We are brand new at this chicken thing….

[KJHorton]

I have wanted to do this for years and I’m really loving these babies and have become attached. I’m not sure if this is a good thing lol… we got them as tiny little fluff balls and put them in giant plastic bins and placed the bins inside dog crates with heat of course and put them in our bathroom. We had shavings in the bins for bedding. Once they were totally feathered and it was staying around 50-60 degrees at night we began to move them to the beautiful coop that my husband built.
We decided on sand to be the floor of the run and currently still have shavings in the coop (which is my next decision bc I’ve seen where some use the sand inside the coop as well and we are about to embark on a NC summer.) I do leave the food and water in the coop at night as this is what they are used to and I am making gradual changes with them. (I’ve never been a chicken mom before only a human, dog, cat and pig mom…)
The Brahmas we wanted unfortunately were not ready at the same time as the rest of our flock so there is a few weeks age gap and I’m nervous to put them together. My husband went into tractor supply to get chicken wire a few weeks ago and came out with two baby turkeys who have since then imprinted on him and he is now their mommy. Turkeys still come into the bathroom at night as Jeff has really assumed the mother roll. We sit with the birds some each day and allow these turkeys to be with the older birds. The older birds chase and peck and the turkeys jump in their mommy’s lap (my husband lol) so it confirms things I’ve read about introducing new birds. I’m open to suggestions on this!!
So currently we have a little coop inside our big coop so the birds can see and smell one another.
The older flock seem to all get along and I want this to be a permanent thing. I have had my husband make the coop so that I have power and am able to use the heat if need be. Is this a good or bad idea? They are still babies and we have a 37 degree night coming tomorrow (typical of NC springtime) Brahmas are younger so I definitely am going to use heat for them… I also have a camera on the run itself as well as inside each coop which I check often to make sure everyone is ok… I may be over doing it but this is what feels right to me
The dogs have taught us that our next endeavor is to put another fence around the coop itself to ensure they can still be unsupervised in their own back yard. Jeff built a raised bed for me around the perimeter of the coop after digging a trench a few feet out and burying the first layer of chicken wire. (He put two layers of wire on the coop as at first we couldn’t find the rabbit wire with the tiny holes.) This raised bed serves dual purpose maybe more. It feels like it’s another barrier on anything trying to dig to get inside the coop as well as gives me my vegetable garden.
Well my precious German Shepard (1 year old)
Decided she wanted to see what was down in the garden and yes he did make a fence around the garden. She took it down too. She Moves fast. I Love her love my coop love my chicks and turkeys love my husband.

Please share your experience on sand or not sand inside the coop, introducing new birds, and heat inside the coop or not…

Thank you,
Kerri

 

[igorsMistress]

Welcome to BYC! No two flocks or their keepers are the same, so whatever works for you and keeps the birds healthy is what works.

Beautiful place there! Looking forward to seeing you around.

 

[RcoM]

I have wanted to do this for years and I’m really loving these babies and have become attached. I’m not sure if this is a good thing lol… we got them as tiny little fluff balls and put them in giant plastic bins and placed the bins inside dog crates with heat of course and put them in our bathroom. We had shavings in the bins for bedding. Once they were totally feathered and it was staying around 50-60 degrees at night we began to move them to the beautiful coop that my husband built.
We decided on sand to be the floor of the run and currently still have shavings in the coop (which is my next decision bc I’ve seen where some use the sand inside the coop as well and we are about to embark on a NC summer.) I do leave the food and water in the coop at night as this is what they are used to and I am making gradual changes with them. (I’ve never been a chicken mom before only a human, dog, cat and pig mom…)
The Brahmas we wanted unfortunately were not ready at the same time as the rest of our flock so there is a few weeks age gap and I’m nervous to put them together. My husband went into tractor supply to get chicken wire a few weeks ago and came out with two baby turkeys who have since then imprinted on him and he is now their mommy. Turkeys still come into the bathroom at night as Jeff has really assumed the mother roll. We sit with the birds some each day and allow these turkeys to be with the older birds. The older birds chase and peck and the turkeys jump in their mommy’s lap (my husband lol) so it confirms things I’ve read about introducing new birds. I’m open to suggestions on this!!
So currently we have a little coop inside our big coop so the birds can see and smell one another.
The older flock seem to all get along and I want this to be a permanent thing. I have had my husband make the coop so that I have power and am able to use the heat if need be. Is this a good or bad idea? They are still babies and we have a 37 degree night coming tomorrow (typical of NC springtime) Brahmas are younger so I definitely am going to use heat for them… I also have a camera on the run itself as well as inside each coop which I check often to make sure everyone is ok… I may be over doing it but this is what feels right to me
The dogs have taught us that our next endeavor is to put another fence around the coop itself to ensure they can still be unsupervised in their own back yard. Jeff built a raised bed for me around the perimeter of the coop after digging a trench a few feet out and burying the first layer of chicken wire. (He put two layers of wire on the coop as at first we couldn’t find the rabbit wire with the tiny holes.) This raised bed serves dual purpose maybe more. It feels like it’s another barrier on anything trying to dig to get inside the coop as well as gives me my vegetable garden.
Well my precious German Shepard (1 year old)
Decided she wanted to see what was down in the garden and yes he did make a fence around the garden. She took it down too. She Moves fast. I Love her love my coop love my chicks and turkeys love my husband.

Please share your experience on sand or not sand inside the coop, introducing new birds, and heat inside the coop or not…

Thank you,
Kerri

Kerry, we totally relate to your obsession! I had 6 kids and the youngest is now 12. Hence new baby chicks fill that gap. You sound like you are doing a great job! I would watch your dogs though as it sounds like they weren’t brought up with the chicks. If they can find a way to conquer and kill, they probably will- when you’re not looking. The thrill of the chase is often too much to resist. I just want to prevent you from heartache where possible.

 

[RcoM]

My experience on mixing birds is that younger ones adjust to each other better.
Do it gradually- as you are.

My experience is with deep straw in nest boxes. I love to reuse it on the garden.

I have seen sand used. It has to be coarse or at least medium grain to avoid inhalation I have read. It also has to have the poo picked/shovelled out and totally renewed annually. It has to be kept dry, too as it take quite some time to drain and dry out. It may be colder in winter underfoot if that’s a consideration? Those are my thoughts at present.

 

[KJHorton]

Kerry, we totally relate to your obsession! I had 6 kids and the youngest is now 12. Hence new baby chicks fill that gap. You sound like you are doing a great job! I would watch your dogs though as it sounds like they weren’t brought up with the chicks. If they can find a way to conquer and kill, they probably will- when you’re not looking. The thrill of the chase is often too much to resist. I just want to prevent you from heartache where possible.

Oh yes you are right
We have actually had to put up a seperation fence inside our fenced backyard lol
The chicks don’t leave the run and are separated from the dogs at all times but this second fence keeps the dogs from being able to reach the enclosure at all!!

 

[KJHorton]

My experience on mixing birds is that younger ones adjust to each other better.
Do it gradually- as you are.

My experience is with deep straw in nest boxes. I love to reuse it on the garden.

I have seen sand used. It has to be coarse or at least medium grain to avoid inhalation I have read. It also has to have the poo picked/shovelled out and totally renewed annually. It has to be kept dry, too as it take quite some time to drain and dry out. It may be colder in winter underfoot if that’s a consideration? Those are my thoughts at present.

I allowed the slightly younger chicks to come out yesterday and mingle with the others
The original flock didn’t pay them much attention however the turkeys who used to be bullied by the original flock have turned into bullies themselves….
So the mixing was short lived and the younger girls went back into their coop willingly lol. I just want them all to get along and love each other

 

[realsis]

Wow love the set up you made! Looks Great! My hubby built my coop an run around 12 years ago. I had to take my old run down this year but the coop itself is still good. I got a new run this year. Attached it to my old coop. It's so hot where I live the run has to be fitted with misters for the birds. The misters are very hard on the wood and wire. This time the run is all metal where I can replace the wire when needed.

 

[KJHorton]

Wow love the set up you made! Looks Great! My hubby built my coop a run around 12 years ago. I had to take my old run down this year but the coop itself is still good. I got a new run this year. Attached it to my old coop. It's so hot where I live the run has to be fitted with misters for the birds. The misters are very hard on the wood and wire. This time the run is all metal where I can replace the wire when needed.

I would live to see a picture