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  1. rossco17

    Wet spot in poop tray below roots and no eggs!

    Yes, there is normal-looking poop, and a large wet spot surrounding it. I've noticed that this is now happening in several spots on the tray consistently. And very very few eggs lately. Almost never from my 4 new layers. Something is going on.
  2. rossco17

    Wet spot in poop tray below roots and no eggs!

    PDZ is about an inch deep. The wet spot is pretty large - lt looks like someone poured a cup of water and created about a 8" diameter wet spot. Cannot tell who is doing it - none of them have messy butts. I'm feeding them organic layer pellets in hanging feeders, and I throw in black oil...
  3. rossco17

    Wet spot in poop tray below roots and no eggs!

    I have 7 chickens, 4 of which are speckled sussex only about 7 months old (I know at least 2 of them are laying). The other 3 in our flock are 18 month old australorps that usually lay consistently daily. However, the past few weeks we're getting only 2-3 eggs per week total. And in that same...
  4. rossco17

    Am I doing this wrong?

    Not exactly but I did put a lot of leaves on top and mixed it in.
  5. rossco17

    Am I doing this wrong?

    Thank you everybody! After taking in everyone's advice and seeing for myself that the DIY tumbler isn't going to work, I have sectioned off a small area in the yard for a compost pile using 2x4s and transferred the sludge from the barrel (a very unpleasant job.) All this time I thought using...
  6. rossco17

    Am I doing this wrong?

    It was only manure and I just put some grass and leaves in at the end. Not very much. After reading all these responses I'm going to make some kind of tumbler with the barrel so I can mix it easily. I'll add much more grass and leaves as well. Thank you everyone
  7. rossco17

    Am I doing this wrong?

    Thanks! Unfortunately I have a small yard with lots of kids running around and I don't want a compost pile out like that. I could drill holes in the barrel if you think that would provide the aeration it needs. I will add more grass, leaves, etc.
  8. rossco17

    Am I doing this wrong?

    So I've had chickens for about a year and have been collecting the manure in huge food grade barrels (with a cover). The first barrel got to about half full and I stopped adding to allow it to break down. I added some leaves/twigs and water in there too. I haven't rotated it as it's just too...
  9. rossco17

    Bald bulge beneath vent

    Thanks both. I cleaned it up with warm water and some antibiotic ointment. I also tried to aspirate fluid from the bulge but there wasn't any in there. I'll just keep an eye on it for now Will follow up when things change.
  10. rossco17

    Bald bulge beneath vent

    My 8-month BO hen has a large squishy bulge right below her vent.it has some dried blood on it I'm guessing from dragging or something. She's behaving normal with eating and foraging and laying. Not sure what to do. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.
  11. rossco17

    Comb Frostbite - ventilation problem?

    Just wanted to follow up on this. I drilled about 18 2" holes at the peak, lowered their roost so they're nowhere near the soffit, and also went in and sealed up all the cracks I could find. It's been below zero at night recently and a few nights with significant wind and NO frostbite. I...
  12. rossco17

    Comb Frostbite - ventilation problem?

    Perhaps I should be cutting more holes along the roof line (under the eaves). As of now, I have the holes just at the peak... should I cut a bunch more along the entire roof line on both sides? Finding the right balance between ventilation and drafts isn't easy!
  13. rossco17

    Comb Frostbite - ventilation problem?

    Yes. Done. Thanks again.
  14. rossco17

    Comb Frostbite - ventilation problem?

    I have lowered the roost, closed the windows up (I'll put up plexiglass for natural light when I have more time), and drilled fourteen 2" holes in the gables (7 on each side). I hope this helps. I really appreciate everyone's advice. --Ross
  15. rossco17

    Comb Frostbite - ventilation problem?

    I was considering this. Is 4 feet of roosting bar enough room for 6 chickens? They're only 6 months old - will they grow any more? They seem like big fat hens now...
  16. rossco17

    Comb Frostbite - ventilation problem?

    Good point. I assumed frost bite, but I'm a new owner so I don't really know. Pictures below. Head feathers a little greasy from petroleum jelly. Also, I noticed today that there is blood on the feeder where their combs hit when the peck. i can move this thread to another category if needed.
  17. rossco17

    Comb Frostbite - ventilation problem?

    It's an open window with only hardware cloth. No glass. The water is kept in the coop. Thanks
  18. rossco17

    Comb Frostbite - ventilation problem?

    Thanks Howard. I went in tonight while they were groggy and applied petroleum jelly to their combs to try to prevent further freezing until I can fix this. But I did see that their roost is only about 12" from the soffit so I could see that maybe any flow through there could affect them. Other...
  19. rossco17

    Comb Frostbite - ventilation problem?

    Thanks for your reply. This photo is from during building. I use the 2x4 brackets to hold up the roosting bars, so you can see the 2 sets of those. The hens pretty much only use the top one. Without measuring, I'd say there's maybe 18 inches of space between the soffit and the top roost. There...
  20. rossco17

    Comb Frostbite - ventilation problem?

    This is our first year owning hens and it's not even December and my hens' combs have black frostbite spots. Their toes and waddles appear to be unaffected. I'm concerned though. The coop is 6' x 4', I'm in southern Maine (lows are in 20s at night right now), and I have 6 hens: 1) Is this...
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