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Swans in trouble today


Leemc

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3 minutes ago, George and Dragon said:

What a strange unit. Is that American dry bushels (approx 35.24 litres)?

 

I suppose that accounts for varying moisture content.

 

 

A bushel is a worldwide common method of measuring grain Measurement by weight is not suitable for products that can contain a varying amount of moisture, so "buying by the ton" can involve you buying a lot of water at a very high price. Buying by volume avoids this problem.

 

 

 

 A bushel is a unit of measurement used to measure volume. 

A bushel is usually defined as 4 quarts (1 cubic foot) or 32 U.S. gallons (121 L). In the United States, a bushel is equivalent to 128 pounds (57 kg), but in other countries, such as Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand, South Africa, and Zimbabwe, a bushel is equal to 20 kilograms (44 lb).

 

In farming (in particular horses) things are still sold / bought in Guineas, and not 'pounds' 

There are still some non-SI units used

 

 

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Another dead swan floated past today, and a dead pigeon. I don't particularly like swans, but I don't like to see them dropping dead in such numbers.

 

Also Sainsbury's had no eggs, blaming a "supply" issue; I did wonder, especially with the very long shelf-life of eggs, whether that is somehow related to the bird flu or just one of these arguments that supermarkets have with their suppliers when the suppliers want to make a living too.

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3 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

A bushel is a worldwide common method of measuring grain Measurement by weight is not suitable for products that can contain a varying amount of moisture, so "buying by the ton" can involve you buying a lot of water at a very high price. Buying by volume avoids this problem.

 

 

 

 A bushel is a unit of measurement used to measure volume. 

A bushel is usually defined as 4 quarts (1 cubic foot) or 32 U.S. gallons (121 L). In the United States, a bushel is equivalent to 128 pounds (57 kg), but in other countries, such as Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand, South Africa, and Zimbabwe, a bushel is equal to 20 kilograms (44 lb).

 

In farming (in particular horses) things are still sold / bought in Guineas, and not 'pounds' 

There are still some non-SI units used

 

 

I've struggled to find a consistent definition of the bushel. One website I looked at variously says:

The USDA defines a bushel of wheat as 5 quarts (with approximately 19 pounds of weight per bushel) or 32 pounds of weight per 1,000 cubic feet of volume. For a bushel of wheat to weigh 32 pounds it would need to contain approximately 643 grains. In 1743, the weight of a bushel of wheat was approximately 3 pounds.

 

The next section says:

A bushel of wheat weighs 66 pounds and holds eight quarts or 446.25 liters of the grain. The United States Department of Agriculture standard for wheat is 8% moisture, which is 60.9 pounds or 29.23 kilograms of dry wheat. 

 

Then another section (all on the same page) says:

One bushel of wheat weighs 60 pounds and has a volume of 112.5 cubic feet.

And yet another section (still on the same page) says:

1 bushel of wheat is 0.9 pounds.

 

And finally:

The United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) estimates that the average number of bushels of wheat stored in a grain elevator is 8.25.

 

 

I'd be happy if any of these was correct but it's definitely a lesson in how to ensure no-one believes anything you say.

 

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46 minutes ago, Bacchus said:

Another dead swan floated past today, and a dead pigeon. I don't particularly like swans, but I don't like to see them dropping dead in such numbers.

 

Also Sainsbury's had no eggs, blaming a "supply" issue; I did wonder, especially with the very long shelf-life of eggs, whether that is somehow related to the bird flu or just one of these arguments that supermarkets have with their suppliers when the suppliers want to make a living too.

It's likely that this will prompt a rush on eggs, to be followed by flour, then vegetable oil, but It's unlikely all Sainsbury's egg producers have suddenly stopped supplying eggs , more likely one lorry did not get through in time 

UK domestic birds are all now housed, so Avian flu is not going to reduce supply, it's the high price of feedstock, and the price fluctuations which make it high risk  This is due to the supply of wheat and sunflower oil from Ukraine, the Russians can stop shipping if they want to , as they have already demonstrated.

Poultry will gradually reduce in supply and increase in price. Pigs have a longer timeline, but same thing is going to happen.eggs have a longish shelf life, but eggs have to be shifted fairly quickly , there is no profit in sheds full of ageing eggs.

Edited by LadyG
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33 minutes ago, LadyG said:

UK domestic birds are all now housed, so Avian flu is not going to reduce supply,

 

Housing the birds does not stop them catching flu - it can be simply bought into the sheds by (say) an infected sparrow finding its way in.

 

Our neighbour has just had to slaughter 35,000 birds, all of which were locked up in sheds

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2 hours ago, Alan de Enfield said:

In farming (in particular horses) things are still sold / bought in Guineas, and not 'pounds' 

There are still some non-SI units used

Horses are the only livestock I have ever come across sold in guineas.  A quick wander round the internet showed most prices in Pounds and pence not guineas.

 

With regard to Bushels my "Black's Agricultural Dictionary" says:

 

A dry measure by which grain was once generally computed, and also  used for fruit, containing 1.28 cubic feet or 8 gallons.  Many farmers still drill seed in bushels per acre or refer to grain in terms of pounds per bushel when discussing quality, but following metrication, grain traders now use Kg per hectolitre.  Fruit is now generally picked into bulk bins rather than bushel boxes.

 

N.B.  my bold and the book was published in 1981 I doubt many framers still think in Bushels per acre or Lbs per Bushel.

 

My experience says farmers quickly change to the units they are buying and selling in.  Within 6 months of auctions starting to sell stock in Kgs I had the following experience.

 

I was on a farm and the farmer was preparing a young Charolais bull for showing.  He asked me what I thought it weighed as he was fairly elderly I didn't think he would be up to date on metric measures so I gave him an estimate of 6and a half cwt.   Teh reply "Nay lad thats nee gud t'me me scales weigh in Kg".

 

I seriously doubt there are any but the very oldest who still use imperial weights for doing business, yes they may, but I doubt it, estimate in imperial and then convert.

1 hour ago, LadyG said:

It's likely that this will prompt a rush on eggs, to be followed by flour, then vegetable oil, but It's unlikely all Sainsbury's egg producers have suddenly stopped supplying eggs , more likely one lorry did not get through in time 

UK domestic birds are all now housed, so Avian flu is not going to reduce supply, it's the high price of feedstock, and the price fluctuations which make it high risk  This is due to the supply of wheat and sunflower oil from Ukraine, the Russians can stop shipping if they want to , as they have already demonstrated.

Poultry will gradually reduce in supply and increase in price. Pigs have a longer timeline, but same thing is going to happen.eggs have a longish shelf life, but eggs have to be shifted fairly quickly , there is no profit in sheds full of ageing eggs.

They are housed to reduce, note reduce, the chances of them catching avian flu not eliminate the chances.

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On 12/11/2022 at 16:58, Naughty Cal said:

Our alternative was a nice lump of venison we have in the freezer. That can be for new years dinner instead now.

 

Mmmmm, roasted Bambi!

 

 

1 hour ago, Alan de Enfield said:

 

Housing the birds does not stop them catching flu - it can be simply bought into the sheds by (say) an infected sparrow finding its way in.

 

Our neighbour has just had to slaughter 35,000 birds, all of which were locked up in sheds

 

But t least those 35,000 birds didn't spread avian flu to anywhere else. Our "free range" hens haven't been allowed out of their enclosure into the garden for over 18 months now.

 

 

 

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  • 3 weeks later...

We are now at 5 dead swans with another in trouble, ots swimming in circles constantly grooming and no interest in food, it will be gone tomorrow,  Defra other than recording don't seem interested, its very upsetting as I do feed the swans when they come a knocking 

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On 09/10/2022 at 18:40, Jerra said:

 I have never heard of sheep's tripe.

 

Is it not known as "sweetbreads"?

I have eaten them, as "Tripous", in France.

Once.

Edited by Athy
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Most of the posts refer to swan problems.  What we need is a major die-back of canada geese, not swans.  Can somebody ask the Chinese to supply a different variant of Avian Flu, to be more selective?  While they are doing that, I'll go and clean my shoes again.

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4 minutes ago, system 4-50 said:

Most of the posts refer to swan problems.  What we need is a major die-back of canada geese

I realise that you speak in jest, but what have you got against Canada geese? They're handsome birds, and marvellous to see when they're flying in formation.

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12 minutes ago, Athy said:

I realise that you speak in jest, but what have you got against Canada geese? They're handsome birds, and marvellous to see when they're flying in formation.

They can cause a lot of damage to crops, and they leave loads of obnoxious green sh*t *everywhere*... 😞

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1 hour ago, Athy said:

Is it not known as "sweetbreads"?

I have eaten them, as "Tripous", in France.

Once.

Sweet breads have all my life been testicles from various animals.  I note google says they are the pancreas and thymus, it does however say the pancreas are known as stomach sweetbread.

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28 minutes ago, Athy said:

I realise that you speak in jest, but what have you got against Canada geese? They're handsome birds, and marvellous to see when they're flying in formation.

Canada Geese are like all introduced animals and plants not in their natural niche, as a result they don't have the normal checks and balances they would have.

 

From a farmers point of view 9 geese (approx) eat as much as a sheep.  Around 2015 there were in the region of 165,000 Canada Geese in the UK, or in other words they are eating as much as 18,000+ sheep.  I have seen fields of grain beside canals with a 10 to 15 yard area completely cleared of plants and it is anybody' guess how much grain was taken from further in the crop.

 

There are approaching three times as many Canada Geese now as there were in the mid 80s.

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I eat a lot of meat but I don't like to think about where it comes from.  Or what it is like, slimy and yuk looking.  I don't like what I do with it, how I finish processing it, slimy & horrible.  But that goes for eating food in general, chewing & yuk.   And breathing, what a cumbersome and awkward process, I'd like to do without that.  And as for sex, just plain disgusting.  Sleeping, not so bad.  I could find more time for sleeping.

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3 hours ago, peterboat said:

We are now at 5 dead swans with another in trouble, ots swimming in circles constantly grooming and no interest in food, it will be gone tomorrow,  Defra other than recording don't seem interested, its very upsetting as I do feed the swans when they come a knocking 

Not at all nice to watch we have just listed three cygnets where I live within days of each other. This wildlife sanctuary seem to be having success dealing with this terrible disease https://www.thewaterfowlsanctuary.co.uk/articles/ai.htm

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  • 1 month later...
On 05/12/2022 at 15:39, peterboat said:

We are now at 5 dead swans with another in trouble, ots swimming in circles constantly grooming and no interest in food, it will be gone tomorrow,  Defra other than recording don't seem interested, its very upsetting as I do feed the swans when they come a knocking 

  Dead Swan floating around the Quays, non of the authorities are interested DEFRA or CaRT, even though only 50ft away from CaRT office, they’re just sitting on their ar$e’s as usual with no interest in dealing with it, even though it’s been reported to them several times this morning.

Edited by PD1964
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47 minutes ago, PD1964 said:

  Dead Swan floating around the Quays, non of the authorities are interested DEFRA or CaRT, even though only 50ft away from CaRT office, they’re just sitting on their ar$e’s as usual with no interest in dealing with it, even though it’s been reported to them several times this morning.

I have some capsules that can help the live ones if its avian flu? They swim around in circles grooming themselves, normally the young ones 

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10 minutes ago, peterboat said:

I have some capsules that can help the live ones if its avian flu? They swim around in circles grooming themselves, normally the young ones 

There were 5 here the other day, now just the dead one, don’t know where they’ve gone, maybe Tinsley way?

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