I have 2 golden laced Wyandottes hatched just 2 days apart but they look so different. One is definitely a cockerel, the darker one. The lighter one, (who I really want to be a pullet, I nursed her back from the brink of death at 2 days old after a broody attacked her, which is why she has that...
I’ve been told she’s a pullet, but the tail feathers are getting long and cascading a bit (the other day she had more of those though- she’s lost quite a few of what looked more like sickles). No comb or wattles to speak of (or actually, I don’t know maybe there’s a comb in that puffball of a...
My broody hen hatched out 2 chicks (out of 7 eggs) on Monday/Tuesday. I bought 2 new day-old chicks yesterday, and slipped them under her after dark last night in hopes that she would accept them, they're only a day younger than her own chicks. I went out this morning and the 2 new chicks were...
My broody hen Harriet has hatched out 2 (maybe more, I’m trying not to bug her) of her 7 eggs today. Some pics of my my coop are attached, it’s a raised 4 x 8 with an enclosed 8 x 10 covered run, but the hens free range half the backyard all day, I close up the run at night but the pop-door...
My broody hen Harriet has hatched out 2 (maybe more, I’m trying not to bug her) of her 7 eggs today. Some pics of my my coop are attached, it’s a raised 4 x 8 with an enclosed 8 x 10 covered run, but the hens free range half the backyard all day, I close up the run at night but the pop-door...
Hi folks, my buff Orpington, Harriet, is sitting on eggs, day 16. I have 5 other hens, and 2 nest boxes, but other hens are laying in her nest box, I usually remove 2 eggs each day. I’ve marked the developing ones, but it is really easy to tell them apart, as they are very different colour and...
Hello! My buff Orpington, Harriet, has gone broody for the 4th time in a year, and I’ve decided to let her have some fertilized eggs that a friend is giving me. I’m going to let her stay in her nest in the coop with my other hens, we have 6 in total: 2 buffs, 2 RIRs and 2 blue australorps. Her...
One of my Buff Orpingtons has gone broody, again (she went broody in the fall too). I have a seedling heater mat in the nest box to prevent frozen eggs- which is obviously not helping cool her down haha. I’ve been reading about the wire-bottom cage method- but it goes down to -15 or -20’C here...
I’m getting closer to finishing my new coop, it is a raised 4’x8’ coop with a run below and covered run behind. The rafters of the coop are 3’ high at the rear, 4’ tall at the front. There is 3.5” of ventilation across both front and back, as well as on the sides at the peak, and I have a bit...
I'm starting my new coop build on Thursday, and I think I have most of the design details worked out, except for this: I'm using Ondura corrugated roofing on both the coop and the covered run. How can I predator-proof this junction where they meet? We have racoons. The run and all openings/vents...
I’ve decided that modifying my old small coop won’t work, and am going to build something based on this design: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/erinlees-chicken-coop.49143/
The coop itself is 4x8ft with an 8ft roost and 2 exterior nest boxes. I’m adding a 4x8ft covered run behind the...
I am soon getting back into backyard chickens, we kept 3 hens a few years ago and loved them, but eventually lost them to a raccoon one night when I forgot to lock up the coop :( . Our old coop needs a few new shingles and a fresh coat of paint, but I'll need a new run which I will make from our...
my black australorp chick/pullet/chicken (8-10 weeks old) just got the hell pecked out of her by my 3 older hens. She's missing a layer of skin on the top of her head about the size of your fingernail. She's doing OK at the moment, but I don't know when they pecked her, if she's lost too much...
Hi all,
I have 3 hens (2 BA's and 1 BR). They are about 1.5 years old. A few weeks ago when cleaning the coop I noticed the red mites under the roost (roost is a 2x4 laid flat, hung with a joist hanger). It was just teeming with them *shudder*. I cleaned the coop well, started using apple cider...
Hello,
I'm just gearing up for winter, and I want to make sure my coop is good before things get too cold. I live in Nova Scotia, Canada. I have 3 hens- 1 barred rock, and 2 black australorps, they are 6 months old. I also have a rhode island red, but just found out that he is a rooster, and I...
Hey there,
I have 4 hens: 1 rhode island red, 2 black australorps, and 1 barred rock. They are all about 6 months old, and just started laying kind of sporadically last week (we get 2 eggs on the same day, then no more for 4 or 5 days, then 2 more). They live in a coop that is 3' x 4' with a...
Hello there!
I'm new here (to the website, and also to the world of chickens!) and am looking for some coop advice.
I am getting 4 chicks this year- 2 barred rock, 1 rhode island red, and 1 black australorp. I am hoping to make a moveable coop and run similar to this one...
Hi folks, just thought I would come and introduce myself, I'm Andrea, from Nova Scotia, Canada. I am getting 4 chicks (2 barred rock, 1 black australorp, 1 rhode island red) in the next few weeks and am here to learn as much as I can. So far I've been reading lots of forum posts, but decided to...