2018 Newbie Chat!

[llombardo]

I got a cat that I catch in the area. I think its bern in the yard but it can't get in the pen. I have a little yorkie down the road that is popping by my door. I have to get2x4s under my gates because if it comes in, my dogs will kill it.

Today the raccoons were moving around right before it got dark. They were so carefully climbing tree to tree as the dog stared them down. That was the quiet dog. The other dog went out and let them know loudly to go away.

 

[llombardo]

Oh and I'm so undecided how to seperate all these chickens. I thought it would be nice to have all the girls together and give the boys each their own area but these bigger girls are just ruthless. I don't want any of them picked on, especially the polish girls. I don't thinkthe 4 younger girls will integrate with the babies nicely either. They don't ever seen to remember how much it sucks to get picked on.

 

[PNW_Peepers]

@Anna Ranieri The water pistol sounds like a great idea. If you make it more of a challenge for it to get your girls, eventually it’ll just give up.

 

[CannedMonster]

@Anna Ranieri
A cat can’t take a full grown chicken.
If it could, it would’ve gotten Roo.
I think the cat is extremely curious and it learned something because it tried to get Roo and failed.
Chickens won’t just let a predator take them.
They’ll struggle and flap and fight and run.
The water gun is a good idea.

 

[Anna Ranieri]

Can You trap the cat and bring it to a shelter as a stray 5 miles away or can you put a net over a area where they can go safely?

Any ideas how to trap it hun?

 

[Anna Ranieri]

@Anna Ranieri
A cat can’t take a full grown chicken.
If it could, it would’ve gotten Roo.
I think the cat is extremely curious and it learned something because it tried to get Roo and failed.
Chickens won’t just let a predator take them.
They’ll struggle and flap and fight and run.
The water gun is a good idea.

Thank you for this, we know the other three run off and flap around but for what ever reason Roo just freezes on the spot. We are outside with the girls now and they can hear the cat meowing at its owners door and it's frightening them to lots of alarm calls. The neighbours are in but theyre not letting the cat in, so it keeps meowing and I'm trying to keep our girls quite ad the last thing we need is another noise complaint otherwise we will lose them for sure. It's all very worrying from all aspects. I've cut down a large amount of shrubbery and trees so we have a clear view wherever we are in the garden and is less places for it to hide.

 

[Anna Ranieri]

@Anna Ranieri The water pistol sounds like a great idea. If you make it more of a challenge for it to get your girls, eventually it’ll just give up.

Really hoping so. I'm thinking of having a word with its owners to see if they will put on a collar which has a bell on it, I had these when I had cats, to stop them getting wild birds as having the bell makes it impossible for the cat to sneak up on anything. I'll even offer to pay for it but I'm doubtful they will agree.

 

[Anna Ranieri]

@ChooksNQuilts -
I've just been reading some forums on here and have found out a cat can kill a full grown chicken and can kill more than one - many on here say it depends on the cat, which I agree with, when I had 4 cats I know at least one of those cats could and would have killed a chicken no matter how big. Quite a few members on here tell of having fully grown adults killed by neighbours cats, one tells of chasing a cat who had one of his hens in its mouth and jumped over the fence, when he finally found it, it was half eaten. Cats very much kill for sport but also for chemicals found in a birds brain which is why they often only eat the head, I used to feed my cats food which contained this chemical ( can't remember it's name) and it cut down the amount of birds they killed to a bare minimum - rest was sport killings. Trouble is canned food and supermarket foods dont contain this chemical and foods that do are very expensive. Along with this is that people aren't aware of these facts, I only found out through a trained vet.
Doesn't help that Roo freezes on the spot, last time we had trouble with a cat in the garden the others ran in the other direction while Roo just stood there shaking. Really hoping you are right about it having been taught a lesson however, I'm doubtful as it was back in our garden minutes after my daughter disturbed it when opening the back door ( reason I can't catch it as it runs as soon as hears door open) Gonna try with the water gun and if no help will follow @llombardo suggestion of relocating it is rather that than to risk my girls - really hoping water will work though.

 

[PNW_Peepers]

@Anna Ranieri as much as you love your chickens I’d give the water gun a shot, plus you can have your grandson help and it may be fun for him. Try and remember the way you love your chickens is the way your neighbors might love their cat. I would never bring an animal I know has a home to a shelter, even if it saved me the hassle. Imagine the heartbreak you would feel if someone did that to your chickens without your knowledge. You can always get a sprinkler and have it going when you can’t watch your girls. If you make it hard enough to get your girls it should just give up. There are cat deterrents you can buy as well. I’m not sure on their effectiveness but it’s worth a shot.

 

[ChicknWing]

Well, here I sit with my head between my hands contemplating some of my decisions. After reading various posts, thought I had things figured things out with regards to having broody hens raise newly hatched chicks. Things only turned out somewhat true. My black cochin turned out to be a terrible mother. Seems she was too laid back for her to be a good mother. On the other hand, the silver laced Wyandotte turned out to be the complete opposite and aggressive. Out of about 23 chicks I received from Cackle, I lost 2 the same day and another 2 over the next couple of days. After slipping 2 chicks to each hen at night, things looked good the next day. Amusingly, saw that all 4 chicks were with the Wyandotte. After waiting a couple of more days, slipped the remaining chicks at night to the two broodies. I think we gave the Wyandotte around 8 new chicks and the Cochin about 6. This was Sunday night. Checking Monday morning, saw that the chicks were doing ok. However, following peeps of a chick which sounded like they were coming from outside the coop, saw that it had somehow managed to get into the pen where the adult non-broody chickens were and they were pecking at this poor little thing. Fortunately, there was no blood and the chick seemed ok. Brought the little guy inside and put her in the brooder thinking that she must have accidentally slipped through under the plastic netting I had put up to keep the broodies & non-broodies separate. That night, I slipped that chick next to the Wyandotte. Checking Tuesday morning, found 4 dead chicks in the coop. They were together but by themselves in a separate nesting box from the ones in which the two broodies had made home. This led me to think that the Cochin had neglected them and they died of the overnight cold temps. On Wednesday, I noticed two chicks hanging around with the Cochin outside in the run. From time to time she would go in and the black chick would follow. But the yellow one was staying outside. After a while, I saw the Wyandotte come out and attack this poor little chick. At first I thought this was just a little aggression to show dominance. But then a while late, I saw the Wyandotte come outside of the coop in a deliberate manner and attack the yellow chick while the Cochin turned a blind eye. Although in the Cochin's defense, I saw her getting pecked by the Wyandotte earlier. Right at that point I decided that I was not going to leave that chick stay there any longer. But I also knew that she did not like being alone either. So then I grabbed about 3 more chicks and brought them inside. Guess I'll be raising these 4 peeps myself. So much for things going by the book. Guess I'll have to get some hens of a breed that make good mammas for next year.

Any suggestions on how to care for the chicks inside? They're in a large cardboard box with a heat lamp slightly above it in a corner. The box itself is in a bedroom with a space heater so that the room stays nice & warm. The chicks spend most of their time under the area of the box which has a flap over it. I guess this makes them feel secure. They do come out to drink water & eat the food that I've place inside the box. And if they start feeling cold, they move closer to the lamp.