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  1. welsummer4

    Cold Climate Coop- What do I do?

    Quote: It's reasonable to expect that Sussex will lay relatively well through Michigan and Wisconsin winters. Ontario winters, being harsher than the Midwest's, may be a different story, but Sussex are a fine choice for Michigan--very cold hardy and decent layers. Just about every breed will...
  2. welsummer4

    Cold Climate Coop- What do I do?

    The best advice is to raise breeds that lay in cold weather, i.e., Sussex, Buckeye, RIR, Chantecler. I live in WI and don't heat or insulate, but still keep about 4 square feet (twice that in warm weather) of ventilation open at all times, even when it dips below zero. Basically, my hen-house...
  3. welsummer4

    Soy-free feed ingredients

    Thank you! If I had the mill for option #1 make a custom mix, is there anything I could add to make it better? I think I will see if they can add flax. On a different but related note, does anyone know why juniper berries are sometimes added to chicken feed?
  4. welsummer4

    Soy-free feed ingredients

    Hi all, I'm switching to a soy-free layer feed, and have the choice between two different formulas. Can I get folks opinion on which looks better? Here they are: #1. Organic Corn, wheat, Peas, Alfalfa Meal, Fish Meal, Crab Meal, premix and Calcium or... #2. Organic Rolled Corn,Organic...
  5. welsummer4

    Barn Sash

    Quote: Yes, and I was just pointing out that this is somewhat incorrect, as there ARE NOT ALWAYS ways to avoid the necessity. (Like in really cold regions, or if the coop is going to be too small to do fresh-air style, or for breeds that cannot deal with real low temperatures) Pat Agreed...
  6. welsummer4

    Barn Sash

    ...heating, but because of size, thermal mass, design, or simply the climate you live in (i.e people in northern Alaska where it is -40 or -50 are *not* gonna be having that temperature in their coops!!). A temperature difference of as little as 10-15 F can easily give you some degree of...
  7. welsummer4

    Barn Sash

    With all due respect to those advocating bubble wrap or plastic on the windows, if a henhouse is well designed, these measures shouldn't be necessary. Two of the three windows in my henhouse are single paned, and I have never seen a trace of frost on them. The ceiling of my henhouse is also just...
  8. welsummer4

    Thoughts on Ultra Kibble

  9. welsummer4

    Barn Sash

    My henhouse has a barn sash on the south facing side, but I don't remove it in summer because there are widows on the west and east sides that open for extra cross ventilation. We don't insulate or put any plastic on the windows in the winter (we live in south-central Wisconsin, so we have...
  10. welsummer4

    What have you done for your chickens today?

    Made them a suet of olive oil, layer feed, corn, BOSS, sprouted peas, raw sweet potato, and dried mealworms.
  11. welsummer4

    Organic Non GMO Wholesome Feed?

    Quote: Yes there is, there is a lot of organic, non-GMO soy grown in my area. Our local organic feed mill owners even own an organic soy processing plant: http://www.cfspecial.com/ Mac, The CFS feed is great. Do you know anything about the Nature's Grown brand, out of Westby, WI?
  12. welsummer4

    Get over to your local coffee roaster and relieve them of their chaff!

    Quote: Bummer! I've been using it for a while without the problems you mention. Luckily my coop stays pretty dry, but I can see where the chaff could become slimy if it got wet.
  13. welsummer4

    Get over to your local coffee roaster and relieve them of their chaff!

    I just got 4 giant bags of free coffee bean chaff from one of the local roasters in my city. It's super soft, dry, and absorbent, so it makes great bedding. I won't have to buy pine shavings for the rest of the winter! Here's a link to a piece from Mother Earth News about using chaff in the...
  14. welsummer4

    Woods-style house in the winter

    Quote: I think Pat is referring to my post here, but to be clear, I do not have a Woods-style house. I know better than to scale his design down to 8'x4' (I read the book ). I described my coop as "scaled back open-air," but it's really just well ventilated by most small, backyard coop...
  15. welsummer4

    Woods-style house in the winter

    Fantastic! I read the Woods book and designed my 4'x8' henhouse with a scaled back open-air design--4 suare feet of open ventilation in the winter (even during below zero temps) and twice that in the summer--and have had no frostbite problems whatsoever. My hens are active and friendly, and lay...
  16. welsummer4

    Chicken cote (update in post#12 of thread).

    Quote: Resolution, Why do you write in this enigmatic style? I assume the above quote refers to my initial question about cotes? Is this question put well enough to be worthy of your fruit?: When designing my chicken dwelling (i.e., cote, coop, "hens' hause") what specific features should...
  17. welsummer4

    Chicken cote (update in post#12 of thread).

    I certainly did not begin this thread to disrespect anyone or their work. I genuinely wanted to learn about cotes because I'm also interested in good stewardship. The fact is, it's impossible to trust any information when presented as a means to sell something. I use and sell Resolution's...
  18. welsummer4

    New Coop in Western Massachusetts

    I've got coop envy!
  19. welsummer4

    Chicken cote (update in post#12 of thread).

    Quote: I agree, cotes were usually stone structures which gave wild pigeons/doves a place to breed and come and go to feed on local farmers fields. It allowed the cote owner to harvest squabs when available with very little work. The cotes I've seen in England were round, tall with a lot of...
  20. welsummer4

    Chicken cote (update in post#12 of thread).

    I really do thank Yashar for taking the time to educate me on cotes. I was looking for specific design features that distinguish a cote from a coop, and this is exactly what I got in his last post. I'd like to apologize If I came off as critical or defensive earlier in the thread, i probably...
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