marlingardener: I'm gonna look into those feeders, I know I've seen them, just not sure on the $$....As for dogs and chickens being 'not as smart'? I'm now so sure about that.......LOL brendasue: I have to confess, I wasn't so concerned that it would 'hurt' the eggs, but I am very careful what my girls get because I like to know what goes into what I'm eating (ie: raise our own chicken (eggs) pork and beef, an older neighbor raises chickens that he slaughters and I also know what he feeds) So that was most of my concern. I don't buy the bottom of the barrel dog food, but I am a realist and am fairly certain that I don't want to eat it...........Thanks for the answers..............T

Joanna, you may want to ask the butcher about those bones... Years ago my Mother would buy soup bones from a local butcher who bought whole animals from the local stock yards... On one visit to the butchers shop she noticed a sign for Free dog bones and asked for a few pounds of beef dog bones... The man behind the counter told her they were NOT for human consumption for various reasons, most weren't properly refrigerated, they were all dumped in one container ( beef, pork, lamb, veal... ) some had fallen on the floor or fished out of the trash... Granted most stores today wouldn't take the chance of selling contaminated bones but... Better safe than sorry, ask if they ARE fit for human consumption. Rita

Thanks, Teresa, I don't think I've ever seen a chicken pie recipe without vegetables, that looks really interesting and efficient, because Bud and Makayla wouldn't have to pick out the pieces of veggies, LOL. Ruthanna, the chicken pudding looks good, I'm going to try a couple of these as meals when Elery's family comes. I'll have 11 visitors for 5 days over the 4th of July weekend, so I'm going to have to find things that I can bake ahead or multiply to get enough servings. The following week is Fair Week too, so Bud and Makayla are spending the night tomorrow night, the fair entries will just have to be baked and frozen, then thawed for the fair. (shrug) Just as well, they're getting too complacent about all those ribbons every year, make 'em work at it this time! Ryse, where are you that you need to move to Tennessee for a better climate? I live in North/West Michigan and I really like to process chickens in the fall, far fewer flies and I don't rush so much to get the birds on ice like I do when it's warmer here. sleevendog, the traffic cones actually worked pretty well, but they weren't quite deep enough. Hey, I'm creative! I didn't have enough room to partially freeze all those halves before packaging, that was part of the problem, I think. On another food related note, the second calf of the year was born today, hooray. I left Mama to tend it and didn't bother them by getting close enough to determine whether it was a heifer or bull, I'll know soon enough. Oh, and Elery and I had chicken on the grill last night. No salting or pre-brining, because I wanted to see just how it was. Elery cooked it slowlyl on the cooler side of the grill and it was moist, juicy and delicious. I'm happy. Annie

I picked up a cookbook from Half Price Books called, "Classic Turkish Cooking" by Ghillie Basan. It's a fascinating book that goes into the history of Turkish cuisine, how it was influenced by the various cultures and people that have occupied them or lived there, and how it's changed, yet stayed the same over the years, It talks about the various ingredients they use, and suggests substitutes for some of them that might be difficult to get. I found out about this book in a round about way, by getting a newsletter from The Splendid Table. One of the chefs that was featured referenced this book, telling how he found it at a used book store. Low and behold, I found it at our used book store. Maybe there's more out there. Some of the spices listed in the book are Allspice, cinnamon, Coriander, Cumin, Dill, Garlic, Parsley and Kirmizi Biber, which is a red pepper. The author explains, "In essence, kirmizi biber is a red pepper, a type of horn chilli (their spelling) that came originally from the New World, but has grown in Turkey for several centuries and is regarded with pride. In fact, you could say that it is the national spice." She does say that cayenne or paprika can be used as substitutes, but are not the same. I've made a couple of recipes from this book and enjoyed them both. Sally