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

[Leahs Mom]

Maybe we could get one that plays the voice of Al cussing at roosters so that the young cockerels will grow up proper.....

 

[stonykill]

I just let broody's do it all. So much easier. Yeah I incubate but I MUCH prefer letting the girls do the work and take care of the mess. Plus they are better chickens than I am.

 

[Beekissed]

Me too...broodies have no equal. For folks who incubate a lot, it isn't really an option, so we're spitballing on something as close to a broody as one can find.

 

[stonykill]

Me too...broodies have no equal. For folks who incubate a lot, it isn't really an option, so we're spitballing on something as close to a broody as one can find.

I've had incubated hens go broody. 3 this year were eggs I incubated last year. I had to leave eggs in various nests for a month before they finally sat. But 3 of the 5 hens in that coop went broody. Then of course I swapped out for fresh eggs.

 

[bruceh]

what the heck bee,
fred , al and myself are still waiting on our chicken diapers. now you are off making a broody hen.

 

[Beekissed]

Well....my mind wanders off by itself without adult supervision at times.

 

[mendocinosunris]

Whew! I made a flying trip to (almost) San Angelo to meet a Mr.Welling. He is the one that Bryan got the chickens from. He is a very nice man with a wonderfully wry sense of humor, and a body that is turning against him faster than he can grasp the concept. Anyway, he is getting out of the chicken business, and I bought another pair of sebrights, a pair of Mille Fleur d' Uccles, a pair of porcelain d' Uccles (gorgeous!), a cabinet style incubator and some transport cages.

He also took the time to show me how to give a chicken a bath! I never would have thought to give a chicken a bath, but he informed me that if we didn't, our birds would certainly lose to one who did, even if ours were superior birds! Who'd have thunk it??? Anyway, I took him to lunch and we lingered a long while, he telling me chicken secrets, me taking notes in a notebook. It was a wonderful day. When I got in the pickup to leave, he asked me to hang on a minute, and disappeared into his well appointed chicken shed and brought out a battered old 3 ring binder, and handed it to me to give to my kids. It was hand written notes he'd jotted down over the years. I cried halfway home! He is a very nice man, and I'm sure we will take him to many lunches as we are that way often.

When I got home, I replaced the roosts in the d' Uccles pen with 2X4 roosts, and started another cattle panel pen for the porcelains. We will go work some more on it this evening after homework is finished and checked. I haven't told the kids yet...they wouldn't be able do concentrate!

I'm sure I will be asking bunches of questions when it comes time to plug the incubator in...I think you can put something like 200 eggs in it. A cabinet type with a glass door and several trays w/ and automatic turner. I'm excited! I think I may have chicken fever worse than the kids, tho I have not selected my special breed...I like them all! Brie

Wow - that's such a great story - how exciting to get the benefit of his years of experience. Mr. Welling sounds like a really great person.

 

[therapydoglady]

Wow - that's such a great story - how exciting to get the benefit of his years of experience. Mr. Welling sounds like a really great person.

I was very impressed with the man. I have decided that chicken people are just very nice people. It's like a prerequisite! Ha! He is excited to see young people getting into his passion. He went from large fowl to bantams and fancy pigeons about 10 years ago, because of his rapidly advancing arthritis and osteoporosis. Bless his heart, he can't even straighten up any more. But it hasn't put a dent in his humor, or the sparkle in his eye. He's a mess! You can bet he will be invited to come along with us on any of our forays if he wants to come.
He wants to meet the kids, which is nice. He could just as easily be a crotchety old curmudgeon! They will love him. They miss their Mimaw.
Brie

 

[armorfirelady]

I just wanted to thank all the OTC's for your honest, straightforward advice. You guys also gave me the courage to try new things with my minor carpenter skills. I made a pop door the other day with spare lumber & somehow it actually works !!


The handle was from the pop door on the doll house coop. I lost the screw that attached the handle & had a zip toe instead to hold it together. That didnt work either so string it is for now.

Girls tried the door out right away & I feel better with just a small door for them for entry into secure run when I am not home.

Keep the wisdom coming........I have learned a lot but have so much MORE to learn

 

[galanie]

  You know?  I think we could market them if we made them look like real hens.  The heavy fleece they use in blanket throws would be perfect for it.  I got to thinking of it when someone on another forum was wanting to know how to brood chicks when you live off grid.  That fleece is super warm.  You could do it with feather down but it wouldn't stand up to repeated washings, so the fleece came to mind.

Remember those old toaster covers that looked like a hen with a dress on?  Well, I was thinking along those lines, with the edge of the wire hoop having some fleece fringing to allow coming and going but still holding in the heat underneath.  Sort of like a big, fat and fleecy feathered hen, with a real looking hen's head, eyes and all, on the top. 

I think they'd sell like hot cakes...

 

Do you know, I read where Koreans use a sort of similar idea. But it's a cardboard box with a cloth fringe curtained section. The chicks can go in there to warm up and come out when they want.