The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[Ashdoes]

We just hooked up our rain water barrel to a hose to chicken coop and attached a faucet. Now watering the chicky-poos with rain water.

We're going to be doing the same thing. How long is your hose from the barrel to the coop?

 

[bbsnooks]

Ok.. very excited.. got chicks in..
fed / watered/ napped / and .. suprise worm feeding..
oh man.. I wont have to train these chickies.. so fun..
I'm now under stand .. someone's tag line say's they dont have chicks.. they have little velosaraptors.. ( cant spell)
I think there little feet look alot like meal worms.. .. maybe that's why they peck at the feet.. ?
I placed an order but i think i under ordered.. 8000 for building up quantity for winter time..
but this is so fun.. .. and the keep away.. <grin>

I made a big mistake tho.. I was so concerned about getting them a drink.. - showing the waterer that i forgot to count.. its impossible now..

 

[SallyinIndiana]

Quote: Ohh good point. Mine died I think because a child touched the knob and the incubator got up to 103.5 for at least 30 minutes.

Quote:
Thanks, that is good to know, it makes the genesis seem that much cheaper.

 

[aoxa]

Update for the chicks they all still seem to be doing well. I placed newspaper on top of the shavings as I had shavings in there at first. They seem to be eating the food I gave them but only a few like eating it from the feeder with holes. I oppenned it up first for them to know food was in it and they ate it and walked in it after a bit I shooed them away closed it and a few ate from it. Im not sure yet if they all are eating from it closed.

Justine I did find the red feeder you sent me. It was left on top of Mr.Bennets(Blue tongue skink) Cage.It gives me two of them so i can alternate them every day for cleaning

Good!

The last one is doing really well, and I hope she has friends (ducks) hatched when I get home!

 

[smccuen]

She is a pullet..if I tell you not to worry..will you worry any way?

Pullets are just starting and not hens yet.
Think of it this way..I know this is weird, but..try to think of it the same..

A young girl just sexually developing and starts menses. Some times she is normal, sometimes she is not..nothing is wrong, she is just growing up and maturing. Eventually most of the time things start working like clock work after she has been in menses for a full year..the same with a chickens.

That's right. Makes perfect sense. And you can see the same irregularities as a woman goes into menopause. By the time you've worried yourself silly the "problem" has resolved itself.

 

[armorfirelady]

Quote: I was also thinking of doing this. Do you have pictures of the set up also?

 

[farmerfogg]

Our daytime highs this week range from mid 60's to low 80's. Nighttime temps range from 49° to 63°.

Our chicks are 5 weeks old now. At what point can I put them out for good? There will not be a heat lamp outside.

 

[Leahs Mom]

On the rain barrels - how do you keep the water fresh over time? One of the reasons that ships used to carry alcohol was that the water would go bad over time and couldn't be used for drinking. So...wondering how long before the water is not useable for drinking?

 

[Kassaundra]

On the henbit plants, I just learned that was their name this last week or two, when I first posted the pics to another thread, I thought they were clover and labeled them as such. Then a fellow byc'er let me know what they really were. I looked them up and found out they were edible, so I was going to try them, but then read further that they tasted like grass and figured I wasn't that hungry. lol

 

[armorfirelady]

On the rain barrels - how do you keep the water fresh over time? One of the reasons that ships used to carry alcohol was that the water would go bad over time and couldn't be used for drinking. So...wondering how long before the water is not useable for drinking?

I only used it in the past for watering the garden......but I was thinking some ACV or a little bleach would keep it cleaner?

I wouldnt use it soley for the hens since its a 55 gallon drum. I have a tap onit so would just fill a bucket to fill the hens PVC waterer