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  1. imthedude

    Are all roosters inherently mean or ornery?

    Hi all. Don't post here much anymore but always come here when I have a chicken question like I do now. Are all roosters inherently mean or ornery? It seems as though I never get a nice one but instead get ones that are always interested in spurring either me or my son. Most recent case in...
  2. imthedude

    How many would you keep?

    Hi all. I'm about to thin the flock and put some of the older girls either in the freezer or into new homes. I have 20 birds that are of laying age right now and 14 that are almost at point of lay. Of the 20, their age breakdown is: 3 at 8 months - started laying in September +/- 10 @...
  3. imthedude

    Question about feathers missing plumes

    Hi all. Cross-post from the Homesteading Today forum to hopefully pick up more audience for my question. Question re: feathers missing plumes. A couple of my Delaware hens have something strange going on. The very interior feathers on their wings are down to a feather shaft with no plumes...
  4. imthedude

    What's the best heritage breed for a meat bird?

    Title says it all. I want some straight run heritage birds for the freezer. I've slaughtered some buff orp, barred rock, and delaware cockerels, and while they were OK, they weren't the greatest. Is there one breed that stands out from the rest? White rock maybe?
  5. imthedude

    Mixing meat birds with my laying flock

    Hi all. I want to get some meat birds in a month or so to raise for the obvious purpose. Can I brood and eventually mix them with my laying flock, allowing them to free range just like our layers? Is their higher protein requirement significant enough to need a separate meat bird food such...
  6. imthedude

    D@!n foxes - got one of my birds this morning.

    I thought to myself over the weekend that we've been really lucky and haven't lost any birds to predators in well over a year. I counted my blessings too soon. For reference, I don't like to keep our birds locked up but instead choose to let them free range all day with the tradeoff that we...
  7. imthedude

    Did you insulate your coop?

    I'm trying to decide if I want to add insulation to the 8x12 coop I built this spring. Easy framing and still open walls mean that I could add some bats pretty easily or cellulose without too much trouble but am somewhat on the fence as to whether or not it's worth it.
  8. imthedude

    Possible egg stealer?

    Hi all. Haven't visited the site in a while. I have a chicken problem, and need some of your great insight to help me solve it. Egg production has been hit or miss lately, probably like most of your flocks. Molting, shorter days, cold, etc., have left my ladies with not much to contribute...
  9. imthedude

    Rate of lay - what is reasonable for 18 birds?

    Howdy all. We have 18 layers - 5 that are between 12 and 18 months old and 13 that are between 6 and 8 months old. We've been getting about 12-14 eggs a day for a while now. An average of twelve a day means that each bird is laying 2 out of 3 days or at least 4 days a week. I will...
  10. imthedude

    What's your favorite breed?

    I have five breeds of chickens, down from six after parting with our Speckled Sussex. I really like the BO's but the RIR's are my favorite. They follow me around like a dog, are quiet, very productive, excellent scratchers/foragers, etc. Great chickens IMO.
  11. imthedude

    Help me get my chicken(s) to stay in their pen

    Need some advice here folks. Of the new replacement birds that we got back in Jan/Feb, a few of them do not want to stay in their pen. I enclosed a 25x60 pen for them to roam in during the day. Their house, feed, water, etc., are in this pen. One of my neighbors approached me yesterday and...
  12. imthedude

    Is there any way to cure broodiness?

    I have a buff orp that has gone broody twice in the last three months. First time last about a month. She then took a month off and decided to start laying again (at least I think she was laying). Now she's back on the nest 24-7. Every morning when I go out to open up the coop, I grab her...
  13. imthedude

    Is it possible to have a rooster that will never breed anything?

    I've had this bird for a little over a year now (Barred Rock), and I thought for the longest time that it was a hen, but I haven't seen it on or coming off of a nest in what seems like a really long time, if ever (haven't tried the lipstick or food coloring trick to know for sure if s/he is...
  14. imthedude

    How do you keep your chickens out of your garden?

    I have a few birds that still manage to get into my garden no matter how hard I try to keep them out. Before long I'll have ripe strawberries and a little after that ripe tomatoes. I know those will be chicken magnets. My current setup is a 3.5' fence around the garden, and a 4.5' fence...
  15. imthedude

    Any way to "correct" egg eater behavior?

    Hi all. I found the egg eater - a nice little barred rock pullet that is just coming into lay. I came home to 3 broken and fully eaten eggs again yesterday, and her beak was covered in yolk. She even had some on her feet. Is there any way to correct this behavior, or does she need to go...
  16. imthedude

    When do you switch your entire flock to lay ration?

    I have a mixed age flock of 23 birds. Ten have been laying strongly for quite some time. Six are just starting to lay, and 6 are a few weeks off from laying. Since I combined all of the birds together a couple of months ago, I've been feeding the entire flock chick starter and providing...
  17. imthedude

    I have an egg sucker/breaker....help me find which one is responsible.

    Hi all. Went to gather eggs last night to find that I had four broken eggs in the nest boxes. Not just slightly cracked or even one tiny peck hole. They were demolished with every bit of the yolk/white devoured. I have a flock of 23 birds - 10 layers, 12 pullets with a few of them laying...
  18. imthedude

    about to combine teenagers in with existing laying flock - feed ?

    hi all. i have 13 teenagers ranging from 3.5 months to 3 months. i am about to put them in with my flock of 10 layers that are all about a year old. the teenagers are still on grower/developer with higher protein, and of course the layers are on lay mash with lower protein and added calcium...
  19. imthedude

    venting question

    hi all i'm on the tail end of building a new coop and have a ventilation question. coop is 8x12 with 8' walls in the front and 6' walls in back. i had originally thought i would leave a continuous 2" opening across the top of the fascia board on the front side of the coop, but i've since...
  20. imthedude

    Do you use your chicken's poop as fertilizer?

    i'm about to clean out a coop and have a big garden that needs to be fertilized. thinking of adding some shavings/poop as mulch around plants. anyone do this? also i'm making some compost tea with this same shavings/poop mix. mother jones says to steep the mix for 3 days then strain and...
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