Sorry if this has already been asked and answered - please direct me to that thread if so.
I live in central Pennsylvania and use a horse stall for a coop for my chickens. I have sectioned off an area in another horse stall to brood out some chicks I got for free earlier this summer and would like to re-purpose it for Texan pioneers if possible and I have a few questions.
Are texan pioneers a cold hardy bird? We are seeing near 100 degrees this week, but come winter we see below freezing and even into the negatives for weeks/months, feet of snow....
The space I have is in the north east corner of the structure with a window at chest level on the eastern face, I think I read that they prefer to be on the south wall... Will this be a make or break issue?
I believe I read that they can't/don't fly, but are they climbers/roosters? Would I need to make ramps and ladders and roosting bars for them? If I did would they use them? Would they get bored without them and self-pluck like parrots?
There are many cross-beams in the structure and I was hoping to use them as the foundation for the nesting boxes, but most are not at ground level - this is an extension of the climbing question I guess...
I'm not looking to be a breeder, but how many mated pairs would I need to keep the gene pool decent?
I'd like to start with four pairs, what is a good square footage for them?
Assuming the answer to "do they climb?" is "yes", would it be a good idea to provide them space outside their window to get out of the coop structure for fresh air, sunlight and generic out of doors stuff during the day?
What is a good litter material for them? I use pine shavings in my chicken coop.
What is a good feed for them? I have 2 Tractor Supply's near me, but they obviously don't have "pigeon feed" on the shelf. Can I use scratch grain or wild bird seed or a combination or do they really need a specific diet that I can buy online? I'm mostly looking for squab production, but the mated pairs will effectively be pets.
Would they reside well with ornamental pigeons in the same coop?
Do they colony well or are they territorial? Does each pair need their own sectioned off space or will individual nesting boxes suffice?
Again, sorry if these have been asked before, please direct me to the answers if they have.
Silvester
I live in central Pennsylvania and use a horse stall for a coop for my chickens. I have sectioned off an area in another horse stall to brood out some chicks I got for free earlier this summer and would like to re-purpose it for Texan pioneers if possible and I have a few questions.
Are texan pioneers a cold hardy bird? We are seeing near 100 degrees this week, but come winter we see below freezing and even into the negatives for weeks/months, feet of snow....
The space I have is in the north east corner of the structure with a window at chest level on the eastern face, I think I read that they prefer to be on the south wall... Will this be a make or break issue?
I believe I read that they can't/don't fly, but are they climbers/roosters? Would I need to make ramps and ladders and roosting bars for them? If I did would they use them? Would they get bored without them and self-pluck like parrots?
There are many cross-beams in the structure and I was hoping to use them as the foundation for the nesting boxes, but most are not at ground level - this is an extension of the climbing question I guess...
I'm not looking to be a breeder, but how many mated pairs would I need to keep the gene pool decent?
I'd like to start with four pairs, what is a good square footage for them?
Assuming the answer to "do they climb?" is "yes", would it be a good idea to provide them space outside their window to get out of the coop structure for fresh air, sunlight and generic out of doors stuff during the day?
What is a good litter material for them? I use pine shavings in my chicken coop.
What is a good feed for them? I have 2 Tractor Supply's near me, but they obviously don't have "pigeon feed" on the shelf. Can I use scratch grain or wild bird seed or a combination or do they really need a specific diet that I can buy online? I'm mostly looking for squab production, but the mated pairs will effectively be pets.
Would they reside well with ornamental pigeons in the same coop?
Do they colony well or are they territorial? Does each pair need their own sectioned off space or will individual nesting boxes suffice?
Again, sorry if these have been asked before, please direct me to the answers if they have.
Silvester