Consolidated Kansas

[TheDownyChick]

Chicken Danz and HEChicken do you have pics of your hoop coops? I am building my first one ever, and could use some inspiration! I will share mine when i get back to it!

 

[Polishpal]

We didn't catch anything last night but I think that was because of this horrid weather

 

[HEChicken]

Chicken Danz and HEChicken do you have pics of your hoop coops? I am building my first one ever, and could use some inspiration! I will share mine when i get back to it!

If you look in my signature line, I have a link to my hoop coop with detailed steps for how I built it, along with pictures. There are a lot of different approaches so sometimes you just have to look at a bunch and figure out what approach will work best for your situation. I love the hoop coops because rain and snow don't pool in the top of them like they do on the tarp over a dog run. Plus, they are relatively cheap and fast to build, and very strong and secure after they are built. I wouldn't entirely trust mine as a stand alone, since I only did chicken wire on the bottom 2' of it, so a determined predator could climb up and go in the larger spaces of the hog panels higher up. However I built it within my chicken yard which is fenced and my dogs sleep in there at night, so I am not too worried about that happening.

I just saw the cutest thing. One of my little 2-week-old turkeys (actually not even 2 weeks old until tomorrow) displayed for me! This little guy has always been very precocious, but it was just hilarious to see him with his head tucked in, holding his wings out, and walking slowly across the brooder. I'm sure in his mind, there was a beautiful tail fanned out behind him too. In reality, his tail is still nothing but baby fluff.

 

[HEChicken]

Oh duh. If I don't multi I forget every time. Danz I was going to comment on the great hatch on the Reese eggs. 23 out of 24 is a great hatch rate. Its a little disappointing so many are mixes though - I thought he had them separated out pretty well so that was unlikely to happen (I know others ended up with cross breeds but I thought that was a one off). Hey, do you know what pure NH chicks look like? Are they chipmunks, or do they start out orange all over? Or can they be both?

 

[chicken danz]

Frank brought out a huge amount of eggs. Probably 20 dozen all together and just passed them out. They were mixes. I assume they came from some place like his grow out pen where all the different birds were together. I know when I was there buying pullets, there were lots of eggs laying on the ground in there. He said they were all mixed eggs and could be any mix of breeds. I didn't take any of them, but Trudi had gobs and was only going to hatch what she thought might be Jersey Giants so I took some from her. My plans all along were just to hatch them and see how his method of washing and tek trolling the eggs worked. It obviously works well. I culled a couple early on that went bad. I only plan to use them for eating and maybe layers. I don't expect any keepers for breeding in that group.
He also gave Trish and Deerfield and I'm not sure who else a bunch of barred rock eggs. They were supposed to be purebred. I only got 7 eggs and only 5 of those were fertile. Many pullet eggs in mine. But they all hatched and are doing great. I'll be interested to see what develops out of these chicks.
I haven't heard how all the others are doing. I know Trish hatched some barred rocks.
I had some sticky ducks this morning. It's so hard to keep the hatcher balanced when I am hatching so many different breeds of birds. It's either too much or too little. I have been having good hatches though other than the ducks. To hatch them I end up suffocating everything else.

 

[chicken danz]

Downy chick I posted some pictures when I made my first one. I'll have to find them.
Hechicken New Hamps are just a plain yellow chick with a reddish look to the feathers South of their head. No chipmonks

 

[chicken danz]

Downy chick, Here's some pictures of my hoop coop while I was building it. I can't find any of the finished product. As you can see I actually built a coop within the coop. The one I am building now will be different with a gate at each end and a double coop house on the inside so I can separate two breeds. This next one is a totally new concept I came up with in desperation for more places to separate breeds.

 

[Trish44]

Hello every one .. I'v been away from computer.. w/ chicks and garden.. ect..
its.. nice.. to see what you're all up to.. found funny money.. guard kittens.. missing kittens. stolen flocks. _ jail birds
cute chicks.. and turkens.. ( sorry.. i just cant like the looks of them yet.. look rather vulture'ish.. but i'm sure their mother likes them.. its going to have to grow on me.. my neighbor boy got one this spring.. so.. maybe by fall?? i'll like them.)

On the Salmon Favorelles.. when can you tell the rooster chicks.. by feathering??
are they the lighter .. or darker color... chicks. ( I'm wondering.. as i ordered 4 girls.. 2 roo's. but.. not sure.. what's what.. )
mine are 6 wk old now. but the 4 have darker and more feathers.. hummm..
very nice.... ..
my mother remarried when i was young.. and in my 40's I found i had a sister.. in KC.. I think i know what you mean..
it's way fun.. congrat's.. and what a coincidence.. or ...?? is it.. that you both like chickens.. ; ) humm humm!

oop. I found the official cheat sheet. or fact sheet for the hoop coop..
with photo's and links.. http://www.ca.uky.edu/agc/pubs/ASC/ASC189/ASC189.pdf
has every thing there.. but the pad lock. required to keep the jail birds.. out.. of the roost.
sorry for that person.. do they post here?? at consolidated kansas. truly sorry for the loss.. and insult.

have a great weekend..

I agree with Danz, the Salmon Faverolle roosters get black on their feathers when they start feathering out & the pullets only have brown. You can start seeing the difference pretty young with them because they look so different. I was able to sex a trio that I kept at only a few days old.

HEChicken that is so cute that the little turkey poult displayed, aren't they fun! I wish more of mine had made it, I just think yours did so well because your had broody hens raising them. Speaking of broody hens, I now have 3 here & I hate dealing with them, they're just a pain. I really don't need any more eggs incubated, but I have given all 3 a few eggs just so they can get it out of their system. I have had no luck getting them broke any other way. The little Australorp hen is one of the worst for being stubborn. She will sit even if she has no eggs forever. This time I just figured she might as well have something to sit on if she's going to sit there. I have my only Wheaten Ameraucana hen sitting & one of my Swedish Flower Hens. I really didn't want any of the Swedish Flower Hens to be broody right now, but she's determined too. My Wheaten Ameraucana hen is really grouchy, she growls at me if I get anywhere near her nest.

bbsnooks, Here are some pics of my first hoop coop, I don't have any of the 2nd one, but it's pretty much the same. I'm going to build one more soon too & divide it into two pens so it will have a door at each end. Mine don't have a coop like Danz built, she gets fancy. This one is where I house my guineas & peafowl. I just love the hoop coops too & I wish all my pens were those. You just don't have the issues you have with the dog runs & tarps on top.

 

[Trish44]

Oh, I forgot to mention that I have a free big Speckled Sussex rooster available if anyone needs a flock rooster. He's very good at watching over his girls, just doesn't get along well with other roosters. I'm getting a new bunch of Speckled Sussex from a breeder soon, so I won't need this guy any more.

 

[tweetybaby2005]

We only had enough rain to wet the pavement last night but now we are under tornado warning with hails coming down hard! I only managed to glean the brooder, nothing else. It never goes as planned.

Oh, I can hear the tornado siren blaring right now. We better head down to the bsmt. Will post more later.

Kuan