Recent content by mlorne

  1. mlorne

    White Rock X - What to do with them?

    Good day all! I have 30 White Rock X chicks, now coming up to two weeks old. They are currently lodged in a 15'x10' coop inside the barn with their feeders and waterers and a heat lamp. I can construct a quick range shelter for them and move them into an electric fenced pasture where my...
  2. mlorne

    New chicks; Broody hen and moving her

    Well, I moved the chicks in last night, and the brooding hen out. Wow, talk about a grumpy bird. She spent most of the evening wandering around the pasture puffing up feathers, scraping the ground and voicing her displeasure. She is visibly the largest hen of the group and I think she used to...
  3. mlorne

    How do you clean and store your eggs?

    I had always read that if you are going to refrigerate the eggs, they need to be washed first; the cold temperatures cause the shells to contract and draw in surface bacteria. I have been using the practice of non-washed on the counter for up to a week and a half; washing with warm/hot water...
  4. mlorne

    New chicks; Broody hen and moving her

    Good day all, I don't post much these days as two young daughters, the farm and 30 new chicks are keeping me pretty busy these days, but I do watch the forum regularly. What a great resource! My question is concerning a brooding hen. This year old hen started to brood about 2-3 weeks ago. I...
  5. mlorne

    Water warmers

    I started out using a small gallon waterer on top of a seedling heat mat that I use in the greenhouse. Worked just fine when it was -5C or so, but when it started to dip down to -15C at night, just wouldn't cut it. So, if you are in a moderate zone, something to consider. I purchased a heated...
  6. mlorne

    Coyote?

    Thanks for the links. Unfortunately looks like a dog. I say unfortunately because I am a little more wary about wild dogs than I am about a coyote (for both me and the chickens). These tracks were all around the garden, the coop and (more troubling) the backyard. Guess I'll have to keep the...
  7. mlorne

    Looking for advice...pic heavy

    Good day all, I am turning to the experts here for next year. We currently house 7 laying hens inside of a large, former cattle barn, within a segregated pen and with an enclosed run: IMG_7114.jpg by mlorne, on Flickr Next year, we will be adding 25 broilers. We will also be adding a...
  8. mlorne

    Coyote?

    We have coyotes visit regularly, but I was wondering if I was now looking at a wild dog coming through. My foot at the left for sizing perspective. Any thoughts? DSC00616 by mlorne, on Flickr
  9. mlorne

    Winter drop in egg production - Who says?

    Our 7 layers continue to amaze me. 5 Red-sex link (52 weeks old) 2 Frey's Dual Purpose (30 weeks old) Eggs collected: January 6th : 23 (hadn't been down in a few days) January 8th: 10 January 9th: 5 January 10th: 6 So, they are averaging about 5-6/day for 7 hens. Is this typical for...
  10. mlorne

    Winter on the farm

    Good morning all! I finally managed to pull myself away from the snowblower to collect some photos this morning. Just north of Toronto here, and we have had close to 2 feet of snow since Sunday evening. Today was the first clear day, but bitterly cold: Down at the 'barn coop' things have...
  11. mlorne

    When to butcher?

    Hello all, This is my first year raising chickens and I have a question regarding the unlucky few heading to the freezer. I have 7 Frey's hatchery dual purpose females. This is the information on the website: The females are a rusty red in colour and are generally quiet. The females will...
  12. mlorne

    Venting my barn coop - questions

    Thank you everyone for your replies. While the space is large and could hold probably 300-400 chickens, that is simply not in the cards Pat - I was hoping very much that you would reply, as you seem to be the de facto expert on ventilation. Indeed, most of my ventilation concerns came after...
  13. mlorne

    Venting my barn coop - questions

    Hello all, I have been reading alot about venting lately and I have a couple of questions regarding my barn coop. My coop occupies a very small part of an old cattle barn. The exterior run is fully enclosed, while the interior coop is enclosed in wire and wood (i.e. not solid walls). The...
  14. mlorne

    Nesting Box walls for a tractor coop?

    I would not think it is really going to matter with three chickens in such a small place. So what if they don't lay in the nesting box? It's not like you are going to have to search all over hell's half-acre looking for the eggs right? Really, the only point of a nesting box is to have the...
  15. mlorne

    Coop open to run all the time?

    My pop door stays open unless there is driving rain from the south (not very often at all). That being said, the run is concrete floor and concrete walls on three sides, 12' high. The 'open' side has a metal farm gate bolted to the concrete and that is covered with hardware cloth. The key...
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