Chickens 101, questions about chickens, start here!!! (Page 3 of 12)
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I asked my wife to pick out a coop from backyardchickens.com. She came up with this one Uber Fancy Coop. I think she is testing my will to have chickens. 
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It is necessary for righteous citizens, personally, to be always prepared to successfully, physically, and unapologetically repel criminal violence.
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John Farnam
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Originally Posted By Dragracer_Rob: I asked my wife to pick out a coop from backyardchickens.com. She came up with this one Uber Fancy Coop. I think she is testing my will to have chickens. Wow! That's an awesome coop! |
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Originally Posted By Dragracer_Rob:
I asked my wife to pick out a coop from backyardchickens.com. She came up with this one Uber Fancy Coop. I think she is testing my will to have chickens. wow. that's more work than i'm willing to put into a coop. i'd have to build a bunch of 'em or make it huge for our flock to fit. |
“A government, for protecting business only, is but a carcass, and soon falls by its own corruption and decay.” Amos Bronson Alcott
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Originally Posted By Feral: Thanks!Very nicely done. Please thank Mrs.BozemanMT for her work on this as it addresses just about everything the new chicken owner needs to know. I'm setting this thread to "no archive" status so it never drifts off to the archive. This will be a good resource for all the new chicken keepers who come along.  |
The right of the citizens to bear arms in defense of themselves and the State shall not be questioned. – Pennsylvania Constitution, Article 1, Section 21.
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RIP shawnofthedead
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Going to fight with the city in two weeks to allow us to have chickens. We'll see if we can get an exception made or better yet, change the current ordinance which lists chickens as livestock.
Talking to the planning/zoning admin, I got this: me: Why doesn't the town allow chickens? them: Where does it stop, once we allow chickens, people will want horses and cows! me: what? them: sorry, but it just won't happen. me: add me to the city council agenda on the next meeting date. them: go talk to the mayor, i am not even going to consider this. Well, called city hall, and they added me. Now, i just need to gather my resources of the larger cities around me that allow chickens and state my case for having them. |
ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ
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My son and I just framed out our coop today!
Were starting out with a simple tractor style and see how we like it. |
Luk 6:45 The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
Proud Member of Ranstad's Militia
Proud Member of Ranstad's Militia
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Originally Posted By ceadmin:
Going to fight with the city in two weeks to allow us to have chickens. We'll see if we can get an exception made or better yet, change the current ordinance which lists chickens as livestock. Talking to the planning/zoning admin, I got this: me: Why doesn't the town allow chickens? them: Where does it stop, once we allow chickens, people will want horses and cows! me: what? them: sorry, but it just won't happen. me: add me to the city council agenda on the next meeting date. them: go talk to the mayor, i am not even going to consider this. Well, called city hall, and they added me. Now, i just need to gather my resources of the larger cities around me that allow chickens and state my case for having them. Well went to the city council meeting, that was about as fun as thrusting bamboo under my fingernails. They gave just us an exception (we were fighting for an ordinance change) IF we can get signatures of agreeance from 100% of all neighbors within 200 feet of our property line to agree. That's about 16 signatures and I am pretty sure we could get 14 but not all so I think we won't be doing this. We were going to sell our house anyways so it looks like a good excuse to get sooner rather than later. |
ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ
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Originally Posted By Bearsfan:
My son and I just framed out our coop today!
Were starting out with a simple tractor style and see how we like it. Framed our suburban coop on sunday. Its kinda different then our old place since we have about a dozen neighbors int he area we had 1 before BUT its comming along well. Going to have 6 birds with plenty of room for a comfy life ( or 2 years till theur egg production falls off and they become soup) 
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I didn't do it.
You can't prove it.
The sheep are lieing!
You can't prove it.
The sheep are lieing!
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Originally Posted By ceadmin:
Originally Posted By ceadmin:
Going to fight with the city in two weeks to allow us to have chickens. We'll see if we can get an exception made or better yet, change the current ordinance which lists chickens as livestock. Talking to the planning/zoning admin, I got this: me: Why doesn't the town allow chickens? them: Where does it stop, once we allow chickens, people will want horses and cows! me: what? them: sorry, but it just won't happen. me: add me to the city council agenda on the next meeting date. them: go talk to the mayor, i am not even going to consider this. Well, called city hall, and they added me. Now, i just need to gather my resources of the larger cities around me that allow chickens and state my case for having them. Well went to the city council meeting, that was about as fun as thrusting bamboo under my fingernails. They gave just us an exception (we were fighting for an ordinance change) IF we can get signatures of agreeance from 100% of all neighbors within 200 feet of our property line to agree. That's about 16 signatures and I am pretty sure we could get 14 but not all so I think we won't be doing this. We were going to sell our house anyways so it looks like a good excuse to get sooner rather than later. THey tried that with us untill I started ranting about the 4 commercial businesses with in that area to us and they gave up. Bunch of old coots with nothing better to do then bust balls! |
I didn't do it.
You can't prove it.
The sheep are lieing!
You can't prove it.
The sheep are lieing!
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So, I am now 3 weeks into my chicken experiment and have a question.
My neighbors dog (now deceased... I mean missing) broke in and ate one of our chickens. I don't know the breed because the 6 adult chickens were given to us by a friend whose kids had lost interest. Here is a picture, its the striped one anyone know what breed it was? Also, if anyone can identify breed of the one in the middle and lower left I would appreciate it: 
Here are pictures of the chicks we got too, 12 Rhode island reds, 8 black broilers and 5 unknown males for warmth. 
this pic was about a week and a half ago, they aren't as cute now. they look kind of like zombies, half down half feathers, and twice the size they were in these pics. |
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Originally Posted By PATCH5: So, I am now 3 weeks into my chicken experiment and have a question. My neighbors dog (now deceased... I mean missing) broke in and ate one of our chickens. I don't know the breed because the 6 adult chickens were given to us by a friend whose kids had lost interest. Here is a picture, its the striped one anyone know what breed it was? Also, if anyone can identify breed of the one in the middle and lower left I would appreciate it: http://i577.photobucket.com/albums/ss218/darrellapp/homepics003.jpg Here are pictures of the chicks we got too, 12 Rhode island reds, 8 black broilers and 5 unknown males for warmth. http://i577.photobucket.com/albums/ss218/darrellapp/homepics004.jpg http://i577.photobucket.com/albums/ss218/darrellapp/homepics005.jpg http://i577.photobucket.com/albums/ss218/darrellapp/homepics006.jpg this pic was about a week and a half ago, they aren't as cute now. they look kind of like zombies, half down half feathers, and twice the size they were in these pics. The chicken youlost is called a barred rock. AKA plymouth rock. They are my personal favorites. |
Never, ever let another man bone your wife for any reason!
Originally posted by JT_26
Originally posted by JT_26
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Originally Posted By oregonblackrifle:
Originally Posted By PATCH5:
So, I am now 3 weeks into my chicken experiment and have a question. My neighbors dog (now deceased... I mean missing) broke in and ate one of our chickens. I don't know the breed because the 6 adult chickens were given to us by a friend whose kids had lost interest. Here is a picture, its the striped one anyone know what breed it was? Also, if anyone can identify breed of the one in the middle and lower left I would appreciate it: http://i577.photobucket.com/albums/ss218/darrellapp/homepics003.jpg Here are pictures of the chicks we got too, 12 Rhode island reds, 8 black broilers and 5 unknown males for warmth. http://i577.photobucket.com/albums/ss218/darrellapp/homepics004.jpg http://i577.photobucket.com/albums/ss218/darrellapp/homepics005.jpg http://i577.photobucket.com/albums/ss218/darrellapp/homepics006.jpg this pic was about a week and a half ago, they aren't as cute now. they look kind of like zombies, half down half feathers, and twice the size they were in these pics. The chicken youlost is called a barred rock. AKA plymouth rock. They are my personal favorites. Thanks! |
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Originally Posted By oregonblackrifle:
Originally Posted By PATCH5:
So, I am now 3 weeks into my chicken experiment and have a question. My neighbors dog (now deceased... I mean missing) broke in and ate one of our chickens. I don't know the breed because the 6 adult chickens were given to us by a friend whose kids had lost interest. Here is a picture, its the striped one anyone know what breed it was? Also, if anyone can identify breed of the one in the middle and lower left I would appreciate it: http://i577.photobucket.com/albums/ss218/darrellapp/homepics003.jpg Here are pictures of the chicks we got too, 12 Rhode island reds, 8 black broilers and 5 unknown males for warmth. http://i577.photobucket.com/albums/ss218/darrellapp/homepics004.jpg http://i577.photobucket.com/albums/ss218/darrellapp/homepics005.jpg http://i577.photobucket.com/albums/ss218/darrellapp/homepics006.jpg this pic was about a week and a half ago, they aren't as cute now. they look kind of like zombies, half down half feathers, and twice the size they were in these pics. The chicken youlost is called a barred rock. AKA plymouth rock. They are my personal favorites. Middle and lower left look like Ameraucanas. Do you get any bluish/greenish eggs? The two in the back are ducks 
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Ameraucanas are often confused with Easter eggers. The blood lines have very much been tainted and finding pure breed of either is next to impossible from a commercial hatchery. Theese mutts if you will are called Easter eggers. You will still get colored eggs either way so thats awesome.
http://www.ameraucana.org/history.html Do some homework on them tho. If you do have true Ameraucana hens investing ina pure Roo might not be a bad idea. As far as chickens go selling fertilized eggs or chicks (if confirmed true) could put some coin in your pockets
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I didn't do it.
You can't prove it.
The sheep are lieing!
You can't prove it.
The sheep are lieing!
|
Originally Posted By midmo:
Originally Posted By oregonblackrifle:
Originally Posted By PATCH5:
So, I am now 3 weeks into my chicken experiment and have a question. My neighbors dog (now deceased... I mean missing) broke in and ate one of our chickens. I don't know the breed because the 6 adult chickens were given to us by a friend whose kids had lost interest. Here is a picture, its the striped one anyone know what breed it was? Also, if anyone can identify breed of the one in the middle and lower left I would appreciate it: http://i577.photobucket.com/albums/ss218/darrellapp/homepics003.jpg Here are pictures of the chicks we got too, 12 Rhode island reds, 8 black broilers and 5 unknown males for warmth. http://i577.photobucket.com/albums/ss218/darrellapp/homepics004.jpg http://i577.photobucket.com/albums/ss218/darrellapp/homepics005.jpg http://i577.photobucket.com/albums/ss218/darrellapp/homepics006.jpg this pic was about a week and a half ago, they aren't as cute now. they look kind of like zombies, half down half feathers, and twice the size they were in these pics. The chicken youlost is called a barred rock. AKA plymouth rock. They are my personal favorites. Middle and lower left look like Ameraucanas. Do you get any bluish/greenish eggs? The two in the back are ducks
That one is definately an Aracauna, but the one in the lower right ans is "striped" as he described is a Barred Rock (Dominiquer,Plymouth Rock) as was already stated. My personal favorite also. We have 8 left right now. We have been under attack by a trio of Great Horned Owls for over a week and they are mucking out my herd in a hurry. 
The wife has started another batch of chicks in the garage and should be kicked out in a week or so. (after the owls have moved on to greener pastures) |
"Fuck em. Prairie dogs had just as much time to evolve and develop high-powered rifles as we did...We win. "
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Well, I was going to get all Plymouth Rocks but after seeing them the kids wanted some different ones. So I ended up with..
2- Ameraucana 3- White Plymouth Rock 3- Buff Orpington They seem to be healthy and active so I'm just going to pray that they're all hens! (They say they are all Pullets but you know how that goes) 
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Luk 6:45 The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
Proud Member of Ranstad's Militia
Proud Member of Ranstad's Militia
Here's a couple more pics I took today. They Are all doing well!
Nom, nom, nom! 
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Luk 6:45 The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
Proud Member of Ranstad's Militia
Proud Member of Ranstad's Militia
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Originally Posted By Gun_Crank:
Do the eggs get cleaned at all, or straight into the icebox? Please keep the pics coming. Depends. If you keep a clean coop and clean nest boxes, generally there's no problem in just bringing them right in. A moistened paper towel takes care of minor goop here and there if needed. You don't eat the shells, after all, and the inside of an egg is essentially sterile. If an egg's really dirty, though - either from rain/mud or just unsanitary conditions, I'd just pitch it (well, dog food in our case). Washing them aggressively removes a natural protective coating that helps to preserve the eggs. |
Almost three weeks old now and they are feathering nicely!
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Luk 6:45 The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
Proud Member of Ranstad's Militia
Proud Member of Ranstad's Militia
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Here's a pic at one month. They are getting big fast!
I have had to move them into a bigger brooder. I had them in a 45 gal. rubbermaid bin, I built a temporary one out of cardboard that is approximately 5'x2'x2'. I hope to get them outside in a couple of weeks. 
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Luk 6:45 The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
Proud Member of Ranstad's Militia
Proud Member of Ranstad's Militia
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I was just considering getting a hen or two (maybe even the smaller guinea hens), but neighbor considerations, as well as trying to figure out if having them is worth the money in feed, shelter and whatever they need inside the coop.
But apparently a family within a mile or two of me is fighting the local laws (or just trying to not get confronted) and are trying to live like people around here used to. I don't know if you guys will enjoy it or not, but here the video is: Miami Herald chicken-owning family (not really Miami) What do you guys think? It hits me that the clucking when they lay an egg will be what prevents a lot of us from being able to have them without the neighbors being up in arms. |
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Great idea for a thread! Thanks OP!
And here's a question for ya'! I was happily building my coop when a buddy asked where my building permit was! (I was thinking I wouldn't need one for a chicken coop!) Well, now my project has come to a screeching halt - and I'm unsure when I'll be able to get on it again - let alone when it'll be done! I'm wondering how old chickens (and turkeys) need to be in order to survive the fall/early winter. I'll be running power so I CAN provide a heat source. But, I don't suppose they'll be staying "cooped up" all the time! (sorry for the pun!) They'll NEED to get out into the yard . . . . right? If it's June till I can get 'er done and get my peeps, will it be too late? Thanks! (FWIW, the coop is off the ground, over-built /insulated (more like a home!) and will have a properly installed metal roof - lined inside with "radiant barrier" insulation. It'll also have three large, close-able & screened windows. The point being they'll have a nice, cozy coop to retreat into. Another quick question: How large/small should I make the openings for the birds to enter/exit the coop - so as little heat/coolness escapes as possible? Thanks! |
"In my many years I have come to a conclusion that one useless man is a shame, two is a law firm, and three or more is a congress." - John Adams (1735-1826)
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Former11Bravo - A possible to solution to the building permit question is to build a chicken tractor ( Google it ) They range in levels of complexity and size. Then you can claim it is not a "structure" but a garden cart or something similar. I am in the process of building one and will post pics in a few days.
Another resource you should check out is http://www.backyardchickens.com/ |
"The very atmosphere of firearms anywhere and everywhere restrains evil interference - they deserve a place of honor with all that's good"-- George Washington
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Two more shows about city-slickers having hens (you country boys stop the hatin'):
The first one, here, has an audio podcast that will eventually appear just above the picture of the chicken... I didn't have to download it, I just hit the 'play' button on the radio-looking-thing: podcast from a Radio station (WLRN) This family lives in the same town I do, so I'm facing having to keep my chickens inside (!) if I get them... that won't be happening (except for a hurricane, maybe). But thanks for the 'Chicken Tractor' ideas. The second 'show' is a wholly-different video of a MSNBC (?) television news story on some people up near New York City I think - it is at the bottom of that page that is linked above. |
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Originally Posted By Vly:
Former11Bravo - A possible to solution to the building permit question is to build a chicken tractor ( Google it ) They range in levels of complexity and size. Then you can claim it is not a "structure" but a garden cart or something similar. I am in the process of building one and will post pics in a few days. Another resource you should check out is http://www.backyardchickens.com/ That's pretty neat! Unfortunately, I've already got much of the structure built. I've got most everything framed and on footers. I've got my door, windows and roofing materials . . . So, changing everything at this point is out of the question. And finally, portability like that requires open spaces, of which I have few. Given the right circumstances, though, that seems a great way to go - and thanks! |
"In my many years I have come to a conclusion that one useless man is a shame, two is a law firm, and three or more is a congress." - John Adams (1735-1826)
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Originally Posted By Gun_Crank:
Thank you for the excellent post, and all of the good responses. I would really like to see some pictures. We had meat chickens when I was about 6 or 7 years old. The raccoons ate more of them than we did. I don't ever remember seeing any eggs. We live on 2.5 acres and I think I could build a small coup and a run. The only thing that I worry about is the ticks, we have more than our fair share. Is there any way to spray them or maybe a "frontline" type product for chickens? The chickens will get rid of the ticks for you. |
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So here's a dumb question, but i read the entire thread without seeing an answer:
Where's the best place to buy chicks, or green eggs, and what would one expect to pay for one? I assume different breeds = different prices. Off to teh googles, I go . . . |
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I just looked up the 'buying' question myself a few days ago.
I'm not sure if this is often the case, but a Western wear and Feed store down here sells them (I guess you order them). So check feed stores in your area (not western wear stores), and ask if they sell them or if they know someone who does. I found tons of 'hatcheries" when looking for the term 'hatchery' on Google, bu I want to deal with someone in my vicinity to go talk to if and when I do buy them. So, if I were you, I'd look in your local yellow pages for a feed store. |
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I bought mine from Farm&Fleet. Many feed stores, Tractor Supply Co. have them.
You can order them online from hatcheries also. http://www.cacklehatchery.com/ http://www.mypetchicken.com/catalog/Day-Old-Baby-Chicks-c36.aspx |
Luk 6:45 The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.
Proud Member of Ranstad's Militia
Proud Member of Ranstad's Militia
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Originally Posted By midmo:
Just a show-and-tell... got this year's meat chickens delivered/set up today: http://i1010.photobucket.com/albums/af227/mid_mo/chicks2.jpg Sorry about the wire... funny how something like that stands out a lot more in pics than in real life... I'd really like it if you posted more pics/explained your process. Especially pics of the coop and such would be appreciated
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Death good!! But first? Cheech.
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Originally Posted By MotorMouth: I bought mine from the local Agway store, but have also seen many ads on Craigslist under the "farm+garden" section for both chicks and adult birds. Day old chicks are the cheapest - I paid $2.59 per chick. As they get older the price increases.... 3 - 5 week olds range about $4 - $5, but prices do vary based on breed and locality etc.So here's a dumb question, but i read the entire thread without seeing an answer: Where's the best place to buy chicks, or green eggs, and what would one expect to pay for one? I assume different breeds = different prices. Off to teh googles, I go . . . |
"The very atmosphere of firearms anywhere and everywhere restrains evil interference - they deserve a place of honor with all that's good"-- George Washington
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Baby Chicks
Chicken Plucker More Baby Chicks |
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Originally Posted By Slavac:
Originally Posted By midmo:
Just a show-and-tell... got this year's meat chickens delivered/set up today: http://i1010.photobucket.com/albums/af227/mid_mo/chicks2.jpg Sorry about the wire... funny how something like that stands out a lot more in pics than in real life... I'd really like it if you posted more pics/explained your process. Especially pics of the coop and such would be appreciated Sorry for the lag time... guess this thread slpped by me for a couple of days! Our coop isn't anything special, an 8x12 pole/stick-framed shed-type building we built for the purpose: 
The area in front of the coop is fenced in with chain-link dog kennel panels. We try to pick those up whenever we see somebody selling/giving away a dog pen (happens pretty often! We have like 14 10x6 or 10x12 panels now, for probably around $200). In the pic the area is planted in corn - we switch between letting the chickens run, and planting a garden crop in whatever area the chickens aren't that year. The dog panels let us move the run around however we want - in this case it took a dogleg 6' in front of the coop and went back towards the treeline. Can't see it in the pic, but it extends about 30' x 15' or so in the background. This year the chickens are back out in front again (where the corn was last year), and we're letting last year's run area rest. Most of the time, the only ones that are confined to the coop/run are the ones we're trying to control breeding with - the rest just free-range during the day Note the gardens are fenced... they'll eat beans and tomatoes right off of the plants if they can get to 'em. You can just make out the white water tank directly behind the coop. This is a once-new sprayer tank, hooked up to automatic waterers. We actually have the main coop/run area and a couple of smaller, fenced breeding/isolation pens directly behind the coop, so the auto-watering is nice. We have to fill it about once a week, but that's better than every day! This setup is for the laying hens, and for a few heirloom breeds, dark egg layers that my wife is breeding for sale. The meat chickens don't get anything so fancy. They'll go from the stock tank set up pictured earlier, to a couple of temporary-fenced areas that we move to various places around the property. We just use green plastic fencing and 3' steel posts - can tear it down and put it up in a new area in about an hour. So they are pretty much pasture-raised, plus some supplemental feeding. For housing at night we built a couple of, well, um, plywood boxes with a hole in them, about 4'x6'x2'. They go in every night and we slap a piece of plywood over the hole. High tech, eh? All told, I'm guessing we have about 40 laying hens, four or five different roosters, the 50 meat chickens, and five turkeys. |
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Very nice setup you have there!
The space looks great. Here is my "The Chicken House" thread in the DIY section. Check it out if you're interesting in posting up your setup! Here are a few pics from that thread I posted (all slightly outdated now...): 
I have the following chickens (now about 4 weeks old) at the moment: - (1) Rhode Island Red - (2) Americana/Araucana (Easter Eggers) - (1) Black Japanese (banty) I believe - (1) Golden Comet pullet I believe - (1) Dominique - (1) Speckled Sussex - (1) Blue Silkie (banty) - (2) White Silkies (banty) - (1) Black Cochin (banty) - (1) White Cochin (banty) These can be seen in detail on my thread. |
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Originally Posted By mj1angier:
Here are our chicks at 3 weeks. They are in the fugly stage- not fluff or feathers. Our boarder collie is trying to heard them already. http://i227.photobucket.com/albums/dd178/mj1angier/006-3.jpg What breed of chicks are those? |
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