2018 Newbie Chat!

[CannedMonster]

I did the switch last night!

We’ve had our cousin as a houseguest for several days so I put it off a while.

I went to shut everyone into the coops last evening and realized I had both of the prefab coop doors closed.
So the babies were all in the run unable to go inside.
I realized this was the perfect opportunity because I could get each of the 7 bantams and put them in the prefab through the back door.
So I did that and then I got all the babies in ones and twos and placed them on the roosts in the walk-in coop with the four older birds.
At first they were fairly confused but once they were all together they settled right down.
As did the bantams.

Now I plan to keep the bantams confined to the prefab run/coop for a week with no free ranging in the hopes that they bond with Silkie and he with them.
Ideally I will see him breeding with Cricket and Pippin since they seem to be older and more mature than the other four.
And hopefully he will see all 6 pullets as his girls and stop mooning over Agatha and Emily lol.

 

[Geranium]

The little chickies are getting wings and some are starting to get tails! This little Easter Egger Candice is the best at flying attempts so far. The Austra White Flower has more feathers but it also quite a bit heavier. I think Candice has the right balance of feathers to body weight to really get some lift. They'll be a week old tomorrow.

 

[Geranium]

When do they start sounding less like chicks and more like chickens?

 

[CannedMonster]

When do they start sounding less like chicks and more like chickens?

That actually takes a while.
At somewhere around 4-5 months when they begin to get larger combs and wattles and they start getting red.
Males mature much faster than females too.
Right now they’re getting their juvenile feathers.
At about 2-3 months they will have a molt that lasts several weeks and they will get their mature feathers in.
It’s really interesting because Easter Eggers and some other breeds can look very different from their juvenile feathers and adult feathers.
I had a Naked Neck pullet who was white with black barring as a juvenile, and her adult feathers are white with beautiful red/brown patterns with a little sprinkle of black.

 

[CannedMonster]

Guys!!
My buff bantam Cochin, Pippin, laid her first egg!


It’s so cute!

It’s exactly 1 ounce.
Here it is next to Agatha and Emily’s eggs.

I’m somehow not surprised that she laid it after I put them in the prefab coop.
I wonder if she felt safer in there?
I actually didn’t have any nest boxes uncovered yet.
I knew Pip and Cricket were probably getting close but unlike Silkie and my standard chickens, I don’t know exactly how old the bantam pullets are.
She laid it right inside the coop door in the shavings.
She made a little depression in there and I went to check on them and noticed she wasn’t in the run with the others.
I saw her through the doorway and she was picking up pieces of shavings and putting them over by her feet.
It reminded me of a bird making a nest.
She got disturbed by me being near and went down the ramp to the run.
That’s when I saw the egg.
I uncovered 2 of the 4 nest boxes for them to use.
I just hope they don’t decide to sleep in them but they’ve been using roosts for quite some time now so hopefully they won’t.

 

[Geranium]

That actually takes a while.
At somewhere around 4-5 months when they begin to get larger combs and wattles and they start getting red.
Males mature much faster than females too.
Right now they’re getting their juvenile feathers.
At about 2-3 months they will have a molt that lasts several weeks and they will get their mature feathers in.
It’s really interesting because Easter Eggers and some other breeds can look very different from their juvenile feathers and adult feathers.
I had a Naked Neck pullet who was white with black barring as a juvenile, and her adult feathers are white with beautiful red/brown patterns with a little sprinkle of black.

I hopefully only have pullets. It's interesting to see the different rate if feather developing between the breeds. The Austra White has the most, followed by the Easter Eggers. The Orpingtons are the ones with the least feathers so far. And i'm super curious to see what the EEs will look like as adults.

 

[Anna Ranieri]

If you kept them together for 5 hours then I’d say they’re integrated!
It’s over.
Done.
Finished.
No need to keep them separate anymore.
As long as you let them out into the run and they get some free range time each day they should sleep in there together without any problems.
I don’t have ducks but I did as a child and they are rather bumbling
Good idea to use the pots instead.
It’s all about improvising according to your animals specific situation and needs.

Is your run attached to the hutch or separate?

At last! So glad its over
The run is separate - we built the run ourselves, was the first time ever building something and it shows lol, some posts are slanted, some bending inwards and a few out of line, but it is sturdy, secure and safe. The hutch is just shop bought, we have it at the back of the run. They only get locked in the run when no one is home and they only get locked in the hutch at night, I let them out at 7:30 am and they stay out till they put themselves to bed - Jellybean always puts herself to bed earlier than the others do and Lilah is always the last to go to bed.
Here are some old pictures taken early July, we only had the 2 drakes, Pedro and Jellybean at this point.

Thats the old hutch in there, the one we have now is in the same place but is two story high. We don't keep a pool in there, that was just for then because it was so hot we had them dotted all around the garden too.

these were taken in the early days before the run was completed, we used the towels that day because we hadn't yet put the sun shade covers on. At the moment the run is three quarters covered with tarpaulin ready for the windy season and winter.

this is where Lilah and Roo are sleeping at present, my bedroom is the other side of this wall, I am soooo going to miss laying in bed listening to Lilah and Roo chattering as they settle for sleep and sooo going to miss waking to them chirping and clucking in the mornings, is such a wonderful sound to wake up to.

 

[Anna Ranieri]

Even if she wasn’t vaccinated, go right ahead and boil the eggs and feed them back to them. Mine are in a withdrawal (so I can’t eat the eggs for another week) I’ve been boiling and feeding them back to the chickens. It’s very good for them to get animal protein.

Ah thank you, - do you give the shells as well? I was thinking of crushing the shells to tiny pieces along with the eggs?
Also could you please tell me how long it is safe to keep and eat an egg and how long until its gone bad?

 

[PNW_Peepers]

Ah thank you, - do you give the shells as well? I was thinking of crushing the shells to tiny pieces along with the eggs?
Also could you please tell me how long it is safe to keep and eat an egg and how long until its gone bad?

I keep mine on the counter without washing until just before eating. They are good for at least a month. Refrigerated they last a few months. You can do a float test if you’re unsure on your eggs date and freshness. In which you drop an egg into a large bowl of water. If the egg floats it’s gone bad. I don’t feed mine the eggshells, instead I compost them for calcium in the garden. I give my girls a container of oyster shells that they can access at any time. Eggshells are a quick source of calcium, often times too quick for it to be a suitable calcium supplement for laying hens.

 

[llombardo]

So I got most of the coop finished. Worked from sunrise to sun set. After all that--the little ones are still young to go with the big ones who still peck at them. Finally two went into the bigger area--not on the roost bit on the floor. I am uding flax bedding which is super soft--keeps thrm cool in sunmer and warm in winter. I got a rechargeable light with three settings to put in there for me and most likely in the winter. I added the window, which can be open in normal temps and has plexi glass for winter-so they get some sun. Ventalation is on the right and left side, along with about 4-5 inches a little over three feet in the back. The followed me back and forth and were very interested in watching me work. They were in and out while I was working.

Before

After