Recent content by Miraleef

  1. Miraleef

    DLM question- Open coop design

    I am fascinated by your story about them chasing/catching mice. I need to see if I can find a couple of Buckeyes!
  2. Miraleef

    Finally a dry chicken pen!

    Thank you, I'll do that right after I answer this. We're in the Pacific NW, east or Portland, Oregon in the Columbia River Gorge. We don't get anywhere near the rain as Portland or Seattle, but we do get more snow and colder temps. We have two different fenced in areas as we have two roosters...
  3. Miraleef

    DLM question- Open coop design

    Is the picture you use for your profile pic a Buckeye? It looks like my Brahma hen!
  4. Miraleef

    Finally a dry chicken pen!

    We use pine shavings in our hen house but I wouldn't mind mixing sand in the yard if we could find a good place to buy it that wasn't so expensive. It's impossible to totally clean up a large run, no matter what the base might be. :-)
  5. Miraleef

    How old do chickens generally live?

    Thank you! All of these answers are so helpful!
  6. Miraleef

    20x20 fenced area attached to run....making it safe

    Thank you! I'll definitely look into this. I have been concerned about the holes getting clogged by snow.
  7. Miraleef

    Finally a dry chicken pen!

    Thank you. I just read an article with someone heavily touting using sand for all the outside runs as well as covering the floor of the coop. I was concerned about getting too much in their system if they're cleaning up food that lands on the sand.
  8. Miraleef

    Finally a dry chicken pen!

    So sand is ok for a chicken run? I know they need to eat grit, but I wasn't sure about sand, if they do a lot of pecking in it, if it would be too much?
  9. Miraleef

    DLM question- Open coop design

    I'd be a little concerned about mold. You should dig it out down to dirt--maybe every couple of months, and put in fresh hay or straw. We buy bales (in plastic) of pine shavings for our coop floor (which is wood). It smells great, keeps things clean, and is so easy to pick out the droppings. I...
  10. Miraleef

    20x20 fenced area attached to run....making it safe

    We used deer fence--7' high--for the walls and put bird netting over the top this fall, as we were having issues with red-tailed hawks. We're changing the perimeter fence to 6' chain link in the spring and will be using the sidewall/deer fence for the roof when we take it down. We are in snow...
  11. Miraleef

    How old do chickens generally live?

    Wow! Thank you, everyone, for all your thoughtful answers. All my hens except one are now 4 yrs old or younger, so I'll expect to have them for a few more years barring predators. I'm hoping my favorite and (now) oldest hen at 6 will stay healthy and be with me a bit longer.
  12. Miraleef

    How old do chickens generally live?

    I've had a small flock now for 5-6 yrs, mostly common hens, nothing exotic until I got a Brahma rooster and hen. Some are rescues, a few I raised from babies. I've rarely had a hen live past 5 yrs old. I believe we had one die from extreme heat, even though I was trying to keep them cool. The...
  13. Miraleef

    My Year-Old Hens Have Suddenly Stopped Laying--Help?

    Chickens change plumage 3-4 times before a year of age, but yes, they usually don't do their first full blown adult molt until about 18 months. Good to know, thanks. I don't know anything about worming with Rooster Booster, but if they stopped laying after eating it, it might very well have...
  14. Miraleef

    My Year-Old Hens Have Suddenly Stopped Laying--Help?

    Thank you for sharing the picture, that was helpful! I have one chicken that's lost a few feathers around her neck--enough to look scruffy there, but that was several weeks ago and she hasn't lost any more.
  15. Miraleef

    My Year-Old Hens Have Suddenly Stopped Laying--Help?

    No, they don't free range. They have a large fenced area, but they've stripped it of anything green, so eggs are easy to spot. But 99% of the time they lay in their nesting boxes. I use Diatomaceous earth for mites and lice, sprinkled liberally on the ground where they like to dust...
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