Recent content by SpaceyTracy

  1. SpaceyTracy

    Moving chickens from indoor infirmary to outdoors in subzero temps

    Yes, they're in our mudroom which is currently between 45-50 degrees. Supposed to get down to -5 tonight.
  2. SpaceyTracy

    Moving chickens from indoor infirmary to outdoors in subzero temps

    Hi, I have two chickens -- Little Red and Big Red -- who have been living in our mudroom for two and a half weeks now. They both had leg mites and lice; Little Red had lost a lot of weight and was in bad shape. I would love to reclaim the mudroom before a big crowd of people comes over next...
  3. SpaceyTracy

    Checking-In On Peeps - Post Here To Say Hello!

    So glad you had a happy ending!
  4. SpaceyTracy

    Checking-In On Peeps - Post Here To Say Hello!

    Hi there! I had a tough fall with my tiny flock. I got two baby chicks over the summer to try to trick a hen into not brooding. It didn’t work but I fell in love with them so kept them. One had just laid her first tiny egg when she was taken by a fox that got under our fence. Shortly afterwards...
  5. SpaceyTracy

    Pullet gone, pile of feathers and signs of being dragged under fence

    It is sad. She had just laid her first tiny, oddly shaped egg. Randomly in the yard. At least I feel I can defend against a fox with a more robust fence.
  6. SpaceyTracy

    Pullet gone, pile of feathers and signs of being dragged under fence

    The top of the deer fence and another stand of wire are both about 46” high. There’s another strand of visible tape for deer deterrence at 6’.
  7. SpaceyTracy

    Pullet gone, pile of feathers and signs of being dragged under fence

    The other day I discovered one of my two pullets was missing. I wish I knew what I was up against! I found the place where the predator dug under the fence (see photo below) and some stray feathers along the path where it dragged its prize out. We discovered our electric fence was basically not...
  8. SpaceyTracy

    Sex of 2 16-week old birds... and next steps?

    Earlier this year I got two chicks from a neighbor to try to fool my broody hen into thinking they were hers. Didn't work, but we decided to keep the chicks. They are of an unknown probably mixed breed. At this point they are fairly well accepted by my little flock of 5 3-yo Australorp hens...
  9. SpaceyTracy

    Integrating 2 chicks into flock of 5--nighttime

    Chicks cautiously venture out in the daytime, keep their distance from the hens. They still don't want to go into the coop at night. Just trust them to do this at some point? I don't love that they're not inside with that extra layer of security, though they are inside a hardware-cloth-enclosed run.
  10. SpaceyTracy

    Integrating 2 chicks into flock of 5--nighttime

    I have two chicks I'm trying to integrate into my flock of 5 hens. They've been in the run in a look-but-don't-interact mode since I've had them (almost 4 weeks, and they were 2 weeks old when I got them). I'm not sure what the next step is. The chicks started out in the dog crate and then...
  11. SpaceyTracy

    Broody won't stop brooding!

    FYI 4 days in chicken jail in all-wire crate did the trick! I added some old wire baking racks to the bottom to make the wire easier on her feet because they have smaller gaps, but still nothing to warm her belly on.
  12. SpaceyTracy

    Broody won't stop brooding!

    Is that so they can't jump down? Having trouble picturing a crate on roosts...
  13. SpaceyTracy

    Broody won't stop brooding!

    OK, back in chicken jail she goes. It is a wire mesh dog crate. I used to have a scrap piece of 4x4 in there for a roost but she just sat on it all day. For the second round I took it out. It was elevated on a pallet but she would brood on one of the pallet slats under the crate. So then I put...
  14. SpaceyTracy

    Broody won't stop brooding!

    Hi, I have a small flock of 5 hens, no rooster. One of them has been broody for over a month now. Early on I tried chicken jail for two days at a time (two or three times) and giving her cold water belly baths. I looked for baby chicks to give her to raise and found a couple but they were too...
  15. SpaceyTracy

    Enrichment/chicken toys

    I finally got around to throwing a split half pumpkin in my small run yesterday afternoon. It was entertaining to ME to watch my girls do an approach-circle-retreat-watch what the other girls are doing routine. As of this morning, though, it is still basically untouched. Still hoping they'll...
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