BarnGems New member

[007Sean]

Howdy and Welcome to Backyard Chickens.

Glad to have you here with us. Enjoy your time here at BYC!

Thanks for joining our community!

 

[Pork Pie]

hi and welcome to BYC.

This is a useful link of BYC guides to take a look at announcements-feedback-issues-guides.3 I’d suggest including your location using the guide in that link. You can use this link to contact members in your area - Find your State's thread.

Best wishes

Pork Pie

 

[drumstick diva]

So very sorry but, you are still going on - true grit - is the backbone of a BYCER.

Hope you and your new flock will walk a smoother path.

 

[sourland]

Welcome to BYC, and good with the predator proofing/control.

 

[N F C]

Best of luck with your plans. Thanks for joining us!

 

[Callender Girl]

It's easy to want to throw in the towel when you lose birds. My vermin was a mink, and all I caught in my live trap was a very cheeky possum. You sound like a much better trapper (although I later did have to kill trap a rat who wanted to live in the hollow tree right next to a coop).

I've never had Barnies (yeah, they looked pricey to me, too) but I got a pair of Sapphire Gem chicks in September and I LOVE them! Yesterday, I got my first pullet egg, although I don't know if it was Vanna or Petra who produced the bounty. Since they both ignore the roost and instead perch on the edge of a nest box, the egg was simply laid on the floor in the corner of the coop. We might need to work on that.

The Gems are social, curious, beautiful and mine are Very Food Motivated, so a couple of grapes lures them to the coop every night. Best of luck with your flock, and welcome to BYC!

 

[Chick-N-Fun]

Welcome to our FUNomenal community!

Best wishes and have lots of fun with your flock!!!!!

 

[ronott1]

Hello all, I am a new member to the site and new to owning chickens. My chicken adventure started last year in June when I decided I wanted Barnevelder chickens. Started by building a brooder box 4'x5' (3' off the ground) to go inside our existing cow barn while I revamped the barn and built an outside run. I found some Barnevelders at the local Rural King and bought as many as my husband would let me (15) in early August. Knew they were straight run even though RK said "oh for sure those are all hens". They were the cutest stripy babies ever! They were good for about 5 weeks, until the predators figured out we had chicken nuggets running lose in the barn. First attack killed all but five. Made adjustments secured where we guessed they got in. Second night something got 3 more. More fevered repairs and returned them to the brooder with a solid lid. This left me with 2 living chicks one hen, one roo. Sick and heart broke, I took a few days to recover and decide if I wanted to continue or stop all together. I read up more on line and spoke to my neighbors and found that losing chickens wasn't new and everyone has lost some (if not all) sometimes. I bought a live trap and became opossume/coon/feral cat trapper. I knew one hen wasn't enough for one roo so since I wanted to try again I looked at the prices for Barnies and nearly fell down. I got mine for the price of an Austrolorp from a hatchery. I found the Sapphire gems and ordered 12 hens 3 roos. I wasn't sure then if my Barnie would live and I wanted roo options to pick from, as I really want to hatch babies. Got them from Hoover one died in transit. The group pic with three looking at the camera (4th pic) are the Sapphire gem roosters. At 4 and 1/2 months my gems have started laying. BV hen as of yet has not laid and just turned 8 months old. I re homed the Gem roos as I want to use my BV to breed. Sorry such a long post )
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You have come a long way on your chicken adventure!

Best wishes for your breeding program

 

[Cynthia12]

I love them!! WELCOME!

 

[feathermaid]

Thank you, I was very upset for a while after losing them. We have since locked down any hole larger than 1/2". I have tin all the way down to the ground and all the way up to the rafters 1/2" short of the roof beams. I've caught since Aug: 7 opossum, 5 racoons, and 5 feral cats (plus my own mouser 2 times lol ). Husband handles the beasts once I catch them. I prefer not to know what happens to the wild ones but the cats are sent to a local animal shelter (if its not one of my neighbors pets, I just let them out with a scolding). The only repeat offender has been our cat.

I can confirm my Barnie took 8 months to lay her first egg. I've got some plans for the future as far a breeding goes but I am looking forward to seeing what my crossing will produce.

Wow! you have caught a lot so far! I don't think I'd want to know exactly what happens to them either. Maybe your cat will finally learn one of these days ... or not! Sounds like you've got everything locked down pretty well now, and reducing the predator population a good bit. Hopefully they'll just stay away.

And good luck with those future babies!