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  1. arcatamarcia

    flying out of their area

    In my experience fencing (about 6 feet tall) is your only option.
  2. arcatamarcia

    Bed Time

    I agree it depends on your predator situation. My girls free range during the day and go to roost on their own. I go close the door to their secure run later. But I live in a suburb, have dogs that protect the girls and don't have that many predators. If you're in the country with a lot of...
  3. arcatamarcia

    Questions about Egg-Laying throughout the year

    My four chickens all slowed down in their egg laying quite a bit in the fall and through the winter. I actually had to buy eggs in January, I was getting three a week. One of them didn't give me an egg from mid-October until about two weeks ago. And then she just started back up and is now...
  4. arcatamarcia

    Chicken Not Laying?

    Are they the same breed? How old is "way past egg laying age"? My Americauna laid her first egg weeks before my Brahma did.
  5. arcatamarcia

    Question about sunshine

    I think what the chickens need is light, not necessarily sunshine. My girls don't like being in bright sun. They mostly cluster in the shady spots in my yard. Really deep dark shade constantly might cut a bit into your egg production, but it doesn't sound like that's what you've got.
  6. arcatamarcia

    Edible Flowers?

    If you are going to plant flowers in your run you need to protect them from the chickens until they get big enough to actually flower. Otherwise the chickens will eat the fresh little shoots and the plant will never get big enough to actually flower. I planted nasturtiums in my run last year...
  7. arcatamarcia

    Keeping chickens out of mulched beds

    I put a fence cut from 2X4 welded wire, around all my mulched beds. I tried a number of other options, but this was the only thing that worked. The fence doesn't have to be very tall. I do think an upright fence would be better than laying chicken wire over the mulch. I would worry about the...
  8. arcatamarcia

    Can I let 2-3 chickens free roam the backyard during a school day?

    My four chickens free range in my back yard all day every day while I'm at work. But you do have to worry about predators. My yard is small, fully fenced, and has several trees and shrubs where the chickens can take cover from hawks. But I also have dogs who protect them from neighborhood cats...
  9. arcatamarcia

    Dirt floor with deep litter - in a wet climate??

    I'm also in the PNW. I think the straw would wick up water and then mildew. Mold wouldn't be good for your chickens. Personally, I'd do a coop with a wood floor if you want to do deep litter and then sand over gravel in your run.
  10. arcatamarcia

    Coop location help / yard sprinklers.

    I agree. Just swap out the sprinkler head that hits the nest box. And yes, I would put the coop floor directly on the dirt and not float it. If you float it, it will be harder on the chicken's feet and your girls won't be able to peck at any bugs in the dirt which is their all time favorite thing.
  11. arcatamarcia

    Should anything go under the sand?

    Depends on if you are worried about rodents. They will tunnel under the walls to get to any food in the run. If you put hardware cloth under the sand, that will keep them out. Or you can bring the food in at night. If the area is wet when it rains, you can put gravel under the sand which will...
  12. arcatamarcia

    Free Ranging My Chickens and Fence Height

    My back yard was subdivided with a four foot fence. The girls had no problem going over that fence. When they discovered the garden on the other side, there was no way I could keep them from flying over until I made the fence taller. And I have some calm, heavy bodied birds. The entire yard is...
  13. arcatamarcia

    Socialising my chickens

    X2. I socialized mine with black oil sunflower seeds. Now they are underfoot every time I go into the backyard.:)
  14. arcatamarcia

    just a quick question about nesting boxes

    I have four hens and one nest box. It works fine. But I agree, with 5 hens, two boxes would probably be better. But they'll work it out. From time to time, I've even had two hens at once in my nest box.
  15. arcatamarcia

    The Run thread

    C2Chicks, how long had you had chickens in your run when this picture was taken? I ask because I can't imagine how you do or will keep the wood chips in their place and the sand in its. I tried having separate areas like this in my run and my birds first covered the nice little planted areas...
  16. arcatamarcia

    need advice on using a covering for plywood floor of coop

    I used painted 3/4" plywood on my floor. I primed it with two coats of good quality primer and then painted it with two coasts of high gloss exterior paint to seal any crevices. I have sand as bedding. Works great. Easy to clean. I would worry about hosing down a vinyl-covered floor unless the...
  17. arcatamarcia

    New to BYC with coop flooring questions

    I agree with JackE. I don't think the wire mesh floor is a good idea for either ease of cleaning or for the chicken's feet. I know from personal experience they don't really like walking on it. I agree that solid wood with some kind of bedding is better. If you're worried about sanitation, I'd...
  18. arcatamarcia

    1st time building a coop

    I agree. Bigger run and smaller coop. I think the minimum for a combo run/coop is about 10 sq. ft. per chicken, but I would go much bigger if they are going to be in there all the time. Also, think about what you're going to do on the floor, both of the coop and the run. In the coop, sand...
  19. arcatamarcia

    speeding up molting.

    How do you give them more protein? Scrambled eggs?
  20. arcatamarcia

    Ameraucana in moult, how long is this likely to last? Protein?

    I have an Ameraucana (probably an EE, but with all the Ameraucana genes including slate legs), about 10 months old. She stopped laying two weeks ago. This morning there's a small blanket of white feathers at the bottom of the coop, so I assume she's beginning her first moult. Can you Ameraucana...
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