Coop Question...

Hopefulloflove

Chirping
8 Years
Jul 18, 2011
308
0
99
Benson, NC
Hey, so we've got the floor on the coop, and before we go any further I have a question. We are trying to kind of decide how the inside of the coop will be layed out, as well as the run. I have 4 silkies and the rest are sex links, black australorps and barneveldors...My question is, do I need to have seperate areas for my silkies from the other chickens? Do I need to keep the different breeds seperated? How about when we have chicks...do I need a seperate area for them? I am learning as I go here! LOL

Thank you!!
 
I have Silkies mixed with my other chickens and they do fine together. However, I had to build a ladder for the Silkies to get on the perch, which is about three feet off the ground. Poor things, they just can't quite make it up there otherwise. You'll have to have an area that can be partitioned off for chicks, transitioning, broody busting (if needed) and for any other reason you might need to separate a bird. I have a bare corner in my coop where I can put a big cage for transitioning chicks from the brooder to the coop.
 
Ok, what is broody busting? If you have silkies in with other chickens and you have roosters will there be mating going on between the breeds? I know dumb question...lol
 
Yes, mating between breeds. I keep mine separated in pens. I have silkies, cochins, SLW and BRs.
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Good Luck!
 
Ok..I thought so, and I know that sounded like ridiculous question...but just had to ask..I am trying to decide how best to do this...I mean, It only matters if you are planning for chicks right? If you are only after eggs, it doesn't matter does it?
 
My roos are about six months old and still, I think, trying to figure things out. They are inelegant and heavy-handed (footed?) so I hope that won't last. At any rate, I don't plan to ever have chicks by either of them so I'll always keep the eggs collected and not worry about separating anybody.

Broody-busting is necessary to interrupt the maternal mindset; when a hen wants to set her eggs and you don't want her to, the hen has to be separated from her nest. I would guess this is usually only done when the eggs are laid offsite, as my bantam's were. She was trying to set infertile eggs. She disappeared for over a week. I finally caught her when she came to the coop for a furtive mid-day snack. I put her in the broody-buster cage for a couple of days (during the day only). Found the eggs another week later hidden in the woodshed.
 

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