From SW France

[Nick16]

Hi
I am so new to chickens that I am not familiar with breeds, but have just got 7 birds, 4 of which are a year old, one of 3 months, and 2 which are 6 weeks old. I am advised to keep the 2,little ones in the coop for another month.
We have managed 3 eggs in the first weeks. I don't know what to expect during this settling in period.
The coop is built of breeze block, and I was thinking about painting it inside to brighten it up. ANY SUGGESTIONS WELCOME.
We do have a couple of small terrier dogs, and at present, we are keeping them separate, but do you think introducing them will bra problem?
Any hints as to keeping them healthy, interested ( ? ) again would be appreciated.
Regards
Nick16

 

[TwoCrows]

Hello there and welcome to BYC!

So glad you could join our community!

As for your birds you are unsure of the breed, you can post pics in our What Breed and Gender section for help with the breeds...https://www.backyardchickens.com/f/15/what-breed-or-gender-is-this

You will definitely want to keep chicks warm until they are fully feathered or sometime around 5 to 6 weeks of age. Keep lowering your heat 5 degrees each week, having started at 90 degrees for day olds, and by the time they are 5 or 6 weeks they should be ready to head out to the coop.

Do not mix chicks in with older birds. Wait until chicks are at least 3 months or more before mixing. You will want to keep the new birds in an enclosure for about 3 or 4 weeks before mixing so everybody sees, nobody touches. This will help lessen the aggression. Then put out more food and water stations for the newly mixed in birds. The older flock can guard these areas and starve out the new birds. It can take months for new birds to really get integrated into a new flock.

I am not sure what breeze block is, but you can always paint the inside of your coop. Just make sure to let it all air off before keeping the chickens inside.

Dogs and chickens rarely go together. Unfortunately, most dogs see chickens as dinner. So be VERY careful with the dogs around your birds. Lots of threads started in our emergency section about "how my dogs killed my chickens".

Good luck on this new journey Nick and if you have any further questions, feel free to ask around the forums.

Welcome to our flock!

 

[drumstick diva]

Bonjour Nick, nice to meet you. The best way to have dogs and chickens is to NEVER LET THEM MEET. Dogs + chickens = dead chickens. You never hear of a chicken killing a dog. I've been shocked to hear that Chihuahuas, doxies, yorkies as well as other breeds are frequent chicken killers. Not eating them just, considering it their mission in life, to destroy them.

 

[BantamFan4Life]

Welcome to BYC! I'm glad you joined us!

 

[Nick16]

Where we live in France, we suffer from foxes. Not too much of a problem during the day, but need to shut them up at night. Is there an easy way to get the birds into their coop, especially if we are going out early evening, and it's a bit too early for their early lock up.
As explained its all very new to me, as well as the birds, so apologies if I seem a bit green.