Accidental chicken host

[LarryTheWelsumer]

Glad to meet you and Larry, who is a handsome fellow. You are a kind soul, indeed, to take care of him. You can find the nutridrench and Flockraiser feed that Dobie Lover mentions above at farm stores like TSC and such. There are probably some in your area.

If you are planning on continuing as Larry's caretaker, you might want to read about rooster behavior.

And if you are planning on doing some sort of coop for Larry, and possibly adding a harem for that fellow, you might want some hints on coop design and chicken keeping:

1. Intro to chicken keeping

2. Common mistakes & how to fix them

3. Ventilation (important to chicken health), with helpful links to coop designs organized by climate (because what is just right for my New England hens won't work for my brother's Arizona chickens)

But also know that not everybody puts their chickens into coops, and some folks repurpose sheds, playhouses, and even old cars into chicken coops. Just keep in mind the importance of ventilation! You may even be able to buy a purpose built coop from a nearby handyman on Craigslist (I was!). Be wary of buying a pre-built coop from farm stores, or the Internet because their claims of how many hens it will hold are always exaggerated, and they are often poorly designed and built. Here is a good link about building a coop, with some guidelines about design and size needed.

4. Predator protection for new & existing coops

5. Dealing with a muddy coop and run

To look for articles on your own:

A. Use the SEARCH button, but use the Advanced Search choice, and select ARTICLES at the top of the box. Just enter your keyword(s) and scroll through your results!

B. I find it helpful to notice the rating and reviews. All articles are by BYC members, and all the reviews/ratings are as well. The ratings help a newbie like me sort the most useful and reliable articles.

C. You can bookmark the articles or posts you think you want to refer to again using that bookmark icon at the top of articles or posts. You can find them again by clicking on your own avatar and looking at the list of bookmarks you have built up!

Notes about where to put a coop:

1. As far as you can, put a coop and run on high ground, that drains well, so you won't have so much muddy coop problems. Chickens need to be dry, dry, dry.

2. As far as you can, put a coop with the ventilation lined up with your prevailing breezes, and away from the direction of your storms. If you are not sure of these (who is these days?), check with your local National Weather Service website.

3. As far as you can, arrange for some sort of shade over your coop and run. Preferably deciduous so the girls will enjoy winter sun, but summer shade.

That’s a wealth of good advice, thank you for sharing. We are on the edge of the doldrums here, so storms literally come from any direction, although the majority come from the west or southwest (from the Gulf of Mexico), so I’ll orient it accordingly. We’re in a temperate rainforest, so keeping them dry in the 9-ish months of summer (our rainy season) is going to be extremely difficult, especially with the clay soil here. I’ll do my best to find higher ground. The “deciduous” trees here are mostly evergreen live oaks and water oaks; we frequently have 80°F+ days even in winter so shade is essential year round. Perhaps one end of the run can extend into a sunny location? I’m thinking they’ll need a fan to assist in ventilating the coop. It’s hot and humid here in the summer! Again, thank you so much for your advice.

 

[LarryTheWelsumer]

When you are in town, you may want to pick up some antibiotic ointment. Get the kind without pain killer in it.
The neck stabbing may be wounds as well, not mites. Good luck with Larry!

Thank you, I hadn’t considered that. It does look scaly in the bald spots, but it also looks like he could have been attacked as I see some end pieces where feathers broke off near the skin.

 

[LarryTheWelsumer]

I do want to mention that Larry is quite a big fellow. A friend estimated he’s about twenty pounds. That’s one reason I thought he was a Welsumer. I looked up Marans and the site I found ( a breeder website) says they are significantly smaller…half the size by weight. The coloring matches, but both breeds seem to have similar coloring.

 

[LarryTheWelsumer]

I'm really only trying to help every time I reply like this but scratch is not an appropriate chicken feed. It's extremely low in protein and is basically considered a treat or just candy. That's the last thing he needs right now. He needs a complete balance chicken feed.

I’ll see about getting a better feed tomorrow, then. I literally know nothing about caring for chickens, and the person who went shopping for chicken food today didn’t know any more than I do. Best I can do for protein right now is give him scrambled eggs after the rain passes (he took refuge from the weather in the trees). I’m doing my best to care for him, believe me. I’ll do more reading and figure it out. He is in bad shape so seems grateful I’m even trying to help. Here’s a couple closer shots of the neck issues I observed. If you see what the problem is, I’d be grateful to know what you think. He’s had a rough life, that much is clear. I hope to remedy that situation. I’m literally an accidental host, so all advice is welcomed.

 

[DobieLover]

I’ll see about getting a better feed tomorrow, then. I literally know nothing about caring for chickens, and the person who went shopping for chicken food today didn’t know any more than I do. Best I can do for protein right now is give him scrambled eggs after the rain passes (he took refuge from the weather in the trees). I’m doing my best to care for him, believe me. I’ll do more reading and figure it out. He is in bad shape so seems grateful I’m even trying to help. Here’s a couple closer shots of the neck issues I observed. If you see what the problem is, I’d be grateful to know what you think. He’s had a rough life, that much is clear. I hope to remedy that situation. I’m literally an accidental host, so all advice is welcomed.

All I can really see are some broken off feathers in his neck which isn't surprising considering the damage done to his head because of the fight. He was undoubtedly fighting with another cockerel or a rooster.

 

[DobieLover]

I’m thinking they’ll need a fan to assist in ventilating the coop. It’s hot and humid here in the summer!

If it's hot and humid I would design an open air coop. You can click on the Articles tab on this website and then click on the Coops page. Or you can click on the search function and search for open air coops. There are a lot of different designs that you can look at for inspiration.

 

[LarryTheWelsumer]

If it's hot and humid I would design an open air coop. You can click on the Articles tab on this website and then click on the Coops page. Or you can click on the search function and search for open air coops. There are a lot of different designs that you can look at for inspiration.

Thank you. I’ll look that up

 

[LarryTheWelsumer]

All I can really see are some broken off feathers in his neck which isn't surprising considering the damage done to his head because of the fight. He was undoubtedly fighting with another cockerel or a rooster.

Thanks so much for all your advice. That was the first time he let me get my camera close enough to see the damage done. If you don’t mind, please tell me what age is a cockerel?

 

[David61]

Is Larry molting?

I'm really only trying to help every time I reply like this but scratch is not an appropriate chicken feed. It's extremely low in protein and is basically considered a treat or just candy. That's the last thing he needs right now. He needs a complete balance chicken feed.

Now my Show Stopper 10 way scratch is 16% protein -7% fat-5% fiber . It is a mid south feed by American Classic / J&J Bagging .
That and free ranging rooster should be fine. Larry will come to the show stopper grain real fast.
you get Larry some Ladies his attitude may change.

 

[LarryTheWelsumer]

Is Larry molting?

Now my Show Stopper 10 way scratch is 16% protein -7% fat-5% fiber . It is a mid south feed by American Classic / J&J Bagging .
That and free ranging rooster should be fine. Larry will come to the show stopper grain real fast.
you get Larry some Ladies his attitude may change.

I don’t think he’s molting, not that I’d know the early signs. Would that happen in winter? Our last frost isn’t for another month. He’s clearly been attacked by another rooster.

When you say his attitude might change when he gets some hens, do you mean he might become aggressive? He followed a squirrel around the yard earlier but seemed more curious about it than anything. He got very close several times and seemed to be examining it.