Does anyone have too many chickens?

[buc]

Quote:
LOL is right, a common thread here is, we started with X ,which was a manageable number, but now we have Z, which is getting to be too much.


My DW is adding a more permenant structure for my chickens (yes men, she is doing it, she is the builder in the family). I am the one that cleans, feeds and hatches the chics.

She also dresses the birds.

 

[AtRendeAcres]

How do you keep the coop clean?????

I would love to have them broken up into groups of 6 or 7 in trackers!

I am sure they would be easier to manage I have tractors sketched out from all the ideas I have read on the board & it would be a breeze to clean

It is just building them our house needs a lot of work so DH says in the spring!

I was getting a incubator for xmas I think I should ask for wood!

 

[buc]

I free range my chickens from day break until night fall, that helps a lot. Right now I am using dog kennels to house the chickens, so when they need cleaning I pull them out into the yard and hose them off, let them dry and return them with fresh hay.

The only time my birds are in the boxes are when they are laying eggs, other wise they are out and about. The area I set up for them to roost at night get messy under it, I use a farm style grain scoop shovel to scope the poop and put it in my little red wagon that attaches behind my lawn mower or the atv, which ever I have out at the time.

 

[Crazy4Chicks]

Wow i guess I am not doing as bad as I thought after reading some of you with 45-50 chickens I can look at my little flock of 16 hens 1 rooster and think i dont have enough LOL
Wait till spring LOL

Julie

 

[tiffanyh]

UGGHH.....
I was just thinkong the same thing on my ride to work.
My SIL was asking about me taking one of her rooster--splash orpington I hatched-- since she has two and I sai YES (suprise) so I am up to 8 in this pen that is 60sq/ft with a small coop. ALthough they DO free range daily and no feather picking/fighting yet. Although, I m sure adding a randy young roo will rile my girls up.

So then I think--cool, now I can hatch standard eggs---where the H*^L am I gonna put them?????

Oh...and I want some of Dipsy NN frizzles....

 

[Chellester]

Quote:
Kudos to you for being man enough to appreciate (and not be threatened by) a DW like yours.

There's a couple of men here that could learn a thing or two from you. They know who they are.

 

[Frizzledhen]

I started out with 97 chicks. I kept the best and gave away, sold, culled the rest. I ended up with 44 to get through the winter. I felt I could manage this number. I have 4 pens, 10X12 in my 24x30 pole barn. I was happy. THEN, the hens all went broody. Here a chick, there a chick, everywhere a chick chick OMG! I have chicks in the house, chicks under hens, eggs under hens and finally I had to set up another 7x7 pen for chicks. DO I HAVE TOO MANY CHICKS..............?????? Naw, I love the little fluff butts. I don't love the second job I had to get in order to feed all these little eating machines though. Here a chick there a chick everwhere a chick chick chick chick chick chick chick chick...............

 

[mdbucks]

Quote:
Kudos to you for being man enough to appreciate (and not be threatened by) a DW like yours.

There's a couple of men here that could learn a thing or two from you. They know who they are.

what am I spose to learn? How to sit back and let my DW build me another coop. I already clean and feed the birds(no hatching here YET)

to think I built my own coop and I should have waited for DW to do it

 

[1acrefarm]

I don't have near enough chickens. The hawks and my feedbill say I can't handle more at the moment. I wish I could free range them more. Darned hawks.

 

[BantyChickMom]

I am currently building a small coop for my latest pen,
the only help I need is moving the 4X8 sheets of plywood.
When DH helps we could really make some progress if we had every thing planned ahead.
We make changes (hopefully for the better) as we go along.

As far as too many chickens,

I currently have 54 and have put the bator away -- only til after Christmas.
When my others start laying I'm going to hatch a bator full to get more #'s of some of my breeds

I currently have:
STANDARDS
BR's, jersey giants, polish, sex links

BANTAMS
2 colors oegb, 2 colors cochins, black wyandotte roo, mixed hen, golden sebrights, BTW japanese, 2 white silkies, 3 buff silkies hatched Thanksgiving

DH says I have too many chickens, but
I THINK NOT