Recent content by bajabirdbrain

  1. bajabirdbrain

    New coop

    We use sand in both the coop and run. Very easy to clean using a small slotted kitty litter shovel. With a solid roof over the run and clear plastic on the 2 sides to keep snow and rain out during the winter, all stays dry and comfy.
  2. bajabirdbrain

    wood or poly for winterizing duck hut

    We have used Dollar Tree clear shower curtains to keep rain/snow/wind out of run for years. I put some grommets on the plastic for attachment points. Easy to take down for good weather. I only need to cover 2 sides of the run due to wind patterns.
  3. bajabirdbrain

    Dog and chicken

    I tend to believe that training is required. Our Lab mix was trained NOT to chase anything but a feral cat, no deer, squirrels, bunnies, OR chickens Our current mini Labradoodle is the same. One of our chickens loves to jump onto my lap and joins Emma(the dog) for a scratch or two.
  4. bajabirdbrain

    Coop Cam!

    We have 3 Wyze cameras, one camera aimed at their roost, and another aimed at their nest boxes, and finally one more looking down their run. Interesting to see who roosts where and who sometimes lays an egg on the poop board. All in all, we love the cameras. When we have a chicken sitter for...
  5. bajabirdbrain

    Chick not roosting

    Put a ramp in.
  6. bajabirdbrain

    Are there anyways to deter foxes?

    I would just give the foxes something else to eat besides chicken! This was at our previous house in BC and BEFORE we had chickens.
  7. bajabirdbrain

    Winter insulation

    For that small of a cage clear plastic shower curtains should be fine. I went to Harbor Freight and bought a grommet kit which easily enables me to put grommets where I want to attach the curtain to the cage frame and to customize the size of the curtains used.
  8. bajabirdbrain

    Fencing under chicken run

    I put some "chicken wire" under the foundation, maybe a foot inside and 2 feet outside. This wire is too flimsy for long term protection. I had rats tunneling under and into the run. Very smart buggers, couldn't trap them so I had to resort to a pest control company with baited traps outside...
  9. bajabirdbrain

    Dust/ Dirt bath

    We have used equal amounts of peat moss and sand with some sifted wood ash added. No issues we are aware of and the girls seem to like it!
  10. bajabirdbrain

    Free ranging question…

    We let our 13 girls out for a supervised free ranging experience on a daily basis. Every afternoon they get out for about 2 hrs from their luxurious 10'x24' fully protected run. We try and have one of us outside with them as they move around the treed property. Since March of '17 we have lost...
  11. bajabirdbrain

    Ash from untreated wood for dust bath

    Our girls get a mixture of peat moss, sand, and wood ash placed in a small plastic swimming pool. Not sure where I got the "recipe" for this mixture but everybody seems happy.
  12. bajabirdbrain

    Coop Modification Recommendations

    Our one mistake when building our coop and run was just putting an apron of chicken wire under paver foundation to prevent digging under. First, the chicken wire is too flimsy and is easily broken. Our invasive problem was rats. They managed to tunnel and find small places where the 1/2"...
  13. bajabirdbrain

    Dusty Run- Advice?

    Might be a concept you are not familiar with. The chicken's poop is picked up individually, and the number of pick ups depends on how many chickens there are. One does not have to pick up the ENTIRE run; surface, only where there is a poop. For, hopefully the last time, it takes literally 2...
  14. bajabirdbrain

    Dusty Run- Advice?

    Never having to clean your run sounds to me that ALL the poop has remained there? What happens to the poop? Magically disappears? 2 minutes every day or two with a slotted shovel and the poop is removed from the run, forever.
  15. bajabirdbrain

    Dusty Run- Advice?

    We just buy sand at a local nursery. Since our run is covered, the sun only hits the sand in some areas depending on time of year, also, no rain in the run, further shielded by the shower curtains in the winter. Can't imagine an easier set up to clean and the girls are able to dig some holes...
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