California - Northern

[debs_flock]

I seriously can't believe this...I called 2 tractor supplies and at least 5 feed stores near me, and not a single one has the 7 lb Harris Farms hanging plastic feeder. They all only have 10lb ones, and I really don't need one that big.

Too big is going to be better than too small. I would just get the 10# feeder. You don't have to fill it up if you don't want to.

I have 40# feeders in all my runs.

 

[BCollie]

I seriously can't believe this...I called 2 tractor supplies and at least 5 feed stores near me, and not a single one has the 7 lb Harris Farms hanging plastic feeder. They all only have 10lb ones, and I really don't need one that big.

Amazon can usually get things like that to you quickly. I have Prime and it has more than paid for itself in free shipping. Most things get to me in two days.

Are you waiting until it is cooler to put the chicks out to their new coop?

They go out to the coop today after its cooled off. I'm leaving their brooder up for a while in case they need to come back in for a few hours when it's 110+

I seriously can't believe this...I called 2 tractor supplies and at least 5 feed stores near me, and not a single one has the 7 lb Harris Farms hanging plastic feeder. They all only have 10lb ones, and I really don't need one that big.

Too big is going to be better than too small.  I would just get the 10# feeder.  You don't have to fill it up if you don't want to.

I have 40# feeders in all my runs.

I guess so, but the 10 pounds ones are for 10+ birds and I only have 5(I may have up to 8 next year, but that's the limit). it just seems too big...

do chickens need access to food during the night, too? In the coop?

 

[Janeothejungle]

95 degrees at 11am. This is when having big melons comes in handy..... Hehehe

 

[BCollie]

95 degrees at 11am. This is when having big melons comes in handy..... Hehehe

Do you freeze the Watermelon?

 

[Janeothejungle]

Yep. Keeps em occupied for hours.

 

[gryeyes]

BCollie, I would rather fill feeders LESS often, so I would opt for the 10# feeder. My flock can eat any time they want. Some still think freshly poured feed is the very best, though. Not like that other stuff just like it IN the feeders. However, having feed available 24/7 keeps me from being mobbed by the entire flock at once when I top off the feeders.

I don't freeze watermelon, but I DO refrigerate it overnight before I break it open in the yard for the flock. It's just fun for me to throw the melon on the ground to break it open, instead of cutting it.

 

[ChickNmamma]

Quote: There are a few good reasons for keeping the hens separated from the roosters.

The simple answer is that most roosters will get along better together if there are no girls to fight over. Nice farm atmosphere without the rooster fight problems..

The more complex answer requires something I have learned recently while selling my eggs .. some people will NOT eat fertile eggs! They know just enough to be.. um.. stubborn about not eating them. Some because once it is fertile it becomes a living thing (which is a valid reason but a waste of food because it will not become a self-supporting life without a bunch more energy) and some because they just can't and they don't know why (which is not a valid reason) For some reason there is an Ewwww factor to fertile eggs in their brain. It is somewhere along the lines of not being able to eat eggs if you know which chicken they came out of.. or not eating fresh farm eggs because they are contaminated.. but the store bought ones are ok

So, if these people are using the eggs to serve to their guests I bet they had people refuse to eat their food because of the fertile eggs. Separate out the roosters - problem solved!

Quote: I do like the blues though, but I'd have to come up with a blue or better yet, a splash to produce them.

At least I'm assuming their genetics work the same as every other blue chicken.

yknow, I've tried to see the blue in blue birds, but they always look grey to me. My uncle and son are color-blind... I wonder if I have some sort of partial color-blindness..
Blue in chickens is gray. Its a name given to that color - but I am not sure why - maybe they just needed a different name from Grey. What is called Grey is a white/silver based Grey. To FURTHER confuse things - there are two different kinds of Blue - Andalusian Blue and Self-Blue, based on two different genes and they look different - Self Blue (lavender based gene (don't ask me why they called it lavender - it is not purple either, just to differentiate the color again I guess)) is always light gray - and the Andalusian Blue can range from almost black to very light gray also....

My mother was joking yesterday that she had some really pretty green and purple birds - but her birds are solid black and have the "sheen". Yes they are beautiful - and yes, you can actually see green and purple - but only in the sunlight at the right angle.. like an oil slick does.

I wonder how Blue the Blue Breese are from Greenfire.. Blue in Orchids is a sort of lavender purple. I know when I took pictures of my "Blue" Orchids the picture was a beautiful bright sky blue - but in person they still look purple to me...

STAY COOL EVERYBODY, its going to be a hot one out there!

 

[BCollie]

Thanks Linda. I think I'll just go back to TS and get a 10lb feeder then.

Where do you guys keep the food and water for your flock? Obviously mine will be hanging inside my coop while their run is being built, but what about after they have a run? Should it still stay in the coop so that they'll have access to food and water all night long, too?

And regarding watermelon, how do I know when they've had enough? I assume even chickens can have too much watermelon?! I just cut a small one in half and threw it in the freezer so they can have some tomorrow when it gets hot out

 

[ChickNmamma]

Thanks Linda. I think I'll just go back to TS and get a 10lb feeder then.

Where do you guys keep the food and water for your flock? Obviously mine will be hanging inside my coop while their run is being built, but what about after they have a run? Should it still stay in the coop so that they'll have access to food and water all night long, too?

And regarding watermelon, how do I know when they've had enough? I assume even chickens can have too much watermelon?! I just cut a small one in half and threw it in the freezer so they can have some tomorrow when it gets hot out

I put my water outside of the coop - and the food depends on if its dry feed (inside) to lock up at night or wet (outside) gone by the end of the day. Keeping the moisture down inside the coop is important to me. I don't want to allow mold, mildue, rot, etc. to grow inside the coop. The birds will only eat at night if there is a light on (brooder chicks) but usually the rodents will eat anything left out at night too.. not good to invite them for midnight snacks. Are they old enough to be out without a light?

I don't freeze anything I give to the chickens. I don't eat frozen food when its hot either - gives me brain freeze and it hurts. I will refrigerate it for them - but I get the insides - they get the rinds. Chickens will limit themselves pretty well - and will usually stop eating when they get enough. They will probably have runny poops for awhile, but they do that when they eat anything with more moisture than they can absorb (like grass) - they only have one waste system....

 

[lawatt]

here's another of my silly questions: for those of you who have chickens that live in separate coops/pens, but let them all free-range at once, do you leave the doors to the coops/pens open while they're out? is there ever any problems of the "wrong" chickens ending up in a given pen?

i'm asking because i've got these two new groovy pens, and two new girls in one of the pens, so the main flock is of course very curious -- the campines will stay separated for a while, hopefully they'll all get somewhat used to each others' presences, but eventually they'll want to free-range too, i'm sure -- so just wondering what the dynamics are of all free-ranging together, but going home to separate roosts?

thanks!