Cock-a-doodle doo... I’m new!

[007Sean]

Howdy and Welcome to Backyard Chickens.

Happy to have you here with us. Enjoy your time here at BYC!

Thanks for joining our community!

 

[SongBaby33]

Welcome

 

[Melky]

 

[rjohns39]

Hi and welcome to BYC We're so happy you've decided to join us

We have a contest going on right now just for new folks like you. In order to enter you'll need to copy the link from your first post in this thread and post it in the contest thread.

To copy your link address, right click on the link to your thread and click copy or copy link

then click on the following URL
https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...t-new-byc-members-win-a-byc-calendar.1287752/

Go down to where it says "write your reply..." tell us this is your entry and then click on the link button

Paste your URL into the box and click "insert", then click "Post Reply".

That's all there is to it. Once you've finished this, you're eligible to win a nice BYC Calendar.

 

[Cynthia12]

WELCOME! Sounds like you are doing great getting everything ready for those little ones!

 

[Jetblack2004]

It’ll be great to see you around!

 

[feathermaid]

Thank you! That is all so helpful! As of right now I have ordered two covered heating plates (long story but I may cancel my first order and reorder from a farm that has the different breed chicks in on the same day). So I may return one of the heating plates. I also ordered a nipple feeder to put on the heating plate as well as Purina Grow and Feed medicated. As of now, my plan is to put kitchen liner down with paper towels on top for the first week, and the. Switch everything over to construction-type sand (not fine). I hadn’t thought about a mirror or a perch. Love it! Thanks for the idea!

You're welcome! The heating plates are great! I was thinking about ordering one for myself too, it might be easier to adjust as they grow.

I've tried the nipple waterers in the past, but they always dripped and leaked and left a wet area on the bedding, which i did not like. Chicks need their brooder dry dry dry. Though I did find a fantastic very absorbent bedding material... stall pellets. That's what my feed store uses in their chick bins too. My chicks have done fine with a regular plastic waterer that screws onto a jar, I put it on a brick to keep bedding from scattering into it.

I looked into attempting to make one myself, but I didn’t think I would have the time to do it. I ordered the OverEZ medium chicken coop and a rugged ranch welded metal run. Of everything I researched, these had the best reviews, so I’m hoping it works out!

I googled those... the coop is roughly 4'x4' so should be a decent size for 4 birds, and a lot nicer than most flat-pack prefabs. Good choice. The run however, seems to have quite a bit of space between each panel and in the fencing itself. I don't know what predators are in your area, but small ones like snakes or weasels could easily fit inside, and raccoons could still reach through and grab chickens that wander too close to the edge at dusk or very early morning hours. I'm not saying it won't work, just fyi.

 

[Shellebelle920]

You're welcome! The heating plates are great! I was thinking about ordering one for myself too, it might be easier to adjust as they grow.

I've tried the nipple waterers in the past, but they always dripped and leaked and left a wet area on the bedding, which i did not like. Chicks need their brooder dry dry dry. Though I did find a fantastic very absorbent bedding material... stall pellets. That's what my feed store uses in their chick bins too. My chicks have done fine with a regular plastic waterer that screws onto a jar, I put it on a brick to keep bedding from scattering into it.


I googled those... the coop is roughly 4'x4' so should be a decent size for 4 birds, and a lot nicer than most flat-pack prefabs. Good choice. The run however, seems to have quite a bit of space between each panel and in the fencing itself. I don't know what predators are in your area, but small ones like snakes or weasels could easily fit inside, and raccoons could still reach through and grab chickens that wander too close to the edge at dusk or very early morning hours. I'm not saying it won't work, just fyi.

I appreciate the heads up on the run. Now that I’m Looking closer at the pic, I am concerned that a snake or rodent of some sort could get through the gaps or the fencing. Hmmm I’m Going to have to rethink this run before it is delivered.

 

[Dramadollie]

I think I am about to purchase the rugged ranch run BUT plan to reinforce it with hardware cloth. Did you end up purchasing it? Do you like it?

 

[Leahs Coop]

I know I'm late but, Welcome to BYC! It's great to have you here!