Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 5, 1987)
\ TWO - Heppner (iturtle-1im n, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, August 5,W§7 Raising birds no game for Heppner man Mention chuckars or pheasants and most people think of the sport of bird hunting Mention the birds to Merlin Cantin of Heppner. and it's strictly business Merlin is raising game birds for sale to fee hunting ranches, and in the last several months has seen his home grown business lake off like a startled bird on an (Xtoher momma "I decided to raise a few chuckars. and maybe sell some to the guys around here," Cantin says while surveying a brooder full of chicks on his ranch nine miles out of Heppner on Hinton Creek He advertised the chuckars for sale in the newspaper, and sold about MX) to local farmers Response wasn't overwhelming, and all of a sudden he found himself wondering what to do with 400 unsold birds Thinking perhaps he had made a big mistake. Cantin again ran his advertisement, and this lime hit pay dirt. ‘*1 put in another ad. and bingo, a woman in Arlington picked it up She told her father, who runs a hun ting ranch in Southern Oregon, and he called me up,” recounts Cantin Still ama/cd at the chain of events. Cantin says the rancher took all the birds he had left, and asked fur more, much more "He wants 250 a week, chuckars and pheasants.” Cantin has about 300 chuckars on hand now, and about 400 mure presently incubating Those, along with several hundred more chicks he has on order, will he raised and sold this year, and then he will begin gearing up to deliver the larger amount for nest year's season “ I really wasn't prepared to han die (hat many so fast, but I guess I'm in it with both feet. " says Cantin eyeing one pen with about 100 six- week-old birds Which means he has had to learn the business fast "I can hatch 400 h«bJs at a time.” he says pointing to his home several hundred leet from A new "Log Bucking Contest” has been added to the Sunday August 23 Morrow County Fair and Rodeo Schedule The log contest will take place on the Little league field at the fairgrounds from 10 a m until noon The logging crews that have heard about the contest arc very cn thusiastic about entering A purse of over $500 has been donated by the logging industry The Morrow County Fair and Rodeo Board will sweeten the pot with an additional $100 A $5 entry fee charged each contestant also will be added to the purse The contest w ill pay awards to the first four places in the contest Those w ishing to enter the contest may do so hy calling Marlene Cur rm. fair secretary , at the Fair Office, 676 d474 before 5 p m August 22 The Fair rules for the contest allow only stock saws No modified chainsaws will be permitted in the contest The contest is a timed event with timers provided by the fair "We look for a lot of interest in this new event and we hope the bleachers will be packed with spec tators,'* says the fair secretary Log Bucking contest added to fair M SgBB BB BgaOB where his brooding shed is located There is no room in the shed so he keeps the incubators in the den of his house Incubation time is 23 days With chuckars. Cantin says, he will keep 50 breeding hens and 15 roosters over the winter, and then in May start the birds laying again "The chuckars only lay five months out of the year, and they will lay one egg per day." he says. Once the birds are hatched, they are transferred to brooders where they are kept for two weeks. Cantin says his buyer will take the chuckars at eight weeks, an age at which fee hunters are assured the birds will fly. "He turns some out every week, and at eight weeks they will fly. They gotta fly." says Cantin The hunting ranch where Cantin will sell his birds is l«xalcd in southern Oregon near Vale, and of fers a total package to the hunter For $108 per day the hunter gets room and board, a dog. a guide if he wants one. and. of course, good bird hunting "And there's no bag limit," says Cantin In addition to the chuckars. Can tin says he also will raise ringneck pheasant "They re a little harder to handle. " he explains, "but I guess I'm into it " Pheasant must be turned into fly ing pens when they come out of the brooders, and they must be fitted with spectacles Placing the birds into fly ing pens insures they will fly when released into the wild, and the spectacles, which fit over the nose of the bird, block the view and keep the phea cant from pecking each other "They (hunters) want a nice look mg bird," Cantin says in explaining the ins and outs of the game bird 353 umili m FREE RODEO TICKETS The Morrow County Grain Growers will hold a weekly draw ing for one family ticket for the Pendleton Roundup. Drawings are scheduled for August 7,14, 21, and 28. Fill out entry blank at right; bring or mail into Morrow County Grain Growers in Lexington. ELECTRIC FENCE POSTS 79 $ business It is also essential that the birds fly "If the birds don't fly they aren't much use to 'em,” he says Cantin may have got into the bird business "with both feet" as he puts it. but those feet seem firmly planted on the ground He knows there are hazards, as with any venture, in rats mg birds for sale "Feed costs money, my electric bill went up $40 a month You've got to be careful."he points out The hazards of the business were dramatically demonstrated to him one evening, when he came home and discovered 23 dead birds in the brooder are getting big. and are almost ready to be turn "They huddled." he said The ed Chuckars out for hunting automatic thermostat on the brooder malfunclMined, the heal did not come on. and htc birds piled on top of each other to keep w arm " It d« <\n 't take many of those to take the pnifit right out of it." Cantin says of the loss He also knows of a bird raiser near Mitchell who recently went broke, despite having 4.(XX) birds Speaking on fee hunting. Cantin says he expects some people locally to get into the business, especially when grass on the Conservation Reserve Program land gets taller, making ideal cover for pheasant and chuckars "I understand one guy is really looking hard at going into it in a big way " Cantin is the first to admit he doesn't know everything about rais ing game birds, and is still learning For example he found that a special Cantin of Heppner shows brooder in which game birds game bird food he bought was too are Merlin kept after hatching Cantin has started a new business, big and had to be ground down 'aising chuckars and pheasant on his ranch on Hinton Creek before the birds could get it Also, in November he is making fire a trip to California, where he will Laundry learn how to sex the birds "I keep Cause of a Thursday evening fire Forrie Hurkcnbine said Hu* tire learning, picking up a little here, and at the laundromat in Heppner is department was called when a dryer a little there." he savs undetermined. Heppner Fire Chief lull <U towels and aprons caught fire 3 5 5 5 5 5 S t5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 ^ and begun to fill the room with smoke The load of laundry was un salvageable, he said, but neither the dryer nor the building was damaged The fire department used Us special fans to remove smoke from the building. All the dryers were in perfect working order Friday morning when Heppner Nor-Gas checked them at length, the fire chief said only casualty in ENTRY BLANK NAME ADDRESS PHONE Just fill out this entry from and deposit it at the Morrow County Grain Growers in Lexington ROUND STOCK TANK 1 1 /3 2 X 4 8 " Welded seams, Corrugated for Strength : l e c t r ic f e n c e w ir e ’/« Mile 17 GA. $749 CENEX Economy Solid State Fencer $ 3 9 95 K i u T Sltlf 'i ' mj s 1? VN ins trivia contest Marion McMillan was last week's winner ol the Charlie's Pizza/Hepp ner Gazette I lines trivia contest Marion correctly answered that the character who played Wally Cleaver in the old "Leave it to Beaver" series was Tony Dow Marion has won a large pizza and pilchci ol |x>p at either Charlie's Piz /a m Heppner or Hemnslon. You have a chance to win a pizza too. but you must enter 17ns week's question is What was the date of the first manned landing on the moon? It you think you know the answer just use- (lie entry blank in this week's paper, ot pick up an entry blank at either Charlie's Pizza in Heppner. or the Heppner Gazette Times. 6 Ft, Round Denim Boot Cut $9995 100\ Cotton FI PmmH »1510 M by Dakota Mens S12.95-Boys S10.95 BUCKETS & TUBS COUNT ON CENEX FOR YOUR GRASS SEED C.R.P. $795 filler 18 qt Rubber Pail Miller All Purposc$R 4 9 Feed Tub price and availability call Dick, our seed representative, at Morrow County Grain Growers 20 lb Refiliabjei • Blue Color • Rope In Hem e Rust Proof Grommets Every 3 Feet 8x10 »3.29 12x16 7.99 16x20 13.29 20x40 .............................. 32.99 For PROPANE CYLINDER 5 1 9 95r Cc ■ WEED BURNER s39 RED DRAGON Torch Kit VT3 GARDNER'S 951 193 N, Main, Heooner Tubular Steel GATE . Crain Phon« 919-1221 - U U V V M t M t t t u t t j n t M VX tM H t t t t m County [Growers 1 800-45? 7396 LEXINGTON. OREGON 97139 I L U V » t » X t M t INC. 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