- Mar 3, 2013
- 4
- 0
- 55
I am an old woman, living on 2 acres of sloping rocky Ozark land, and am looking for suggestions on how to economically build a chicken tractor that I can move by myself. I want a small flock of both layers and meat chickens, to provide us with healthier food than we can find at groceries, or other chicken owners. We want to know what our chickens are eating and what, if any medications, etc. they have been given.
I don't have any chickens yet, because we have many predators around us (our land is surrounded on three sides by lots of pastureland, populated by coyotes, foxes, the occasional bear and wildcat). Although we have fences to contain our small dogs, and to prevent most predators from coming in, we also have a healthy population of hawks, owls and other birds which will certainly take advantage of any small prey, including chickens.
I'm looking also for suggestions for specific breeds that will thrive in our climate zone We have hot, humid summers and sometimes very cold winters, so they will need to be hardy breeds. I'd love to be able to have breeds that aren't terribly aggressive or flighty.
I've followed backYardchickens for years, hoping that one day I could actually have chickens again. 30+ yrs ago, my husband and I raised Cornish Cross hens at my late father-in-law's fathers farm, specifically for meat for both our family and for the families of a food co-op we were members of. This formerly city girl learned how to dress chickens very quickly, with instructions from a book(!!), although I need a refresher course now. I ground corn for them to eat and they had a huge chicken yard in which to forage, have dust baths, etc. Luckily, my father-in-law had raised chickens for decades, and had a huge chicken house and fenced yard for them, and there weren't any predators to worry about there.
We have a large garden area, including raised beds and raised rows. I'd love to have a tractor that would be wide enough to be moved over the raised rows in the fall/winter/early spring when the rows aren't planted, to control weeds/bugs and to fertilize them.
I am retired, living with my husband who is still working full time, and takes care of our place on the weekends. We share our home with our 5 dogs- 4 mini schauzers and a schnoodle pup, who are natural alarm systems, and my constant companions. Since they are bred to go to ground for any prey, and naturally go after and squirrels that they see, I do have concerns as to whether I would trust them near chickens.
I love this forum for all the information, although I am having a bit of trouble navigating to find what I need.
I don't have any chickens yet, because we have many predators around us (our land is surrounded on three sides by lots of pastureland, populated by coyotes, foxes, the occasional bear and wildcat). Although we have fences to contain our small dogs, and to prevent most predators from coming in, we also have a healthy population of hawks, owls and other birds which will certainly take advantage of any small prey, including chickens.
I'm looking also for suggestions for specific breeds that will thrive in our climate zone We have hot, humid summers and sometimes very cold winters, so they will need to be hardy breeds. I'd love to be able to have breeds that aren't terribly aggressive or flighty.
I've followed backYardchickens for years, hoping that one day I could actually have chickens again. 30+ yrs ago, my husband and I raised Cornish Cross hens at my late father-in-law's fathers farm, specifically for meat for both our family and for the families of a food co-op we were members of. This formerly city girl learned how to dress chickens very quickly, with instructions from a book(!!), although I need a refresher course now. I ground corn for them to eat and they had a huge chicken yard in which to forage, have dust baths, etc. Luckily, my father-in-law had raised chickens for decades, and had a huge chicken house and fenced yard for them, and there weren't any predators to worry about there.
We have a large garden area, including raised beds and raised rows. I'd love to have a tractor that would be wide enough to be moved over the raised rows in the fall/winter/early spring when the rows aren't planted, to control weeds/bugs and to fertilize them.
I am retired, living with my husband who is still working full time, and takes care of our place on the weekends. We share our home with our 5 dogs- 4 mini schauzers and a schnoodle pup, who are natural alarm systems, and my constant companions. Since they are bred to go to ground for any prey, and naturally go after and squirrels that they see, I do have concerns as to whether I would trust them near chickens.
I love this forum for all the information, although I am having a bit of trouble navigating to find what I need.
