California - Northern

[OR4-hmom]

Coop question .... since our winters are so mild ... does anyone leave their pop doors open so the chickens can just roam from the hen house to the run at their free will? Or should I plan on locking them in at night?  I live in a neighborhood ... not many predators ... and their run will be very secure.

I leave the pop door open to their run at night. My run is 1x2 welded wire, trenched down 16/18 inches deep all around. There is a solid 3-tab roof on my run also. We poured a concrete slab under the door to the run to prevent digging. Everything eats chicken!

I get a lot colder than most of you and I don't close the pop door. I do use 204m greenhouse plastic to wrap the runs on my coops. They are considerably warmer with the plastic and cuts out the drafts! Last winter we were down in the single digits for a week.

 

[SurbFarmGirl]

Thank you all so much!!!

 

[HighStreetCoop]

More Bleach information--Use household bleach and not industrial. The cup per gallon is very strong and should not be used except for extreme clean up--like after sewage spills. The strong bleach solution kills germs and is not toxic like straight bleach.

Quote:
I spent more than a decade dealing with the Health Dept, and bleach water was always a BIG deal to them. They will cite you for too strong a bleach solution just as quickly as too weak a one. One capful in a 5G bucket gives the perfect pH per the regulations for cleaning in a restaurant (and this is waaaay weaker than even the "weak" solution cited above which would turn the test strip black).

 

[ronott1]

I spent more than a decade dealing with the Health Dept, and bleach water was always a BIG deal to them. They will cite you for too strong a bleach solution just as quickly as too weak a one. One capful in a 5G bucket gives the perfect pH per the regulations for cleaning in a restaurant (and this is waaaay weaker than even the "weak" solution cited above which would turn the test strip black).

Yes, bleach is very caustic.

With the recent research showing that Autism and likely other problems are caused by household cleaners and pesticide use, we all need to be careful.

 

[HighStreetCoop]

Quote:
I've missed that research, but I was raised by hippies who believe "God made the dirt and it won't hurt", so I don't worry overly much about sanitizing unless there's an actual reason to do so (like an illness in the house/barn).

 

[tiana29]

Hi Everyone,
I just lost my one and only broody to a raccoon

So I'm hoping to find another to replace her. I would like a proven hen that is known to go broody, is a good mother and protective of her nest and chicks. I don't care what breed. Contact me if you have anything and are close to me (I'm in Santa Rosa). Thanks!

 

[ronott1]

I've missed that research, but I was raised by hippies who believe "God made the dirt and it won't hurt", so I don't worry overly much about sanitizing unless there's an actual reason to do so (like an illness in the house/barn).

Gene changes during embryo development, some caused or triggered by household chemicals is a cause. Autisim happens before the baby is born.

https://www.autismspeaks.org/scienc...ive/avoiding-toxic-exposures-during-pregnancy

Quote: There was a study published recently about Autism from the mind institute here at UCDavis

 

[PetRock]

Hi Everyone,
I just lost my one and only broody to a raccoon

So I'm hoping to find another to replace her. I would like a proven hen that is known to go broody, is a good mother and protective of her nest and chicks. I don't care what breed. Contact me if you have anything and are close to me (I'm in Santa Rosa). Thanks!

So sorry that you lost her! I have so many broodies that I would love to share but they are almost all first timers. They are driving me crazy! I also have several pullets and hens with Pita Pinta chicks. Since they all look alike and hatched within a week or two of each other, it is hard to figure out who belongs to whom. It's like a game of swap the chick and who's your mama around here. I thought that having them raised by broody mamas was a better choice but I'm back to thinking that raising them in a brooder is a better choice when hatching lots of chicks. I wish that I had the room and money to have lots of dual purpose broody/breeding pens.

 

[tiana29]

So sorry that you lost her! I have so many broodies that I would love to share but they are almost all first timers. They are driving me crazy! I also have several pullets and hens with Pita Pinta chicks. Since they all look alike and hatched within a week or two of each other, it is hard to figure out who belongs to whom. It's like a game of swap the chick and who's your mama around here. I thought that having them raised by broody mamas was a better choice but I'm back to thinking that raising them in a brooder is a better choice when hatching lots of chicks. I wish that I had the room and money to have lots of dual purpose broody/breeding pens.

What type of broodies do you have? I might be willing to take my chances with an unproven (I'm thinking most people that have a proven one are holding onto her if she is a good broody). Let me know what you have, cost and your location. Thanks.

 

[caychris]

So sorry that you lost her! I have so many broodies that I would love to share but they are almost all first timers. They are driving me crazy! I also have several pullets and hens with Pita Pinta chicks. Since they all look alike and hatched within a week or two of each other, it is hard to figure out who belongs to whom. It's like a game of swap the chick and who's your mama around here. I thought that having them raised by broody mamas was a better choice but I'm back to thinking that raising them in a brooder is a better choice when hatching lots of chicks. I wish that I had the room and money to have lots of dual purpose broody/breeding pens.

I have some eggs that wont look like pita chicks if you want to gie to your broodies