Recent content by wamtazlady

  1. wamtazlady

    Saying good bye to these forums

    My flock has found a new home with a lovely young family. I hope the family will enjoy my pets. I'm 72. Have COPD so can not breathe in the cold Montana weather. I've had to count on others to feed and water the chickens during the cold winter. This summer they also had to help me more as...
  2. wamtazlady

    Nest box number

    I believe 1 nest boxes per 4 hens works well. I have 6 hens. They use just one of the 3 boxes I have. The coop was originally built for 12 hens. I think 3 is a perfect number of boxes for 11 hens, but don't be surprise if they prefer to use just 1 or 2.
  3. wamtazlady

    My chickens will NOT nipple drink!!!

    I use horizontal nipples and live in NW Montana. My container is a 20 gallon tote with lid and I use a stock tank deicer to keep the water thawed. The tote is not insulated at all. Last winter we had some unusually cold weather. At -35 F 2 out of 3 nipples iced up. Took a little jiggling...
  4. wamtazlady

    Location of feeder/waterer once they go outside?

    I keep both water and food in the run. It is roofed, has hardware cloth on the sides, and has a 3 foot wide hardware cloth skirt to keep predators out.
  5. wamtazlady

    Screw in water nipples keep splitting my 5 gallon buckets. Anyone have a better type?

    If all else fails try a different container. I use a 20 gallon tote with lid. The nipple is screwed into the flat side of the tote instead of the curved side of the bucket.
  6. wamtazlady

    Screw in water nipples keep splitting my 5 gallon buckets. Anyone have a better type?

    I read somewhere to allow a thread or 2 to show on the outside when screwing in the nipples. Not sure if that is better or not but I've been doing it without an issue of leaking or anything.
  7. wamtazlady

    Speckled Sussex Bantams - Sex?

    Purple's comb looks awfully red for 4 1/2 weeks. I would guess it's a boy. The other one's comb is not so red but they are still young and there is some red. I wouldn't even guess at Blue yet. You should know sex by the time they are 8 weeks old.
  8. wamtazlady

    Watering Cups VS. Nipples - new and older chicks

    The problem with insulating a coop is that you might want to close it up to hold the heat in. When you close it up moisture builds up in the coop. A bird is more likely to get frostbite when the moisture level in the coop is high. By breathing and pooping the birds can add a lot of humidity...
  9. wamtazlady

    Watering Cups VS. Nipples - new and older chicks

    There should be NO wind chill factor. A coop should have no wind blowing in on the birds. Keeping the wind off the birds is why I have 3 sides of the run covered in clear vinyl.
  10. wamtazlady

    Watering Cups VS. Nipples - new and older chicks

    No heat. No insulation. Just lots of ventilation up high to get the moisture out of the coop. A dry chicken is a warm chicken. Chickens spend their days out in the run where their food and water is kept. Run is covered with 3 sides also covered in clear vinyl. t t
  11. wamtazlady

    Watering Cups VS. Nipples - new and older chicks

    You are welcome. Hope the nipples work as well for you as they do for me. This winter when it was -35 F outside I did have 2 of the 3 nipples freeze up in the morning. Some jiggling broke the ice and had the nipples working again. That was much colder than it normally is around here.
  12. wamtazlady

    Fox removal

    Electric poultry netting will keep the fox away from the chickens. It's pricey but works great.
  13. wamtazlady

    Suggestions to purchase ducklings

    I got my ducks and geese from Metzer Farms. Was very pleased with their service and the birds.
  14. wamtazlady

    Tractor Supply Feed

    A few weeks ago I was getting 3 eggs a week from my 6 hens. Now I am getting 3-5 eggs a day from the same hens. I never changed their feed. It's the time of the year for eggs. The more hours of daylight, the more eggs there are.
  15. wamtazlady

    Winter water...

    I was pleased and rather surprised to find an Orthodox church in this town I moved to in Montana. Certainly did not expect it.
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