2018 Newbie Chat!

[Anna Ranieri]

How exciting! A new coop! I'll have to check out their plans. Not that I'm making one, just cause I like looking at them.
Hey, my thread asking about cold weather is a Featured Thread!!! Wow!
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/opinions-of-cold-climate-chicken-keepers-needed.1289148/

Just finished read through your thread. Great thread, really enjoyed reading through it and picked up some good ideas too.
I'm not using any heat so far, our lowest so far has been -3°C (26°f) but we are mostly ranging between 5°C (41°f) and -1°C (30°f). My girls are happy no one is showing any signs of being bothered at all. I check their combs everyday and all is well. Although I've had a lot of criticism about keeping them in a rabbit hutch, it's actually helping a lot as it holds in heat well. I have loads of bedding in there for them though just to make sure. It is very rare we get any lower than we are now but if we do we have already decided we'll bring them in with us. We have to be careful though because of Roo she gets over heated very easily. When we bathed the other three a few days ago, we brought her in too so she wouldn't fret about being without Lilah, we kept the heating off indoors so's not to risk unclimatising them but even doing that she got too hot and did so very quickly. I am sitting outside with them at present as it is dark and although I am using the yard light for them I don't leave them out on their own in case of night predators, it is 2°C (35°f) with a slight frost, I am absolutely freezing despite wearing several layers of clothing, they on the other hand are happily milling around foraging at leasure, showing no signs of wanting to go to bed yet but I am comforted by how well they are handling the cold - albeit that I might end up resembling an ice sculpture very soon lol.

 

[llombardo]

Just finished read through your thread. Great thread, really enjoyed reading through it and picked up some good ideas too.
I'm not using any heat so far, our lowest so far has been -3°C (26°f) but we are mostly ranging between 5°C (41°f) and -1°C (30°f). My girls are happy no one is showing any signs of being bothered at all. I check their combs everyday and all is well. Although I've had a lot of criticism about keeping them in a rabbit hutch, it's actually helping a lot as it holds in heat well. I have loads of bedding in there for them though just to make sure. It is very rare we get any lower than we are now but if we do we have already decided we'll bring them in with us. We have to be careful though because of Roo she gets over heated very easily. When we bathed the other three a few days ago, we brought her in too so she wouldn't fret about being without Lilah, we kept the heating off indoors so's not to risk unclimatising them but even doing that she got too hot and did so very quickly. I am sitting outside with them at present as it is dark and although I am using the yard light for them I don't leave them out on their own in case of night predators, it is 2°C (35°f) with a slight frost, I am absolutely freezing despite wearing several layers of clothing, they on the other hand are happily milling around foraging at leasure, showing no signs of wanting to go to bed yet but I am comforted by how well they are handling the cold - albeit that I might end up resembling an ice sculpture very soon lol.

I would give anything for 35 degrees right about now.....lol

I just spent some time with them and sang them a couple songs, they seem to like my singing--no one else does...

Of course Prince hasn't stopped crowing since I left. I truly love the bond him and I have. I feel like I can see him thinking as he looks at me and tilts his head.

 

[No More Empty Nest]

so how is everyone doing with the weather?

The run is completely buried in snow/ice. I got stuck trying to get out of driveway today--that was a fun couple hours. The snow plow guy from the township came and helped. They plow me in everytime it snows. Then a car came spinning at me , don't know how he missed me. So now I'm at home, signal out on the tv. Yay!!

Prince knows I'm home and keeps crowing. I go and check on them and he shuts up...lol

Have I mentioned how happy I am I decided to bring them in? It's not even about how they would survive in this crap, but how I would be able to even care for them if I can't get in there.

I do have a question...

The faverolle and the EE have paler combs right now, I know that the EE is not laying and I'm pretty sure the facerolle isn't either, should I give them some electrolytes and vitamins in the water? I was going to and the stuff I have seems to be expired--the scary part is that I believe it expired in 2017 and I bought it JUNE 2018. I called the store and they are seeing the same thing. They are calling the supplier and will call me back on that.

Is it electrolyte powder? I thought mine was expired but it was actually a manufacture date.

Ohhh emm geeeeeee one of my pullets squatted for me for the first time this morning! It's one of my Australorps, Harriet. She's always been my loudest girl, and she's constantly talking and complaining. All 8 of my pullets turned 20 weeks today! Fingers crossed for a first egg very soon!

Yay!!! Mine are 23 wks...no eggs yet, lol.

I slipped on the ice today, came down on the knee that's going to need a replacement soon. I was surprised I could get up and still walk. I took some ibuprofen and put ice on it, yeah ice, just what I need in this weather, lol. I'll see what it feels like tomorrow morning.

 

[llombardo]

Is it electrolyte powder? I thought mine was expired but it was actually a manufacture date.

Yay!!! Mine are 23 wks...no eggs yet, lol.

I slipped on the ice today, came down on the knee that's going to need a replacement soon. I was surprised I could get up and still walk. I took some ibuprofen and put ice on it, yeah ice, just what I need in this weather, lol. I'll see what it feels like tomorrow morning.

Yes they are saying it is the manufacture date and it's good for 24 months.

I hope your knee feels better soon. It's just nasty out there. Just nasty.

 

[CannedMonster]

Wow, she's growing up so fast and she is so beautiful. I can't make up my mind whether she looks more like Emily or more like Angus, she has a resemblance of both of them. What do you think?

I think she’ll favor Angus because she’s got dark juvenile feathers like he did.
Emily’s juvenile feathers were basically sort of black and white.

 

[CannedMonster]

I just love this girl!!

This is Ivy, one of my Silver Penciled Rocks.
She has the personality of a puppy lol.

She’s so intensely curious!
She wants to know what I’m doing.
She will find me no matter where I am in the yard.
She comes all the way to the opposite side of the yard from the other chickens if I’m there to see what I’m up to.
Last night I was gardening until almost complete darkness and she kept coming back over to me even though everyone else was going into the coop.
She talks and talks to me...it’s just adorable.
She jumps onto the back of the lawn chair too.

Checking out my gardening shoes

I think she’s going to go for my earring

 

[No More Empty Nest]

I just love this girl!!

This is Ivy, one of my Silver Penciled Rocks.
She has the personality of a puppy lol.

She’s so intensely curious!
She wants to know what I’m doing.
She will find me no matter where I am in the yard.
She comes all the way to the opposite side of the yard from the other chickens if I’m there to see what I’m up to.
Last night I was gardening until almost complete darkness and she kept coming back over to me even though everyone else was going into the coop.
She talks and talks to me...it’s just adorable.
She jumps onto the back of the lawn chair too.
View attachment 1656663

Checking out my gardening shoes
View attachment 1656664

View attachment 1656665

I think she’s going to go for my earring
View attachment 1656666

View attachment 1656667

What a sweetie! And so beautiful too!

 

[Anna Ranieri]

Is it electrolyte powder? I thought mine was expired but it was actually a manufacture date.

Yay!!! Mine are 23 wks...no eggs yet, lol.

I slipped on the ice today, came down on the knee that's going to need a replacement soon. I was surprised I could get up and still walk. I took some ibuprofen and put ice on it, yeah ice, just what I need in this weather, lol. I'll see what it feels like tomorrow morning.

Ouch! Not good, poor you

 

[Anna Ranieri]

I just love this girl!!

This is Ivy, one of my Silver Penciled Rocks.
She has the personality of a puppy lol.

She’s so intensely curious!
She wants to know what I’m doing.
She will find me no matter where I am in the yard.
She comes all the way to the opposite side of the yard from the other chickens if I’m there to see what I’m up to.
Last night I was gardening until almost complete darkness and she kept coming back over to me even though everyone else was going into the coop.
She talks and talks to me...it’s just adorable.
She jumps onto the back of the lawn chair too.
View attachment 1656663

Checking out my gardening shoes
View attachment 1656664

View attachment 1656665

I think she’s going to go for my earring
View attachment 1656666

View attachment 1656667

Awwwwww, lovely pictures - she's so cute Lovely to see a pic of your beautiful face too

 

[Anna Ranieri]

Roo laid her first egg this morning I'm so proud of her - she waited for Lilah to go lay her egg then got in the nest area next to the one Lilah was in, Roo seemed a little anxious at first but then Lilah came out to Roo a couple of times and got close to Roo, doing what looked like a soothing action, it certainly calmed Roo and then Lilah went back in to her favourite nest area and laid her egg, she had finished a while before Roo but Roo remained calm the whole time. I'm so proud of all my girls but seeing what Lilah did in helping Roo melted my heart
Roo's egg is tiny compared to my other girls eggs, made me giggle that my smallest chicken lays the largest egg and my biggest chicken lays the smallest egg
Roo's first egg , at 24 weeks and 2 days old

All four of my chicken's eggs, from left to right - Jellybean's, Roo's, Lilah's and Pedro's

Pedro has laid a couple of massive eggs now, both have been double yolkers - here's the pic I posted a while back of her first big egg -

Here it is cooked -

Her eggs are always more yolk than white, very tasty too