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I have had chickens for years. In the last two weeks I have had healthy layers turn up dead while free ranging. They look like rubber chickens head strait out in front legs stretched out behind, no wounds or feathers missing. I am perplexed last one was an americana I let out at 1230 and at 4...

They should be ok with a heatlamp put it in the middle where it won't hit anything, they won't need to go outside for a while. I would think about replacing the chicken wire with hardware cloth on the bottom of the run, use screws and washers that way you can tighten the wire up or move it,

I use 8x1 1/4 deck screws with fender washers from the box store , you can take them out and you can angle the screw to stretch the hdwe cloth.

You could fence around the bottom of coop and let them run under to give them shade in daytime and when it rains.

Raised definatly also keeps critters like mice rats and snakes from living underneath. big plus in my book. I have a 1950 army field refrigerator as a coop and the mice have even found a way to get into it.

I use 2x2" then taper the top so they can grip it, Not perfectly round like a branch , which I have used before. Never had a problem.

Sex links and comets are egg laying machines. They lay large brown eggs and are mild mannered. When hens first start laying their eggs will be small. Takes time and they will get bigger. Stretch factor there, I have an old Comet and she only lays one egg a week but wow.

Had a neighbors dog kill ten of my chickens. picked them up went over to his girlfriends house and told him what his dog did. He said it wasn't my dog I described it and asked him where it was. no reply he had let it loose. I told him to keep it put up or it would be gone. He said he would kill...

I had a hawk fly next to the house do a 90* turn and nail one of my english sussex hens. I yelled no affect fire cracker nothing foot worked. No help for the hen though. I only use chicken wire for roof of run and make sure its tied every six inches. We have every type of predator here, Coy...

A hawk will likely set up a nest nearby if it finds a chicken coop. Only one sure way I have found out to take care of the problem. Relocate the offending predator to a place where it will do no harm to anyone.

I found out about fermenting feed by accident. My chickens would get into my fermented pig food and were crazy about it. Old time farmers always had a mix of animals, One would eat what others wouldn't. Chicks would scatter the poo and pick out bugs and grain.

My chicks free range and have self feeders available . I go for egg taste not color. For some reason store bought eggs make me burp like they have sulfur in them.

My chicks don't care for them, but they mix well with the litter. If dry you can put it in the coop for odor control

My roosters eat layer all the time only get De once a month or less. The one roo is over six yrs old .

They are like kids, they will try some stuff and like it and other time run away from it LOL

Agreed there are a few bad apples all over. I know of an ag teacher with a masters. went to his farm counted 14 dead calves and cows. I told him that was bad He said he ran out of hay and said oh well they were insured.

I make my feeders out of plastic cat litter buckets leave the lids on and use 3" thin wall 90* elbows. Has cut down on the waste tremendously. I also ferment some feed that is ground at the local feed mill "powder" and give them a little of that each day.

The Amish may only have a 8th grade education in our world But they have a masters in farming. Because they live it.

Does the Ice get 3" thick if not I would not worry about it. I think you should be able to get by with just the heater, Water is a good transfer of heat.

I usually don't feed them layer until 3 months. My guess is that they are eating enough scratch that they don't want their starter. When my chickens free range my feed bill is cut by almost 3/4