I would personally use shaving in the coop and leave the run the way it is. The deep litter method would definitely be an option depending on your preference. I personally like the cleaner look of bare ground or grass. The deep litter method would need less attention if that was what you were...
There are a few ways you could do this.
1) You could put shavings.
2) you could do the deep litter method.(consisting of shavings and other organic materials.
There are many more, but I think these would be the most practical. I have concrete floors and personally use shavings. They work great...
Welcome,
I agree with aart, you should try to divert any runoff and I would not put gravel in run in less covered with lots of material.(hard on their feet). However, I think some sand near the coop would be fine if it will help you with the drainage. I would personally not put sand in the...
Hardware cloth will work fine, and I personally use it. I wedge it in between two pieces of wood and i have never had any issues. However, if you live in an area with many predators, then I would go with aart's option.
If you have any more questions, feel free to ask!:)
I live in central California and I think that sand would be OK. I have two coops, one with some sand and the other with dirt. They both work, but I would only put sand near the coop if it is a permanent structure. This will help with drainage and keeping that area nice. It is a total personal...
I personally wouldn’t buy it. However if you can and are willing to modify this coop it will be just fine. If you can get this coop cheap enough it may be worth it, if it is overpriced I would look for a new option or build it yourself. As a rule of thumb you want to have 4 SQ. Feet of space per...
I have had a chicken coop built in an old barn in the past. It was also a barn built in 1800's, but I built it in a smaller pen. I would fix the bottom of the pen with wood, then put a wire material on the upper part of the exterior walls. It would work great for a chicken coop! If you have any...
What you used as a roost should be fine. Chickens don't like a lot of change and so it may take a while for them to get used to it. Try to put them onto the stick at night if you can. Eventually they should learn to stay on the roost.
Good lick and hope this helped!!!:)
Your best bet if you have electricity is to use a heated water dish. However, you could keep the water from freezing other ways. If you get to the point were you are not under freezing point, you could try to use an old tire and insulate it with something like packing peanuts or other...
Personally I would have switched the chickens to grower feed at 10 weeks of age. Then near 18 weeks of age I would either keep them on grower feed and give them oyster shells on the side or switch them to layer feed. As for treats I wouldn't give them much until they get older. A few treats will...
There are many types of bedding that you can use.
1. Deep litter method (works best in moist climate.)
2. Sand (works best in dry climate)
3. Pine shavings (works well with almost any climate,)
4. Hay or straw (hay or straw does not absorb liquids the best)
Out of all of these methods I would...
1. If you build one large coop it should be a minimum of 160sq.ft. If you build two separate coops there will need to be at least 4sq.ft. per bird.
2. I would say 3-4 hens per nesting box. So you probably would have 31-38 hens. That would mean roughly 8-9 nesting boxes.
3A. If you...
I agree with @speedy2020, if the hens are just begging to lay eggs it wouldn't hurt to close off the nesting boxes. Then after a few days they will get used to sleeping somewhere else.
For young flocks or small ones this is great. It is fairly essay to keep clean. It also fits great in small spaces. The only bad part is it easily gets dirt or shavings inside the tray. Also the lid is hard to screw on sometimes. Overall it is one of the best investments that I have made!
I agree with ChickenCanoe, stay with a grower feed. They probably won't lay eggs until the weather gets warmer. If you keep the rooster in the same pen then you should stick with grower feed with oysters shells on the side. Otherwise February is a great time to switch to layer feed.
Hope this...
I agree, if you just let them out for a little while to get fresh air it would help them. And to keep them warm at night you should be fine.
Hope this helps and if you have any questions don't hesitate to ask.
If you are looking to get more feed in the can then I would dump the bag otherwise it is more on your preference.
Hope this helps. If you have anymore questions don't hesitate to ask.:cool:
The general rule of thumb is near 4sq.ft. Per bird. If you wish to go smaller it is fine,but going too small may cause your chickens to become stressed. As for the cost of your chicken coop, the nicer you make it the more money it would be. If you built a simple coop it will add up quickly. You...