WyattsChickens
In the Brooder
- Nov 1, 2015
- 25
- 0
- 32
Hello everybody!
My name is Wyatt and I'm a PA teen chicken enthusiast.
Our chickens came with our new house! The people offered to "get rid of them" but I felt an instant connection to the three girls and was not about to let that happen.
I named my three new friends Duck, Goose, and Chicken, to keep everything poultry themed. Duck and Goose seemed a lot younger than chicken and tended to stick together, while chicken always roamed by herself. All three were great layers, one time providing me with 4 eggs from the same night! Crazy right? I was a tad confused myself although there were none there the previous night. I bonded with my birds so much in just a few weeks, pampering them with treats, and getting them comfortable with me so I could finally pick them up! (A big goal of mine) I did get to this point but unfortunately only for a few nights before the most traumatizing experience I've ever had in my young life.
Unfortunately I have to say that I started with 3 girls. Not have three girls. Me, being new to chicken "farming" as I like to call it, didn't see many problems with our poorly constructed coop left by the prev. owners. However, us being in heavy bear territory, someone did notice the poor construction. A giant black bear.
We were all sitting around the living room enjoying a nice night watching tv, when somebody thinks they hear a noise. We brush it off at first, but as it persists, my brother, sitting closer to the side of the house with the coop, hears loud "screaming" coming from my girls at the coop. We rush to the window to see a giant black bear clubbing at the wiring trying to get in where my last chicken was hiding in the corner. We scared it off with pounding and screaming and my world was left in pieces. Although I loved all my chickens, my least favorite, Chicken, the anti social one was left. The bear ripped the entire panels of wood off the back of the nest with ease. However he couldn't get into the run.
We searched the woods the next morning to find the remains of duck, a clump of feathers and lots of blood, thanks to our Golden Retriever Duke's sense of smell. Thankfully, Duke also led us directly to Goose! Unscathed, she jumped out the back of the coop and ran away, the bear to lazy to chase, she survived, although in shock, she was alive. My determination surmounted as I vowed for this to never happen again. My family and I set out with what we had to bear proof our coop. We did a good job, however I plan on buying building plans and making an extreme defense coop over the winter.
I eventually got over the loss of duck, but just this past week I lost chicken to an illness. She never acted right sense the trauma. Perhaps egg bound I've been told. So now I'm done to just Goose. But Goose is out going social amd hilarious. I am now in the hunt for one or two new hens for goose to have friends other than me and a new, extreme coop.
That's pretty much my chicken life story! Sorry it's so long, but I felt the detail necessary!
-Wyatt
My name is Wyatt and I'm a PA teen chicken enthusiast.
Our chickens came with our new house! The people offered to "get rid of them" but I felt an instant connection to the three girls and was not about to let that happen.
I named my three new friends Duck, Goose, and Chicken, to keep everything poultry themed. Duck and Goose seemed a lot younger than chicken and tended to stick together, while chicken always roamed by herself. All three were great layers, one time providing me with 4 eggs from the same night! Crazy right? I was a tad confused myself although there were none there the previous night. I bonded with my birds so much in just a few weeks, pampering them with treats, and getting them comfortable with me so I could finally pick them up! (A big goal of mine) I did get to this point but unfortunately only for a few nights before the most traumatizing experience I've ever had in my young life.
Unfortunately I have to say that I started with 3 girls. Not have three girls. Me, being new to chicken "farming" as I like to call it, didn't see many problems with our poorly constructed coop left by the prev. owners. However, us being in heavy bear territory, someone did notice the poor construction. A giant black bear.
We were all sitting around the living room enjoying a nice night watching tv, when somebody thinks they hear a noise. We brush it off at first, but as it persists, my brother, sitting closer to the side of the house with the coop, hears loud "screaming" coming from my girls at the coop. We rush to the window to see a giant black bear clubbing at the wiring trying to get in where my last chicken was hiding in the corner. We scared it off with pounding and screaming and my world was left in pieces. Although I loved all my chickens, my least favorite, Chicken, the anti social one was left. The bear ripped the entire panels of wood off the back of the nest with ease. However he couldn't get into the run.
We searched the woods the next morning to find the remains of duck, a clump of feathers and lots of blood, thanks to our Golden Retriever Duke's sense of smell. Thankfully, Duke also led us directly to Goose! Unscathed, she jumped out the back of the coop and ran away, the bear to lazy to chase, she survived, although in shock, she was alive. My determination surmounted as I vowed for this to never happen again. My family and I set out with what we had to bear proof our coop. We did a good job, however I plan on buying building plans and making an extreme defense coop over the winter.
I eventually got over the loss of duck, but just this past week I lost chicken to an illness. She never acted right sense the trauma. Perhaps egg bound I've been told. So now I'm done to just Goose. But Goose is out going social amd hilarious. I am now in the hunt for one or two new hens for goose to have friends other than me and a new, extreme coop.
That's pretty much my chicken life story! Sorry it's so long, but I felt the detail necessary!
-Wyatt
