Recent content by desertegg

  1. desertegg

    need some help

    From what I've read, the light shouldn't prevent them from laying. In fact, it might cause them to start earlier in the year than they would without it. White lights left on all night can cause stress and picking at each other, though. Red lights are supposed to be easier on them. Any light can...
  2. desertegg

    Growing fodder for chickens

    My chickens won't eat the fodder I grow! They eat some of the sunflower seed sprouts, but barely touch the wheat or barley. I was so disappointed!
  3. desertegg

    Hey Northerners: What is the absolute coldest air temps your chickens have experienced happily!

    It's been in the teens here at night for the past week. Tomorrow is supposed to get to -4. I have six hens and no heat in the coop. The humidity is very low here in Northern Nevada, and I wonder if that helps them. It's a dry cold, ha ha. They rarely leave the coop during the day when the highs...
  4. desertegg

    Why did she lay a very small egg today?

    I've heard those called "fart eggs" on here somewhere! Out of the hundreds of eggs my chickens have laid, we have only gotten one like that.
  5. desertegg

    Methods for keeping water from freezing

    I know you are wondering how to do it without electricity, but we put a pond heater inside a five gallon bucket with the chicken nipples on the bottom, then ran an extension cord. So there are no PVC pipes to freeze. It worked great.
  6. desertegg

    Need help convincing my husband we should get chickens!

    Mine don't stink at all, and the sounds are barely noticeable. When I wanted chickens, I just started building their enclosure, and my husband jumped in to "do it right" even though he really thought we should wait to get chickens. I'm using this same strategy to get him to paint the house right...
  7. desertegg

    please help! my incubator temp got to 107°!

    YAY! That's great!
  8. desertegg

    newbie chick ova here

    I have Easter Eggers and they've been laying about four eggs per day among the five of them. That seems pretty great to me! Plus the eggs are BEAUTIFUL colors. I am raising two Black Copper Marans, which I've heard lay a lot less, like maybe 2 or three per week, but their eggs will be a...
  9. desertegg

    Edit: 5 1/2 week old pics(pg4)Barred Rock "baby"

    Looks exactly like my three barred rocks that are the same age, and I ordered girls. So either she is a she, or my three are hes!
  10. desertegg

    Chick Brooder *Please Answer!*

    This is from Storey's guide: 0-4 weeks 1/2 square foot per bird. 4-8 weeks 1 square foot per bird. 8-12 weeks 2 square feet per bird. at 12+ weeks (still brooder space not coop space) light breeds (bantams, standards) 2.5 - 3 square feet per bird. heavy breeds 3 - 3.5 square feet per bird.
  11. desertegg

    Chick Brooder *Please Answer!*

    I had a rabbit cage that I used as a brooder for the first two weeks. It is very secure re: cats. Five chicks seemed happy in the smallish cage (maybe 2' x 3'?) until about two weeks of age, when they started to look like they were stressed and picking on each other. I moved them to half of the...
  12. desertegg

    please help! my incubator temp got to 107°!

    Please let us know what happens! I had my incubator go high like that, and none of my eggs hatched. It was my first (and only) attempt with an old, used incubator. I just figured the incubator was no good, but now I don't know... I had rocks inside to act as a heat sink and everything.
  13. desertegg

    How do I improve the quality of these eggs/shells?

    Are they all related to each other? Maybe it's just bad genes. I read somewhere on here that a weird egg every now and then is normal, but some chickens are just not good at egg making.
See more
Back
Top Bottom