again. I feel like I made the right decision. 

I was also very worried about one particular part of the evisceration.  The very first cut you make, is a circle around the anus - you have to do so carefully so not to rupture the intestinal track.  I had read about it many times, and seen it once. The one time I saw someone do it, I didn't have a good view so couldn't really tell what I was supposed to do. This time I had the teacher standing next to me as I went.  I now feel 100% comfortable that I could do so again, by myself.   

To cull or not to cull....

The Wyandette has been laying shell-less eggs for 2 months now. I am hosting a chicken slaughter class at my house on Thursday evening, taught by an experienced member of the farm co-op.  I was planning on culling the Wyandette due to the oviduct issue.  This week, she started laying eggs with shells on them.  What the heck?!  I finally make a decision on it, then she kinda fixes herself. 

The problem is she still isn't laying completely 'normal' eggs.  They are incredibly small (peewee sized) and odd shaped. Kind of golf-ball sized, with weird bumpy ends.  Here is a picture of her egg, next to one of the normal eggs. 

So I am torn. She is still underproducing given the size of her eggs. I am worried that she will start laying shell-less eggs again. If I'm going to have to cull her anyway, I'd like to do so w/an experienced teacher (like I'll have available to me during the class).  Oi.

Oviduct problem

So the Wyondette is still having periods of acting droopy and weird, and laying eggs w/o a shell.  I think we've narrowed it down to an oviduct problem, as when she does lay eggs (1/2 per week, WAY below her norm) they are shell-less. They don't have the hard calcium shell around them, just the thin membrane that supposed to be inside of the shell. She has laid 3+ of these now, so it's not a fluke.  They are normal otherwise (size, yolk, shape).  The thin membrane holding the egg together is weird, and like a thin piece of tissue paper that holds the eggs together when gently handled, but easily ruptured. Below is  a picture of the egg w/o a shell (it didn't go to waste, was fed to the dogs).

My much more experienced chicken friend thinks it is an oviduct problem, and the hen needs to be culled.  I'm kinda bummer out, as I did just get her.  And she is the Easter Egger's friend, they hang out together and she protects the Easter Egger when the others pick on on her.  But she is droopy and sad looking a lot, so think she will probably need to be culled. 

Bee Installs and Queen Releases

This week was buzzing with beekeeping stuff. Over the weekend installed bees in 2 hives (one on my property), and the yesterday released the queens from their cages.  Below is a pic of the install in our backyard. My husband says it looks like CSI.

Even the chickens were curious what was going one! This week will be more bee stuff (checking for eggs to see if the queen is getting down to business).

The ladies (hens) are doing well. The Wyondette keeps having spells where she quits laying, poofs up, and gets lethargic.  She's laid a couple of weird eggs (no shell, very thin shell), so I think it's an egg laying issue.  I'd like to cull her, but she is Chicken Little's only friend and her protector when the other hens pick on her. This week's most recent concern is flies. It's been warm and no rain, so flies are getting bad. I put out fly traps, and yesterday the hens knocked one over and ate the dead flies in it. Im worried about their health after doing so as I'm not sure whats in the bait, so all of todays eggs are going in the compost (just in case). Next week Im going to make my own fly traps.

In other new, I get my stitches out tomorrow (hopefully).  :)

Beekeeping start and my injury - graphic pics

Beekeeping apprenticeship is going well.  Lots of hands on learning, which is exactly what I wanted.  I've done many hive inspections without a sting.  My host hive is set up in the backyard, and the bees will be put in this weekend, weather permitting.

Yesterday had to go to ER for an injury with the hedgetrimmers.  All my fingers are still there fortunately, but have several with stitches.  Luckily I was wearing leather gloves (that got shredded) but am sure saved me from further injury.  Below are pics, I put them at the bottom so those that don't want to see don't have to.  Scroll down if you'd like to see (somewhat graphic, not terrible though).

At hospital, before being cleaned out

At hospital before they cleaned it out

The next AM during bandage change