I think that they like to be higher up and the roof is the highest spot they can get too.
It might be the camera angle, but I am thinking that you may need to reduce your flock eventually to fit in that coop. Can you take a picture so we can see the whole set up?
In my experience, the crossbeak does get worse as they grow, and as it does, the ability to eat gets worse. My first one seemed to do just fine, active and curious-and a few weeks later, I found her dead, and when I picked her up-I realized way too thin. Feathers cover sins.
The thing is, the...
@Lizzyduff Wow-that one bird causing that much strife. I am sure you have tried many things…but maybe try contacting a 4-h club, or county extension office for other poultry clubs, to find someone who could remove him.
Are you opposed to removing some birds? Because even being raised together really has little effect on birds getting along. Removing problem birds will give you a peaceful flock. A peaceful flock is more fun to watch.
Space and pin less peepers can sometimes be a solution. Building more space...
You might put that meanie in the brooder and keep her there while the others figure it out. You might put pin less peepers on her. Or you might give her to someone else.
There is a lot of difference in the advice given to a person with 16 hens and 2 roosters and a flock of 60 birds and 10 are roosters. The difference is space and experience.
Cnp211- I would expect your situation to have a higher chance of going south. You (I think) have an all flockmates...
Oh I seldom kill a hen. I just don’t expect them to live that long. Mine are fed well, cared for and enjoyed. I just find that 4-5 years is an older bird and am not surprised if they die.
@ BDutch What kind of climate do you live in?
I agree with blindlemon- it gets tiring chasing chicks, the more chicks you have, the more the pecking gets spread out.
It is not that you don’t want the old hens to peck, what you want is for the chicks have a place to escape to and get out of sight. This allows chickens to to learn proper...
I am betting that there is a noticeable drop in the tension in the flock, one that you may not have really noticed until it was gone. In smaller flocks, multiple roosters often mean just multiple ways for it to go wrong.
Two summers ago, I had two young roosters growing up in the flock. I only...
Space and how you use space is very important in creating peace in the flock. I am a big believer in adding clutter - roosts, platforms, mini walls - things that make it hard to walk through but actually allow chickens to get away from each other, and to use the vertical space...
Why do you want them to live such long lives? I keep a flock of chickens. I love healthy happy birds, I love to hatch with a broody hen, I enjoy providing food for my family. While I feel bad, when one dies, I rather expect some to go each year, sometimes it is surprising who it is.
I like a...
I have always had it work like a charm. It does depend on a couple of things. You need to have fresh chicks, less than 3 days old. For this to be a success, they need to be part of the relationship. A lot of people think it is all about the broody hen, but a huge part is the chicks.
When you...
Are you planning on keeping all of the roosters?
Really, you have 3 cockerels, I would think he just made the first cut out of the flock. Even if you want multiple roosters, I would not keep a rotten rooster. I like a peaceful flock. If this is your first year, I would cull all the roosters...
I have often wondered if it is more climate than feed? We do have spells of bitter cold. I mean most of us do provide food, water and shelter. I have lost a lot of birds to predators. I have had birds be perfectly fine one day, and dead the next. But truly for me in western SD, 4-5 years old is...