Arizona Chickens

[ChicksOfHazzard]

Is anyone else in the west valley ordering from the co-op shipment due in tomorrow? I'd be willing to pick it up for a small mileage fee, or vice versa if someone else is going and wants some gas money in return. I'll have one open seat if you want to ride along. Message me.

Ooh, me too but for Far East Mesa. Anyone else want to combine order pick-ups?

 

[MaddBaggins]

WOOOOOOOO!!!!! Congrats Madd Baggins!!!

SOOO exciting!!! Funny how they just know what the nesting boxes are for. With regards to the egg, I read not to wash them until right before you use them. They have a "bloom" on them that protects the egg. http://www.suburbanchicken.org/eggs.htm

Congrats again! And on the hottest day of the year so far, that seems like a sign of good things to come production-wise. Give those girls an extra treat!

Interesting on the "no wash". Thanks for the link.

I hope it's a good sign also. I set up a mister system, but don't use it. It keeps popping the fittings. So, our flock is just hanging out in the shade and acclimating. I have added ice to their water a few times, but not daily and not today. Our flock stays outside. They have no fans, just a lot of shade. They don't get any sun at all into the run until mid afternoon. The water is always in the shade.

 

[Billiam]

I have not taken a lot of pictures of my new chicks, here is a picture of Tipsy the Red Star, Lind the Buff Orpington, the Partridge Barred Rock dose not have a name and the Barred Rocks, you can see the one on the right hand side is darker and has more feathers. What do you think? The other two Roos? Is it to early for me to try to re-home the two I believe are Roos. I only want the pullets. They are Good Shepherd from Desertmarcy so you know they are good stock. Anyone interested?
Please tell me what you think, pullet or roo?

I have three BR. Two are already grown and laying. They had their tail feathers grow out like the one at the farthest right side and one is darker than the other. The third one is about 12 weeks old and its tail feathers are growing like the one at the bottom right and is on the lighter side. I'm thinking they are not quite the same type of BR and maybe have a different type of tail feathers. Just my experience and that only accounts for three BRs.

 

[Mikokoke]

I am a believer in nature taking it's course and forcing them to acclimate. I admit, this will be my first summer with chickens, but many old-timers talked me out of many things I had contemplated and here's why:

No fans, AC or heat in the coop, no misters for them and no pampering inside the house. These prevent them from acclimating and can cause more health problems. By going in and out of an artificially cooled coop, they are rapidly changing temperatures often and this can lead to cold like symptoms in humans, cats and dogs. I'm not sure what the chicken equivalent is, but it makes sense.

Also, the misters provide a moisture rich environment that parasites thrive in, like mice and lice. Think about where the parasites thrive. In the most protected areas of the wings and around the vent. Moist locations. You are also likely to end up with moist, muddy ground, which makes an excellent host for wet poop, which harbors flies.


Now, what I have been told to do: ensure lots of shade with ample air flow. Low lying bushes work well, as do short tress. Mine love sitting in the shade beneath my oleanders.

Ensure there is ample fresh water at all times. Putting frozen water bottles in it to cool the water supposedly works great, as does a protected water line to nipples running directly from your water main. Exposed lines like a garden hose will bake in the sun and get very hot, so avoid those.

Get a large, shallow container, like an under-the-bed one, and put a half dozen or so adobe bricks in it. The fire bricks or paving bricks both are said to work. fill the container to slightly cover the bricks. The chickens will stand on the bricks and are cooled through their feet. Make sure you change the water daily, because they will poop in it. You may need more or less bricks depending on the size of your flock.

Ensure their coop is well ventilated. You know how hot a shed gets inside? A coop can be just as bad. You can pick up small solar vent fans from RV dealers to ensure the air stays moving, too. These are slow displacement fans, so don't expect them to do a ton, but they may help in a smaller coop. They are designed to keep the air from going stale in the RV during storage, not as a cooling aid.

Remember, now is the acclimation period. Dogs have shed their winter coat and are still losing lots of fur. My chickens seem to be losing feathers, too. It's all a regular cycle of nature.

Hope this helps. It's my plan for this year. I'm not sure what the temperature was here, but the only one I had panting was my broody that is stuck in a dog kennel. We're trying to break her, though. She was in the shade all day with food and water, so I'm sure she'll be fine.

Thanks for the great advice. Makes perfect sense. We live in far NE Scottsdale and are about 8 degrees cooler than Phoenix proper. Yes, the chickens were still panting, but so would we! I thought about putting a mister in, but after reading your post, it doesn't make sense. We let our chickens out every evening from about 5 until they let themselves back into the roost (7:30ish). And we let them out in the morning around 6ish until 8. We have owls at night that seem eager to prey on a chick and hawks. Anyways, thanks for the good advice!

 

[ChicksOfHazzard]

Interesting on the "no wash". Thanks for the link.

I hope it's a good sign also. I set up a mister system, but don't use it. It keeps popping the fittings. So, our flock is just hanging out in the shade and acclimating. I have added ice to their water a few times, but not daily and not today. Our flock stays outside. They have no fans, just a lot of shade. They don't get any sun at all into the run until mid afternoon. The water is always in the shade.

Have you tried zip ties on either end of the fitting? I noticed I had a couple that seemed to drip a lot and one in particular, the hose kept spacing away from the fitting. I pushed them together as much as possible and then zip-tied like a hose clamp on either end. Seems ok now.

Wouldn't be happy about coming home to a flood...

But if they're doing well without, see how it goes. It'd be nice not to have to use it. Anyway, congrats again on your golden egg!

 

[countrygirl74]

WOOOOOOOO!!!!! Congrats Madd Baggins!!!

SOOO exciting!!! Funny how they just know what the nesting boxes are for. With regards to the egg, I read not to wash them until right before you use them. They have a "bloom" on them that protects the egg. http://www.suburbanchicken.org/eggs.htm

X2 - they will stay fresher and last longer if you just put them in the carton as is, and wash right before using...


As for the heat - it's been high 90's here and the only thing we have done so far is make sure they have cool, fresh water and of course, shade. I've noticed the young ones have been hanging out in the coop- it stays surprisingly cool in there for a good part of the day from the night temps. The older girls prefer to hang out under the coop. When I get a chance, I do wet down an area of the run because they like to dig down and lay in the cool, moist dirt - just like my dogs, lol. The ones that seem to be bothered by the heat the most are my RIR and my cochin, but they are still doing just fine. I still would like to do the terra cotta bricks in the water eventually - just need more time in the day...

We butchered 11 meaties on Saturday and split them with my sister and her family, as we did all the processing together. Can't wait to try out some new recipes! Doing meaties was sooo much easier than having to process our own roos that we had gotten attached to. I think I could definitely handle processing meaties more often - it makes a big difference when you know you are actually putting them out of their miserable life, they all look the same (so no names and attachments), and they go through more feed than all your other animals put together!

 

[LadyKotaDoria]

Here are, I hope better pictures, the one I believe to be a pullet has light fluf on her chest below the crop and a dark spot on her beak. I tried to get he'd shots of the back of the heads to see the spots, and profile.

Can anyone tell any better roo from Pullet? To me she has a little different look and personality. The 2 I believe to be Roos want always to be in the middle or under someone. She is usually on the outside.

 

[GreatWhiteAfro]

Hottest day of the year and we just got our first egg. I have no idea who did it but it was in a nesting box. The girls are 18 weeks as of today except Sasha who is more like 16 weeks.
We're all so excited!! I checked this morning and nothing and just checked a few minutes ago and this is our reward.

Congrats!!! My girls are just about the same age, hoping they start laying soon.

 

[kevs-chickadees]

Are you able to see any height difference yet? How about a thickness in their legs? I always go by these two things when they are the same breed and age.

 

[kacklinkelly]

I still would like to do the terra cotta bricks in the water eventually - just need more time in the day...

We butchered 11 meaties on Saturday and split them with my sister and her family, as we did all the processing together. Can't wait to try out some new recipes! Doing meaties was sooo much easier than having to process our own roos that we had gotten attached to. I think I could definitely handle processing meaties more often - it makes a big difference when you know you are actually putting them out of their miserable life, they all look the same (so no names and attachments), and they go through more feed than all your other animals put together!

Hi Countrygirl - I tried the brick in the water and saw my EE (who seems to have the hardest time with the heat) using it today. I was so excited. It's been in their tractor for a couple of weeks. This is the first I've seen it getting used. I just put a regular brick inside a huge dog bowl filled to the height of the brick with cool water. She seemed quite happy. She stood in the shade on that brick for quite a while with her wings spread out, panting away while the wind was blowing on her. She is the one that most concerns. We are leaving for a few days of vacation. Am hoping they behave for their chickensitter.

Am glad your meatie processing went well. I felt very similarly. I knew the intended purpose from day one. The most challenging part for me was taking the life. After that, it was just a process. Ours have served us well and I am quite sure I will be doing this again in the fall. Would like to try the red rangers next time just to see if they are any different (cleaner?

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