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The "free range" label applies to chickens, too. It just means they have "access" once a day to going outside. I imagine that if a chicken or turkey is inside all the time, they will tend to just stay where they are comfortable. They aren't like a dog, which will make a break for it at the...

Quote: For how long? My chickens were great layers the first year, but they seemed to burn out fast. Is the useful egg-laying lifespan longer for a duck?

Quote: Nifty we have Khaki Campbells and Rouens. Khaki's lay ALOT of eggs! And we only have a kiddie pool and they are happy with that. They are not noisy and do not have bad temperment either. Wendy I'm looking for a couple of urban ducks, too, for eggs and general ducky fun. We already...

I think duck eggs are absolutely delicious! We like them scrambled. If you like your (chicken) eggs scrambled with a little cheese grated over the top, well the duck eggs don't even need the cheese. They are rich and buttery and.... mmmmm.... I think I need to get some ducks.

Hmm. So if I want more chickens, do I just need to build a bigger coop? My DH worked so hard on this one, I think he'd be disappointed if it was replaced. If I built a second little coop for the 4 new girls, and put it at the other end of the run, would that work?

I know it's been asked before, but I wasn't paying attention. I adopted a hen this summer, but she won't roost with my other three hens. She sits in the nest box instead, and I wouldn't mind except for all the poop. How can I discourage this? Do I need to provide her with her *own* roost? I...

Quote: Forgot to mention, I plan to fence in an outdoor run as well. It will be about 600 sq ft. It will be uncovered, but there are fruit trees and a hedgerow (motley collection of small trees, shrubs & vines) for them to hang out underneath. I'm in western Oregon. Even on our coldest days...

I have the Playhouse coop (4ftx8ft) exactly like this for my four hens. https://www.backyardchickens.com/coops/images/playhouse-coop-2.jpg Would it be possible to turn this into an enclosed coop so that I could get more chickens? How many could it hold? They only stay in there to sleep and...

Tuff Sheds are not cheap, and they are pretty nice. (We have a tuff shed garage.) This is actually a good deal. Yeah, and enough of the rude comments about "yuppies" already. Not everyone on here is a red state hillbilly.

My one EE lays eggs about the same size or slightly larger than our buff Orpingtons, and about the same as our Rhode Island Red.

I started lighting the coop a week ago, and still no eggs (from 4 hens). I don't think we've had a single egg since late September.

Quote: I don't think anyone is keeping their chickens in complete darkness. Just giving artificial lighting because there is no way to give them the natural stuff. Ah, okay, that makes sense. Some kind of light is better than no light at all.

Add light, get more eggs faster but the hen is likely to quit laying at an earlier age. Don't add light, fewer eggs per season but a hen that lays to a ripe old age. Yes, this is true. Chickens are born already "programmed" for the exact number of ovum they will release in a lifetime, just...

Good lord - 60x120 is bigger than most people's lots around here! I would worry about the chickens jumping the fence (mine could) right into the dogs' area. Yikes. Maybe consider a buffer "moat" between? Fence off a strip, say 6ft wide, and use this as a storage area or something?

I'm in Corvallis, and even the covered portion of our run is wet in the winter (because rain doesn't come from above here, it comes from all directions ). I think that much like children, chickens raised in the PNW don't know any different and make the best of it. My hens don't seem to mind...

I'm in Oregon (45). Last winter I didn't use any light and still got plenty of eggs, about 2 a day from 3 hens. However, it was their first year, which I understand is their best. This year I haven't had a single egg in a month, so I rigged up a light yesterday. I set it so that they will get...

That is so cool. I was looking at the other stuff in the pictures - the rain barrels, gardens, houses, small yards, gray sky - and thinking, "That looks just like Portland...." And then I get back to the thread and surprise! (or not) you are in Portland!

Quote: That's an attractive, simple, design. Is the underneath-the-house part for storage? How many birds would this comfortably fit as-is? Yes, I'm thinking about expansion of my flock, too.

I think it's a fabulous idea and would definitely do it if I had more space in full sun!

Would these work for increasing "day length" (and thus egg laying) in the winter? Are they bright enough to fool the chickens' circadian clock? Can they be put on a timer?