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  1. RaleighRancher

    Old hens that no longer lay

    I agree 100% - have a plan regardless. Before I committed to getting chickens, I helped a friend butcher a flock of Cornish Cross for meat, just so I could face it and know whether I could do it. Excellent preparation for proper care of old birds.
  2. RaleighRancher

    Old hens that no longer lay

    Yeah, fortunately we never came close to capacity. Between age, illness, and the occasional predator, we've kept the flock to 7 or less.
  3. RaleighRancher

    Old hens that no longer lay

    My intent was to retire my hens to the stew pot when they stopped laying. Involving my two daughters in the planning and especially in the rearing of our first chicks nipped that idea in the bud. I briefly argued my case but then realized the point of this for us was the experience and the...
  4. RaleighRancher

    Chicken with squishy crop & gasping/silent crowing

    A belated follow up to this dear bird. She persisted with this condition intermittently for about two years. We had a regular cycle where she'd start getting a pasty butt, I'd treat her with monistat, and all would be well again for a few months. Then one day I treated her and the next she was...
  5. RaleighRancher

    Comment by 'RaleighRancher' in article 'Open Air Coop With Reclaimed Wood'

    Seven years along now, third generation of hens, and all is well. A couple of bitter cold spells with wind and freezing rain led me to create plywood panels to hang on the open sides. They go on for at most three days each winter, but otherwise open air is great all year in our climate. No rats...
  6. RaleighRancher

    Should we put Hardware cloth floor of RUN???

    I used hardware cloth in the floor of my run because we have rats in the hood. I laid concrete pavers on top to make it easier to fork out the run. In hindsight, I wish I'd just poured a concrete slab, but this has worked out okay for 7 years.
  7. RaleighRancher

    Can this marriage be saved?

    I know in large commercial "free range" operations this is a concern, but I think if the outside is sufficient rewarding, it won't be a problem. My coop is actually a combination rodent proof run and coop. The pop door, when open, allows access to a larger open run where the hens can forage...
  8. RaleighRancher

    Comment by 'RaleighRancher' in article 'Building a Chicken Coop? Do's, Don'ts and Things to Consider.'

    Sure. You can check out the whole design and pictures of it in progress here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/open-air-coop-with-reclaimed-wood.64691/
  9. RaleighRancher

    Comment by 'RaleighRancher' in article 'Building a Chicken Coop? Do's, Don'ts and Things to Consider.'

    I would add, for the urban chicken keepers, adapt any design you choose to prevent rats from entering the coop. That means use 1/2" hardware cloth anywhere a design calls for chicken wire, and don't leave an open bottom unless you line it with hardware cloth as well.
  10. RaleighRancher

    Other hens are really interested in new chicks

    Update: as of this evening, the chicks and other hens have had free access to each other most of the day and seem very content together!
  11. RaleighRancher

    Other hens are really interested in new chicks

    My broody hen successfully hatched three chicks three days ago. A couple of the other hens are really persistent in their interest in the chicks. Anytime I go down to check on things in the coop, two other hens mill around and move into the mama hen's space any chance they get. Is this just...
  12. RaleighRancher

    The mystery of the missing egg

    Thanks all. I know it was no rat because I designed this coop to be rat proof and it has been so for 5 years. We have enough rats in our neighborhood that if one could get in, we'd have dozens in no time. As for snake, I thought of that too and can't rule it out completely, but I turned all the...
  13. RaleighRancher

    The mystery of the missing egg

    Short version of this post: Do broody hens sometimes eat an egg and leave no trace of the egg? Long version: I've been keeping laying hens for about 5 years now. Recently a year-old hen became broody, so I am taking my first foray into having her incubate and hatch some eggs for us. I put 8...
  14. RaleighRancher

    Comment by 'RaleighRancher' in article 'Open Air Coop With Reclaimed Wood'

    Three and a half years in, and no rat problems (aside from the one rat that got in through the open door while the ladies were out foraging in the backyard). I let the hens out about every other day, on average, and they really enjoy it. If cost were not an issue (not that this hobby will ever...
  15. RaleighRancher

    Chicken with squishy crop & gasping/silent crowing

    Thanks for the tips. I don't see any of that right now. She is shaking her head periodically, as if something were causing it to itch (but she is not scratching it with her feet). The other 3 birds are all fine. We've had excellent health in our flock's first year, but I can see that I may...
  16. RaleighRancher

    Chicken with squishy crop & gasping/silent crowing

    The squishy crop appears to be cured, and the pasty butt is getting better. I treated her 4 days with monistat suppositories by mouth (1/3 of a suppository by mouth each day) and one day 1/3 of one up her vent. She's much more active now. She is still gasping when she is very active, and her...
  17. RaleighRancher

    Chicken with squishy crop & gasping/silent crowing

    Thanks for the link to that thread. I had read so many different things here and on other websites that I had lost track of that one!
  18. RaleighRancher

    Chicken with squishy crop & gasping/silent crowing

    hrhta812, it was actually easy, thanks in part to the gasping behavior. She opens her mouth real wide without me having to pry it or hold it. I just waited, watched the rhythm of the gasping, and steady, 1, 2, 3, dropped it in the next time she opened her mouth. It's a little nugget about the...
  19. RaleighRancher

    Chicken with squishy crop & gasping/silent crowing

    Thanks for the suggestions. Eggcessive, after reading your reply last night I looked up vent gleet. The coating on the rump feathers looks consistent with vent gleet, but she hasn't got any inflammation of her vent - yet. But your suggestion and that research convinced me that I should treat her...
  20. RaleighRancher

    Chicken with squishy crop & gasping/silent crowing

    Anyone? Bueller?
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