Search results for query: *

barred rock maybe?

I couldn't tell on my non meat birds (dual purpose or egg layers) until about 2 months old, but I was suspicious a couple weeks prior to that. Those white ones are cornish cross and yeah, they grow amazingly fast. The dual purpose will take longer to reach a good size for eating, if you...

Well, I would have preferred Timothy Dolan, but I'm biased because he was in Wisconsin prior to becoming a cardinal. I love his jovial attitude. The Catholic church needs some major reforming, so I'm glad they chose who they did, I think he will do a good job...I HOPE he will do a good job...

I raised straight run. If butchering yourself, this is probably a good way to go because you just take out the birds as they reach the desired weight. I don't do the butchering, so this didn't work out well for me. Some of the males were too big, some died, they should have been butchered at 6-7...

The hatchery I buy from actually recommends wood shavings or ground corn cobs over anything else. If you put paper down, they recommend taking it away after 1-2 days to avoid splayed leg problems on the flat, slippery paper. Straw mats easily and is a little more difficult to clean, which is...

I don't have any specific opinions on the coop. As long as it provides shelter, a place for the chickens to lay an egg and room to scratch, eat bugs and enjoy the outdoors, then it's good! I use pine shavings, bagged from a feed or farm supply store for bedding. I also like oat or wheat straw...

I put mine on pine bedding from day one, never had any blow up from it. What about chopped straw?

I can maybe help with some of your questions. Egg layers: light is important with egg production. I don't know if space per bird is a factor, although you certainly want a good amount of space. You also need nest boxes that provide a dark, quiet place for the chickens to lay their eggs. It takes...

I use pine wood shavings starting from day one, the kind you get for bedding horse stalls. What are you currently using?

I think it will be fine. My hatchery also recommends putting them on paper towel for one day and sprinkling a little food on the towel so they know what they should be eating. Just like any animal raising adventure, there are as many experts as there are opinions. Sometimes what works for...

I would say a max of 12, but that might be pushing it a little. Will they have access to the outside? They will need lots of fresh air for ventilation.

Do you buy the jumbo cornish cross or the cornish roaster from Murray McMurray? I am buying for the first time from murray mcmurray and that is where I'm getting the cornish roaster that I mentioned is supposed to be less lazy. I would like to see them a little more active than last years bunch...

Sunny, where did you get your cornish cross chickens? I bought mine from a local hatchery last year, but this year I'm buying a cornish roaster that is supposed to be more active and take just a week or two longer than the traditional ones. Generally speaking, the cornish-rock cross will...

I would pick out a coop plan or design also before buying them. If you are building something yourself, sometimes it takes longer than you think it will. You can look for coop ideas to build yourself on this website or you can buy something that just needs to be assembled. Even farm stores...

I raised 25 meat birds last year in an A frame coop that is 9X8. It was just enough space. If you get cornish cross, they don't like the free range, they tend to sit or lay most of their time near the feeders. They don't need as much space as a "normal" chicken. They grow super fast. I had...

So, the pine wood chips are more likely to cause a fire than the actually cardboard box?

I have access to a cardboard crate (box) that would work for baby chicks. It's the kind of box that you see holding pumpkins or squash at large stores. Heavy duty cardboard, about 48X42 in size. Is it safe to use that with a 250 heat lamp?

I have a 2 year old chicken that had a leg band grow into her leg. I removed it, but her leg is fatter on one side and it took about 1 month for that injury to heal. It's now been 3-4 months and she looks like she is in a perpectual state of molt. I checked for mites, didn't seen any evidence...

Not sure how your coop is set up, but we ran electric to the outside of the shed and installed a weather resistant outlet, the kind that has a cover that snaps over the top. I can plug in my heated buckets and the cover closes over the plugs to keep snow and rain from touching the outlet. Then...

I called the hatchery and they suggested giving an antibiotic to all the chickens as they probably have some sort of sickness/illness. They also said stop feeding any kind of scratch or corn and get the chickens as warm as possible and make sure they have a complete feed with 18% protein.