Recent content by berkeleyjack

I have two leghorns (one white, one brown) and they are both very, very loud. They were quiet as chicks and as adolescents, but now that they're laying both of them screech their heads off for up to an hour in the morning when they're in a laying mood. They've also both gotten broody and...

I have a white leghorn hen who does the same thing. Every morning for about 15-30 minutes before she lays and egg she walks all around the yard and coop screeching her head off. Awk. Awk. Awk! Awk! AWK! AWK! AWK! AWK AAAAAWK! Once she settles down to lay she's pretty quiet, and she doesn't...

Quote: Ha ha! My baby chicks were sneezing this morning and I was a little worried since it was a little cold last night (even with the heat lamp on) but they were sneezing right after I gave them some oatmeal so I bet that's what it was. Thanks for posting!

My two week old girls also go crazy for plain oatmeal. I wouldn't suggest the 1-minute or flavored kinds, but they really like plain old Quaker rolled oats. I give them a small handful in the morning when I go out to check on them or whenever I'm trying to socialize them.

If you want to build one, you could try something like this: https://www.backyardchickens.com/web/viewblog.php?id=61-homemade-wood-chicken-feeder I'm planning on making one of these out of some scraps I have left from building my coop.

Maybe a white Leghorn? I have some Leghorns and some Plymouth Rocks, and the Leghorns are definitely growing fastest.

I ordered mine from MyPetChicken recently, and they still have a few batches left for the year. They shipped very quickly and are all in great condition. Lively birds, and I was able to get four different types of hen which was important to me since I want a colorful flock. If you're getting...

Thanks for the reply! We've still got a heat lamp on in the henhouse 24/7, but may need to set it to a timer to shut it off during the hottest part of the day. We ended up with temps over 110 degrees in the afternoon recently and that seems too hot for our little girls.

2 weeks old. 6 chicks. I built the Garden Coop, so the henhouse I'm keeping them in is about 3'wide x 6' deep x 4' tall. I didn't put the nesting boxes in yet, so right now all that's in the henhouse is the chicks, a feeder, a nipple watering system, a heat lamp, and some branches for them to...

sunny & the 5 egg layers : Is it just every few poops that are runny? It could be cecal poop which is completely normal. Here is a poop chart to compare: http://www.chat.allotment.org.uk/index.php?topic=17568.0 Good Luck! WOW! Thank you so much for posting the chart! I've been feeding my...

I've been using the nesting part of my coop as my brooding box, and I'm a little worried about overcrowding as well. No real problems yet, but as my girls are getting bigger I'm getting a little concerned. How old should they be before I let them out into the run? Temperatures here are highs in...

I love the modifications you made to the design, especially the additional cinder blocks all the way around the bottom. I did mine more or less directly according to the instructions, and now that I'm done there are a lot of small changes I wish I'd made. Oh well!

I don't have plans for an all-weather coop (doesn't snow here) but you should look for something with double walls. Having outer and inner walls gives you an insulating layer of air that helps keep the cold out, and if you think it will get really cold you can shove some of that cheap pink...

I run a long extension cord out to my coop, which is attached to a shorter 3-outlet outdoor extension cord using one of those waterproof thingies you had in your first post. The three-outlet cord is similar to this one...

I use a corded light socket and a cheap electrical timer that I bought from IKEA for about $6 each. I just have a normal bulb in there right now. You could probably use Christmas lights, but I would suggest using the LED ones. LED bulbs can't shatter (no glass) so even if the chickens peck at...