Recent content by Hilarie

Thanks for your input. It didn't take much to convince me that trying to smuggle these little ones under the broody probably wasn't going to fly, so I'm sticking with plan A and raising them under a heat lamp. Thank you so much for giving me your opinion, though.

Hello all - here's a question I haven't seen answered. I have incubated eggs that have begun hatching tonight. This is my first time incubating eggs, and all is going well - two are out and thriving so far; but as luck would have it, one of my hens, an Australorp, has gone broody in the past...

mskitn - I hope you're right, and it's not that he now sees your submissive behavior as proof that he "won." My advice: if you're heartset on keeping this guy, don't let down your guard, and use your peripheral vision. Napoleon bided his time for SIX MONTHS before he put a hole in my sister's...

Ditto what everyone has said about the availability of good tempered roosters. I'm on my second Blue Orpington roo, and wholeheartedly recommend them. They are sometimes hard to find, but oh so worth it. Our first, Gus, lived to be 5; he died last year after a long illness, and I was...

Good deal! Chickens are very "zen" - in the moment. I doubt they spend much time pining about whether their eggs hatch or if their grown children are happy. It's more like: "oh! scratch! my favorite!" "oh! fresh water! my favorite!" "oh! a slug! my favorite!"

When I started with chickens 6 years ago, my first breeds were buff orpingtons and Austrolorps (both quite large); my rooster was a GIANT blue orpington (he weighed 15# at maturity), and just for fun we threw in 6 silkies (about the size of Cornish game hens). Everyone not only got along fine...

I have a very short tolerance policy for aggressive roosters. Our Blue Orpington rooster, Turk, is a gentle giant and has never even looked sideways at a human. On the other hand, my sister's Buff Orpington rooster (ironically also named Napoleon!) had a 'tude from day one. We turned his...

I was vegetarian (not vegan, but no flesh) for 15 years, so believe me, I get it. My sister and I both have chickens; I have a rooster but she doesn't. Both of us have had broody hens, so don't beat yourself up about the boy's presence; her hens go broody from time to time WITHOUT a guy around...

I'm glad to hear all of this. I've had chickens for five years, and also have goats, and this spring I'm adding heritage turkeys. They'll be housed separately, but they'll all free range together when the poults are big enough. Logistically with my layout, it simply isn't possible to separate...