Arizona Chickens

[FeatherPugs]

Oh how I enjoyed the sun today. My yard is still super muddy but the sun was blissful.

 

[BlueBaby]

Oh how I enjoyed the sun today. My yard is still super muddy but the sun was blissful.

Yes, it was an enjoyable day. I spent time out in the coop taking out old board cover's that were on top of my grow-out pen's, and replacing them with better heavier board's. The hen's also got a new double nesting box to lay their egg's in, so we will see how well they like it. I still have more work that I want to do out there yet. My next-door neighbor @Roxyandrooster made the large double nesting box for me.

 

[MissLavender]

@MissLavender Only my opinion, I would put a blanket or something over an area of their pen - by the roosts would be best and move it up little by little as they get used to the weather. My pen for quarantine is easy to do as its a real large dog xpen with a top. I use a moving blanket - like you can get at Harbor Freight for cheap. I take it off in the morning or move it back as needed - thinking you might get some snow in your area later this week. Anyhow it always helped me take care of that mommy voice in my head. PLUS it put them to sleep easier. Have fun with your newbies.

I ended up doing something similar to this, actually!

 

[Roxyandrooster]

Yes, it was an enjoyable day. I spent time out in the coop taking out old board cover's that were on top of my grow-out pen's, and replacing them with better heavier board's. The hen's also got a new double nesting box to lay their egg's in, so we will see how well they like it. I still have more work that I want to do out there yet. My next-door neighbor @Roxyandrooster made the large double nesting box for me.

You are very welcome

Yes, it was an enjoyable day. I spent time out in the coop taking out old board cover's that were on top of my grow-out pen's, and replacing them with better heavier board's. The hen's also got a new double nesting box to lay their egg's in, so we will see how well they like it. I still have more work that I want to do out there yet. My next-door neighbor @Roxyandrooster made the large double nesting box for me.

Yes, it was an enjoyable day. I spent time out in the coop taking out old board cover's that were on top of my grow-out pen's, and replacing them with better heavier board's. The hen's also got a new double nesting box to lay their egg's in, so we will see how well they like it. I still have more work that I want to do out there yet. My next-door neighbor @Roxyandrooster made the large double nesting box for me.

You are very welcome anything else I can help you with just ask ..

 

[BlueBaby]

You are very welcome


You are very welcome anything else I can help you with just ask ..

Nice to see you here posting here in this thread. You can get to know some of our other AZ. chicken people.

 

[BlueBaby]

It's such a beautiful day out today. I am enjoying it very much, and love being able to let some fresh air in the house instead of having to run the heater. I'm even able to sit outside on my bucket out by the run to try to talk those hen's into giving me more egg's today!

 

[SonoranChick]

Hi everyone!! Sorry I've been so quiet, we are so busy with baby Cora (4 months old now, how the heck did that happen?) and getting ready for our big move. We decided to sell our house and land after all, so that has also been quite time consuming. Hope your flocks are doing well and you are all handling our wacky weather ok! We got a ton of snow a few days ago...just gorgeous. But I'm glad it warmed up a bit. We are just getting around to designing our new coop and I'm thinking about free ranging instead of building a big enclosed run. It would be more like a big coop inside a chicken yard (fenced but not covered). There are lots of trees for shade and protection but I still worry about predators. How many of you guys have a set up like this? Thoughts?

 

[BlueBaby]

Hi everyone!! Sorry I've been so quiet, we are so busy with baby Cora (4 months old now, how the heck did that happen?) and getting ready for our big move. We decided to sell our house and land after all, so that has also been quite time consuming. Hope your flocks are doing well and you are all handling our wacky weather ok! We got a ton of snow a few days ago...just gorgeous. But I'm glad it warmed up a bit. We are just getting around to designing our new coop and I'm thinking about free ranging instead of building a big enclosed run. It would be more like a big coop inside a chicken yard (fenced but not covered). There are lots of trees for shade and protection but I still worry about predators. How many of you guys have a set up like this? Thoughts?

Good to see that you have popped in here! I've been wondering how you and Cora have been doing, and glad to see that you are ok. You mentioned moving. You are still going to be in AZ. aren't you?

 

[FeatherPugs]

@SonoranChick I have a coop (actually two coops) with a fenced yard - I have a big 10x20 covered area but mostly trees and shade. I do not have the fenced area covered with anything like @meetthebubus did with her 360 yard. I like my fenced yard for protection. There is very few places hawks can swoop down but owls are a problem. The fenced yard is well protected and I have not had a predator problem there. I have fence down in the ground, on top of the ground and wood around the perimeter. I'd love to increase the size - not because I need it but because I think it would be more fun for the chickies to have more room. They don't need it. With the weather we've had this winter I do wish I had more covered area for keeping dry.
Good to see you and baby girl are doing okay. And a move will take everything you can muster up for sure! Stay well and happy.

 

[SonoranChick]

@BlueBaby yep we are staying in AZ, just heading south to Tucson. I hope the move isn't too hard on the chickens. The climate will be the same for them but it might take them a while to adjust to their new home.

@FeatherPugs thank you for the info, this is exactly what I was thinking about doing. I definitely want some of the area to be covered for shelter and for shade, but I think they would be so happy to have a nice big yard to roam about in. I feel like it would be more natural. We will need to make the perimeter safe from predators that dig. Owls could be an issue...are they mostly nocturnal or have you had problems with them during the day?