Search results for query: *

  1. Ridgerunner

    Hens not using nesting boxes after hatching chicks

    That sounds more like pullets just coming into lay, not hens that have laid before. It sounds like most of them are no longer able to manage when the egg is coming if they are just dropping them at random. I've never seen that with mature hens, just pullets coming into lay. I'd be kind of...
  2. Ridgerunner

    Hens not using nesting boxes after hatching chicks

    Are they dropping them at random while walking around or are you finding them in the same spot every time, as if they have decided that is where their nest should be? Are you finding those eggs in the coop or run? How many of the five hens are laying? Are any laying in the nests? Have all of...
  3. Ridgerunner

    Rooster is perfect to all hens, except one?

    To me, that's just silly. You solve for peace in the flock and you try to meet your goals. We all have different set-ups, different flocks, and different goals. How we go about achieving that will vary depending on circumstances. So these are your goals. Let's work with that. I don't know...
  4. Ridgerunner

    Processing Weekend - Any Good Links?

    You are talking about cockerels, not mature roosters. Age makes a big difference in this. You are talking about cooking it for storage, not immediately for the table. Before you cook them you need to age them to get past rigor mortis. After you kill them the meat will stiffen up making them...
  5. Ridgerunner

    Hen Abandoning 2 Week Old Chick

    Yes, in that questionable area. I'd probably put it up on the roost with mama but if you want to wait another week I would understand.
  6. Ridgerunner

    Large variance in egg laying behavior and quality, anything else we can do to help her?

    The way it is supposed to work is that the hen releases one yolk to form an egg. There are different triggers as to when to release that yolk. Daylight is one trigger. Laying the last egg can be another. I'm sure there are others. On average it takes about 25 hours for an egg to go through...
  7. Ridgerunner

    Need advice on flock expansion

    That was a great answer, it told me what I needed to know. CQ is a marketing name. One hatchery makes theirs by crossing a Rhode Island Red rooster with a Rhode Island White hen. Another makes theirs by crossing a Rhode Island Red rooster with a Silver Laced Wyandotte hen. You wind up with a...
  8. Ridgerunner

    Hen Abandoning 2 Week Old Chick

    Is the chick a Silkie, Frizzle, or such that does not have "normal" feathering? Chicks with normal feathering should have their wings pretty well filled out so that can fall from height, spread their wings, and gently land. I personally would not worry about the chick falling from 6 feet if it...
  9. Ridgerunner

    Need advice on flock expansion

    How old is the pullet? That would influence what I do next. A Cinnamon Queen is not a breed but is a cross between breeds that are not known to go broody a lot. Australorps are a breed that can be broody. This does not mean that the CQ cannot go broody, it is possible. This does not mean...
  10. Ridgerunner

    Moving Grown Hens to New Coop

    I respectfully disagree. It's great when it works but I've had to coop train chickens when I've moved them, even if they were locked in the new coop overnight and roosted in there. They were confined in a run. I've kept chickens in the coop only for a week or more and when I let them out...
  11. Ridgerunner

    Broody hen broody breaker??

    I've butchered enough pullets, hens, cockerels, and roosters to see the fat build-up before they even start laying. The difference is obvious. It is nature's way for survival of the species. By living off of that stored fat while taking care of the eggs instead of having to be off looking for...
  12. Ridgerunner

    When should I move my chick from the incubator?

    Before a chick hatches it should absorb the yolk. It can live for 72 hours or more off of that yolk without eating or drinking. It's why nature arranged for them to absorb the yolk, so the early hatchers can wait on the late hatchers so Mommy Hen doesn't have to abandon the later hatchers to...
  13. Ridgerunner

    How to decide which Roo to keep (and which to dispatch).

    You do not have a 5 month old rooster. You have an immature cockerel going through puberty. This could create some turmoil if you eliminate the older rooster. It is unlikely he is mature enough to dominate all of the older hens so some of them might beat him up to keep him in line. Each...
  14. Ridgerunner

    Is this a terrible idea?

    Separate locations for food and water, preferably where they cannot see the other locations.
  15. Ridgerunner

    Is this a terrible idea?

    Five pullets from 2 sources about 4 months old. To me it boils down to how much room you have and what your facilities look like. If you have sufficient room and you don't force them to be real close to each other I think you have a decent chance of success. If space is tight then your risks...
  16. Ridgerunner

    Humidity dropped during lockdown

    Thanks, I'm not familiar with that incubator. Searching the documentation I cannot find a way to add moisture without lifting the corner. Good luck!
  17. Ridgerunner

    Humidity dropped during lockdown

    What incubator do you have? To me it is easier to comment when I know what you are working with. Where are your vent holes? The way I add water to my incubator is to put a straw through the vent hole in the top and use a syringe to put water through the straw. I use an accordion straw so I...
  18. Ridgerunner

    Expanding the flock...

    A 4x8 will be tight to integrate 8 birds in. There is no extra room for them to get out of each other's way. Since the run is predator proof I'd put the dog crate in the run and leave the chicks out there for a week or two for the "look but don't touch" part, then try letting them mingle...
  19. Ridgerunner

    Expanding the flock...

    Where are you located? I'm not trying to steal your personal data, just trying to get a handle on what your nighttime low temperatures might be. Unless you are having temperatures near freezing they should be able to stay outside day and night based on temperature. The question may be how...
  20. Ridgerunner

    My Speckled Sussexes don't free range well

    Welcome to reality. Other than Silkies or other chickens that cannot fly most chickens can reach pretty high locations by flying if they want to. I'm constantly amazed by all of the posts I see on this forum where people think they cannot fly. It is usually not a question of can they, it is a...
Back
Top Bottom