Maine - Page 4

any takers on a free rooster? he is a red sex link.  he has been mostly non agressive to me, but recently started to think he's a tuff guy.  my lil daughter is scared of him.  I am between houlton and millinocket !!!

UPDATE: Rudy the roo is now in a better place !!!

Hello Mainers!

I'm located in Lebanon, Maine, right on the border of Southern NH. 
This is my first posting, and my first year as a chicken owner/lover and I became a chicken addict in August 2009 when the chicks came home.  That's right, I too am addicted.  It's really nice to see that there are others like me!  I can't tell you how helpful BYC Forum has been for me.  It has prepared me for the unknown (unknown to me!) and given me a lot of excellent advice (through other postings).   Although I have read a couple of chicken care books, they never prepare you for the unexpected.

I started out small with four RIRs.  They are wonderful pets as well as great egglayers!  I can count on 3 eggs, sometimes 4 eggs a day from them and they're only 24 weeks old, and have been laying since 20 weeks!  I'm so proud of them   Oh, and did I mention one of them lays double yolks at least 3x a week!  BIG egg for such a young bird!

My coop is not insulated.  I have a heated waterer and keep a 60 Watt bulb on day and night.  It's a small coop so the temp. inside is warmer than outside, but not too warm so they stay acclamated to the cold weather.  They seem very happy and and it shows with egg production!

I'm so happy to hear there are other Mainers here that think its worth fighting the cold and snow for your chickies !   

Thanks again for all the great threads!  ~ Kim

Hi there! I'm from Maine too, in Gorham. This is a great place for information!  I don't have any chickens yet, but I am planning and plotting for spring. I'm hoping to be able to find bantams of Ameraucanas, Wyandottes and Orpingtons.

can i mix different breeds together? i would like to try some bantams.  now i have 8 hens, they are red sex links.  someone recommended them to me for the cold weather climate we have and they have not dissapointed.  since they started laying, they each lay an egg a day, give or take.  i did have to cull the rooster tho. he was getting mean.  the sexlinks have done fine so far in the cold northern maine climate.

cb

Who gets a sexlinked rooster?  I though the whole point was that you could easily get all pullets. 

I've got a nine month old Delaware rooster that has never been aggressive...free to good home.  He has done his job and produced some offspring, so I don't need him anymore.  Reality of life as livestock.  I also have a few Delaware pullets, so I could put together a trio for someone who is interested in raising Delawares.  I would want some compensation for the pullets, but nothing unreasonable.

I'm in Standish.

Tim

PS Oh, yes, you can mix breeds.  Why not?  I know people who have mixes of standards and bantams that get along fine.

We're in Fairfield and planning our first flock this spring.  I want too many breeds!  If I can find a company that has it all, I want light brahmas, speckled sussex, ameraucanas, welsummer, barred rock, california white, maybe a chantecler, and some dark cornish for meat.  I can hardly wait for spring.

I tried raising meat birds with layers and had problems. Because of their different feed requirements, you will need seperate living quarters for them. Also, I was told that although a varied flock isn't usually a problem, with feathered leg birds like brahmas, the bare-legged birds might be agressive towards them and pluck their leg feathers. Good Luck

Wow, quite a few of us here in Gorham, go figure!  I'm in Gorham too, on my first year of raising chickens.  I have 5 Wyandottes, in a partially insulated coop, with a water heater.  I get 5 eggs a day usually,  way too many and we are giving them away to friends. 

My coop is 8x8, adjacent to a garage, so it has easy power.  There is a big cutout near the roof away from the roost, and there is plenty of ventilation- especially with the wind that usually blows up here.  I've stuck some foam insulation in front of it to redirect the air so there is movement, but not a breeze through the coop.  So far happy chickens, but we haven't had any 30 below days like we had last year.

We do plan to keep the meat birds and the layers separated, and we'll be insulating the coop, at least modestly.
I didn't know that other chickens may pick on the Brahmas.  They are the heaviest bird I plan to order, which may help.  I am also seeking out birds that don't have a reputation for being aggressive.  I'll have to do a little research.  Maybe I should reconsider on the Brahmas.  Everything is going to be an experiment this first year!

im in warren maine over by rockland thomaston. i have a flock of 22 standard egg layers my coop is a 10x12 gambrel style shed. i had built last winter for my flock.  its not insulated and they do just fine in the maine winter. i have buff orpingtons, gold comets, delawares, barred rocks, golden laced wyandottes, white rock rooster,