Arizona Chickens

[EmmaDonovan]

Shouldn't we put something over the hardware cloth so they don't get bumblefoot from walking around on the wire? Or does it not matter? We can dig down a little bit but the caliche is right there at the surface.

 

[cavemanrich]

Shouldn't we put something over the hardware cloth so they don't get bumblefoot from walking around on the wire? Or does it not matter? We can dig down a little bit but the caliche is right there at the surface.

I know your concern are those lil ground squirrels devlz,,, and I honestly never dealt with them. Are they able to EASILY dig thru the caliche??? Maybe for starters,, don't do the HC on the ground, and see. You can always add it later, and cover ground with some top-soil from garden center,,,,, or sand. (or earth you scrape of the yard surface) Your choice. I would not have chickens running around on top of the HC, JMO. They would attempt to scratch,,, regardless if there was a section for dust bathing in a box container.

 

[igorsMistress]

Shouldn't we put something over the hardware cloth so they don't get bumblefoot from walking around on the wire? Or does it not matter? We can dig down a little bit but the caliche is right there at the surface.

Straw would work, breaks down pretty quick. I wouldn’t use wood chips, you run the risk of the flock getting hurt on it and it’s far more expensive than straw.

 

[EmmaDonovan]

Hurt like splinters and such from wood chips? Darn, I thought wood chips would be an awesome thing for chickens to peck around in. We can usually get them for free, too.

Caliche isn't always in one thick slab layer, like a house foundation. It can concentrate into large lumps. Easy for squirrels to burrow around. We will free feed our hens and we don't want to feed the squirrel population, too. They're a huge problem here. I suspect they've tunneled under the house, too, but that's for the homeowner to deal with.

 

[springvalley123]

Hurt like splinters and such from wood chips? Darn, I thought wood chips would be an awesome thing for chickens to peck around in. We can usually get them for free, too.

Caliche isn't always in one thick slab layer, like a house foundation. It can concentrate into large lumps. Easy for squirrels to burrow around. We will free feed our hens and we don't want to feed the squirrel population, too. They're a huge problem here. I suspect they've tunneled under the house, too, but that's for the homeowner to deal with.

I used to live in a place where the driveway was on a slab of granite but I had various rodents, including a groundhog that tunneled under the house and into the opening for the bathtub drain. One rodent even chewed thru the extension cord I had for the brooder!

I had a pro poison the groundhog and then I cut the bathroom/bedroom wall to get his body out, and I sprayed the extension cord with a mixture of oils: cinnamon, rosemary, mint, cedar, possibly oregano oil and had no repeat problems with the rodents. I periodically sprayed this concoction on plants that I didn't want the rodents to eat, and a perimeter around the coop. Maybe you could try that approach? Also, taking away the food at night would serve the same purpose as an expensive metal feeder would--it'd deter the pests from entering the area because there'd be no food for them.

 

[EmmaDonovan]

Hm. Okay, we won't put hardware cloth on the floor of the coop unless/until we actually see ground squirrel holes. We'll put down a predator apron around the outside, though; that won't stop burrowing critters but it'll deter digging from the outside.

 

[springvalley123]

CRATE SALE!!! TSC has 2-door metal crates 30% off

I was in the PV Tractor Supply a few days ago. I also saw this in their black friday preview email. They had the 48" crates in stock.

 

[BlueBaby]

CRATE SALE!!! TSC has 2-door metal crates 30% off

I was in the PV Tractor Supply a few days ago. I also saw this in their black friday preview email. They had the 48" crates in stock.

I went to your link and then looked around a bit more and found this nice useful item here:
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/red-shed-embroidered-framed-sign-with-tray?cm_vc=-10011

 

[Geckolady]

Someone told me that they make a type of tape to put over car wires that repels rodents. It tastes terrible to them. I haven't checked into this because they said it's pretty expensive, but maybe a roll of that would be cheaper than replacing wires.

 

[springvalley123]

I went to your link and then looked around a bit more and found this nice useful item here:
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/red-shed-embroidered-framed-sign-with-tray?cm_vc=-10011

It's cute!