Chickens for 10-20 years or more? Pull up a rockin' chair and lay some wisdom on us!

[galanie]

Thanks, Galanie...

Sorry for my last rant.  I wouldn't shoot any of the neighborhood kids, but would sure like to scare the H##L out of them enough to let them know that a crazy person lives here and don't mess with my property/possessions. LOL  The kids in my area seem to be okay, but this newer subdivsion (2006) is built next to a very old one, probably 60+ years old, known for drug and other illicit activities.

I was gonna have my coup/run setup against the back brick wall, but there's a sidewalk-culdesac on the other side.  Anyone can walk by there (it's only 5-ft tall) and torment my birds.  Even if I have to get some big clay pots, I will plant some type of shrubbery or small trees to line that back wall, and pull my project further into the yard to keep my birds from being seen from passers by.

This subdivision is a complete concrete jungle, with a few weeded washes, and no telling what might be living in them.  My backyard is just a dirt landscape with 5-ft brick walls on three sides to separate me from the two neighbors and culdesac at the rear.  I don't know the size of my back yard, but I think it's at least a good 50 x 50 feet, which gives me more than the 40-ft requirement of having a coup/structure from neighbors.

I made the stupid mistake of going out my front door to examine my trees on both sides of my driveway. I always enter through the garage entrance.  Didn't close the front door completely, and when I got up the next morning at 4:30, the front door was wide open.  The breeze had blown it open.  I did check for intruders and critters, but found nothing.  Truly some guardian angels watching over me.

Thanks for your input, folks.  I don't wanna be popular for shooting neighborhood kids. I'm not particularly fond of them, especially teenagers, having worked for the judicial/juvenile and disciplinary system for the past 35+ year and the attitudes they have nowadays.  I'm more concerned about what critters my birds will attract. Sorry if I offend anyone with kids. Just tainted from seeing all the negative and very little of the positive.

May you all have a safe and happy Thanksgiving! --BB

Bobby Basham
Tucson, Arizona

My best friend of 40 years lives in one of the most drug infested areas in town. She has a couple of large dogs and leaves the door unlocked. Lives alone. Never bothered. I'm thinking your real solution is a good fence and some good dogs.

 

[Miss Lydia]

My best friend of 40 years lives in one of the most drug infested areas in town. She has a couple of large dogs and leaves the door unlocked. Lives alone. Never bothered. I'm thinking your real solution is a good fence and some good dogs.

or a good fence and a couple of Chinese geese. Watch geese

 

[normanack]

When they got on me just a shower took care of it so your probably good to go, I had the same thing happen back when one of my hens was sitting one day none next day all over her and in the nest box. Crawling up my arm, yuck. Did you know you can spray your chickens with neem oil mixed 2 tab. to 1 gallon of water. also you can spray out the nest box or use sulphur and spread in the nest box.  when I treated the nest boxes i took out the eggs she was sitting on then sprayed put in new bedding over top of sprayed  mixed real good set eggs back and sprayed my hen then put her back in. Then did the same thing again in 7 days, plus rubbed their legs and vent area with Nu stock. sprayed all roosts with neem oil  mixed with water, and also sprayed cracks where wood meets inside coop walls. didn't spray bedding though. No sign of mites now. Eggs had hatched in the mean time  but did not treat new hatched chicks. They never got them either.  

Thank you -- that's reassuring! These darn critters are so small but so itchy and seemingly spring from nowhere, in the zillions. Scary bitty beasts!

 

[thedragonlady]

Thank you -- that's reassuring! These darn critters are so small but so itchy and seemingly spring from nowhere, in the zillions. Scary bitty beasts!

Can't stand bugs ! I'll itch for days just imagining one on me. Sorry Bee, but if that was my hen, she'd be doused with permethrin powder, as would the whole flock. You can't wait for the ashes to work to save those eggs, or hen. You'll have to spray down your roosts with liquid permethrin, and the coop too. Were these little red mites, or lice? The tiny red guys are the worst. They are blood suckers.

I have a little wren that raises at least 3 clutches in a "See Rock City" house in my main coop. Safest wren in town. She flies through the chain link. She gets dusted every time she sets.She raised 15 bug eating babies this year, bless her ! The 5 wrens nesting in coconut shells in my garage get dusted too. They raise an average of 50 + bug eating babies every year, generation after generation.The wrens are H$^l on mosquitos,flies, and other nasty bugs. When I did re-hab for the DNR, the first thing I did was dust, to rid birds of mites. They will pull a bird down FAST, even a healthy one.They'll kill a sick one quickly.

 

[NanaKat]

I have three out of 100 with mites. Noticed them on my favorite roo this morning. Treated him with ash and neem oil. Checked and found one more and treated her. Then after all the turkey dinner crowd left I checked all in the coop this evening. went ahead and treated all. Only found one more with mites. Felt it was better to be safe than sorry. Will free range the whole flock tomorrow and spray down the inside walls and roost. I don't spray the deep litter floor because I like the beneficials in the soil.
Hate mites and feather lice...equally. The sparrows have been envading the coop for the chicken feed. Looks like I'm going to have to feed on schedule instead of hanging feeders for a few weeks. That's what I did last year and the sparrows moved on.

 

[normanack]

Were these little red mites, or lice? The tiny red guys are the worst. They are blood suckers.

Little red dots, nearly too small to see. A magnifying glass didn't provide much detail, except that they're basically round.

I don't know if they're plain old poultry mites or northern fowl mites, or if it makes a difference.

I bought a budgie years ago with lice. As I recall, they looked like little crawly white lines. Technically I'd describe them as icky.

 

[Leahs Mom]

What do you "air gun/pellet gun experienced" think of these?

http://zxgun.biz/catalog_detail.php?product_id=16188

http://zxgun.biz/catalog_detail.php?product_id=11650

 

[galanie]

What do you "air gun/pellet gun experienced" think of these?

http://zxgun.biz/catalog_detail.php?product_id=16188

http://zxgun.biz/catalog_detail.php?product_id=11650

Either one will do nicely.

 

[thedragonlady]

Little red dots, nearly too small to see. A magnifying glass didn't provide much detail, except that they're basically round.
I don't know if they're plain old poultry mites or northern fowl mites, or if it makes a difference.
I bought a budgie years ago with lice. As I recall, they looked like little crawly white lines. Technically I'd describe them as icky.

Those are northern fowl mites. They spend the day living in cracks in your roost, and come out at night to blood suck your birds. That poor hen has been attacked because she is immobile. I use the permethrin because it works quickly, and it does come from a daisy. I have a greenhouse full of orchids, and I've used Neem Oil for years, but I would not put it on my birds because it can cause skin reactions even when I use it on my orchids.Whatever you choose to use, you'll have to re-treat in a week at least twice.

 

[Fred's Hens]

FWIW Many permethrins are accepted on our organic farming list of OK stuff.