Arizona Chickens

[springvalley123]

For those of you who have exposed nest boxes that have nothing over them (like the pic below) to protect them from the summer sun, do they ever get so hot the hens won't use them? Do you ventillate them?

View attachment 3422962

I live where it's much cooler than most of the "regulars" in this thread, but mine are inside the run, where it's shaded. Plus, I plan to put the misting system up so that a nozzle is near the nestboxes, as I have done in the past.

 

[ChicksnMore]

BlueBaby, you are right, things have really changed in the past few years. I don't think we're going to stay here. I know my roommate has wanted to sell the house since the robbery but she moves slowly on things so I don't know when that will happen. She has owned this house since the early 80s. Also, timing is everything in real estate. (Personally, I'd raze the house and build duplexes, which seem to do well around here, and keep this as a rental property, but it's not up to me.)

ChicksnMore, I wish we had the kind of a neighborhood where people know each other but we don't. The lots are ~1/4 acre and larger and everyone really keeps to themselves. We only have a neighbor on one side and we know him a little, he's a nice elderly gentleman who always gets our dogs' names wrong, LOL. We when have hens I hope we can offer him some eggs!

I'm on 3 and 1/2 acres over here. Most of the neighbors do not socialize together, but we will say hello to each other and watch out for any problems in the neighborhood. Many of us have chickens or other farm animals.

That's really too bad. It took me a while to make friends where I am...lot of big properties, fences to keep people as well as critters out etc. But now some of my neighbors are also some of my best friends. Can't move because I'd miss them...lol.

 

[ChicksnMore]

They are coming along, gradually getting better. I recall when I got my first 5 pullets from two different sources, it took them a number of months to get sorted to my liking.

Three of my original 4 girls are still being somewhat bossy to the newcomers, but, then again, they are sometimes that way to each other too, lol. So maybe they are just doing what chickens do. Funny, it's the "top" chicken that is not bothering them. Freydis (one of the Bielefelders) always looks well fed, so it isn't like she can't get near the food! Hennah (the other B) is also holding her own. Lucky hangs mostly with Freydis & Hennah (and has been mounting Freydis). He lets the other 4 girls intimidate him.

They are better now at roosting together at night. Still some squawking, though, as they try to get position.

I caught Lucky testing out his crowing. Hilariously, the other girls then followed him like he was the pied piper. I tried to attach the video, but guess I'll have to upload to a youtube. If you watch it, I filmed it through the window. Pardon the "coop shoes" laying on the ground.

Adorable

 

[BlueBaby]

My DH decided that we should eat out last night and we went to IHOP. We both ordered the ham and cheese omelet with pancakes on the special hours discount menu. I couldn't finish all of mine, so I brought the left over's home to spoil Buster. He sure wolfed it all down fast. Got to spoil the old boy sometimes, right? lol

 

[CaroleW]

My DH decided that we should eat out last night and we went to IHOP. We both ordered the ham and cheese omelet with pancakes on the special hours discount menu. I couldn't finish all of mine, so I brought the left over's home to spoil Buster. He sure wolfed it all down fast. Got to spoil the old boy sometimes, right? lol

You BOTH ordered the SAME THING... how scandalous...lol

 

[BlueBaby]

You BOTH ordered the SAME THING... how scandalous...lol

Yes, but Buster got lucky that I was too full to eat all of mine. I had eaten a chocolate muffin earlier when he had his time outside to do his thing so he couldn't drool when I was eating it. Dog's aren't supposed to have chocolate. The only time he drool's is when there is people food around.

 

[CaroleW]

My two dogs are very happy when they get even the teeny tiny tidbits of my snacks (no chocolate, onions, etc...) I don't give them much because I like my snacks too.

 

[BlueBaby]

My two dogs are very happy when they get even the teeny tiny tidbits of my snacks (no chocolate, onions, etc...) I don't give them much because I like my snacks too.

I know what you mean. Buster also likes raw carrot's and dill pickles. A couple of week's ago we got subs from Firehouse Sub's, as I needed to see if they had any more of those empty pickle bucket's. The bucket by my coop had the bottom breaking open, so a new one was in order. Anyway's Buster got the pickle spears that came with the sandwiches and was in his glory. He's so loved!

 

[BlueBaby]

Here's something funny and might make you spit on your computer screen. While we were at the IHOP last night, I showed the waitress that always seems to be working when we go there the picture of my flock that I took the other day. She asked me why I had so many rooster's. She said because they all had red comb's that they had to be rooster's. Now you know that IHOP serves breakfast all day long. So I think that it's pretty good that all of my roosters except for one does lay egg's. Here is the picture that I showed her:

 

[cavemanrich]

Buster also likes raw carrot's and dill pickles.

Now that you mention Pickles,,, A dog we had when I was a teen, and parents maintained, would always get the peelings from pickles. I know, that is unusual, to peel pickles, but dad had a preference to eat his pickles peeled
Now, I noticed that my current dog also likes sour things, like a couple of spoons of tomato soup (leftover after dinner) over her regular dog food.

Maybe that is a reason since dogs evolved over the ages.

Spoiler: Wolf