Arizona Chickens

[City farm]

 

Sad day today. My wife called me and said when she went in our backyard all 5 of our chickens were torn to bits. I presume a coyote. We live in suburbia and I never thought a coyote would come in that deep and be able to hop over all the fenses and cinderblock walls and get at our chickens. We are getting out of the chicken life. We have a Leghorn who survived because she was locked in a dog kennel due to the other chickens picking on her. If anyone wants her let me know.

I'm sorry to hear that.  It's a very common problem in the valley, and there is nowhere that can be considered safe.  I'm often surprised more people don't know, but coyotes can clear 8' block fences without ever touching it.  They are amazingly athletic and fast.  I've seen them roaming around all the way in to the 27th Avenue and Indian School Road area, where our old house was.  They often live in the retention areas, water gulleys and under the bridges, etc.  If you think about it, there's a ton of food sources in the valley, especially up near the Sun City area, with the older population having the smaller yippy dogs and such.  Plus the golf courses have so many rabbits, ducks, etc.  Surprise is close enough to get coyotes coming through Sun City, Sun City West and Sun City Grande.  You have a lot of crop fields South of Surprise, too, so you're in the middle of their stomping grounds.

If you don't find anyone else, I'd be willing to take her.  I appear to be the North Valley Chicken Rescue.  With our large flock and several roosters keeping them in check, she should fit in perfectly fine.  Just PM me over the next few days if nobody else shows interest.  I'm off work starting Monday for a full month, so it's all good there.

[rule]
If anyone is interested, I do have an Ameracauna cockerel that I'm not interested in keeping.  My two plus two half-roosters are enough for my flock.  My Silkie and Buttercup each count as half-roosters.  Sometime after my wife's surgery, he'll deploy to Camp Freezer, along with a rabbit and our turkey, if nobody claims him before then.

I am in the middle of suburbia in Tempe; MILES from truly open land, and there are coyotes here ALL THE TIME.  Coyotes have no idea that they are supposed to be only out in the wild.  To them, this CITY is their home.

I have seen grey fox's on brodway & Dobson.. AND one of a family friends here in TEMPE, had a family living under there storage unit in their
back yard.. They would jump up to the 6 foot fence in one leap.. They are much smaller that a coyotes.. Plus the hawks.... Don't forget the
Hawks...

 

[City farm]

I just heard great news!  Arizona Senate Bill 1151 passed with a vote of 29 to 1!  It'll move on to the next stage with a great weight towards passing.  That's exellent news for all you in restricted areas.

Congratulations!

Yeeehhhhhhaaaaa!!!! Love the wild, wild west...

 

[City farm]

Just talked to my new neighbor the other day. Asked him if I could put in a small chicken coop under my Grapefruit Tree.... he said 'Yes"... but I told him I have to have permission from his wife too!  Developing...

Fabulous... Can't wait to see what you get...
At our family rental the neighbors said yes to chickens---no rooster.. All though they did say yes to a loaner rooster..
We shall see.. Just helping them to get supplies to make it secure for the flock.. It is on Power & brown.. 1/2 acre
Plenty of room with lots of preditors..

 

[roostereggs]

I put my eighteen 8-week littles out in their own coop this week, and couldn't find 3 of the 18 last night. The little stinkers found hiding places...one was stuck between some chain link...another was a BCM and just couldn't see her hiding...and the third hopped the 6 foot bamboo fence and was roosting with the adults.

I was SO scared for the 10 minutes I couldn't find them and had to run in the house for more light and dh to help. I haven't had anyone go missing before and my heart just stopped until they were all found safe. I really can't imagine what it would be like to have them missing or eaten due to predators like many of you have experienced. I know it's just a matter of time, though. I try not to feel like they are predator-proof because as soon as I do...well it will be a sad day. But having littles outside is like childproofing, and I have learned a lot and made some changes this week.

What I fear most is my greyhounds. We have them triple gated/fenced at night and double during the day.

And I still wonder...is nylon mesh over and around the coops and run enough to stop an owl or hawk?

 

[Gallo del Cielo]

I put my eighteen 8-week littles out in their own coop this week, and couldn't find 3 of the 18 last night. The little stinkers found hiding places...one was stuck between some chain link...another was a BCM and just couldn't see her hiding...and the third hopped the 6 foot bamboo fence and was roosting with the adults.

I was SO scared for the 10 minutes I couldn't find them and had to run in the house for more light and dh to help. I haven't had anyone go missing before and my heart just stopped until they were all found safe. I really can't imagine what it would be like to have them missing or eaten due to predators like many of you have experienced. I know it's just a matter of time, though. I try not to feel like they are predator-proof because as soon as I do...well it will be a sad day. But having littles outside is like childproofing, and I have learned a lot and made some changes this week.

What I fear most is my greyhounds. We have them triple gated/fenced at night and double during the day.

And I still wonder...is nylon mesh over and around the coops and run enough to stop an owl or hawk?

I hate that feeling; frantically counting and searching. It's only a matter of time before some predator comes looking for an easy meal or a dog looking for fun. One of the best things about this forum and following this thread is that we can learn from the stories of others and try to better prepare. I appreciate all the stories shared here, even the sad ones.

 

[Timskins]

Looking for some nesting box advice. I have tried a lot of bedding and just a little and either way they kick it out until they are down to the wood. I am losing a few eggs a week from them breaking when they drop/lay them.

 

[Ivytwilight]

Looking for some nesting box advice. I have tried a lot of bedding and just a little and either way they kick it out until they are down to the wood. I am losing a few eggs a week from them breaking when they drop/lay them.

I had the same issue with one of my hens. She would kick any and everything out of the box, and then just dig at the bottom of the box for 15 minutes before she laid an egg. So, I finally put down some grip beaded shelf liner in the bottom of the box. (cupboard liners). I put a few layers in (I had to use small nails to nail it down her digging was so fierce) and it stopped the eggs from cracking. It gives enough cushion! I don't know if it will work in your case, but you can give it a shot. Very inexpensive, I got mine at the dollar store.

 

[desertmarcy]

Looking for some nesting box advice. I have tried a lot of bedding and just a little and either way they kick it out until they are down to the wood. I am losing a few eggs a week from them breaking when they drop/lay them.

Do you have a 4"-6" high board in front? That will inhibit some of the kicking out. Mine do the same thing, I just add new when they need it. Something I've thought about but haven't tried: get some of that indoor/outdoor cheap flat carpet---I have seen it sold at Costco--cut to fit the nest box. Of course they will scratch it, so my idea is to put some Velcro strips on the bottom of the nest box wood and on the bottom of the carpet to keep it in place. Again, I have not tried this, just an idea I had. Also, if the eggs are weak/short on calcium they will break a lot easier. I have had plenty of strong eggs withstand a short drop to a wooden surface without breaking. Most of my birds move the straw (what I am using) aside and there is bare wood under them and I get very few broken eggs, most of the damage is a nick from a toenail.

 

[Timskins]

Do you have a 4"-6" high board in front? That will inhibit some of the kicking out. Mine do the same thing, I just add new when they need it. Something I've thought about but haven't tried: get some of that indoor/outdoor cheap flat carpet---I have seen it sold at Costco--cut to fit the nest box. Of course they will scratch it, so my idea is to put some Velcro strips on the bottom of the nest box wood and on the bottom of the carpet to keep it in place. Again, I have not tried this, just an idea I had. Also, if the eggs are weak/short on calcium they will break a lot easier. I have had plenty of strong eggs withstand a short drop to a wooden surface without breaking. Most of my birds move the straw (what I am using) aside and there is bare wood under them and I get very few broken eggs, most of the damage is a nick from a toenail.

I think the lip is 4 inches. If I remember correctly I turned a 2x4 on its edge. Do you think higher will help? I am a little leary to put anything in the bottom that will make cleaning more difficult but that might be my only option.

 

[MagicChicken]

Quote:
A higher lip should help. I switched to covered kitty litter boxes for nest boxes and the litter no longer gets kicked out. I did put a small step in front of the box entrance - otherwise the hens try to stand on the edge of the opening when they enter. The el cheapo boxes I'm using (from Walmart, about $15 each) tip forward when they do that. A concrete block as a front step helps to prevent the tipping. A short piece of 4"x6" lumber or a couple of bricks would also work.. I ran out of straw so I've been using pine shavings in the nest boxes. When the boxes need cleaning I dump the old nest box material onto the floor of the coop/run. It just adds to the deep litter that's already there.

Before I switched to the plastic litter boxes I was using a nest box with a wood floor. I tried carpet. They scratched up the edges. I tried a piece of old coir doormat. The doormat worked great - until another egg broke and then the cleanup was a royal pain. Since I switched to the kitty litter - turned - nest boxes I've only had a couple of eggs break. Cleanup was easy. I dumped everything on to the floor of the coop. Busted egg and all. I did smash up the shell into smaller bits so it didn't look quite so egg-like. Just hose off the nest box and disinfect or de-pest it if necessary. Usually I just use the hose.