Recent content by Lightning Bob

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    Improving my flock's yield

    That’s hilarious!
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    Dealing with Opossums and chickens

    In my experience Possums don’t actually eat chickens. However, they do love eggs and will gladly kill the chicken and gut it to get them. We lost quite a few birds to possums before we predator-proofed our coop. …none since.
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    Ladies on strike!

    I find that 1-1.5 hours of light/day in the mornings during the darkest season (now) helps keep them regular, if not prolific. Mine too took much of the fall off. There’s no arguing with biology and aging chickens, though I have one 6 yr old Brahma who still lays one / week or so.
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    Looking for very friendly good layers for backyard

    No disagreement, it’s just been my experience. My leghorns have been my broodiest, were I to pick just one breed. But I don’t claim to be an expert, just a small raiser.
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    Looking for very friendly good layers for backyard

    In my experience, leghorns and Reds go broody more than some others. “Big Layers” refers to high-production - not sure if size matters to broodiness.
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    Looking for very friendly good layers for backyard

    All good choices IME. Orps are maybe the friendliest, Polish are as well. Austrolorp are amiable. ISA’s, Leghorns or RI Reds are good if you want production and don’t mind a bit of unrest in the coop at times. All will do fine in the Chicago climate if you provide the right environment. I’ve...
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    Anybody have any useful hints or tips for using power tools

    YouTube is your friend.
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    Comment by 'Lightning Bob' in article 'The Egg song, it’s not about the egg; it’s an escort call.'

    PS: Roosters are not allowed here anyway.
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    Comment by 'Lightning Bob' in article 'The Egg song, it’s not about the egg; it’s an escort call.'

    I’m not sure what breeds are quiet, but I can assure you that many will sing the egg song without a rooster anywhere nearby. It’s rare IME though to hear them early in the day the way most roosters crow. Usually in our small flock it’s late morning or early afternoon. We live in a village and...
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    Broody hen... Have done a little research already, but...

    I wouldn’t worry about it too much, unless it’s stressing the other hens. It always passes, if gradually, and I’d say you’re doing the right thing moving her off the nest once in a while. Keep an eye out for stashed egg piles; I’ve seen that happen. I will usually put a wooden egg under my...
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    predator proofing??

    For hawks, make sure your run has a “ceiling” of mesh of some kind. That slows ‘em down - also minimizes the local domestic birds visiting your feed. As mentioned, a hawk may take a hen right out of your hands. It’s creepy!
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    Do i heat the coop or not?

    We’re in Vt, probably not Mt cold but close. I’m new to the discussion here but not to wintering chickens. We do use a heated waterer outside the coop. We also use lights (not heat lamps, but CFL or LED inside plastic trouble lamps) to provide about 14 hrs total light on average (daylight +...
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    Rooster's first attempts at crowing

    Doubtful I suppose, but my next door neighbor has this tiny young guy that she thinks might be an Old English bantam. He too is making his first roo sounds. Are these little guys quieter as adults than standards, or is he just finding his lungs?
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    Review by 'Anonymous' in article 'Introducing a Single Hen to an Existing Flock'

    Very comprehensive!
    • Anonymous
    • Article rating
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    Comment by 'Lightning Bob' in article 'Introducing a Single Hen to an Existing Flock'

    Great advice! With a very small flock I need to do this almost annually as my hens age out, and use a version of this technique. One thing I do is, even as the birds assimilate, is to keep the second food station in place - in fact I always have more than one. It allows the new birds a way to...
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