Recent content by Sally Winter-Swink

Thank you. We have an abundance of dry beans so I thought I'd ask. Interestingly, Wikipedia is referring to people, not chickens. I don't know anyone who eats uncooked dry beans! Haha!

I understand the 'why' of dry beans. The beans swell in their crop. But is it okay to give them ground beans? I grind corn, sunflowers, and millet and would like to add come dried beans for protein. The mix comes out like coarse cornmeal. Any advice?

No helpful answer but a related question. I have 12 hens and one rooster. They are enclosed in a 50' x 20' run with a coop in the middle. Sadly they cannot free range because of a neighbor's dog. (He killed my last flock.) The run is bare dirt because whenever I try to grow poultry-friendly...

We have mice in our house, in our shed, and there are mouse holes in our chicken run. Agh! We have an electronic mousetrap in the house and I take the dead mousies to the chickens. They actually fight over who gets them! A little meat is good for them, it appears. I hope the birds snatch the...

Unfortunately once a dog kills or injures a chicken it will do it again. You'll either need to rehome the dog (tell the new owner about the issue) or secure your flock in a strong pen/run. My free-range flock has to be secured now, thanks to our neighbor's dog. The flock isn't happy, but they...

That's probably the work of a dog. We had it happen, lost five of our seven RIRs. Hens will suffer heart attacks from trauma. They don't have to be torn up. One of our survivors hid and was okay but did not lay for six weeks. The other survivor was badly hurt but made it. (BTW, the dog came back...

I don't know where you live, but the clear polycarbonate roof may be sweltering in the summertime. I'd recommend a solid roof over part and bird netting or chicken wire over the rest.

I use wheat straw in the coop, the nesting boxes, and the covered run, though my flock lives in their fenced uncovered yard and free ranging much of the time. I buy one of those huge bales from a local farmer and it lasts almost a year. I've never had a problem with the birds eating it, but they...

I have one lone Rhode Island Red remaining from my original 10 (thanks to a snake and a dog attack). Betty is four years old and is now the grandmother of the flock, with 12 younger hens. I keep her around because she is calm, patient with the spring chicks who are now laying, and hangs out with...

I lost five RIRs last December in a dog attack. It was a husky. They kill for the fun of it, unlike coyotes that kill for food. Your picture looks like a dog attack. BTW, we live in a rural no-leash area, but were informed by sheriff's deputy we can protect our livestock. The dog is no longer a...

Find someone with a shotgun! That's what we did when one killed three of our pullets.

I'm working on integrating some two month old sex-linked pullets with my two year old RIR hens. It was rocky but is improving. I now notice that the pullets prefer the hens' layer feed to their chick feed. I read online that pullets do not need layer feed until they are 18 weeks old. Is eating...

We got our coop and run for free on a local listing and beefed it up a bit. Try searching for chicken coop or used shed on Facebook Marketplace. I've seen a few that were free if you move it. Another idea - Craigslist in your area.

Just a thought... Try searching for used sheds or chicken coops on Facebook Marketplace. I've seen a few that were free if you move it. Craig's List is another place to look.