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

[loanwizard]

Thanks. I was asked why I didn't use a bullet, if I used a knife, or if I drowned it.... They must have thought I was cruel, but I wasn't going to waste a bullet. Could have used an axe/hatchet but at that size the thumb forefinger and 2 hands did the trick quickly and I am sure there was no pain.

 

[loanwizard]

In other news, I had to take one of the dogs to the vet (beagle) Saturday. One of the kids left out a 9/0 Gamakatsu circle hook with chicken parts on it and she cam up with a hook hanging out of her mouth. I tried my wire cutters to no avail. Ended up, the vet cut the hook with a set of bolt cutters. I never even thought of those, I have a pair! She was great about it though with no crying, howling, whimpering or biting. In fact she wagged her tail while we pulled it the rest of the way through.

 

[bobbi-j]

A bullet on a tiny chick?? My husband takes care of these things for me. I don't know how he does it. If I ever have to do it myself, it will be with a sharp instrument. Mainly because I just don't think I could do it with my hands. Over the years, I have come to the conclusion that when you have a weak one, it's kinder to the bird to put it down sooner rather than later. I wouldn't let one go on any longer than you did with yours. It's OK to give them a chance for a day or so, but when they can't even get themselves to water....

Glad to hear that the dog came through alright!

 

[Beekissed]

Well...got my redneck, hoop coop built. Just need to do a few more fiddly things and add roosts, feeder and waterer. Will be brooding my CX chicks there first and growing them out on free range before adding layer hens to it.



Back view with the nest boxes open and pop door open:



Anyone interested in the build on this coop can see it on the coops part of the forum. Now, before you laugh out loud at this thing, remember that I'm just a woman with a few basic tools(sawsall, drill and hammer) and no discernible carpentry skills and I was doing this by myself. This coop has enough zip ties and duct tape to qualify it for Redneck Certified!

My old dog helped me with the whole build so I gave him this squirrel that fell off the bird feeder and died~he was very grateful!

 

[galanie]

 

[daver]

Hey Bee,

That looks great but the the most wonderful thing is that the birds won't care!!

Great job.

Dave

 

[Beekissed]

That's what I said!

The chickens don't notice the bad angles and poor construction, so I'm not going to stress it either. One thing is for sure...I built it strong...ugly..but strong.

 

[Dead Rabbit]

amazing how a squirrel just seems to fall off a bird feeder and die. and he wasnt even pushed. musta been a heart attack.

 

[daver]

So I have a question for the OTs or anyone who has experienced ground water issues.

I followed the advice from Pat's Muddy Run page and that worked just fine for a while. Still have sand left from the 2 tons of sand that I started with. The problem is that the ground slopes away but just sits there during the late winter and early spring months. After almost a year of having chickens (had ten, culled down to six) the area below the pen is frankly, somewhat pungent. A lot of standing water. With no where to go. Not bad now but I can see that over time this will be a problem.

So my solution is to enclose the implement shed on the side of our barn with a raised floor, which will serve as the coop and run. I can control the run off that way.

Comments?

Dave

 

[Beekissed]

amazing how a squirrel just seems to fall off a bird feeder and die. and he wasnt even pushed. musta been a heart attack.

I think the birds mighta pushed him really hard.