California - Northern

[PetRock]

I do think the crows that were pestering my chickens were actually going for the corn cobs in the coop and not going after the chickens themselves, they were just being really aggressive about trying to get through the mesh with the chickens standing right inside and freaking out. I also doubt that the neighbor's cat would really be able to kill even my tiny Sebrights, but I'd much rather play it safe than sorry, and discourage the darn kitty from hunting in my yard (which is full of bird feeders) anyway! Maybe running outside in pajamas was a bit dramatic, but my brain doesn't work that well until after 10 am and a cup of tea.

I'm outside in my PJs every morning letting the birds out, feeding, watering, etc. I do wear a robe just in case the one neighbor with a 2 story house is looking out their back windows!

 

[Ali707]

I tried traps--no joy...

. I tried a bate that is vitamin D based and causes a toxic overload and is not poisonous if the dead rats are eaten....They did not eat it.

. I bought a rat zapper and it works but too slowly....Only get one every couple of days. I finally picked up Tomcat liquid bait. It is a second generation Anti-coagulant and rats cannot resist drinking it! It is listed as a Medium dangerous poison and is slightly toxic if the rat is eaten. It can be treated with vitamin K so is not as bad as the worst one--that one has not treatment. I put out a little cup in a place that cats can't get to it and they were drinking a cup a day of it....

. I do have to make sure the rats do not die where the chickens can get them. I also take the feed in at night and have all the feed in covered trash cans. I should be able to keep them under control with the Rat Zapper now.

Have you tried the Just One Bite product? I had good luck with it several years ago with field mice, but I have it handy now because I KNOW the chickens attract rats, and mice so I am putting it out in in a home made bait station early. Those big plastic bait stations are expensive. So I am going to use some pipe and elbows to keep out other critters and hopefully that will work.

 

[Ali707]

So here is the hillbilly waterer I made with the red threaded chicken nipples. It is actually working pretty well. This was sort of a temporary set up until I determined if it worked. I will look into putting something else a little more esthetically pleasing together and a few more now that it seems to be working well.





I mentioned last night the water stays clean and isn't tipped over.

There are some other horizontal chicken nipples that I think I am going to get and try also. They would be easier to mount on the side of a bucket than these on the bottom.

 

[ChickNmamma]

Quote: I am sorry to hear about the dog too, its hard when something we take care of and cares about us gets sick.

I will be looking into that rat poison too - the rats are horrid this year.

Owls do eat chickens. Maybe not the barn owls, but my mother lives in New Mexico and her birds roost in the trees. She has lost all of her light colored birds to Owls. The black ones are harder to see I guess...

Hopefully you find something that works for you. The cabinet ones have a bucket/tube/float/bin that keeps the bin full - you adjust what the humidity is during hatching by opening and closing the vents a bit - and you fill the second bin to raise it for lockdown. I don't like the sound of the humidity pumps - I understand they are noisy? However, it is all manual adjusting with this system - nothing automatic. If you doubled up on your systems it might work...

The cabinet incubators also use the same wafer/switch setup as the Styrofoam incubators - only they double it to make sure they don't stick on. I have replaced mine with an electric thermostat and I am very happy so far.

The egg trays I bought for my cabinet are almost completely open - they just hold around the egg. The bottoms of the trays are hardware cloth - so no restriction on air flow. Some of the really small banty eggs barely stay upright (they tilt a bit) and would probably fall thru if it wasn't for the bottom but that didn't stop it from hatching. They hold 48 eggs instead of the 30 I was looking at on eBay - and I thought they were the best price. PM me if you would like the auction - they have lots and they send extras.

I use the cardboard egg cartons for "lockdown" because I can pour water next to them and they absorb it and keep the moisture very high right next to the hatching eggs. I use hot/warm tap water.. brings the humidity back up in seconds and doesn't drop the heat. By then I think the chick is fixed in position - so the head would be towards the aircell which is up away from the sides (hopefully). I haven't cut them down.. If you cut off the bottoms of the ones you are using that might help - until you can get some more open trays?

 

[ChickNmamma]

So here is the hillbilly waterer I made with the red threaded chicken nipples. It is actually working pretty well. This was sort of a temporary set up until I determined if it worked. I will look into putting something else a little more esthetically pleasing together and a few more now that it seems to be working well.





I mentioned last night the water stays clean and isn't tipped over.

There are some other horizontal chicken nipples that I think I am going to get and try also. They would be easier to mount on the side of a bucket than these on the bottom.

I love your "wire wrap" job. No duct tape? Hmm... Is that Aunt Jemima upside down there?

Neat idea too, ok if I borrow it?

 

[Ali707]

I love your "wire wrap" job. No duct tape? Hmm... Is that Aunt Jemima upside down there?

Neat idea too, ok if I borrow it?

LOL I mentioned last night, that I was glad I didn't have any duct tape handy because I was sure I would have used it!!!

No Aunt Jemima for me... I go for the real deal. You know REAL Maple syrup? That is a really nice large bottle that used to contain Pomegranate Juice. The Costco size. Its shape lent itself well to my limited wire wrapping skills.

Feel free to borrow anything you like! I am not proprietary like that.

 

[debs_flock]

So here is the hillbilly waterer I made with the red threaded chicken nipples. It is actually working pretty well. This was sort of a temporary set up until I determined if it worked. I will look into putting something else a little more esthetically pleasing together and a few more now that it seems to be working well.





I mentioned last night the water stays clean and isn't tipped over.

There are some other horizontal chicken nipples that I think I am going to get and try also. They would be easier to mount on the side of a bucket than these on the bottom.

Just make sure you've punched a small hole in the other end of the bottle or you might get a vacuum and not realize the water isn't flowing.

And I meant to comment on the cabinet question. My trays are plastic mesh, so lots of airflow. The trays sit on metal shelves with huge holes (2 inches across) all over for airflow and they of course are not tight to the inside, so lots of air around as well.

 

[Ali707]

Just make sure you've punched a small hole in the other end of the bottle or you might get a vacuum and not realize the water isn't flowing.

And I meant to comment on the cabinet question. My trays are plastic mesh, so lots of airflow. The trays sit on metal shelves with huge holes (2 inches across) all over for airflow and they of course are not tight to the inside, so lots of air around as well.

Yeah I have the tiny hole in the side at the top, but it is sort of inconvenient when I have to fill the bottle. I have a nice little fountain out the side I try to plug with my thumb. Overall this set up is better for me than the regular waterer but it still isn't perfect. I am working on perfection.

 

[debs_flock]

Quote:
Always good to strive for, LOL

I'm lazy, I use the hamster bottles.

 

[DemarisJewelry]

Hi all, I'm just starting to get ready to build my coop. Got some fancy-shmancy plans coming in the mail. Looks like I'm building a B&B out back, nicer than my house. My question is this... Who has tried, and did/didn't like the waterers that are little red "nipples" hanging off the bottom of a water container that the chickens peck for water? I thought it might be cleaner/dryer that way, but wanted opinions first. Do they get enough water this way and will they "hog" it and keep others away? Also, what is a favorite feeder? I'm looking at making one out of a PVC pipe that you fill from the top and they eat out of cutout holes in the pipe along the base. Any opinions? I want as low maintenance and clean as possible.
Thanks! Demaris