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

[rowerjen]

Ya gotta wonder sometimes. Craigslist posting from NH:

"We are selling our beautiful, tame, laying flock of 6-8 month old (varied ages, all from this spring's hatch) chickens. Two of them are Bantam Lace Cochens (a gorgeous pair, rooster and hen, and my pride and joy), one is a Lace Cochen variety (a BIG bird), some Rhode Island Reds, and som of your white Layer hens. All together 16 chickens: 1 rooster, 15 hens.

Beautiful, hand-tame, free-range, and handled from the time they were chicks, these birds have great personalities and had just started putting out great egg production before it started getting cold and dark. We do not have a heated chicken coop or a barn for them, and are worried about them during the winter, so this is the ONLY reason we're getting rid of them. Hoping somebody with a barn or a heated coop would be interested. These are pets as much as layers, with several being named and favorites of our family. All are healthy, perky, and will come running to you for table scraps (especially spaghetti)! Come with about 3/4 of a bag of layer feed. Asking $75 to help cover what we've put into them.

This was our first year doing chickens, and we have loved it, but not set up for winter for them.

 

[JeffOeuf]

These are learning threads and sometimes we learn best if we have a visual...wanna see some chicken butt pics?

Unless you have new ones, I already have.

 

[JeffOeuf]

Ya gotta wonder sometimes. Craigslist posting from NH:

"We are selling our beautiful, tame, laying flock of 6-8 month old (varied ages, all from this spring's hatch) chickens. Two of them are Bantam Lace Cochens (a gorgeous pair, rooster and hen, and my pride and joy), one is a Lace Cochen variety (a BIG bird), some Rhode Island Reds, and som of your white Layer hens. All together 16 chickens: 1 rooster, 15 hens... but not set up for winter for them.

Wow. I thought about trying to find the listing and let these people in on a couple secrets, but it's not worth my time. As our good buddy Ron White has been teaching us for years, you can't fix stupid.

 

[galefrances]

Anyone have any idea why my chickens won't come out of their coop? It's 24 degrees outside and 26 degrees in the coop. The sun is shining out, no wind. They've also stopped eating their FF. This is the second day now that this is happening. I'm not concerned, I'll wait it out like Bee always says, but I'm just wondering.

 

[armorfirelady]

Anyone have any idea why my chickens won't come out of their coop? It's 24 degrees outside and 26 degrees in the coop. The sun is shining out, no wind. They've also stopped eating their FF. This is the second day now that this is happening. I'm not concerned, I'll wait it out like Bee always says, but I'm just wondering.

My hens also occasionally decide to stay in on days when they normally are out. I just throw some BOSS out along their path to their run to get them out. But perhaps there is a predator in the area and thats why they are staying in? As for the FF is it ice cold? They may not like to eat it so cold. I have mine in a dish in the heated dog bowl and its licked clean before I get home from work.

 

[Miss Lydia]

My hens also occasionally decide to stay in on days when they normally are out. I just throw some BOSS out along their path to their run to get them out. But perhaps there is a predator in the area and thats why they are staying in? As for the FF is it ice cold? They may not like to eat it so cold. I have mine in a dish in the heated dog bowl and its licked clean before I get home from work.

May I ask why you have it in a dish in a heated dog bowl? I just put mine right into the heated dog bowl, is that not a good idea?

 

[thedragonlady]

Thank you Fred, I completely understand and appreciate your honesty. I am just so on the fence about chemical deworming and have been for the 5 years I have been raising chickens. Everyone has an opinion. I do feed lots of pumpkins, squash, etc. year round and can add garlic and cayenne. Always looking for herbal options, after all, DH and I eat the eggs and all the culls! Have never found a single worm at butcher time but the culls are usually no older than 6 mos. Occasionally see a roundworm in a poop pile but no thin or seemingly unthrifty birds. Just need to make up my mind what is best for me and my flock. I really look forward to your posts and all of the OT's on this awesome thread!

I do worm my young birds particularly, with Safeguard liquid goat wormer.Every 6 weeks. I have a very good Nikkon microscope, and run my own fecals. To get maximum growth out of the big Buff Orps that I raise, it is a necessity.No, they are not crowded. Once they are grown, I worm less often. The ingredient in Safeguard is used on people in many third world countries as is Ivermectin.The proof is in the pudding. See my page for photos.

 

[Beekissed]

I'd say because it's easier to take it out and clean it than the heated bowl with that long cord plugged into the wall. I think it has a lot to do with the cold FF also...the first cold morning we had here the chickens were reluctant to eat the feed that was still in the feeder from the night before...but as the day went along they cleaned it up.

 

[galefrances]

Thanks for the replys. I thought about the FF being too cold even though I tried warming it up a bit before I put it out. The dog bowl is a great idea Armorfirelady. And Bee, I thank you as well for the dog bowl idea. I had purchased an electric automatic waterer that was useless. Now I have the heated dog bowl with the ice cream container filled with water. So very easy! They did knock it over yesterday, but I think I may have had it too high. It's lowered now so I'll check it when I go out again. Oh, and my DH thanks you as well. I never buy ice cream, but I wanted that bucket, so the DH is really enjoying himself.

Armorfirelady, I didn't think of predators. Three days ago a hawk was stalking the coop. Sat right in front of the run, then flew up into the tree. I went out there and he flew away. But you're right, given the timing, they may be spooked.

 

[Beekissed]

Yes...there is always an excuse for ice cream!