Colorado

[wsmith]

Hello - I am also new and am in Loveland near Ft Collins.. This weather is making me crazy with temps up and down! I hope the little ones (2,3,4 weeks) can adjust. They are inside right now but will be going out when the coop is finished. At what age is it best to begin turning the light off during the day and for how long?

Welcome to the Colorado Thread!

When the chicks are fully feathered, they should be fine without any supplemental heat or lighting. Until then, gradually lower the temperature or duration of warmth until they are fully feathered. The problam is the weird and drastic swings in temperatures that we get this time of year. In a way, I'm glad I don't have a bunch of little chicks that I have to keep warm. Even now, the temp inside the turkey brooder gets pretty warm during the day, but barely keeps up at night. They do huddle together, and stay warm.

 

[Chick_In_The_Burbs]

Ok... I may have a roo!! Of course it's too early to tell (at 4 weeks) but I think there is a pretty big difference between two chicks of the same breed that I brought home on the same day. Here's the possible roo (the breed in question is a buff brahma, for those interested) The other brahma we have is the middle, white-ish one. Hard to see her comb coloring, but it there is BARELY any tint of red and I think you can click the picture to make it bigger? Do you guys have any votes on the possibility of the first bird being a roo at 4 weeks?

That is definantly a Light Brahma and I had one go rooster on me a few years ago. Roo's among brahmas tend to feather in much more slowly than the pullets and will get tree trunk legs. I swear mine was 4 weeks before I started seeing tail feathers! My boy would stand in an alert pose that made him almost twice as tall as the other standard breed chicks too.

 

[kmatt87]

Welcome! I'm in loveland as well. I turned my light off once they're fully feathered but I slowly raise the light each week at the 2 wk point. Mine are kept in the garage so I leave them there without a light for a week or so before putting them in the coop.

 

[BlueJaye]

Hello from Boulder to all you fellow Colorado peeps! Wow I'm really envying all the space you all seem to have for your flocks

Hi there!
I know what you mean! I have a small-ish backyard, too! Don't feel bad!

 

[BlueJaye]

Hello - I am also new and am in Loveland near Ft Collins.. This weather is making me crazy with temps up and down! I hope the little ones (2,3,4 weeks) can adjust. They are inside right now but will be going out when the coop is finished. At what age is it best to begin turning the light off during the day and for how long?

Hello fellow NoCo chicken keeper!

 

[annav410]

Is anyone tired of the snow storms? Normally I love moisture and snow storms/blizzards are awesome, but I want to get more work done on my coop and run and 12+ inches doesn't help with that plan!

 

[Chick_In_The_Burbs]

Is anyone tired of the snow storms? Normally I love moisture and snow storms/blizzards are awesome, but I want to get more work done on my coop and run and 12+ inches doesn't help with that plan!

Considering the water restrictions they have started here I will take anything I can get! DH was telling me about them last night. We are only allowed to water two days a week and those days are specific; I can't remember what the 'allowed' days are but even house numbers get two days, odds get another and businesses get another two. Not that we have much of a lawn left but I would like to at least keep alive what we replanted last year!

 

[Mtn Margie]

Welcome! I'm in loveland as well. I turned my light off once they're fully feathered but I slowly raise the light each week at the 2 wk point. Mine are kept in the garage so I leave them there without a light for a week or so before putting them in the coop.

I guess I am a meanie..., mine went out into the coop when they were 4 weeks and had a light for a week. They have already "survived" twenty something temps and love to go outside in the morning when it is still cold and spaaz around like crazy chickens. Most chicks are just fine; you should see how a broody raises them!

Hello Haveandtohold! I am up above Jamestown.

 

[jime]

Hello everybody , I live in Elizabeth and have been caching up with this thread, really good comments, pictures and info and most important nice people is one f the friendliest threads I have been.
Since i have been catching up now I can not remember witch post I want to comment on, so I will try to comment on what I remember and hope helps some body.
First sorry for the spelling I ma trying to correct but sometimes still doesn't make sense I 100% better at spanish.
Ok here it goes.
Predators:Last year I got some egg went crazy on incubation and hatched abut 80 chicks and ducks you can call it beginners luck, that total went down to 50 in 2 afternoons thanks to a fox. My solution then was get and electric fence.
By then I have everybody inside the fence and the fox try again and learn.Next on the list was a racoon or wissel or skunk don't know what but start to find bodies without heads and stomach, solution to that was getting everybody in bed early and lock them up.
Next came my neighbor complaining about the netting so we move everybody to other side of property, and there came owls, they took my number to 20 chickens and 9 water fowl, my door opens about 6 in the morning and the owls were smart o wait that long and get them they specially like my ducks.Aging solution was lock everybody and opens doors by hand about 8 in the morning.
Finally cayotes were the last ones took my number to 13 chickens, they figure out to go to the close of the fencing (were the two ends get together, this happens when I was away so I could not o much about that,My solutions was to move everybody in the barn a stall for the ducks and geese and the run for the chickens and their coops since then I did not have more mortalities
Well my dog went crazy the other day and got my bantamn cochin, and an eagle got one of my pretty partridge cochins

. At least I can say that the wild life in my area is well fed.
I read here that a good option for eagles are those owls that turn, but where do you place them high in a tree or in a fence or by the coops?

Meal worms:
They are really easy to grow just put the bran and add potatoes, they will start to give some extras in about 6 months, I separate every stage and the bettles get one moth in one drawer and one in another.
I raise dubia roaches as well they are really easy to grow and propagate pretty fast, they are slow to mature but give plenty of babies to feed the chickens and ducks.You just need water crystal, cat food or even chickens mush and some apples.And some of those seed heater mats.
Also raise crawfish they have tons of babies and they go to the ducks water and they have lots of fun, chickens get some as well.
With all that I am hoping i ma getting them plenty of protein.

DLM :
My system is suppose to be a DLM but i change it a little, I try the poop trays but the space for me to turn on the coop was too crowded so I give up now what I do is put the wood pellets with out expanding them and put some PDZ and what I just move the litter and list no smell and not a lot of bedding neither, this is change every 6 months and go into the raise beds.

Food:
I get my food at Elizabeth corner is a reasonable price for organic food (the only thing I don't like is they add soybeans ) the brand is ranch-away.But I only feed this as filler puti it in the big plate and they serve them selves what they want 3 bags of 40# last me about 3 1/2 months. The main food is organic grains witch I sprout,I get this from Golden organics and is about 45 minutes drive one way but I go there ever 3-4 moths.If you buy a total of 500 they will deliver with an extra charge.I have never try this. In grains is about 200$ for 4-5 months.
I also do fooder but that is share with the horses and bunnies as well.

Oh my I hope I did not get every body bore.

Animals I have 3EE,1 australorp,1 buff orp,1 barred rock,(hatchery stock) 3 marraduna basque,1 mottled d'uccle,2 partriadge cochin(breeder stock) and my new one are 4 mille fleur leghorns, 2 welsummers, 4 white american bresse.3 blue/splash muscovy, 1 nice call duck hen and 1 call duck mix drake, and 4 sebastopol geese that are looking for a loving home.

 

[trochefarm]

Is anyone tired of the snow storms? Normally I love moisture and snow storms/blizzards are awesome, but I want to get more work done on my coop and run and 12+ inches doesn't help with that plan!

I don't mind the snow. It's the drop in temperature that bothers me. It was 72 degrees here today, and it'll be 19 degrees (if we're lucky) tomorrow. Single digits over night tomorrow.

My 7 and 9-week old chicks are outside in a small (pre-fab) coop with no room for supplemental heating. I hope they can stay warm enough. They've been out there for about a week, now, and love it.