Coop Project: Maken the Plunge & Getting Chickens

[Rock Home Isle]

Well for the 5th night in a row I have had to herd the ducks into the run for the night. I do not know what has changed ....this pair went from going into the run with the chickens each night; to now refusing to go into the run with the chickens each night unless they are coherced.

Maybe they like the extra attention that they are getting?????

 

[Ashdoes]

From what I've read ducks tend to prefer more open space. Some would even like to just sleep in their water, or a tree. Maybe you could try their own open pen inside the run? If they liked their sleeping area more they might be more willing to go in at night.
I've really enjoyed reading your posts.

 

[Rock Home Isle]

When we had ducks, when I was a kid, we lived out in the country. There were coyotes and raccoons that tried to get into the box coop almost every night (I even saw a Great Horned Owl sitting on the coop one cold morning), and when the sun was starting to set our ducks couldn't wait to get into the coop at night....Could be that they just have no fear and don't know how good they have it.

(Silly Ducks).

 

[Rock Home Isle]

I've been trying for a few nights now to see the process or rather the routine of the pullets as they go into the coop in the evening. Tonight I got to wittness it.

I went out into the backyard this evening several times after I got home from UNC. At first they were very excited to see me and came running and were energetic and not relaxed. But with each successive trip they got more used to me being out there with them; gradually they began to ignore me and go about their routine. During my multiple trips; I gave the flock their treat, Bird Seed. I gave them some table scraps, which they love. Tonight they got Cantalope. And on a final trip, I sat out there in the yard with them as they climbed all over me and I fed them bits of grass that I pulled from the yard. Its really weird giving a chicken grass, I understand their excitement about the Bird Seed....But Grass???

I then moved and sat quietly on the deck as evening approached. Then right at twilight one of the pullets clucked and headed to the run. One by one the others followed suit and in the run they went. Pecker looked to be very agitated at the gate of the run, He was pacing and scratching but not pecking the ground like usual...there was one pullet that had not headed into the run as she was doing some last minute grazing in the grass. Fianlly it looked like Pecker had had enough and he took off after this wayward pullet and chased her around the yard and into the run.

As I went bak into the house I thought to myself, "Very cool. It is kind of neat to see that Pecker taking care of the girls."

I then went back out about 15 minutes later, right at dark, to lock up the run and close the coop. Sure enough the ducks were not in the run...and as soon as they saw me coming they took off across the yard quaking and hurrying to get in all they could before they were rounded up and headed back to the run. Pecker came running out of the run and followed along as I rounded up the ducks. All the pullets sat in the gate an watched me round up the ducks. Once everyone was back in the run, Pecker promptly went up the ramp and into the coop with two of the girls right behind him.

I really like that little guy.

 

[PAChickenChick2]

Maybe if you went to all your neighbors that are rather close and asked them nicely they would sign a petition letting you keep him. I don't think any of the authorities would care that you kept him as long as your surrounding neighbors didn't care.

 

[chicken pickin]

Maybe if you went to all your neighbors that are rather close and asked them nicely they would sign a petition letting you keep him. I don't think any of the authorities would care that you kept him as long as your surrounding neighbors didn't care.

X2

It couldnt hurt to ask

 

[Rock Home Isle]

Those are wonderful thoughts, but the history of poultry in my town is not a friendly road. We are only allowed poultry because one person chose to fight to keep her ducks that she had before the town went to a Home Rule Charter. It has been made clear that our town board is not very friendly to poultry....

I have already had 2 neighbors come to me and ask, "When you gonna get rid of that Rooster?" That was before Pecker even started trying to crow....

On the good side, there is a family that is in the process of moving into a house down the road from my Dad's, where I grew up as a kid. It is about 2 miles outside of the City Limts. They have a coop and it looks like a mixed flock of Road Island Reds and Leghorns....So I left a message with the carpet installer and I'll also stop back by in a week or so after they have moved in and things have settled a bit.

And there's another possibility that my wife came up with just last night....If you've read my original post to this thread, you might recall that my daughter's Fiance' has family in South Dakota, and they have a nice flock of chickens. Those birds are working birds and not pets by any stretch of the imagination. They are the ones that really convinced my wife to let us get chickens. So I figure $80.00 for gas and they could make a weekend trip "with a package" to visit family back home. Course that means that Pecker would be headed to an out of state stew pot, it would be a means of avoiding the deed myself....so totally a last resort.

If only HE had been a SHE....

 

[Rock Home Isle]

We had the tree trimmers out last weekend and they did an amazing job on the trees in the backyard. Well worth the investment...

Here is my Cottonwood before the trimmers got here.



Here is the tree after they were done with it.

 

[Rock Home Isle]

I was so late in getting out of bed this morning, the ducks were quaking LOUDLY by the time I got out there to open the run so that they could start their day. Pecker and the Girls went through their morning routine....they took a short nap after they checked their reflections in the basement window. It is so funny to watch them turning their heads side to side as they watch their reflections. They used to peck at their reflections, but so much anymore.

 

[Rock Home Isle]

I was out doing a little yard work and noticed that my grapes look a little different this year...there are absolutely no vines, branches or leaves within 3 feet of the ground. So I did and an experiment and found out that my pullets love grape leaves...they get a little aggressive with each other when there are grape leaves on the line.




I picked a leaf and gave my "Puck Puck Puck....Puck Puck Puck" call and here they come to get their treat.



They were climbing over eachother to get a bite.